Table of Contents | Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 | Chapter 5 | Ch 6 | Conclusions | References

Chapter 5- The Complete Learning Environment

Introduction

It is sad but true that the visionary often dies penniless while the person who can explain the implementation of the vision, reaps reward. Learner-centred and on-line institutes have generated much ideology in the past decades but the time for pragmatism is here. With the maturation of a number of key technologies and an environment of change the design and implementation of an on-line institute can now begin.

5.1 The argument for an On-line Institute

One of the principle motivations for learning by an individual is that it enables them to take part in the socio-economic process. It is unfortunate but realistic to say that learning for the sheer joy of learning is difficult to justify in a society that places such high value on economic success. As children progress through school the joy of learning soon gets tempered by the responsibility of choosing schools and curriculums which will affect one's whole career and the learning is soon a chore which defines future existence. By allowing learning to take place when and where the learner chooses is possibly one way to retain the excitement of discovery of early learning and meet a desired pre-condition of learning, which is learner engagement.

The essence of an on-line institute is that it provides access to learning, anytime, anywhere. While the current computing technology is less than enthralling and as Logan (1996) suggests computers are not a panacea, they do have "the potential to promote a positive attitude towards learning..." (1996:195). It is the responsibility of the on-line system to keep the motivational level high and so provide a level of energy and commitment that teachers in a school system may not be able to provide for a number of reasons such as lack of resources and funding etc. It is suggested that such motivation is fuelled by "challenge, curiosity, control, and fantasy" (Malone, 1981 cited in Alessi & Trollip, 1991).

The motivation may be the virtual classroom. For the autonomous learner the virtual classroom exists already. Learning for the enjoyment of it many older autonomous learners can now follow up lifelong interests and hobbies via the Internet which puts them in touch with like-minded individuals and their information from around the globe. The added ability to chat on-line gives a sense of togetherness possibly not available previously for reasons such as geographic or physical handicaps or simply not knowing who else enjoyed similar interests. For the same reasons geographic communities build community centres, virtual communities can build community spaces.

The benefits of an on-line institute are not only for the learner but also for the administrator and academic or teacher. The move to provide or utilise on-line services may be prompted by very different motives for each of these sectors. The services may be driven via pedagogical necessities such as distance learning or economic reasons such as improved resource sharing, recruitment marketing and market expansion or just as a diversified revenue source.

The questions are what can a learning institution do or provide on-line and how do they go about it. The thought of providing educational services via electronic means is fairly alien to the average institution outside higher education and even then most universities in Australia have failed to grasp the essence of what they see as a remote learning problem for disadvantaged communities. Perhaps the first step to implement any on-line direction is to promote the cultural change required to create a receptive environment for suggestions of on-line services. The advantages of interactive learning systems flow to all parties whether they are across the world or down the hall.

5.1.1 Technology in Education

The arguments for increasing the use of digital technologies in education and training, sometimes come with little supporting evidence of the benefits. While Logan speaks of a nine point "enhancement of education in schools" (1996:189) via microcomputers, he also cautions that some uses of computers such as Computer Aided Instruction (CAI) reduces the user to a passive consumer of information. He is scornful of television schooling for the same reasons. What he does consider though is that computing is the fifth language alongside, speech, literacy, numeracy and science and should take its place with these as a core component of the school curriculum. Logan has highlighted both the regard and the caution that many in education have for computer technology. He also considers that one of the main reasons its implementation will succeed at the school level is because it is a "grass-roots movement" instigated by "teachers, parents and pupils rather than by administrators" (Logan, 1996:198).

5.2 Phases and Elements of Interactivity

Some on-line institutes may be started from scratch, but most will be adaptations, or new departments, of existing institutions going on-line. They may choose to offer a fully interactive learning system immediately or phase components in over time. To understand the possible paths open to the phased development of an on-line institution it is useful to employ a meter for gauging implementation progress. While there are many ways to evaluate an on-line system it helps to find a dependent variable which is easily understood. One suggestion is to view the area of electronic publishing from the perspective of the amount and type of interaction a user has with the system and the function of the publisher.

5.2.1 Internet Publishing and Interactivity levels

The system the end user or client interacts with will in the near future be based around the Internet technologies of a World Wide Web (WWW) publishing system. In the not too distant future these same technologies may be provided via the convergence of digital broadcasting (broadband) and Internet technologies. The obvious difference will be the increased bandwidth and the possibilities that brings such as full streaming video etc. For the time being though many services can be delivered or phased in using existing narrowband technology.

The four suggested phases of interaction are:

1. Passive Publishing

2. Active Publishing

3. Limited-Interaction Publishing

4. Fully-Interactive Publishing

The phases are defined by the increasing interaction at the front-end (the user's perspective) and a corresponding increase in automation at the back-end. Figure 5.1 summarises these four phases.

Figure 5.1 - The Interaction Phases of an On-line system.

All universities in Australia and a few schools have achieved the first phase of passive publishing. Beyond that implementation has been patchy. Administrators and educators need to be convinced of the benefits before funds are made available. Many are playing wait and see. Others according to Reinecke are travelling, but slowly, and with uncertain destinations (1996).

5.2.2 Structure and Elements design

As the services offered by an on-line service increase there is a corresponding increase in skills and tools required by the institute at the back-end of the system to supply these. Passive publishing has lead the Internet revolution due to its ease and lack of dependence on programming skills. Though as one increases the capability of a web site to do more interaction the programmers again come to the fore. Programming computers is a slow, expensive, inaccurate mix of science and art.

At the core of any discussion on what services to provide the client and how they should be implemented should be the questions, how will this increase efficiency (of the system or the clients usage) and how will this assist the clients objectives whether they be pedagogical or administrative.

At the very least it is possible to publish a number of documents for the on-line consumption of students and to call this a course. This is the equivalent of telling a student to read a book and they will be examined on it at completion. If the material is good they may do well but there is no single advantage in this case of using the on-line material over print based material. In fact the print material may have advantages such as cost, portability and lack of eye strain. Arguments for this method of passive publishing may be publish once, ease of maintenance and immediate global delivery. At this level the material can be called nothing more than an information resource. Properly ordered and structured it may be a very useful resource and access to this level of material is still one of the mainstays of Internet activity. Not every one wants interactivity. The browsing of resources can be a pleasant pastime, if one can find them.

5.2.3 Information System + Instructional Elements = Interactive Learning System

For an on-line institute, while browsing of resources may be one service offered, other services aimed at increasing the client's efficiency, satisfaction and learning capability will need to be added to ensure the site is compelling and useful. Some of these services are listed in Table 5.1. So while the World Wide Web is a powerful and sophisticated information system, it is also a daunting, raw and overwhelming learning system. What instructional elements can be added to this information system to create a useful and interactive learning system?

Reeves has explored the "pedagogical dimensions of an Interactive Learning System (ILS)"(1992:2). He separates these from the "media dimensions" of an ILS, things such as "colour, text, video and animation" which could also be used to evaluate an ILS. Pedagogical dimensions he reasons are such factors as "philosophy, teacher roles and learner controls"(1992:3) It is the instructional designers choice of their use, and degree of use, which helps define the ILS.

Of course the learner must bring their preferred learning strategy such as memorisation, direct instruction, deduction, drill and practice or induction to the system to complete the equation. Induction is highly valued as it fosters the construction of mental models. (Schank & Jona, 1990 cited in Reeves, 1992)

These instructional elements can be grouped by the classes of which they are part, based upon their role in the ILS. Figure 5.2 summarises some of these possible elements.

Figure 5.2 Instructional Elements of an On-line Tutoring System

The four classes of instructional elements are expanded upon below:

These elements would be made available by the system developer on the grounds of such things as market requirements, cost, availability of skills and tools etc. They could be labelled on a diminishing range from necessary, through desirable and useful, to not useful. They should all be independent of content.

Many of the system elements are reasonably simple to implement but may require organisational change and change to existing work practices to be effective. Take the instance of allowing the students to access and modify their timetables, or even courses, mid-stream. It hasn't been allowed before as it would have disrupted manual administrative practices. In a digital world this isn't necessarily a problem. Expert systems could be designed to help students with their choices and make and verify the changes.

5.2.4 Which Instructional Elements aid Learning?

When a student decides to begin a program of instruction and learning, whether it be for the day or for the year, they are entering the implementation phase of the learning component of an educational system. Instructional design, development and management will have taken place beforehand and more management plus evaluation will take place during and after. It is imperative that only those elements necessary or supportive to learning are available at this point. All distractions need to be removable by the learner if desired.

Kozma (1994) and Clark (1994) in 1994 publicly debated the influence of digital media, such as sound and video, on learning. Kozma supporting the argument that media has a positive effect on learning said that Clark dwelt on the "interaction between cognitive processes and characteristics of the environment" but also acknowledged that "knowledge and learning are neither solely a property of the individual or of the environment" (Kozma,1994:8). Clark argued that learning is not dependent on any one media attribute and says that Kozma has confounded media as an integral aspect of method (Clark,1994).

Jonassen (1994) dismisses the importance of the above argument "by suggesting that concern with the role of media attributes and methods for purveying information or conveying knowledge is inappropriate (Jonassen et al, 1994:31)." He also claims that the world has moved on and that "recent scientific revolutions in the psychology of learning, ..... have refocussed theoretical and practical attention on the role of the learner, rather than the effects of instruction ...." (1994:31) In reference to the media debate Jonassen then goes on to describe the learner as a part, interacting with the learning activity and environment which is embedded in the learning context which itself is embedded in the social context (Jonassen et al,1994).

It is this free association of the learner with the broader learning and social contexts which could be one objective of an `ideal' classroom, physical or virtual. It is this logic which places the on-line institute as just another element in a societal-based learning environment. There are no correct or mandatory elements at any level.

5.3 Advantages of On-line Education by Sector

To consider why an educational institution should provide on-line services it is useful to divide the education sector itself into the three dominant audiences for its services; schools, VET and higher education. Of course many of their needs are common and their services overlapping. At the tertiary level the old divides are breaking down as it becomes clear that all training is education and all education is training. Even the lifelong academic must type their own scripts and utilise the tools which may in the past have been relegated to the `skilled classes'. Similarly the humble plumber is encouraged to 'think' of the ramifications of their job role on public health etc. These next sections look at some reasons, advantages and constraints peculiar to each particular educational sector.

5.3.1 Education Sectors - Technology by Degrees

In chapter six a model will be presented to demonstrate many of the issues so far discussed. This model is by necessity narrow in its specifications, focusing on adult or autonomous learners, which also reflects an important point about the introduction of on-line technology. Each of the three sectors will implement on-line technologies at their own pace. If one was to do some crystal ball gazing, a chart such as Figure 5.3 may be the result which is an indication of the amount of on-line instruction, as one of a number of instruction methods such as lecture, class, self-paced coursework via reading etc., utilised by each sector over the next 10-15 years.

Figure 5.3 - Percentage of On-line learning by Sector
Year199720002010
School %11050
VET %105095
Higher Ed %204075

The reasons for the above differences in implementation rates reflect the basic aims of each sector. These unresearched estimates are designed to highlight:

1. the slowness of the school sector to implement technology due to under-resourcing and the conservatism of school administrators since a basic role of schools is the custody and care of students which clashes with the freedoms offered by technology (Marginson,1993);

2. the increasing funding of the VET sector by private enterprise and a proven desire to use technology to support business goals which should make this the fastest sector to implement on-line services;

3. the already high usage of technology in higher education but a possible inability to fund further expansion in the existing model as student growth stabilises.

Other differences highlight the inappropriateness of the 'one size fits all' mentality. For instance a system may be designed and suited to a tertiary education or adult training scenario where the student uses autonomous learning skills. This system would then use a process where learning outcomes and paths were negotiated with the learner as opposed to a pseudo expert system trying to `guess' the next move based upon previous data. This system would perhaps be unsuitable at primary school level. Why?

The immediacy of feedback in some instances is less important to the adult learner than the primary school student for several reasons. Adult learners quite often have already strong opinions on topics and to enter into an opinion driven feedback session with a pre-programmed electronic device can be an enormously frustrating event. In contrast opinion shaping tends to occur via the role modelling of primary schools where the teacher as society's representative guides the building of a student's appreciation for the cultural and social philosophies of the school. The immediacy of the teacher in this role is not challenged by on-line technology which should support such roles by providing materials which emphasise the learning outcomes.

Typically when the topic area is epitomising a computing program's strengths such as in mathematics, then it is accuracy, not opinion which is being negotiated and in most cases the well programmed computer would be correct and useful. The teaching of subjects such as art and social relations is a poor usage of a calculating device. Yet routine, task related instruction is a good use of interactive on-line training resources whether they are instructing on holding a pencil, driving a train or de-sexing a canine. Tasks are taught by all three sectors of education and can be time consuming and mundane for teachers.

5.3.2 Schools On-line

At first one may question the reasons behind primary or even secondary schools offering on-line services. But there are many. On-line services may provide the bridge to move the school away from the isolated closed-system it has been in the past and further into its surrounding community. After entry into on-line systems other systems become apparent which previously had no vehicle for their existence and could be based on geographies (school regions), or interests (student's chess association) or events (Sydney 2000 games). All of these new systems "have the potential to offer resources, opportunities and arrangements for learning" (Banathy, 1987:104).

Other reasons for a school offering services to its major clients, the students and their parents or guardians, may be for political, economic or altruistic reasons. Some examples are discussed below:

5.3.3 VET On-line

The provision of on-line educational services in the VET sector in Australia has some obvious advantages. If the main reasoning behind the TAFE network is to provide training and job support to business and industry then the technologies in the area of EPSS are crucial for future rapid deployment of skills. Just In Time Training (JITT), if not too prescriptive, can be a powerful learning tool. There are a number of methods whereby the integration of computing services into the curriculum could provide meshing the previously separate states of working and learning. Workplace learning "stresses meaningful learning in authentic settings" (Sherry & Wilson, 1996:2) which the traditional `one or two nights at tech' per week have difficulty offering. With even a simple electronic information system available to the learner/worker training times and time spent away from the job could be reduced.

One aspect of the VET sector is the opportunity to practice skills on equipment perhaps too expensive for any but larger organisations. TAFE buys this equipment and trains numerous students on its use. One way this model could be streamlined is to develop simulation environments where the tactile interaction with such equipment could be practised and mastered. As mentioned above, routine task instruction is a strength of Computer Based Training (CBT) which when used with supporting contextual resources could be an effective method for reducing teacher load.

5.3.4 Higher Education On-line

In the higher education sector the learner is required to inquire and reflect using critical analysis of theoretical propositions. This lends itself to a more autonomous learning style supplanted by access to information resources and opportunity for discourse and collaboration with fellow learners. Additionally much work is done in particular disciplines which puts it into the category of vocational training and the concepts of EPSS and task support would be useful. Both learning approaches have requirements which could be filled via on-line services. As discussed earlier with the trend of professional learning moving towards short, part-time discipline based `top ups' of knowledge, then new methods of learning and training will evolve. Even professional conferences will change as much of the core work of reading and listening to papers can be done before the event and the conference can be exclusively used for the discussion and development of ideas and human interaction amongst peers.

In the case of the disciplines requiring tactile manipulation such as in the arts and engineering once again simulation could support physical services.

Many current administration systems are little more than electronic rollbooks. The implementation of much more sophisticated systems would see the advent of the admin' system being utilised by the student as a learning support system, continually aiding and suggesting improvements in the learning process.

5.4 Further Questions before going On-line

The tasks confronting all sectors of education in the developing of on-line services are daunting. While this chapter has looked at some of the `why' and `how' questions the next chapter will look more closely at the `what' to build and how to go about it. Still, many questions remain for consideration before the first step is taken to build an on-line system. Some of the major questions are listed below and will require further investigation on an individual basis for each organisation.

5.4.1 Has the organisation the appropriate culture?

On-line culture has developed an entertainment flavour to it but in particular a website must be seen to be `alive'. Learning can be fun and currency is everything. Obviously though too, an educational institution must engender credibility so accuracy of information is also paramount.

The organisational culture will be reflected in any on-line pursuits and hence it must be capable of supplying Malone's four parameters of challenge, curiosity, control, and fantasy (Malone, 1981 cited in Alessi & Trollip, 1991).

Culture can be bought but this is an expensive and far from foolproof method. Time-Warner in an effort to give the on-line version of some of its entertainment products a young look recruited hundreds of artists, designers and programmers to build a highly interactive website. Within 18 months the project had been terminated with losses reported in the millions of dollars.

5.4.2 Has the organisation the Skills and Tools?

In the overall budget of an on-line service the technology costs (hardware, software and communications) are minimal in comparison to labour component costs of the technology and educational development. Good programmers like good educators are expensive.

5.4.3 Should the organisation convert an existing system or start afresh?

The conversion of existing administrative and academic practices may seem the less expensive alternative at the outset but it must be remembered that at every point a digital function or process meets a manual function or process, money will be spent in the conversion between domains. Many universities in Australia are putting pressure on academics to provide and develop on-line services but are not providing the infrastructure to support the system. A poor administration system in an on-line environment can be a definite impediment to learning.

Similarly building from scratch may be impossible due to budget and time constraints. The phasing in of an on-line project would allow the organisation to develop skills and tools in the areas of on-line services. Combined with a new way of looking at information with more emphasis on the ontological relationships it contains, rather than its causal relationships, would allow the building of a learner centred system where a body of knowledge was available to the learner to create her or his own relationships.

Not every organisation will be the front-runners in the new educational environments but education is a highly competitive environment. Perhaps it will be simple envy that is the catalyst for the development of the culture to effectively and successfully operate an interactive learning system.

Conclusion

This chapter highlights both the possibilities and the complexities of design and implementation of on-line technologies for the education sector. Technological issues though will pale in comparison to the cultural issues and in most cases it will be the rate of change of the organisational culture and not the technology which will dominate.

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Table of Contents | Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 | Chapter 5 | Ch 6 | Conclusions | References
© 1997 Paul McKey