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ABSTRACT
This report intends to examine the emerging technology, E-Learning. Through the study of various resources, for example academic journals combined with web information, it is hoped to identify the advantages and disadvantages of the existing tools. ... An attempt has been made to cover as many existing e-learning tools in the market.
This report will also focus on the technology categories designed specifically for e-learning: courseware authoring tools, learning management systems and learning content management system, provide an overview of each category and suggest some of the features/capabilities to consider when making selection decisions for e-learning technologies.
The report makes no distinction between educational and corporate uses of E-Learning methods. ...
INTRODUCTION
e-Learning - electronic Learning - is a new buzz word which is being used to describe a wide range of computer and/or web-based systems that support students and teachers.
The development of e-learning is now vital to the Universities and multinational’s learning and teaching strategy. Over the next few years, provision for support in this area is certain to grow, particularly with the emergence of new e-learning tools and digital resources.
E-Learning has a range of solutions wherein the client works with the training provider to find the best ways to bring about the expected outcomes for educational success. ... Today, with e-Learning solutions at our fingertips, it is easy to schedule everyone on the staff to attend these training sessions, so as to ensure a high percentage of success for your employees. ... A wealth of resources and techniques now exist which serve as a source both for exciting examples of new teaching practices, as well as easily accessible methods for adoption into everyday learning and teaching.
THE COMPONENTS OF e-LEARNING
E-Learning draws on the power of computers to offer a rich variety of multimedia elements and integral interactivity. Depending on the course objectives and the experience or expertise of the learners, e-Learning may include some or all of the following components:
* Well-defined learning objectives
* High resolution graphics
* Video clips
* Animations
* Interactivity
* Voiceover, music, sound effects
* Authoring or programming
* Simulations
* Testing and scoring
* Course management to track individual records and bookmarks
General Advantages
ACCESSIBILITY
E-Learning courses are easily accessible on a 24/7 basis. E-Learners can proceed through a course at their own pace at a time that is convenient. E-Learning is developed in a way so that learners can access a series of lessons as needed, so learning is incremental (Just-In-Time), convenient, and timesaving.
CROSS-PLATFORM
Developers can make e-Learning courses readable on all platforms using browsers without creating separate programs for each platform. ...
TIME & TRAVEL SAVINGS
E-Learning, the whole concept of making learning available over the internet or the intranet, learners can schedule training so that it does not interfere with other responsibilities. ...
SCALABILITY
E-Learning courses are mostly built by using a template. ...
COST-EFFECTIVE
It is estimated that e-learning can reduce the cost up to 20-50% compared to traditional instructor led, facility-based training.
OWN PACE
The facility such as e-learning also provides the learner with the freedom to learn at their own pace. ...
JUST-IN-TIME
E-Learning provides the employees of organizations or students as and when the knowledge is needed. ...
INTERACTIVITY
The e-learning environment stimulates new interest in the training process.
RAPID CONTENT UPDATE
This is a huge advantage of e-learning. ...
RESOURCES
Online learning facilitates the option of using the web to provide the most open source of information. ...
VALUABLE COURSES, SPONSERED BY EMPLOYERS
E-learning, if developed with the help of experts and highly qualified workers, can prove quiet informative and very fruitful. Students can often get their employers to pay for computer based learning since it does not require the students to physically go to another location to pursue education.
EASY TO USE
The basic requirement of e-learning is an internet browser; a good internet connection and HTML base and design to facilitate quick downloading. ...
Conclusion on advantages
It could be concluded that the benefits of e-learning can be substantial. ... Here are just some of the principal advantages that medical professionals typically gain through a health-care e-learning system:
E-Learning attracts and helps retain a high-caliber staff, Conveniently maintains board compliance and accreditation (including continuing medical education credits), improves patient care and reduces malpractice risk by keeping personnel up-to-date on the latest medical and liability information, efficiently manages volumes of health-care resources, allows for honorariums to be earned and applied toward medical books or supplies and lays the groundwork for expanding into new specialties
General Disadvantages
ORGANIZATIONAL ISSUES
If an organization is not very well equipped and does not support the necessary requirement to achieve healthy learning, groups, learners or employees could lose interest since frustration levels could rise. ...
INDIVIDUAL ISSUES
• Without the routine structures of a traditional class, students may get lost or confused about course activities and deadlines
• Students may feel isolated from the instructor and classmates
• Instructor may not always be available when students are studying or need help
• Slow Internet connections or older computers may make accessing course materials frustrating
• Managing computer files and online learning software can sometimes seem complex for students with beginner-level computer skills
• Hands-on or lab work is difficult to simulate in a virtual classroom
“In addition to temperament, an abundance of individual issues answer the question of the advantages and disadvantages of e-Learning. ... e. ... Is the individual predisposed to self-learning? ... Although classified as at your leisure and at your own pace, it is important to prioritize where e-training can, or should, fit into the already jammed-packed workday. ... e. ... e. ... ”
The concepts of pre-disposition to self-learning and support bears further discussion. ... Also, since some employees fear e-learning, or feel "overwhelmed by the task of integrating it", support systems need to be put in place to ensure learning occurs. ... This is in the case of e-learning facilities that require huge hardware and extremely efficient software requirements. ... Such students can never learn by the means of e-learning tools. ... E Learning, which is sitting in front of the computer for getting trained hampers the ability of a person to meet new people. It rarely offers the opportunity, especially when e learning occurs in the same office environment where you meet the same people everyday. “Coupled with that is the stimulation factor -- there is a stronger likelihood for learning when a module stimulates (versus being boring)! In the face-to-face format, an entertaining and informed trainer will probably provide a better learning environment; in e-learning the correlation is sound technology and quality screen presentations.”
DROP-OUT
“One of the problems that have plagued the e-Learning industry is high dropout rates. ... “The Corporate University exchange, an education and research consulting firm, studied the dropout rate of two types of e-Learners, those who have taken both asynchronous (no live instruction) and synchronous courses. ... Other inhibiting factors included: lack of management oversight, lack of motivation, problems with technology, lack of student support, individual learning preferences, poorly designed courses, and substandard/inexperienced instructors.”
The results of a study conducted were not in favor of electronic learning. ... Some students have problems affording the purchase of technology to use E-learning, and some of these are students with disabilities. E-learning software’s that have the best capabilities to provide the support could end up costing 1000’s of dollars and this could prove really expensive. Like others, students with disabilities may have trouble learning to use a computer and struggle to understand the software to take the online class, but the students with disabilities have another adaptive software package to learn beyond the basic programs for the course.
WHAT ARE E-LEARNING TOOLS?
E-Learning tools are packaged software products used by Organizations/Educational institutions to help them create, maintain, and manage E-Learning without the need to learn hardcode language’s behind the software such as HTML and JAVA, spreadsheet software, and the languages/tools available in the market. ... A side benefit (often a valuable one) is the opportunity to build on the experience and successes of the E-Learning tool developers, rather than having to learn by trial and error.
Following are the two classes under which the tools are classified:
Development/Maintenance/ Delivery Tools
Such kind of E-Learning tools are pre-designed learning module prototypes featuring templates and pre-programmed subroutines to create and maintain on-line presentations, exercises, tests and quizzes, and other types of interactive learning sessions. ... Some of the tools offer’s facilities to automatically and dynamically update on-line training components as content and data keep changing.
Management/Monitoring/Reporting Tools
Such kind of E-Learning tools are used to simplify the development of training management tasks. They offer capabilities such as tailor-able templates to generate enrollment forms, track learner progress, perform learning assessments, report completions, and generate e-mail messages to students who are lagging in progress or excelling. And as one might expect with Internet-based E-Learning, many of these suppliers are located worldwide, providing both local and international support for every kind of customer.
TYPES OF INTERACTION
Tools for learning vary with “TYPES OF INTERACTION”
It is important to understand how a e-learning product allows people to interact. ... The tools are relatively simple. ... Technology-based moderation tools become very important and more complex with this model. ... With leading technology tools, someone can interrupt and ask questions, although the majority of the session is one way. ...
There are three models that can further categorize the various e-learning tools:
Instructor-led model,
Here, either the instructor or the appointed moderator has control over the tools behind the system. ... Some good examples of the kinds of input from a single participant to a moderator include polls, e-mail, telephone calls and text chat. ...
E-Learning can make / are using of a wide range of technologies and media. These technologies can be categorized on the bases of delivery media or interaction tools. ... Some e-Learning providers (colleges & companies) select technologies from a variety of vendors and many others select an all inclusive course delivery or management system that may include many of these technologies. ... Many e-learning companies offer these programs. ... But as new cut through technologies are emerging, newer platforms are allowing for more user friendly tools such as audio and video clips. ...
Now we shall, look at some types of technologies used in E-Learning:
• Asynchronous Internet Communication (AIC)
This is a listserv forum using communication tools such as email or bulletin boards, on an Intranet or Internet and is usually accompanied by an archive or database accessible by participants and the instructor. ... The newest technology adds conference calls to Web collaboration tools. ...
Advantages:
All that is needed to get started is telephone access and basic knowledge of the Internet, which is why this segment of the e-learning industry has grown significantly. Company members can use Internet connections to view PowerPoint slides, while online collaboration tools such as chat rooms and discussion boards let instructors know that they’re delivering material at the right pace. ... This e-learning method is profitable for many associations because it’s easy to tally the associated costs and price the events to make money. ...
Traditional Courses
Online Courses
• Instructor-focused
• More "passive" learning
• Instructors "deliver" knowledge
• Outgoing, verbal, high-achieving, students participate the most
• Technology may be used, but is not central to the role of being a learner
• Various media may be used, but most delivery is by the spoken word, with some written support • Learner-focused
• More "active" learning
• Instructors "guide" the learners
• Instructors "model" good learning techniques
• A much greater percent of students actively participate in discussions
• Technology helps students explore resources and construct their own meanings
• Technology may help instructors use multiple forms of media, and reach a wider variety of learning styles
Traditional way of teaching:
In traditional classroom learning is often focused on the instructor. ...
Online way of Teaching
A new wave for teaching
Online learning is focused more on the student. ... As a result of learners constructing their own learning environment, they are considered to be more active. This type of active learning forces instructors to be "guides on the side" of the learner. Online learners have more responsibility for their learning, and instructors spend much more time providing resources than delivering content. ... With its wider range of technologies, media and forms of interaction, e-Learning (in a well planned setting) can help instructors meet a broader range of students needs. ... So the Question arises what are students actually learning through this?
Considerable time is devoted for the development of E-learning contents, set goals, activities for online educations, but there is little or no time spend on making the online environment transparent enough so that the learners can engage in learning activities rather then spending time to understand how the tools work. ...
E-learning tools which are developed just keeping a learner in mind will never succeeded in providing a proper learning environment If a student is not able to understand the architecture of the course then the learning activities are in vain.
The poor usability of the online course, therefore, inhibits the students ability to learn, as they end up spending the majority of their time on understanding the tools their noses in the Help manual rather than a textbook, journal article, or discussion thread. ...
E-learning Software Tools and Products
There are many e-learning tools available in the market. ... These vary from digital multimedia tools, web publishing tools, online conferencing tools, and integrated learning environments to collaboration & management tools. Let’s now describe each of these tools.
Digital multimedia tools
These tools provide learning with the help of different Media types like images, graphics, sound, animation, video and virtual reality. We can further subdivide the digital media creation tools as follows:
Graphics, Image & Audio creation tools
Images are useful not just because they are visually appealing or to improve the look of content, but also aid in easy understanding of difficult topics. ... Image authoring tools that are used to modify and edit images are Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, CorelDraw, Freehand, SuperPaint, Fractal Design Painter and so on. ... Macromedia Director and Moviestar Maker are some of the professional authoring tools to create video.
Animation tools
Animation formats on the web are JAVA, Shock wave, GIF89a and they can be created using tools like CorelWeb Graphics, WebPainter or GIF builder. ...
The only problem encountered in using multimedia in e-learning development on the Internet is bandwidth issues.
Web Publishing Tools
In a web-based education site, the content must be in HTML format. ... Common web publishing tools are Macromedia DreamWeaver, Microsoft Front Page, HTML Assistant Pro, Claris Home Page, HotMetal and so on. ...
Collaboration & Management Tools
As the name suggests, these e-learning tools are basically meant for collaboration and management purposes. These tools comprise of real-time chat, audio and video conferencing, application and document-sharing, white boarding, discussion lists, news groups, email, document/file sharing. ...
Multimedia Internet Authoring Tools
Tools like Director and Authorware Professional (Macromedia), Quest Net, IconAuthor and ToolBook II Instructor offer different visual programming techniques to create applications. Among others are the Apple Media tools, Course Builder, Hyper Card and so on.
Integrated Learning Distributed Environments
They are a collaborative learning instructional environment that makes extensive use of collaborative tools and comprise media creation tools and authoring tools designed specifically for learning applications. The most popular ones are FORUM, Learning Space, Virtual U, Symposium, Learning Server and so on.
The above tools are some of what comprise a learning environment. ... Contact us with your specific e-learning development needs and we can customize the above tools to suit these needs.
E-LEARNING TOOLS IN THE MARKET
(I) Questionmark’s Perception Tool
Questionmark software makes it easy for educators and trainers to write, administer and report on assessments, tests, exams and surveys using PC’s, LAN’s, the internet and intranet. ...
Other new features include assessment monitoring, time limit management, MathML support, comment boxes, question-by-question delivery, improved reporting and analysis, more versatile security settings, easier server configuration, e-mail broadcast capability, easier analysis in spreadsheet or statistics programs, and a new browser-based Enterprise Manager that allows the management of participants and assigns security rights to the results.
Approximate Word count = 13826
Approximate Pages = 55.3
(250 words per page double spaced)
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