The Concept of Distance Learning at a University - Research Paper Example

The Concept of Distance Learning at a University Executive Summary I am currently doing research on King Abdulaziz University and its Distance Learning Department. After a thorough analysis of their existing IT infrastructure, I have proposed three new IT strategic steps that will prove to give the university a competitive edge in their respective market. The report first briefly states the history of the university, their goals, finances and SWOT analysis. After the organization background, the existing systems are discussed and their limitations. Then, the three IT strategic initiatives that have been proposed for the university are explained. Finally, these three proposals are evaluated on the basis of advantages, risks, cost, resourcing and development timescales of each. 1. Introduction A new concept that has emerged from the World Wide Web is of education on the web: E-learning [1], [2]. E-learning has provided students an opportunity to learn even after school hours. Through such platforms they can interact with their teachers, fellow students [3]. Saudi Arabia has launched its efforts in the field of e-learning; it is being used in several schools and universities [6], [7], [8]. The following figure shows the results of a study conducted by Al-Nuaim [11], in which students were compared on the basis of their performance when some of them were taught the same content face-to-face and some were taught online. Fig.1: [11] It is obvious from the figure that at some instances the students who were taught online outperformed the other students. 2. Organization Background King Abdulaziz University is named after the establisher of Saudi Arabia. It was made in 1967 with the vision of spreading quality education in the western part of the country. It is located in the city of Jeddah. A group of entrepreneurs went to King Faisal with the proposal of making a university of world class standard so that their youth can also compete with the world. King Faisal gave his full support to the idea and announced that it will be a national university. A committee was formed which was headed by King Faisal himself [4]. It has contributed to the field of e-learning to a great extent due to which Deanship of Distance Learning was established in 2004 [10]. Fig.2: [9] 2.1 Goals The university has the objective to spread the knowledge of Islamic values and the highest quality of academic knowledge. They want to promote the element of innovative, superior and comprehensive research in a diverse range of fields, so that they can play their part in the development of the society. Their objective is to make their students competent professionals who possess exceptional skills [4]. 2.2 Business The university has more than 120,000 students; there is an almost equal ratio between the male and female students [11]. The university offers many programs ranging from diplomas to PHD, in a diverse range of fields for example; engineering, medicine, arts and humanities etc [16]. They have also deployed an efficient e-learning system which helps the students to gain knowledge, even after school hours. 2.3 Finances It gets around 4.5 million SR to buy materials and supplies; this amount gives good leverage to the Dean of the university and can comfortably cater to the needs of the faculty and students. 4.0 million SR is allocated for administration staff so that they feel motivated to do better at their jobs. A good figure of 2.0 million SR is allocated for maintenance [5]. 2.4 SWOT Analysis Strengths Weaknesses Has its own e-learning interactive system to provide support to the students. Has recently established a new online department. There is a special department which is in-charge of course development. It takes very long for the development of a course. Students have had grievances about marking of their papers A large number of employees are needed as instructional designers and to manage the IT infrastructure. Opportunities Threats The university should aim to increase the number of students. Technologies should be increased so that DDL can improve. The number of universities that offer e-learning opportunities is increasing. Takes lot of money to keep the technologies updated. 3. Services and Existing System 3.1 Systems for Students and Faculty Members 3.1.1 EMES EMES is a content management system; that also aims to enhance the communication between the faculty and students, thereby promoting collaborative learning and providing course material [12]. Many universities use a similar system around the world, namely; University of Leeds [13], University of Texas [14]. 3.1.1.1 Limitations The system seems to have problems when video, audio and large files are used, due to the limited bandwidth [42]. The system costs a lot and even more to solve the prevailing issues in it. It does not support Web 2.0 applications therefore only IT staff can update information. The figures below show the results of a study conducted on the effectiveness of EMES. Sample consisted of faculty and students. The study proved that EMES is not working effectively in the university. Fig. 3: Results of Faculty's Survey 2008-2009 [42] Fig.4: Results of Students' Survey 2008-2009 [42] 3.1.2 Virtual Class Room System CENTRA CENTRA is one of the main instruments of the concept of distance education. It is an open interactive medium in which the students attend the virtual lectures from the vicinity of their homes or anywhere else and enables direct communication with the instructor. This system is also deployed at East Carolina University [15]. 3.1.2.1 Limitations Just like EMES, this system cost the university lot of money and they are now paying even more to fix the issues in it. This system also seems to have problems when being connected with other systems at KAU [42]. The figures below show the results of survey on the effectiveness of CENTRA in the university; where sample was faculty and students. Fig.5: Results of Faculty's Survey 2008-2009 [42] Fig.6: Results of Students’ Survey 2008-2009 [42] 3.2 System for Administrator Staff 3.2.1 Course Development The course development at KAU consists of four phases; the first step towards course development is to assign a faculty member to a particular course. That faculty member is then assigned to work with an instructional designer of DDL to develop the course. It proves to be a very long process, further explained in the following figure: Fig.7: [42] 3.2.1.1 Limitations The outcome will not be a very productive one if effective communication does take place between these designated people. 4. Proposal of Three New Strategic IT Initiatives After thorough research, the following strategic IT initiatives are being proposed for the university. 4.1 OpenLearn from Open University The website began in 2006 and continued with the vision of Open University to distribute free sources of information in the modern technological mode of e-learning. It has recorded up to 3 million visitors since the launch of the website [17]. It comprises of two basic sections; LearningSpace: is ideally meant for learners, who can download content and gain their knowledge about the diverse range of course materials available there [18]. LabSpace: is ideally meant for creators who want to contribute something to the database of available content. An individual might collaborate with some other people or his instructor and create something valuable for everyone [18]. Where can it be used? LearningSpace utilizes Moodle [19] as the VLE platform. Moodle is a Course Management System as well as a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). Moodle can replace EMES and CENTRA both, since it effectively manages CMS and VLE. OpenLearn is a very innovative e-learning platform since it provides the power to the learners to create new content from existing content in LabSpace. This can solve the problems of course development. This platform is well equipped with web 2.0 technologies. Fig.8: [19] A study conducted by Kolfschoten et al [20]; concluded that collaborative learning enables students to understand complex skills easily and quickly. CommSys was a system similar system designed by the University of Hamburg to facilitate the concept of virtual learning environments [21]. 4.2 Open Access Repository Around half a million research articles are printed every year in the whole world. Only 15% of them are made Open Access i.e. freely available online [23]. Open Access Repository serves as a digital collection of papers that are self-archived by the authors; it serves as a global database. This growing trend of Open Access repository increases the impact of the research as much more number of people read it as compared to journals etc [25]. Fig.9: [22] Where can it be used? Universities and institutions should take the responsibility of making their contributions and research available to the world and maintain an effective Open Access repository. This will enhance the productivity of their e-learning environments. Four out of eight research organizations have adapted the path of Open Access Repositories. Similarly, Francophone Studies Open Repository has the objective of disseminating their research findings to the whole world and also welcomes any other group/individual who wishes to do the same [27]. 4.3 E-Assessment Software One of the activities of e-learning environments that is gaining name is “E-Assessment” [29]. E-Assessment can be defined as making use of technology to assess the level of student’s comprehension regarding a certain topic. E-assessment encourages re-thinking the prevailing curriculum and modes of assessment [30], [32]. E-assessment ensures accuracy and immediacy of results, thereby ceasing any chances of grievances from the students regarding the marking. Fig.10: [41] Where can it be used? An E-assessment system can prove to be very effective for an educational institution as it will reduce the manual work behind checking, making the result and displaying the result. Since all tests are done online, the students who are geographically far away can easily take the tests. SimAssessment [37], [40] is an E-assessment software that has been developed by University of Technology Sydney; it is available online and proves to give accurate assessments and results of virtual students [36]. Evaluation of the three Proposals Benefits Risks Cost Resourcing Time Scale and Development OpenLearn (HIGH) Moodle (platform) provides CMS, VLE Provides platform to communicate and collaborate with others. Enables e-learning accessibility for people with disabilities Requires some time learn how to work in LabSpace Does not fully comply with W3C standards yet [33]. Free People IT staff members will be required to install the underlying platform Moodle on which OpenLearn is based. No special IT skills are required to install the application. A resource should be hired to maintain this system. Equipment OpenLearn can be run on any system that has Windows, Macintosh or Unix platform [33]. Funding None Outsourcing None Next 6 months No cost will be incurred in the development of this except the extra resource to be hired for its maintenance. Open Access Repository (MEDIUM) Gives opportunity for bibliometric research [25]. Increases citation chances by 25-250% [24]. Literature remains structured and integrated at one place. Journals and magazines don’t support this concept. Authors will not get royalty for their efforts and research findings. Free People IT staff will be required to install any reliable content management system to establish the repository. Equipment Good CMS that are available online are WordPress [38], Drupal [39]. No special equipment is needed. Funding None Outsourcing None Next 6 months Same as above E-Assessment (LOW) Better assessment and management of research [26]. Quality of tests can be improved [28]. Immediate results. [28] Reduces cost, time [31] Proper security measures need to be ensured to hold the online tests. Steps to avoid double submissions [34], unauthorized person taking the test etc [35]. Free People IT staff will be required to install the simulator for SimAssessment, which is available online. Equipment No special equipment is required, it runs easily on Microsoft and Linux [40]. Funding None Outsourcing None Next 12 months Same as above It is advised that OpenLearn System should be deployed first, then Open Access Repository and lastly implement the E-assessment software. First priority is given to Open Learn because it offers a diverse range of features from collaborative learning to interaction with the instructors, from availability of course materials to the power to create new course material. It also possesses great accessibility features for people with disabilities. Conclusion and Recommendations After thorough analysis, it is concluded that the concept of Distance Learning is very beneficial for all the stakeholders in a university setup. The university that has been chosen for the analysis- King Abdulaziz University should initiate three new IT strategies to make their infrastructure more organized and effective. Appendix A: Facts and Figures The number of students and the infrastructure of the university are explained by Al-Nuaim [11]. He has described the e-learning program at King Abdulaziz University, which earned them Deanship of Distance Learning. Another researcher, Albalawi [9], studied the opinions of the faculty members about the concept of e-learning in Saudi Arabia. Appendix B: Performance comparison of E-learning with face-to-face instructions Al-Nuaim [11] conducted a survey on the effectiveness of e-learning as compared to the effectiveness of face-to-face instructions in a conventional classroom. The study concluded that students who studied course material online seemed to perform better at some instances than the ones who were taught only face-to-face in the traditional environment of a school. Appendix C: Effectiveness of existing systems of DDL at KAU Another set of papers that are chosen for the study of the research topic, has content relevant to the effectiveness of IT systems at Deanship of Distance Learning at King Abdulaziz University. “Case Study of Distance Learning Systems in Support of the Educational Process at King Abdulaziz University on Jeddah” [42] has results of surveys that were done to judge the effectiveness and usefulness of CENTRA and EMES. The sample consisted of students and faculty members. The studies revealed that CENTRA and EMES are not proving to be effective to the stakeholders at the university. Appendix D: Limitations of existing system of DDL at KAU Breuer et al [12] highlighted some of the features of EMES and the limitations that have been troublesome for the students and the faculty members. He also stated that EMES is an expensive system and the issue resolution was now costing even more than its price. In the same manner, CENTRA Saba [15] explained the features of CENTRA. “Case Study of Distance Learning Systems in Support of the Educational Process at King Abdulaziz University on Jeddah” [42] indicated that CENTRA was not being frequently used by the faculty or the students due to its problems and limitations. “Case Study of Distance Learning Systems in Support of the Educational Process at King Abdulaziz University on Jeddah” [42] also elaborated the phases of the course development at KAU, which proves to be a very long and complex procedure. Appendix E: Cost and Effectiveness of proposed strategies The first strategy that is proposed to KAU is of OpenLearn system. The advantages and features of OpenLearn and thus its underlying platform have been described with the help of a lot of content. The official content from OpenLearn [17], [18] and Moodle [19] have also been very useful in judging the effectiveness of the system. It is a free software that offers content management as well as virtual learning environments. The second strategy for KAU is of Open Access Repository. This proposal has also been analyzed by the help of many useful resources like OpenDoar [22], Carr et al [23], Brody [25] etc. Carr [23] highlighted the advantages of implementing Open Access Repository in a university, while OpenDoar [22] presented data about the number of repositories that are currently running around the globe. The third strategy that has been proposed for KAU is to deploy E-assessment system. JISC [41] presented results of his study which analyzed the improvement in test marks by making use of E-assessment system. His conclusions indicate that there can be a significant difference in test marks if E-assessment system is used. Bennet [29], Ridgway [30] also highlighted the benefits of E-assessment systems by giving examples of different institutions making use of it. 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