Merits and Demerits of E-Learning - Assignment Example

THE RUNNING HEAD: E learning System of Learning. (Your Name) (University) Learning is best described as the acquisition of knowledge and skill as a result of instruction and also through the process of study. Learning occurs when people gain new information that modifies their behavior over a long period of time. Learning can take place in a classroom situation or through electronic learning. E learning stands for Electronic learning. It is the kind of learning that takes place through the use of online learning or by the help of multimedia technologies (Dennis 2003). Many technologies have been developed of late to enhance e learning. They include; Screen cast Computer aided assessment Simulation Web site Multimedia CD-ROMs To enhance the e- learning system, these different technologies are combined in the learning process. This method of learning has a number of merits and limitations as outlined below. Merits i. Easily accessible – E-learning enables one to learn either at home or in their offices. This helps people to further their studies more easily as they can easily learn at their homes or offices at their own convenient time. ii. Highly flexible-This method allows the learners to learn their modules at their own pace. They can stop and restart their sessions any time they feel like. This method helps to cater for the individual differences in the learning process as the quick and slow learners can learn at their pace for optimum realization of the content being learned. iii. Cost effective-This learning process is very economical to the learner as the learning process takes place at their homes or offices. This cuts down the cost that would have been associated with their transportation to and from other learning institutions. On the other hand this method of learning faces a number of limitations as a means of learning. These limitations vary as follows. i. Language barriers-The e-learning method is not available in all the languages. This poses a big challenge to many people around the world. This is because although the method is very accessible to many people not all are able to use it as a way of learning especially if they cannot understand the languages being used to transmit instructions. (DelGaldo and Nielson) ii. Bad attitude-There has been a big set back of this method of learning due to the negative attitude possessed by many people. In some countries and especially the third world countries such as African countries, most people associate this type of learning with prestige. They regard e –learning highly and therefore assume they are not in a position to afford it. (Woodworth.1985) iii. Cultural constraints-There is certain behavioral patterns that are common in certain places depending on different people’s culture. This in return hinders the e-learning process as a way of learning. This is because in some countries, citizens believe that learning should only take place in their common language and hence cannot support learning that uses other languages as a way of communication this is common in the third world countries which assumes that by supporting this learning they are going back to the days of colonialism. (Inaba.1997) On the other hand it has been noted that different cultures responds differently to the same stimuli. Then it becomes very difficult for the e- learning to establish a universal stimulus that will send a common message across all the cultures globally. It also becomes impossible for the designers when designing these communication tools very hard for them to consider taking into account all the different body structures present in the different cultures. This consideration is very necessary as people from different cultures possess different body structures and if they are not taken into account, they might have difficulties in the processes of using these technologies that are designed with reference to one particular culture. (Choong.1996) Lack of contact between the learner and the teacher. This method does not give an opportunity for the learner to have a physical contact with his/her instructor. This makes it very hard for the learner to ask questions and receive immediate responses from the instructor. The existence of a human contact and the presence of an opportunity for the learner to ask questions and receive immediate answers promote the learning process that helps the learner have a continuous flow of necessary information in the learning process. This lack of clarifications at certain points in the process of learning can hinder the learning process and makes it difficult for the learner to proceed with the learning until these clarifications pertaining to certain learning concepts are given. This also makes it difficult to employ the right methods for motivating the learner effectively. This as result makes the learning process boring and many people opt for other means of acquiring knowledge. (McDermott 1981) iv. E learning is a bit expensive as a means of learning compared to the other types of learning. This is because there is huge cost that is associated with the designing and development of the software and hardware associated with this kind of learning. Many organizations and people cannot then manage to cope with these financial constraints involved and therefore opt for other learning methods. This method can also result to time wasting. In cases where the learners are not disciplined, they can take a very long time to complete a single module as they have total control on the running process and can terminate learning at any time they feel like. This may lead to wastage of time adversely. (Hooper.1992) Due to the above limitations, many people do not like using E learning and therefore prefer other ways of learning. Hence we can improve its performance as a method of learning by considering and adapting the following; Design Educational Technologies That Are Compatible In All Cultures There is a high need for all the interacting cultures to establish a collaborative system. This will be realized by all the interacting cultures sharing the values associated with their interacting partners. Then the designers should put into consideration the different cultures requirements, which include the languages to be used in this communicating software. The incorporation of translators in this learning software will help these programs to be used in different cultures. Their design should enable the various cultures, which has been considered use them with ease. It should also be global in design to offer an opportunity for future modifications of the program to enable it to be used by the new upcoming cultures. Their design should therefore be global oriented rather than a localized one that only puts into consideration creation of a technology relaying on only a single cultures. This makes it difficult for the technology to be adapted in the other cultures. (Inaba.1997) When designing this learning software, there should exist a user interface for different users. In this process all the Colors, icons, language translators, date and time used should reflect a system that can be applicable in all the cultures. In this method the e learning process will be promoted greatly (McDermott 1981). At the same time it is also important to put into consideration all the body structures of all the cultures that will use the e learning technology. This will help the designers to design and create systems that are adjustable and flexible to fit in all the cultures. This is important because different cultures have people that have different anatomical dimensions. Therefore these differences should be taken into account to enable people from the different cultures to adjust these systems to fit their anatomy structures. In this way more people will adapt the e learning. (Smith1981). Collaborative E Learning The e learning should also be made to be collaborative rather than individualized learning. This is because in individualized learning, learner’s study alone to accomplish specific learning aims. This method is time wasting, boring and does not give a learner an opportunity to share and learn from the peers from within and outside his/her cultures (Keyama 2002). So E-learning should be developed to become collaborative kind of online learning where learners are given an opportunity to learn as a group to complete a shared learning objective. In this method learning becomes interesting as the learners are given an opportunity to interact and share their skills though not physically. In this method learners do not waste unnecessary time as they work very hard to finish the part they are working on. (Gersickh. C). This method ensures there is motivation in the process of learning as the learners aims at doing a good work to earn recognition from their peers. Also collaborative learning guarantees effective learning as the learners can share their skills online from each other. This process is also very efficient as the learners compete to finish their parts of their projects on time. (Inaba.1997) For the best learning to take place e learning should be supplemented with the other method of learning like use of lecture rooms. This will enable the learner’s come face to face with their instructors who can either motivate their behaviors either positively or negatively. This combined learning helps the students supplement their classes’ notes with more materials from the Internet and multimedia CD-ROMs. (Hooper.1992) References 1.Choong Y.Y. (1996). Design of computer interface for Chinese population. Doctoral dissertation Purdue University. 2.Hooper.S. (1992) Collaboration learning and computer based instruction, Educational technology Research and Development. 3.Inaba, A. and Okomoto T. (1997). The intelligent discussion coordinating system for effective learning. 4.Keyama, M. (2002), Investigation of a Meta modal for collaborative learning, Technical Reports of J.SISE, no.5 5.DelGaldo, W.and Nielson J.International user interfaces. New York Willey 1996. 6.Gersickh, C.J.G.Marking time. Predictable transition in task groups. Academy of management Journal 33,pp.274-309 1989. 7.Woodworth.R (1985) The Experimental Psychology, Chicago University Press, Chicago. New York 8.McDemott J.J. (1981) The philosophy of John Dew Chicago University of Chicago Press. 9.Smith, S.L (1981). Exploring compatibility with words and pictures. Human factors, 23(3), 305-315 10.Cox, T.H.Lobel, S.A.and Mcleod, P.L.Effects of ethnic group cultural differences on cooperative and competitive behavior in-group task. Academy of management journal, 34(4), PP.827-847.1991. 11.Dennis B. (2003) The E Learning Technology, Prentice Hall Publishers New York. Read More