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E-Learning: Concepts and Practice by Holmes, Bryn, Gardner, John R (2006) Paperback
e-Learning is now an essential component of education. Globalization, the proliferation of information available on the Internet and the importance of knowledge-based economies have added a whole new dimension to teaching and learning. As more tutors, students and trainees, and institutions adopt online learning there is a need for resources that will examine and inform this field.Using examples from around the world, the authors of Concepts and Practices provide an in-depth examination of past, present and future e-learning approaches, and explore the implications of applying e-learning in practice.Topics educational evolution enriching the learning experience learner empowerment design concepts and considerations creation of e-communities communal constructivism.This book is essential reading for anyone involved in technology enhanced learning systems, whether an expert or coming new to the area. It will be of particular relevance to those involved in teaching or studying for information technology in education degrees, in training through e-learning courses and with developing e-learning resources.Bryn Holmes is an assistant professor in Education at Concordia University, Montreal and director of an Internet company, Inishnet, which offers research and consultancy in online education.John Gardner is a professor of education at Queen's University, Belfast and his main research areas include policy and practice in information and communications technology in education.
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First published January 1, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 7, 2010
By far, this is the most comprehensive book I came across when it comes to e-learning.
internet generation; blended; e-learning; e-learning types; e-learning benefits; web 2.0
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"e-Learning requires different types of engagement, categorized in the framework of key practices or skills illustrated in the petals of the e-learning ‘flower’ in Figure 1.1." (p. 2)
"As knowledge is more and more easily constructed and disseminated, the learner nowadays is also called upon more often to judge its usefulness and, indeed, whether or not it is trustworthy and factual. Technical advances are making authoring and publishing tools easy to use, enabling learners to engage in sophisticated communication and interaction, between themselves and their various audiences" (p. 8).
"Only through a combination of Knowledge, Analysis, Synthesis, Application, Evaluation and Comprehension, therefore, is it likely that learners will truly assimilate what they need as new knowledge. By the same token, only by an appropriate combination of any two or more of the practices in Figure 1.1, will learning progress today." (p. 9)
"At its best, e-Learning offers new opportunities for both the educator and the learner to enrich their teaching and learning experiences through virtual environments that support not just the delivery, but also the exploration and application of information." (p. 10)
"There may be as many definitions of e-Learning as there are academic papers on the subject, but broadly speaking they focus on the same set of features." (p. 14)
"Hands-on and face-to-face contact will remain key approaches to making learning a grounded experience but working with and learning from others in an e-Learning context will allow greater access and a greater choice of resources." (p. 16)
"Today’s education system faces irrelevance unless we bridge the gap between how students live and how they learn. The push is on to make learning environments more relevant to today’s students and e-Learning offers one of the most important ways forward." (p. 17)
"It can be argued that most of the more positive roles for computers in education were first articulated during the 1960s." (p. 40)
"Although educational software is popular in its own right, it is the interconnectivity supplied by the Internet, and the huge resources made available through the World Wide Web, that are the primary underpinnings of e-Learning." (p. 46)
"Computer-based learning in its various generations has acted to open up the world of knowledge to everyone and its most powerful variant, online e-Learning, has become a catalyst that has enabled huge changes in what is learned and who is able to learn it." (p. 51)
"e-Learning has the potential to offer, at any time and place, richer resources than most traditional methods of delivering learning and teaching." (p. 52)
"Identifying and delivering key intellectual and technical skills is of interest to all educators. Nowhere are such skills more problematic to define than in the emerging field of e-Learning. Designing e-Learning courses, studying e-Learning environments, training e-Learning tutors and evaluating e-Learning outcomes all pose challenges. The rapid evolution of information and communications technology and its continued advancement will ensure that such challenges increase in complexity." (p. 56)
"Offering opportunities to create materials that transmit information and engage the learner in the culture of the discipline are key benefits of e-Learning environments but they are also a very powerful extension to ‘cognitive apprenticeships’" (p. 59)
"This new generation, it is argued will not just create, think and learn differently, but will also act, work and even shop differently from previous generations." (p. 61)
"Generally speaking, there are significant differences in attitudes towards technology between girls and boys but access to a home computer will tend to give both boys and girls greater confidence, which then manifests itself in the classroom. In the main, girls tend to use computers as a tool (for example, for browsing the Web or word processing) more than boys who tend to engage more in entertainment and gaming aspects." (p. 69)
"e-Learning has the potential to overcome some of the limitations of traditional learning, including, most importantly, the fixed times and locations for learning." (p. 77)
"In their organizational role the e-tutor acts as a content facilitator, a resource provider and an overall e-Learning activity manager and administrator. It is important, however, also to ensure that in structuring their course, e-tutors create a supportive environment for the diversity of learners they will encounter." (pp. 90-91)
"e-Learning environments are capable of considerable customization and just as conventional learning materials and approaches must be amenable to a diversity of learners, e-Learning design should also address the flexibility needed for a wide range of learning styles and needs." (p. 103)
"With the benefits of multimedia, animation and advanced communication facilities, e-Learning can place the learner in a simulated ‘virtual’ environment approximating to the ‘real’ thing, or can engage them through webcam, Internet telephony and whiteboard technologies," (p. 105)
"However, to retain the benefits of both approaches any such blended course will require:
• students to see themselves as producers and not just consumers of information;
• a process of constructing knowledge and that this construction is a communal activity;
• students to be trained in the various technologies they are using, and particularly those needed to communicate or present to their peers;
• authentic coursework to be built in;
• presentation to peers to be a fundamental part of the communication activities, including placing it on the Web for use by students in subsequent years and for inspection by the wider community;
• active collaboration by all students in both the preparation and the presentation of the new knowledge and other outcomes for a shared and wider audience;
• use to be made of group work and project-based learning pedagogies;
• appropriate assessment techniques such as portfolios that may benefit the individual, their peers and the learners that follow them;
• resources to be presented in good time to enable pre-reading and optimum use of class time for communal discussion and group work;
• use to be made of peer tutoring and mentoring, with more experienced students taking on the role of mentor;
• students to take on responsibilities such as leading a discussion group; developing specific elements of course content." (pp. 110-111)
" It is therefore always preferable to view the integration of online e-Learning as an enhancement and optimization of the learning environment. This is achieved by blending: taking the best features of each context and using them in a complementary manner that works better than any one of them on their own." (p. 153)
--
"In contrast to blogs, wikis accommodate the two main themes of communal constructivism with much more of a learning bent.
--
A wiki uses a simple database approach to create Web pages that are generally highly hyperlinked.
--
The two key attributes of a wiki are that the community of learners involved are free to create any definitions or narrative texts they wish, and that these definitions or narrative texts can be edited freely by anyone in that community.
"(p. 163)
internet generation; blended; e-learning; e-learning types; e-learning benefits; web 2.0
--
"e-Learning requires different types of engagement, categorized in the framework of key practices or skills illustrated in the petals of the e-learning ‘flower’ in Figure 1.1." (p. 2)
"As knowledge is more and more easily constructed and disseminated, the learner nowadays is also called upon more often to judge its usefulness and, indeed, whether or not it is trustworthy and factual. Technical advances are making authoring and publishing tools easy to use, enabling learners to engage in sophisticated communication and interaction, between themselves and their various audiences" (p. 8).
"Only through a combination of Knowledge, Analysis, Synthesis, Application, Evaluation and Comprehension, therefore, is it likely that learners will truly assimilate what they need as new knowledge. By the same token, only by an appropriate combination of any two or more of the practices in Figure 1.1, will learning progress today." (p. 9)
"At its best, e-Learning offers new opportunities for both the educator and the learner to enrich their teaching and learning experiences through virtual environments that support not just the delivery, but also the exploration and application of information." (p. 10)
"There may be as many definitions of e-Learning as there are academic papers on the subject, but broadly speaking they focus on the same set of features." (p. 14)
"Hands-on and face-to-face contact will remain key approaches to making learning a grounded experience but working with and learning from others in an e-Learning context will allow greater access and a greater choice of resources." (p. 16)
"Today’s education system faces irrelevance unless we bridge the gap between how students live and how they learn. The push is on to make learning environments more relevant to today’s students and e-Learning offers one of the most important ways forward." (p. 17)
"It can be argued that most of the more positive roles for computers in education were first articulated during the 1960s." (p. 40)
"Although educational software is popular in its own right, it is the interconnectivity supplied by the Internet, and the huge resources made available through the World Wide Web, that are the primary underpinnings of e-Learning." (p. 46)
"Computer-based learning in its various generations has acted to open up the world of knowledge to everyone and its most powerful variant, online e-Learning, has become a catalyst that has enabled huge changes in what is learned and who is able to learn it." (p. 51)
"e-Learning has the potential to offer, at any time and place, richer resources than most traditional methods of delivering learning and teaching." (p. 52)
"Identifying and delivering key intellectual and technical skills is of interest to all educators. Nowhere are such skills more problematic to define than in the emerging field of e-Learning. Designing e-Learning courses, studying e-Learning environments, training e-Learning tutors and evaluating e-Learning outcomes all pose challenges. The rapid evolution of information and communications technology and its continued advancement will ensure that such challenges increase in complexity." (p. 56)
"Offering opportunities to create materials that transmit information and engage the learner in the culture of the discipline are key benefits of e-Learning environments but they are also a very powerful extension to ‘cognitive apprenticeships’" (p. 59)
"This new generation, it is argued will not just create, think and learn differently, but will also act, work and even shop differently from previous generations." (p. 61)
"Generally speaking, there are significant differences in attitudes towards technology between girls and boys but access to a home computer will tend to give both boys and girls greater confidence, which then manifests itself in the classroom. In the main, girls tend to use computers as a tool (for example, for browsing the Web or word processing) more than boys who tend to engage more in entertainment and gaming aspects." (p. 69)
"e-Learning has the potential to overcome some of the limitations of traditional learning, including, most importantly, the fixed times and locations for learning." (p. 77)
"In their organizational role the e-tutor acts as a content facilitator, a resource provider and an overall e-Learning activity manager and administrator. It is important, however, also to ensure that in structuring their course, e-tutors create a supportive environment for the diversity of learners they will encounter." (pp. 90-91)
"e-Learning environments are capable of considerable customization and just as conventional learning materials and approaches must be amenable to a diversity of learners, e-Learning design should also address the flexibility needed for a wide range of learning styles and needs." (p. 103)
"With the benefits of multimedia, animation and advanced communication facilities, e-Learning can place the learner in a simulated ‘virtual’ environment approximating to the ‘real’ thing, or can engage them through webcam, Internet telephony and whiteboard technologies," (p. 105)
"However, to retain the benefits of both approaches any such blended course will require:
• students to see themselves as producers and not just consumers of information;
• a process of constructing knowledge and that this construction is a communal activity;
• students to be trained in the various technologies they are using, and particularly those needed to communicate or present to their peers;
• authentic coursework to be built in;
• presentation to peers to be a fundamental part of the communication activities, including placing it on the Web for use by students in subsequent years and for inspection by the wider community;
• active collaboration by all students in both the preparation and the presentation of the new knowledge and other outcomes for a shared and wider audience;
• use to be made of group work and project-based learning pedagogies;
• appropriate assessment techniques such as portfolios that may benefit the individual, their peers and the learners that follow them;
• resources to be presented in good time to enable pre-reading and optimum use of class time for communal discussion and group work;
• use to be made of peer tutoring and mentoring, with more experienced students taking on the role of mentor;
• students to take on responsibilities such as leading a discussion group; developing specific elements of course content." (pp. 110-111)
" It is therefore always preferable to view the integration of online e-Learning as an enhancement and optimization of the learning environment. This is achieved by blending: taking the best features of each context and using them in a complementary manner that works better than any one of them on their own." (p. 153)
--
"In contrast to blogs, wikis accommodate the two main themes of communal constructivism with much more of a learning bent.
--
A wiki uses a simple database approach to create Web pages that are generally highly hyperlinked.
--
The two key attributes of a wiki are that the community of learners involved are free to create any definitions or narrative texts they wish, and that these definitions or narrative texts can be edited freely by anyone in that community.
"(p. 163)
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August 13, 2018Ummmmmm! REference book.
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