I am a technology lover. A geek. And so my support for eLearning is not surprising. But having been on both sides of learning platform, I feel I have an understanding of why eLearning can be, and should be, and is; so successful.

From the Student’s Perspective:

As a student at Central Queensland University I used Blackboard. I used it for all of my subjects, not just those done completely online. It was here that I found powerpoints from my lectures, worksheets from my tutorials, resources for my practical work, and also readings to engage me with the theories of the course. All my information was in one place, and it was easy to access, at any time of the day or night that I wanted it.

Apart from it being a ‘hub’ of information and links, I also found a community. I would talk with people who were studying at my campus in the ‘group’ forums, and I could also access forums that were for all people doing the Bachelor of Learning Management (my course). It was a great place to discuss the readings we had been given, to help each other with mini tasks, and to clarify aspects of the assignments. It was here that we shared links, references, knowledge, and support.

Our community was not just about our work though, it gave us an opportunity to connect with our peers, and talk about life. I honestly believe that this brought us together as a group, and provided a great sense of camaraderie. After lectures we would go home, and it wasn’t until we all got online that we spoke, and shared.

During my experiences as a student using eLearning, I did find some weaknesses. I did not receive practical demonstrations of the things I was learning. Often the work was posted late, and the actual audio of the lecture was not available, only the powerpoint of it. The only way I could get feedback to know if I were on the right track was through the forums, which were filled with my peers opinions, not my lecturers.

From the Trainer’s Perspective:

Now that I’ve created an eLearning course for electrical apprentices, I am finding my experience as a student invaluable. I have found that FLEXIBILITY is one of the strengths of eLearning. It’s accessibility, its relevance, and its changeability.

I use one main way to share my content. Slides with verbal explanation, hosted on slideshare. Having the aural presentation side to the slides means that they are MORE beneficial to the student then just a powerpoint, and even more beneficial then sitting in a lecture, because they can rewind, pause, take a break and not miss anything, fast forward, share, skip, and go back to. Students can also download the workbook (or receive them in person) and use their textbook for support materials. This means that students will have a variety of explanations, meaning there is a better chance that one of them will connect to them.

The second part of my three part eLearning teaching is having students participate in an online quiz. The quiz covers the learning outcome in a general way and helps students to self-assess. It is a voluntary aspect of the course, but one that a lot of students participate in because it gives them instant feedback on how they are doing, and also gives them specific feedback on what they need to study further.

As a trainer I have found that the ability to collate all the information your learners could possibly need into one space to be incredibly beneficial. No lost worksheets, or excuses like too much printing (though there is the download limit problem). Resources aren’t wasted anymore, because they are online, and easy to read and use. This has been particular beneficial for me personally as well. When students ask me a question, I know exactly where to find the information, and I know that i can access it even if I’m not at work.

When students participate in the forum (the third part of the teaching), they are connecting, they are learning, and they are exploring. These are valuable, and while they can be equally achieved in a small classroom setting, the fact that they are there for people to reference back to, check, and clarify is a real plus over general conversation.

So from being a teacher I find it much easier to prepare my work, I find much more time to troubleshoot, and more positive feedback. I would 100% recommend eLearning!

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!