flex-e-bility

… after the hype of the new economy, growing disenchantment with e-learning has replaced over-enthusiasm. Failures of e-learning operations have, at least temporarily, overshadowed the prospects of widened and flexible access to tertiary education, pedagogic innovation, decreased cost etc., that e-learning once embodied. (p.11)

So says the OECD Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI) in it’s 2005 publication E-learning in tertiary education. Where do we stand?.

Defining e-learning as ‘the use of information and communications technology (ICT) to enhance and/or support learning in tertiary education’ (p.11). The authors further clarify this definition with the following:

E-learning refers to both wholly online provision and campus –based or other distance-based provision supplemented with ICT in some way.
Ranges from the most basic use of ICT through to more advanced adoption.

Based on the level to which online technology replaces classroom based teaching, online presence is classified as:
1. None or trivial online practice.
2. Web supplemented (e.g. course outline and lecture notes online, use of email and links to external online resources).
3. Web dependent. Students are required to use the Internet for key “active” elements of the program (e.g. online discussions, assessment, online project/collaborative work) but without significant reduction in classroom time.
4. Mixed mode. Students are required to participate in online activities (e.g. online discussions, assessment, online project/collaborative work) as part of course work which replaces part of face-to-face teaching/learning but significant campus attendance remains.
5. Fully online. (pp.11-12)

The publication reports on a survey of e-learning practices across 19 tertiary education institutions from 13 countries located in the Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America regions. The organisations are described as ‘operating across the e-learning development continuum. Some are at the leading edge internationally, some in the mainstream and others in the early stages of development’ (p.3). To summarise the some main points.

Adoption of E-learning (Teaching)- At most campus-based institutions enrolments in courses with a ‘high’ level of online presence is relatively low accounting for less than 5% of total enrolments. In some institutions the number of students enrolled in at least one course with high online presence may be between 30-50% of total enrolments (p.12).
E-learning activities across tertiary institutions are very diverse (p.12.)
- In most campus-based institutions, e-learning has not challenged the centrality of face-to-face teaching and e-learning has generally failed to emerge as significant activities or markets to date. Remote international delivery is typically left to small-scale, department-led experiments (p.12).
- E-learning as a supplement to face-to-face delivery dominates the undergraduate market, whole award programs with an online presence are more common at postgraduate level (p.13).
- IT and business/management are more likely to have a higher level of e-learning than other programs (p.13).
- It is generally thought that e-learning has had a positive pedagogic impact but there was little detailed research evidence. (p.13)

Adoption of E-learning (Administration)
- ICT has had more impact on administrative services than on pedagogic fundamentals of the classroom. This has changed the experience of learner by relaxing time and space constraints, providing easier access to information and greater flexibility in participation (p.15).

Technology Issues
- Whilst commercial LMS software has a significant market share there is a growing interest in the use of open source software (p.15).
- Learning objects are still considered to be an immature tool (p.14).

Barriers to Adoption
- Key barriers to adoption in some countries are infrastructure and funding and stakeholder scepticism (p.14).
- Practitioner reluctance to e-learning is associated with the pedagogic limitations an immaturity of the tools, insufficient ICT and pedagogic literacy, the professional culture of teachers/academics and concerns about intellectual property rights (p.16).
- No clear sustainable business model has yet emerged for the commercial provision of e-learning and failures have been more numerous than successes to date (p.18).

It is concluded that- fully online provision at campus-based institutions will remain very much in the minority for the short to medium term (p.13).

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (2005). E-learning in tertiary education. Where do we stand?. Paris: OECD.
Available at
http://new.sourceoecd.org/education/9264009205