New era in e-learning

E-learning is now being mainstreamed across vocational education and training (VET), a new survey reveals.

The national E-learning Benchmarking Survey shows 91% of students and 88% of teachers and trainers now say their VET experience includes at least some form of
e-learning.

This is the fourth year the survey, which measures the uptake, use and impact of e-learning within VET, has been conducted by the national training system’s e-learning strategy, the Australian Flexible Learning Framework (Framework).

The survey results also highlight a further increase in the uptake of e-learning by registered training organisations (RTOs), with 36% of VET activity in RTOs now formally involving e-learning, compared to just 3-4% in 2003-2004.

The 2008 results have recorded an increase in every key e-learning indicator measured by the survey, which is distributed to all states and territories.

The surveys are based on 12 e-learning indicators which have been realigned for the 2008 survey in line with the Framework’s new direction, as set out in the 2008-2011 Framework Strategy.

For the first time, RTOs were asked if their organisation had an e-learning strategy. Thirty percent said e-learning was incorporated into the overall business strategy and 9% had a stand alone e-learning strategy.

RTOs were also asked about the use of national VET learning object repositories – such as the Framework’s LORN (Learning Object Repository Network). Forty-eight percent said teachers and trainers accessed materials from them and 7% said teachers and trainers contributed materials to them.

Framework Benchmarking and Research Business Manager Annie Fergusson said e-learning had now become widespread within VET.

“The survey shows that most VET teachers and trainers are doing something under the e-learning umbrella, even if it’s just using online resources or allowing their students to electronically submit work.

“Additionally, there are some RTOs out there where technology is completely integrated into the way that they deliver their programs.”

The survey results also highlighted that some e-learning tools were more popular than others, with:

• 70% of VET teachers and trainers saying they had online access to, and downloaded, learning materials and resources
• 60% saying they used multimedia learning resources
• 67% saying they used electronic work submission
• 52% saying they used online access to and participation in course activities.

Less used tools were:

• podcasting (9%)
• online recognition of prior learning (RPL) tools (12%)
• voice technologies (17%)
• mobile technologies (19%).

These technologies are also much newer and less understood by teachers and trainers which could account for the lower uptake.

Most VET teachers and trainers had a positive attitude towards the use of e-learning in teaching and training practices:

• 62% of VET teachers and trainers said ‘the use of e-learning has improved my teaching practices’
• 61% said ‘the use of e-learning has enabled me to facilitate a more personalised approach to learning for my students’
• 56% said ‘they encourage greater interaction between students through the use of technology’
• 54% said ‘the use of e-learning has improved learning outcomes for my students’
• 69% said ‘the use of e-learning has made learning more interesting for my students’.

As in previous years, VET teachers and trainers believed access to e-learning resources has improved teaching and learning outcomes:

• 58% of VET teachers and trainers said ‘the e-learning resources I access are of high quality’
• 71% of VET said ‘the e-learning resources I access have enhanced my teaching’
• 75% of VET said ‘the use of e-learning has increased my students’ access to learning resources’.

When asked about their access to computers, the internet, e-learning resources and professional development to support their use of e-learning, around 60-70% of teachers and trainers said that they had adequate levels of support.

Up to 20% of teachers and trainers said the support they had for e-learning was poor.

The survey results highlight the fact that VET students today want a blended learning experience, with 94% of students saying they would like at least ‘a little’ e-learning in their course and one-third would like ‘a lot’ of e-learning.

For around half of VET students (47%), access to e-learning played at least some part in their choice of course and/or training provider.

The main benefit of e-learning to students was the flexibility it offered, with 65% saying it enabled them to choose when they studied and 71% saying it enabled them to choose where (home, work, on campus etc) they studied. 

“I have two young children which limits my options to study and e-learning has helped to get around that as I can study from home, in my own time at my own pace.”

“It allowed me to take the course I wanted at a price I could afford. It fitted in with my lifestyle and provided a consistent and constantly available source of information for reinforcement of learning and ideas.”

“I chose this course because it gets me a step into real estate and because I can do it at home whilst caring for my two-year-old daughter. It was the only training provider that had this course for a reasonable price and the only one I found where I could do it at home.”

Student satisfaction with e-learning was also evident from that fact that 70% said they would recommend e-learning to their friends or work colleagues, with 28% saying they would strongly recommend e-learning. Only 8% said they would not recommend e-learning to their peers.

Other key findings from VET students were:

• 62% of VET students said the e-learning in their course had increased their confidence and computer skill levels
• 33% said the e-learning in their course and the computer skills they had acquired in undertaking their learning had already improved their employment outcomes and 54% thought that e-learning enhanced their ability to do their job
• 65-70% said that the e-learning components of their course gave them flexibility in how (eg face-to-face, using technology), when (ie the time of day) and where (eg home, workplace, campus) they did their study.

The provision of e-business services by RTOs, and the use of these services by VET clients, is increasing.

Sixty-nine percent of RTOs provide their VET clients with access to at least some e-business services (eg online information, online enrolment, online payments and forms), and those that do offer these services are expanding their range of e-business options. However, 31% of RTOs do not offer e-business services.

While some in this ‘non-user’ group report they are actively exploring options for introducing e-learning, many more do not see e-learning and e-business as relevant to their training or beneficial to their clients, and are not motivated to explore more flexible and engaging training.

Ms Fergusson added: “While most VET students and VET teachers and trainers have generally favourable attitudes toward e-learning, there are those who use it reluctantly and others who are firm in their opinions that e-learning is not relevant or useful to their teaching and training programs. There are also some VET students, teachers and trainers for whom access to computers, the internet and e-learning resources are a constraint on their use of e-learning.”

The Framework’s 2008 E-learning Benchmarking Survey has captured an enormous amount of quantitative and qualitative information on the uptake, use and impact of e-learning in VET – in different states and territories; different provider types (eg TAFE, community providers, schools, private and enterprise providers); and for different types of students (eg age, gender, metropolitan, regional, Indigenous and learners with disabilities), and teachers and trainers (eg age, gender, industry sector and provider type).

Consultant to the Framework’s Benchmarking and Research business activity, Ian Phillips, said that previously the survey had been sectioned into age, gender and metropolitan areas, but this year the data was further broken down by industry, including trades, nursing, hospitality etc.

“This year, we looked at what industry sector teachers, trainers and students were from to find out which ones are using e-learning and which are not. We’ve tried to analyse the data in different ways to shed light on any differences that might exist in the uptake, use and impact of e-learning in different curriculum areas.

The 2008 survey also gave states and territories the option to include supplementary questions for the first time, an option taken up by Queensland, the Northern Territory and South Australia.

Queensland used their questions to investigate whether teachers and trainers had engaged with technology during their initial training and if they were receiving ongoing professional development in the use of technology in education and training.

South Australia looked into the role of technology in teachers’ and trainers' professional development and explored the VET sector’s preferred forms of technology, including any barriers to technology use.

The Northern Territory investigated whether RTOs, teachers and trainers were aware of the NT’s e-learning strategy, and investigated the benefits of, and barriers to, e-learning.

To view the 2008 E-learning Benchmarking Survey results for your state or territory, click on the link below.

View the state and territory survey results.

The 2008 E-learning Benchmarking Survey results were based on the responses from 579 RTOs, 1,500 VET students and 1,400 VET teachers and trainers.

For a full copy of the 2008 E-learning Benchmarking Survey report, visit:
http://www.flexiblelearning.net.au/e-learningindicators

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Published on 27/11/2008