Elearning Planning and Management

As part of the graduate course I am taking on Planning and Management in Distance Education and Training I am reading Marc Rosenberg's book on Elearning Strategies for Delivering Knowledge in the Digital Age. In the first few chapters there were two critical points which spoke to me. First, that technology in and of itself will not enhance learning. The case that illustrates that point well, was the adoption of cable TV in the classroom. As a tool, technology has the potential to enhance learning if it is accompanied by the appropriate instructional strategies which are designed to achieve the learning outcome. I am inclined to endorse Elliot Masie's position that the technological implementation is the easy part of the equation and that the most challenging aspect is developing the new models of interaction that will allow us to truly realize the full potential of elearning.

Rosenberg also contends that "without a comprehensive strategic foundation" elearning implementations are prone to failure. I have seen many elearning projects that were not sustainable because the decision-makers did not set out realistic, long-term objectives that were achievable given the environment they were operating in. That's why over the next few months I will be working with our Dept. of Health Policy Management to develop a comprehensive, multi-year strategic plan for their Online Master of Health Sciences in Health Administration program. The plan will include the costing structure and operational requirements for their program as well as evaluation and performance indicators and methodologies. We are hoping this process will become a template for other programs on campus wishing to adopt similar delivery strategies. Stay tuned on this front, as I will post the materials regarding this plan at this site.

So far the book is a good read, but I do take issue with some of the items Rosenberg lists in his "Benefits of Elearning". Keep in mind that he is coming from a corporate training perspective.

1) "Despite outward appearances elearning is often the most cost-effective way to deliver instruction (training) or information."

From a University perspective this is not necessarily the case. While it may reduce the need for classroom/ instructor infrastructure, the following items can dramatically increase the cost of course development and delivery; software license, hardware, maintenance of course and hardware, expertise (technical/ instructional design), opportunity cost of faculty time (subject matter expert), copyright, multimedia production. There is a potential to become cost effective, but only once the initial startup costs are absorbed and the number of students increase beyond a certain point.

2) Universality. "Concern over differences in platforms and operating systems is rapidly fading".

The increasingly proprietary nature of learning management systems and content is a major barrier to the concept of universality. The consulting fees required to enable the type of exchange to occur between different hardware and software systems is prohibitive. Until open standards/ source are more widely adopted we will not be able to easily exchange information between systems and individuals.

3) Scalability. "Programs can move from 10 participants to 100 or even 100,000 participants with little effort or incremental cost (as long as the infrastructure is in place)."

That last part is the key. Few Universities or colleges have the resources to put the infrastructure in place for such a dramatic increase in participants.

Take our costs for example. We are a small unit supporting about 2500 users.

Software (LMS/ OS) $60, 000
Hardware $50, 000

To increase our capacity beyond 6 000 users would require $150, 000!

I firmly believe that institutions need to employ a costing methodology that reflects the true cost of adopting elearning delivery strategies. Bates's presentation, "The impact of e-learning on the university campus: measuring the costs and benefits"" (windows media version) is an excellent reference. Link for alternate formats (search for Tony Bates).

Comments

[Teri Gladden]

I am in a corporate Training environment and e-learning has definitely been benefitial to our company. However, I agree with you about the cost. When it was said that we would be incorporatng e-learning into our classrooms and outside of it, I don't think everyone took into consideration the time and cost. We decided to purchase the program Captivate. Overall, this program is great for what we need, but like every program, it has its headaches. We have the cost for that, then the cost of time in order to learn the program on my own, then we will need to purchase an LMS system to really take our e-learning to the next level. We are still in the process of buying an LMS so the costs aren't finished yet.

Despite that, I think it's opened up some great doors for our company. We have 1800 plus employees at our office with some people working from home. In order to reach all of those associates, e-learning is about our only choice and we are able to create more "classes" by using the e-learning technique. However, we have been very careful not to let e-learning take over everything (and the Trainers' jobs) because it is really only there to enhance the learning. We are slowly adding e-learning courses associates can access at their desk, but our main focus is to add e-learning in the classroom to enhance the learners' training experience.

E-learning has great potential and the costs are high, but definitely worth it in my opinion. I think for most companies it opens up many doors of opportunity and allows them to stay up to date with technology when they decide to incorporate e-learning. One caution is to make sure the e-learning courses are still interactive and reaching all of those different types of learners (visual, kinesthetic,and audio). If we keep that in mind while creating on-line content, then e-learning should show some great benefits.

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[Rupen]

There are some open source LMSes out there, Moodle and ATutor. For smaller institutions and organizations, these LMSes do provide sufficient features and are a viable option. Hence the money being used in technology can quite easily be used in developing effective eLearning courses.

[Rupen]

There are some open source LMSes out there, Moodle and ATutor. For smaller institutions and organizations, these LMSes do provide sufficient features and are a viable option. Hence the money being used in technology can quite easily be used in developing effective eLearning courses.

[none]

I really enjoyed what you had to say about elearning-it is up to the instructors to implement it. Technology itself will not enhance student learning. I really enjoyed seeing both sides of the spectrum (corporate and educators).