E-Learning Futures Professor J C Taylor Vice President (Global Learning Services) University of Southern Queensland Australia Contact North Roundtable on E-Learning March 2003 Contact North Roundtable on E-Learning March 2003

Five Generations of Distance Education Technology  The Correspondence Model  The Multimedia Model  The Telelearning Model  The Flexible Learning Model  The Intelligent Flexible Learning Model

HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES Yes Yes Yes Yes No FLEXIBILITY Time Place Pace INSTITUTIONAL VARIABLE COSTS APPROACHING ZERO THE CORRESPONDENCE MODEL THE CORRESPONDENCE MODEL Print First Generation No

HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES Yes Yes Yes Yes No FLEXIBILITY Time Place Pace Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes INSTITUTIONAL VARIABLE COSTS APPROACHING ZERO THE MULTIMEDIA MODEL Print Audiotape Videotape Computer-based learning (eg CML/CAL) Interactive video Print Audiotape Videotape Computer-based learning (eg CML/CAL) Interactive video Second Generation No

Variable costs tend to increase or decrease directly (often linearly) with fluctuations in the volume of activity. In traditional distance education delivery, the distribution of packages of self-instructional materials (printed study guides, audiotapes, videotapes, etc) is a variable cost, which varies in direct proportion to the number of students enrolled.

HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES No No No No Yes FLEXIBILITY Time Place Pace No No No Yes Yes INSTITUTIONAL VARIABLE COSTS APPROACHING ZERO THE TELELEARNING MODEL Audio-teleconferencing Videoconferencing Audiographic communication Broadcast TV/Radio and Audio-teleconferencing Audio-teleconferencing Videoconferencing Audiographic communication Broadcast TV/Radio and Audio-teleconferencing Third Generation No

THE FLEXIBLE LEARNING MODEL Interactive multimedia (IMM) Internet-based access to WWW resources Computer mediated communication (CMC). Interactive multimedia (IMM) Internet-based access to WWW resources Computer mediated communication (CMC). HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes FLEXIBILITY Time Place Pace Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes INSTITUTIONAL VARIABLE COSTS APPROACHING ZERO Yes No Fourth Generation

HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY CHARACTERISTICS OF DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes FLEXIBILITY Time Place Pace Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes INSTITUTIONAL VARIABLE COSTS APPROACHING ZERO THE INTELLIGENT FLEXIBLE LEARNING MODEL THE INTELLIGENT FLEXIBLE LEARNING MODEL Interactive multimedia Internet-based access to WWW resources CMC, using automated response systems Campus portal access to institutional processes & resources Interactive multimedia Internet-based access to WWW resources CMC, using automated response systems Campus portal access to institutional processes & resources Fifth Generation Yes

 All students22,908  On-campus 5,720  Off-campus (Australia)12,606  Off-campus (Overseas) 4,582 Note: Students studying solely online 887 Enrolled Students USQ 2003

USQ’s International Students 2003  Malaysia 2,327  Singapore 1,598  Hong Kong 565  South Africa 288  Taiwan258  China195  Germany 188  Pacific Islands 180  Sri Lanka129  United Arab Emirates 114  Canada 98 Total, incl. students from 67 other countries 6,976

XML (eXtensible Markup Language) RENDITIONS: STYLE SHEET: CONTENT REPOSITORY: INPUT: Print Web CD DVD XSLXSLXSLXSLXSLXSLXSLXSL XML DTD (Document Type Definition) XML Editor

The GOOD System provides a simple way to Create, Manage & Re-purpose content

Content Areas Communication Areas Student Areas Group Areas

Incoming “new” admin question from student Previous Questions USQAssist: Self-service Knowledge Base Previous Answers “Immediate” admin feedback to student NO YES Search / Match Trigger Ask a question/ send an USQ staff member – “New Answer” 5th Generation Application

During S2, 2002, the system had a hit- rate of 100,491 from 29,367 students, only 1,375 of whom used the “Ask a Question” facility. During S2, the e-CRM also managed a further 29,647 queries. During S2, 2002, the system had a hit- rate of 100,491 from 29,367 students, only 1,375 of whom used the “Ask a Question” facility. During S2, the e-CRM also managed a further 29,647 queries. USQAssist Self-Service Knowledge Base USQAssist Self-Service Knowledge Base

Student support staff also save 25% of their time through the use of the knowledge-base for the automatic generation of suggested answers to , phone and face-to-face enquiries USQAssist Self-Service Knowledge Base USQAssist Self-Service Knowledge Base

Incoming “new” academic question from student Previous Questions Previous Questions Reusable Learning Objects Database Previous Answers Previous Answers “Immediate” academic feedback to student NO YES New Answer Search / Match Duty Tutor Trigger Metadata Schema Model 5th Generation Application

The PC-ePhone

Using the Internet as a mode of delivery will not automatically improve student learning.

Laurillard (2002)…..“ The academic world has called each new technological device – word processing, interactive video, hypertext, multimedia, the Web- into the service of the transmission model of learning.”

The Potential of e-Learning  From transmission to transaction  From the independent learner to the inter-dependent learner  From transmission to transaction  From the independent learner to the inter-dependent learner

Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) There is a fundamental qualitative difference between a traditional on- campus tutorial and asynchronous written communication online.

Important Qualitative Difference Compared to the spontaneous and less structured nature of oral discourse, asynchronous discussion online engenders a disciplined and rigorous form of thinking based on the reflective and explicit nature of the written word.

Brown & Duguid (2000) emphasised the importance of regarding learning as a social act: “Practice is an effective teacher, and community of practice an ideal learning environment.”

Relevant Instructional Design Theories  ZPD: Zone of proximal development (Vygotsky, 1978; 1981)  Reflective practitioner (Schon, 1987)  Communities of practice (Brown, Collins & Duguid, 1989)  Situated cognition (Lave & Wenger, 1991)

Lave & Wenger (1991) emphasised the importance of the social context in which the learner is immersed, and learning as legitimate peripheral participation in a community of practice.

In the online context, legitimate peripheral participation has become associated with the term “Lurker”. “One of the “silent majority” in an electronic forum; one who posts occasionally or not at all but is known to read the group's postings regularly.” (The Jargon dictionary, 2002)

Student Participation Profiles  Proactive  Peripheral  Parsimonious Workers Lurkers Shirkers

Overview of Participation and Performance Student Sub- Groups The Workers The Lurkers The Shirkers Average Number: Discussion Board Hits Average Number: Messages Posted Average: GPA

The academic performance of the lurkers was on average not much less than that of the workers, thereby supporting the notion of learning as legitimate peripheral participation. Outcome

The success of the lurkers augurs well for the use of e-learning facilitated by intelligent databases and the flexibility inherent in interacting with virtual cohorts of students. The success of the lurkers augurs well for the use of e-learning facilitated by intelligent databases and the flexibility inherent in interacting with virtual cohorts of students. E-Learning Futures

Incoming “new” academic question from student Previous Questions Previous Questions Reusable Learning Objects Database Previous Answers Previous Answers “Immediate” academic feedback to student NO YES New Answer Search / Match Duty Tutor Trigger Metadata Schema Model 5th Generation Application

In effect, fifth generation distance provides students with better quality tuition and more effective pedagogical and administrative support services at lower cost. 5th Generation

“Any new technology environment eventually creates a totally new human environment”. Marshall McLuhan The e-Revolution