THE POTENTIAL OF MOODLE IN A BLENNDED LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM: A CASE STUDY OF AN IN-SERVICE PROGRAMME FOR SECONDARY MATHEMATICS TEACHERS Mdutshekelwa Ndlovu & Ingrid Mostert Stellenbosch University Centre for Pedagogy (SOUTH AFRICA)

INTRODUCTION  Online learning, or e-learning, is becoming a fundamental part of HEI student learning and no longer a core business only for those universities with a mission for distance education (Ellis, Ginns & Piggot, 2009)  The technology revolution is opening up the possibility of even conventional campus-based Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to diversify their delivery modes to reach out to previously inaccessible populations such as remotely located in- service mathematics teachers.

A BENDED LEARNING MODEL OF TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT  Teachers in South Africa are not eligible for study leave when undertaking in-service programmes such as the two-year part-time Advanced Certificate in Education (ACE) to which this paper refers.  Blended learning approaches have been used to address the problem of limited face-to-face contact as it offers the prospect of adult learners ‘to be both together and apart - and to be connected to a community of learners anytime and anywhere’(Garrison & Kanuka 2004)

ADULT LIFELONG LEARNING DESIGN PRINCIPLES  Life experiences - Adult learners have life skills and experiences that are reflected in their coursework and what they expect from their programmes.  Active learning - Adult learners are rarely passive, tend to work hard because most fund their own education or receive conditional financial support from their employers.  Busy Schedules - an academic programme for adult learners must be flexible for them to be successful  Academic inexperience – adult learners are often apprehensive about going back to school since many might have been out of school for a very long time  Wisdom - adult learners need to be respected for their life and career experiences that they bring to the classroom.

BLENDED LEARNING DESIGN MODELS  Kerr & DeWitt’s 3-C model  conceptualises learning as having three components, namely content, communication, and construction (Kerr & DeWitt, 2003)  content is text and multimedia material  communication the task of interaction, arguments, discussion, debates, conceptual conflicts, and dilemmas, sharing ideas with others, problem solving activities, reflection and concept formation  construction deals mainly with instructional methods such as nominal group techniques, debates, or comparative tasks

 Alonso et al.’s pedagogical guidelines for instructional practice  Training should enable learners to apply the concepts learned at their workplace and evaluate the results…  the aim is for learners to be engaged by the e-learning contents to the extent that they get to understand things that they did not comprehend before.  This will make them ready to practice and take action to perform new activities  eclectic view of behaviourism, cognitivism and constructivism  Focus on content structure, cognitive processes and collaborative activities

RESEARCH QUESTIONS  1. What were the biographical characteristics of the in-service teachers who participated in the ACE in Mathematics programme?  2. How was Moodle used as an e-learning platform to support the face-to-face (F2F) and interactive telematics education (ITE) experiences of the ACE in mathematics in-service teachers?  3. How did the in-service teachers experience the use of Moodle relative to F2F and ITE in particular and other traditional or minor forms of communication in general?  4. What were the throughput rates of the different cohorts

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY  A mixed methods design  Content analysis of SUNCEP archival data  Educational design research methodology used to iteratively re-design the nature of the blending of the course  Questionnaire survey with open-ended questions used to collect qualitative data about the in- service teachers’ experiences of the various blended learning delivery formats  Participants = 71 in-service teachers  Moodle platform characteristics and functions

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION Cohort description Gender Highest qualification MalesMalesFemalesTotalDiplomaDiplomaDegree 2009 First years Senior Phase First years FET First Years FET2 2 students no qualification records First years FET3 5 students no qualification records Total Demographic characteristics of participants

Analysis of Moodle utilisation A:Moodle meeting learning community needs  Moodle helped me to understand that I am not alone and to get ideas from others  Moodle gave me a chance to interact with other teachers when facing challenges B: Moodle supporting content knowledge  Home of Maths discussions were so fantastic most of colleagues were there to help with any topic  Moodle discussions made topics to be clearer C: Moodle as administrative tool  Moodle reminded me about course related information  Moodle reminded me about assignment deadlines

Analysis of Moodle utilisation contd D: Moodle and other available technologies  Using my cellphone to get into Moodle for ideas even not to discuss but to read (T12)  Found ITE sessions an opportunity to discuss with fellow colleagues (T13) E: Internet access constraints  Internet not always available (T14)  Very limited supply of electricity (T15)  Not having computer with internet at home (T18)  Internet too slow, you loose interest by waiting for hours (T20)  Internet cafes far and very expensive (T19)

Cohort throughput rates Cohort description Total enrolledTotal Completed MalesMalesFemalesMalesMales 2009 First years Senior Phase First years FET First Years FET First years FET Total

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS  Potential of Moodle to support learning communities of in-service teachers established  The zeal to participate in discussions to improve content knowledge and share ideas was evident  Participation constrained by limited internet access – too far, too expensive, no electricity  Proliferation of mobile devices at affordable prices promising  ICT infrastructure to be rolled out to enable more affordable access in schools and at the individual teacher level.

Thank you for your attention Yours truly Mdu Ndlovu: & Ingrid Mostert: