E-learning at WSU Presenter: T. Mayisela E-learning Specialist Mthatha Campus; Acting Manager, Education Technology and Innovation Unit Centre for Learning and Teaching Development 1/27/2016

Topics  Introduction and Background  Curriculum responsiveness  The e-learning strategy  Student participation  Technology Acceptance Model  Frequency of access  Conclusion

Introduction Walter Sisulu University (WSU) is at its initial stage of integrating information and communication technologies (ICT) integration. WSU has adopted Blackboard as the learning management system (LMS). The main challenge that WSU faces is to improve the student throughput rates E-learning is the potential means to supplement face-to- face instruction Accessible material Enhancing student learning

Ba ckground WSU, a developing university situated in the Eastern Cape in South Africa, commits itself to providing technological learner-centred education, innovative learning and teaching, and opportunities for life-long learning. Challenges: –less prepared students, –students who are unable to attend classes on a regular basis Most of these students come from a poor educational background and often find it difficult to cope with the teaching styles such as formal lectures and with study skills such as private reading, note taking, time management, asking questions in large groups, team/project work and IT competence (Lowe & Cook 2003).

Curriculum responsiveness Moll (2004:3) emphasizes that “curriculum responsiveness promises that there are some positively formulated benchmarks against which we might be able to judge whether our education programmes are meeting the needs of a transforming society”. According to Moore and Lewis (2004), curriculum responsiveness could work in two directions; the change in knowledge content of the curriculum or the change in the mode of transmission from lecturer-oriented to student-oriented.

Curriculum responsiveness (cont…) While the University will be interrogating the curriculum content as informed by some studies, she also makes use of ICTs to enhance student-oriented learning and innovative ways of teaching and learning Murphy, Walker and Webb (2001) point out that the problem in the educational use of technology is that people tend to give technology pole position 1/27/2016Prepared by Z.G.Baleni TDC: RPL & Assessor 6

E-learning strategy The four focus areas are: Setting up and maintaining the electronic learning environment; Promoting awareness of the University stakeholders about the electronic learning environment and possibilities this offers them; Capacitating academic staff on e-learning; and Ensuring student participation in e-learning

Student participation Training students Student login E-learning centres E-learning assistants 1/27/2016

Technology Acceptance Model 218 lectures and 2378 students have been trained Blackboard analytic tool (Bbat) Updated every day at 12 midnight The use of ICT/Blackboard after training has taken place, informs us that the lecturers and students are making use/have accepted the use of technology Selim (2003) and Ngai, Poon & Chan (2005) call this the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) 1/27/2016

TAM per course 490 academic courses have content 328 of these courses are used by studentscourses The course with the highest number of lecturer clicks (6, 410) is Course Name 459 The student clicks of this course are 7, 143 There are 134 students A lot of time is spent on loading material This could be a novice who is enthusiastic about e-learning 1/27/2016

The students for Course 226 have clicked the course 37,291 timesCourse 226 –these are the highest number of clicks by students –this course has 76 students –each with 490,7 average number of clicks –highly used by students –The lecturers has clicked 1, 411 times The distribution of the number of clicks per itemdistribution The time of accesstime 1/27/2016

TAM (cont…) Performance Dashboard Tracking Reports 1/27/2016Prepared by Z.G.Baleni TDC: RPL & Assessor 12

Frequency of access This illustrates frequency of access to each item in each course Assessment: Online tests, projects, homework questions Introduction Definition of new terms Workplan Notes (different names) 1/27/2016

Conclusion WSU teaching staff’s use of e-learning is improving The user involvement, executive’s support Improved access to and interactivity with materials by students and Hopefully improve on the pass rates

THANK YOU !! address: Assistance for students and staff: 1/27/2016