1. African / European capacity building network for eLearning quality
– Next Steps?
Lesley Boyd
Independent Quality Consultant
Johannesburg, South Africa

2. Questions
How can we all pull together to implement quality eLearning solutions in the African context? 
How can we share and learn about quality management techniques for eLearning, and achieving wider quality improvements through eLearning?

3. External QA systems
‘A successful QA system should empower learning providers to take responsibility for quality assurance’.
Vroeijenstijn, T. 2001

4. Proactive quality
‘Quality is not only about the setting and meeting of external standards and criteria.  It's also about managing the series of proactive steps needed to establish eLearning provision, and how all role players can work together to produce a quality result which achieves educational goals’.
Boyd, 2006

5. Role Players project manager instructional designer
education consultant
programmer / technician
graphic artist
library consultant
lecturer
student
Practitioners
Stakeholders
Clients
management
government
budget holder
software supplier
community

6. Role Players
‘Each has a different set of expertise, priorities and concerns. Each speaks a separate professional language making it very difficult to achieve consensus’ (Stephenson, 2005).

7. The ‘e’ words
Quality in E-learning means learning transformed and enhanced with the integration of technology where ‘e’ means:
empowered
enabled
engaged
enlightened
emotional
enthusiastic
Dr Ulf-Daniel Ehlers Presentation at E-learning in Post-Secondary Education Conference, Alberta, Canada June 2005

8. EFQUEL virtual discussion ‘06
Quality from a learners perspective, esp. co-production processes
Make quality research important and known to policy programmes and funding
Development of quality criteria from learning theory
Building up of networks and cooperation platforms for quality research and improvement of learning processes
Building trust for eLearning content
Quality standards for instructional design processes and production of materials
Quality assurance and recognition of informal learning processes
Quality of Open Educational Resources, Quality check or accreditation for open content

9. Scope of eLearning quality Network?
Quality management in eLearning
Education & training
Business & commerce
Public sector
Industry & manufacturing
Higher Education
Teaching &
learning
Quality management in all endeavours
eLearning
Quality management in HE
Quality management in teaching and learning

10. Possible network aims (QM focus)
demystify and clarify terminology and concepts related to quality management
promote sharing and relationship building between individuals in Africa and elsewhere on quality issues recognising the unique contribution that the African context may make
demonstrate the application of effective eLearning techniques to learning about quality management and the application of some quality management techniques to eLearning
promote cross-fertilisation of ideas and insights on quality issues between commercial and educational contexts
illustrate the possibilities of providing resources and capacity building in a 'by Africa for Africa' approach without requiring extensive donor funding. 

11. 7 questions for Next Steps
Achieving consensus - do sufficient people, institutions, and regulatory bodies in Africa think that it would be a worthwhile venture?
What should the scope of the network be?
What should the vision, mission and proposed deliverables of the network be?
Physical location - where should the base for such a network be established?
Should the network adopt a formal organisational model, or could it be a very small team requiring one or two co-ordinators?
Funding - how would we establish funding? What type of funding would the network require?
Would we gain added value from doing a structured gap analysis on the state of e-Learning provision in Africa, who is doing what, how they are doing it, what challenges barriers they are facing, and where they would like to get to; integrating this into national concerns and conclusions for the whole of Africa?

12. Trying out ideas!
Lesley Boyd