A MOVE TOWARDS E-LEARNING IN THE COMMERCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
Carole Gould, Thomas M. Connolly
University of the West of Scotland, High St, Paisley, PA1 2BE, U.K.
Stuart Waugh, Brian Boyle
EKGTA Ltd,3 Law Place, Nerston Industrial Estate, East Kilbride, Scotland G74 4PP, U.K.
Keywords: VLE, ePortfolio, Vocational Training.
Abstract: e-Learning and the use of technologies to support learning are utilised within educational institution,
however, this has not always been the case. eLearning can be traced back to World War II with the
development of instructional design under the direction of the military. Today, higher educational
institutions have invested heavily in educational technologies such as Virtual Learning Environments and
ePortfolios and technology is now supplementing and in some cases replacing traditional (face-to-face)
approaches to teaching and learning and replacing the traditional paper portfolios. This paper discusses the
implementation of eLearning within an employer-led training provider for the engineering industry and
provides early feedback from the trainees.
1 INTRODUCTION
To many people, eLearning is regarded as a „modern
day‟ way of learning that utilises the Internet to
deliver customised and often interactive learning
material across a diverse and often, distant
communities of practice (Nicholson, 2007).
However, according to Reiser (2001), instructional
design procedures can be traced back as far as World
War II, when educators were called in to research
and design training material for military personnel.
Today, eLearning is an integral part of education and
learning and is utilised by educational institutions
and companies throughout the world.
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that
the use of educational technologies is no longer
confined to educational institutions. It aims to
answer the question “Can VLEs be used effectively
in vocational training to supplement or in some
instances replace traditional elements of training?”
A within case study methodology has been adopted
as the authors are actively involved in the
implementation of a VLE and ePortfolio into a
vocational training company. This study is unique in
that although VLEs are being utilised in vocational
training colleges and organisations (although less so)
they have yet to be popularised within private
training companies, hence very little research has
been carried out in this field. The author will begin
with an introduction into the history of eLearning
and educational technologies to help better
understand how eLearning has developed over the
years. The literature review will demonstrate that
early forms of eLearning were not directed towards
academia but were in fact designed for more
practical applications. The author will conclude with
a discussion on how eLearning will contribute to the
overall learning of the trainees and the expected
gains of the VLE and ePortfolio
2 PREVIOUS RESEARCH
2.1 History of e-Learning
It could be argued that eLearning has evolved from
instructional design procedures, first introduced
during World War II to help identify those less
likely to pass training programmes (Dick, 1987).
After the war the American Air Force set up
research centres to help in the selection and training
62
Gould C., Connolly T., Waugh S. and Boyle B. (2010).
A MOVE TOWARDS E-LEARNING IN THE COMMERCIAL ENVIRONMENT.
In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Computer Supported Education, pages 62-71
Copyright
c
SciTePress
of pilots cumulating with the setting up of the
American Institutes for Research (AIR). AIR
continued to research pilot selection, training and
human factors engineering. Research continued into
the use of media for training with the Navy funding
research into the use of films and television for
training. Other agencies began to look at utilising
tapes/slides, overhead transparencies, simulators and
eventually training machines (Dick, 1987). Most of
the instructional design research was aimed at the
military sector; however, by 1958 there was renewed
interest from academics in instructional design. This
came about through two important events- the
launching of Sputnik, which not only created a space
race but also brought about a renewed interest in the
quality of mathematics and sciences taught in
schools, and the publication of Skinner‟s paper,
“Teaching Machines” in 1958 (Dick, 1987).
In his paper, Skinner (1958) states that it was no
longer sufficient to just train more teachers or build
more schools – the curriculum had to be revised and
simplified and textbooks and classroom techniques
had to be improved. He further states that audio
visual aids, such as film projectors, television and
tape recorders were being utilised within American
schools and colleges and could supplement lectures,
demonstrations and textbooks and if used
successfully, the material is so clear and interesting
that the student learns. By the mid 1960‟s,
researchers started to examine the possibility of
utilising computers for the delivery of instructional
material and a number of self-paced courses were
introduced into the curriculum and industry (Dick,
1987: Moore et al.,1969). Although Skinners
machine was not regarded as a success, it laid the
foundations for the concept of self-paced courses.
By the 1970‟s there was a significant amount of
research into the use of computers in learning and
the development of the systems approach (see
Banathay, 1968; Heinich, 1970). However, the use
of computers in teaching was cost prohibitive until
the development of the micro computer in the late
1970s/early 1980s (Dick, 1987; Treat et al., 2006).
By 1983 the use of micro computers in schools had
grown significantly with over 40% of elementary
schools and over 75% of secondary schools utilising
the micro computer (Reiser, 1987; Treat et al.,
2006). Reiser (1987) stated that the computer could
be programmed to adapt instruction to the needs of
an individual learner due to its interactive
capabilities and according to Merrill and Li (1989)
computers began to be used “as tools to automate
some instructional design tasks”. By the 1990s
computer use had grown considerably with almost
all students (12:1) in formal education having access
to computer (Plotnick, 2000). The development of
the Internet with the linking of Local Area Networks
(LANs) and Wide Area Networks (WANs) to
computers in the 1990s saw the growth of Virtual
Learning Environments (VLEs) (Totkov 2003;
Dillenbourg et al., 2005). Mobile technology
developed rapidly in the period 1995 to 2000 with
students having the ability to access their courses
and communicate with their university whilst
travelling (Totkov, 2003). It is suggested that there
are three basic models of existing on-line course (see
Mason, 1998) and that these models are evolving
continuously.
2.2 Virtual Learning Environments
e-Learning and the use of VLEs are now an integral
part of most educational institutions with
educational technologies witnessing exceptional
levels of growth in recent years, thus increasing
connectivity and networking within educational
institutions. Schools, colleges and universities are
heavy investors in up to date technology, which has
recognised that ICT can be used as a medium to
support virtual collaborative learning environments.
Many developers have designed products to exploit
this, known variously as virtual learning
environment (VLEs), managed learning
environments (MLEs), course management systems,
virtual campuses and online learning platforms.
There are many definitions given for VLEs. The
Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC)
recommended in July 2000 that the term „virtual
learning environment‟ refer to “the components in
which learners and tutors participate in online
interactions of various kinds, including online
learning” (Becta, 2003). Although VLEs are used
extensively within educational institutions globally,
their use is relatively low within vocational training
companies. VLEs are used throughout the world to
support learning and consist of various different
features.
As with the definitions there are many different
VLE software packages available; some at
considerable cost and others available as open
source. Regardless of which package is decided
upon, most VLEs contain similar functionalities as
shown in table 1. Universities and colleges are using
many of the tools to support student learning. For
example, the Virtual Departments for Minority
Languages (VDML), a collaborative project between
language teachers from University College London,
the University of Edinburgh, and the University of
A MOVE TOWARDS E-LEARNING IN THE COMMERCIAL ENVIRONMENT
63
Hull, developed a prototype virtual department using
WebCT. An initial survey carried out (400 students
and 60 teachers) found that most students believed
that the computers were only useful for developing
grammar and writing skills, however, those
participants that were more computer literate
believed that the computer was a useful tool for
language learning (Becta, 2003). In another study
carried out by Gibbs (1999), undergraduates taking a
philosophy module utilised a VLE to provide multi-
user discussions online. This incorporated
supporting debates, group-work, and resource
sharing and learning which resulted in students
adopting learning styles that are considered
beneficial to learning a theoretical subject.
However, as with most things, there are advantages
and disadvantages.
2.3 Advantages & Disadvantages of
e-Learning
The research literature cites many advantages of an
eLearning, particularly the convenience and
flexibility offered by the (asynchronous) „anytime,
anywhere, anypace‟ education (McDonald, 2002),
which gives learners time for research, internal
reflection, and „collective thinking‟ (Garrison,
1997). Moreover, the text-based nature of eLearning
normally requires written communication from the
learner, which along with reflection, encourage
higher level learning such as analysis, synthesis, and
evaluation, and encourage clearer and more precise
thinking (Jonassen, 1996). In addition, eLearning
courses also have the capability to present multiple
representations of a concept, which allows learners
to store and retrieve information more effectively
(Kozma, 1987).
Gunawardena (1993) argues that increased social
distance provides a number of distinct advantages to
online conferences (synchronous or asynchronous).
In written communications anonymity of
characteristics such as gender, race, age, or social
status can be preserved, which can reduce the feeling
of discrimination and provide equality of social
interaction among participants. In turn, this can
permit the expression of emotion and promote
discussion that normally would be inhibited.
However, she notes that the social equality factor
may not extend to participants who are poor writers
but who must communicate primarily in a text-based
format.
e-Learning is not without its disadvantages; for
example (Connolly and Stansfield, 2007):
costs may initially exceed more traditional me-
thods;
more responsibility is placed on the learner who
has to be self-disciplined and motivated (this is
particularly true for e-learning that consists
simply of repurposed face-to-face material, with
minimal or no interactivity, which can be
unengaging);
some learners lack access to a PC/Internet or
have difficulty with the technology;
increased workload for both students and faculty;
non-involvement in the virtual community may
lead to feelings of loneliness, low self-esteem,
isolation, and low motivation to learn, which in
turn can lead to low achievement and dropout;
dropout rates tend to be higher in e-learning
courses than in traditional face-to-face courses,
often 10 to 20 percentage points higher.
Perhaps one of the most damaging criticisms is
that some eLearning simply replicates the social
organization of traditional education and training
and that the potential benefits of eLearning - of
personalized and accessible learning experiences -
are missed. Taking this on board, this is one of the
reasons this research is of particular importance.
There is a high chance that the traditional nature of
the company under investigation may purely
implement the systems but not utilize them to their
full potential. Although VLEs are used extensively
within educational institutions, their use is relatively
low within vocational training companies. One
reason for this maybe that vocational trainers may
not appreciate that some aspects of vocational
training may lend itself well to online delivery.
2.4 Vocational Training
Vocational training can be described as training that
prepares learners for jobs that are based in manual or
practical activities, is traditionally non-academic and
related to a specific trade, occupation or vocation
(South Thames College, 2009). However, in most
instances the training is delivered via a college that
specialises in vocational training. For example,
Australia has heavily invested (up to $20 million per
annum) in the vocational education and training
(VET) sector since 2001 (Robertson, 2006).
However, government funding to help with the
implementation of VLEs in the UK (both education
and training) has diminished in recent years. Only 3-
4 years ago colleges had access to funding of £1000
to £100,000 for initial development, none now
receive external funding. According to an Ofsted
Report (2009) a number of work-based learning
providers were developing or intending to develop
CSEDU 2010 - 2nd International Conference on Computer Supported Education
64
diploma programmes but only one provider intended
using a VLE to provide additional support for
learners but most agreed that a VLE would be of
benefit. It should be noted, that some funding is still
available although perhaps not to the same degree,
for example, one work-based provider was awarded
with funds to provide each apprentice with £100
worth of multimedia equipment to allow learners to
upload evidence to a VLE for assessment (Ofsted,
2009). The report further highlighted that another
work-based learning provider was utilising funds
through a Learning and Skills Council scheme to
help pay for a developer on a short-term contract and
without that funding no significant work
(implementing the VLE) would have been possible.
Further to this, the report also commented that the
VLE was most commonly used to:
Include reference material that had been shown
in class
Present supplementary quizzes and tests
Submit assignments
Receive feedback
The above demonstrates that VLEs are now
moving towards the commercial sector, albeit
slowly. This is reinforced with the development of
smaller scale VLEs, such as Blackboard‟s ProSites
VLE which has been developed for organisations
(http://www.blackboardprosites.com/) and IBM‟s
eLearning training programmes and software
(http://www-304.ibm.com/jct03001c/services/learni
ng/). When discussing VLEs and educational
technologies, it should also be considered that the
use of ePortfolios is also growing in popularity,
particularly within vocational training.
Many VLEs (Blackboard, Moodle, etc) are
designed with compatible ePortfolios and designed
to promote lifelong learning. A portfolio can be
defined as “a collection of documents relating to a
learner’s progress, development, and
achievements”. An ePortfolio simply indicates that
some or all of the evidence is collected in digital
form (Beetham, 2009). Portfolio‟s (paper format)
have been utilised for many years: Austria has been
using portfolios in teacher training for the past 12
years and covers topics such as supervision and
professional upgrade in vocational education and is
regarded as a working portfolio, as examination for
teachers is impractical (Dorninger and Schrack,
2007). ePortfolios are well suited to vocational and
working environments as they capture the concept of
lifelong learning and support individuals as they
travel along school, higher education, training and
employment (Dorninger and Schrack, 2007:
Richardson and Ward, 2005: Berlanga et al., 2008 ).
Learners gather learning evidence and define these
evidences through a self-reflection process. They
attribute their competences to learning products or
outcomes and reflect on how they acquired those
competences. From a pedagogical perspective this
process helps learners to better understand how they
learn and helps them to become self-directed
learners (Berlanga et al., 2008). It should be noted
that according to Berlanga et al. (2008), although
ePortfolios are designed for life long learning, they
are rarely used in this manner.
ePortfolios can be classified into various types –
assessment, presentation, learning, Personal
development and multiple owner (Curyer et al.,
2007) but in reality most are a combination. If a
standard approach was adopted for ePortfolios,
institutions and organisations could share and
exchange ePortfolio data which could lead to the
streamlining of the processes connected to prior
learning, with student transitions through courses,
and with training that involves either sequential or
parallel movement through multiple institutions and
companies (Curyer et al., 2007). This could also
help to fulfil the concept of an ePortfolio being
utilised throughout lifelong learning. Richardson and
Ward (2005) carried out an in-depth study of 12
different ePortfolios and found, amongst other
things, that no two systems were identical or offered
the same range of functions. However, it should be
considered that an ePortfolio tends to be chosen on a
„fit-for-purpose‟ basis and often vendors may
customise their ePortfolios to suit a particular
customer, as is the experience of the author.
Most ePortfolios are driven by the learner, that
is, the learner is responsible for the maintenance of
the ePortfolio and decides who has access to its
contents, etc but in some environments, as in the
company under investigation, this may not be
desirable. Some aspects of vocational training need
to be driven, as in this case, by the instructor, not the
student/trainee. Internal examiners and external
verifiers often need access to trainee assessment
material and that assessment material cannot be
amended once verified, in principle; the assessment
material must be locked from the trainee once it has
been assessed. In this instance, the company under
investigation required a measure of customisation of
the ePortfolio which included allowing multiple
assessors and the instructors having overall control
of the ePortfolio. The next section will give
background on the company under investigation and
will give details on the chosen VLE and ePortfolio
and the reason for those choices.
A MOVE TOWARDS E-LEARNING IN THE COMMERCIAL ENVIRONMENT
65
2.5 EKGTA
East Kilbride & District Engineering Group Training
Association (EKGTA as will be referred to
throughout this paper) is an employer-led training
provider for the engineering industry with charitable
status. Established in 1966 and recognised as one of
the premier training groups throughout Scotland,
aims to serve the needs of the employer, whilst
ensuring candidates have the opportunity to develop
the knowledge and skills necessary in employment
(EKGTA, 2009). The Association specialises in
training Modern Apprentices at craft and technician
levels, and in basic engineering skills training to
national standards. EKGTA are approved under the
Scottish Quality Management System (SQMS), has
Investor in People status and conducts it training to
meet nationally recognised standards, for example,
the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA), Sector
Skills Council for Science, Engineering and
Manufacturing Technologies (SEMTA), City &
Guilds, etc. EKGTA provides training in other
disciplines, such as, Health & Safety, Computer
Based Training, Professional Development but
apprentice engineering training is EKGTA‟s core
business and for this reason the main focus is
directed towards that training.
A Modern Apprenticeship Programme may involve:
A period of training in an approved training
centre (off the job)
Completion of a Level 2 Vocational
Qualification.
Attainment of core skills to intermediate one
level (minimum)
Completion of a National Certificate (day release
at FE College)
Completion of a Level 3 Vocational
Qualification in company
Level 2 competence involves the application of
knowledge and skills in a significant range of varied
work activities, performed in a variety of contexts.
Some of the activities are complex or non-routine,
and there is some individual responsibility and
autonomy. Collaboration with others may often be a
requirement On the other hand, Level 3 competence
involves the application of knowledge and skills in a
broad range of varied work activities performed in a
wide variety of contexts, most of which are complex
and non-routine. There is considerable responsibility
and autonomy, and control or guidance of others is
often required.
There are six instructors who deliver the
practical element of the qualification with the
academic element delivered onsite by Langside
College. Once the trainees return to their company,
the continuation of the training is overseen by
advisors who visit trainees on average every 12
weeks.
Although a very successful company, its
management and staff appreciate that in today‟s
dynamic and ever changing environment, the
Association must keep ahead of its competitors to
ensure longevity. One of the Associations main
competitors, Motherwell College, has invested
£70million on a new college facility (Mitchell,
2009), with a further allocation of £975,000 to help
meet demand for additional places at the College
(Wilson, 2009). At present technology within
EKGTA is used primarily for the recording of
completed assignments (ePortfolio) and the storing
of lecture material, and is therefore used far below
its potential. EKGTA realise that one way to stay
ahead is to invest in technology that can help them
compete in the wider market place and streamline
the training process, resulting in increased
throughput and reduced costs.
3 SELECTING LEARNING
PLATFORMS FOR EKGTA
3.1 VLE
In discussion with the company, a number of
features were identified that the chosen VLE had to
support. Existing students were also consulted. Two
informal group forums were set up with ten
participants in each. This helped to identify those
features that students believed would enhance
learning. Almost all students agreed that 24/7 access
to learning material would be advantageous, more
use of multi-media, such as video demonstrations,
and interactive quizzes with immediate feedback to
reinforce learning. To identify a suitable VLE, it was
first necessary to carry out desk research on a
number of different VLEs to identify the
functionalities that each one supported and to match
these against the company‟s criteria. It was not
possible to investigate all VLEs resulting in a short
list being drawn up. This included Blackboard
ProSites, Learnwise, Frog and Moodle, Moodle
being the only open source option. The outcome of
the research demonstrated that there was very little
difference in the functionalities of each as shown in
Table 1.
CSEDU 2010 - 2nd International Conference on Computer Supported Education
66
Table 1: Summary of VLE Features.
Features/Tools
VLE
Blackboard ProSites
Moodle
Learnwise
Frog
E-portfolio
N
Y
Y
Y
File up-load
Y
Y
Y
Y
Notice/bulletin board
Y
Y
Y
Y
Course outlines
Y
Y
Y
Y
Assignments
Y
Y
Y
Y
Assessments
Y
Y
Y
Y
Multi-media resources
Y
Y
Optional extra
Y
Evidence gathering
Y
Y
Y
Y
Calendar
Y
Y
Y
Y
Administration tools
Y
Y
Y
Synchronous collaboration
tools (video conferencing)
Y
Y
Optional extra
N
Forum/discussion board
Y
Y
Y
Y
Email
Y (Internal)
Y (Internal)
Y (Internal)
Y (Internal)
External links
Y
Y
Y
Y
Student home page
Y
Y
Y
Y
Real-time chat
N
Y
Y
Y
Quiz design
Y
Y
Y
Y
Costs
£6,655 per annum (200
users/licences)
£3,152 per annum
(100 additional
users/licences)
Open source
Additional costs
if hosting
required
Ranges from
£3,300 per
annum for 1,000
users to £27,500
per annum for
50,000 users
Bespoke system -
£26,000
Yearly support -
£4,500
Standard package -
£22,500
Yearly support -
£4,500
After extensive analysis and consultation with
management and staff, Moodle was chosen as the
VLE as it was highly modular and provided the
same features as the commercial systems but at no
cost to the company. Moodle is an open source
(free) VLE which is modular in format allowing it to
be built and customised to the users requirements. It
has many additional modules, such as the
questionnaire module, allowing the VLE to grow
with the needs of the company. Moodle was
developed by Martin Dougiamas, who continues to
lead the project. It was launched on the 20
th
August
2002 and continues to grow with 29,403,110 users
worldwide (Moodle, 2009). The next stage of the
project was to research a number of ePortfolio
systems.
3.2 ePortfolio
Again it was not practical to investigate all
ePortfolio systems so a short list was drawn up. This
included Learning Assistant, One File, Pebble Pad
and Mahara, which is open source and an add-on
module for Moodle. It was then necessary to discuss
primarily with instructors, the requirements of the
ePortfolio system. EKGTA use two ePortfolios, one
at level 2 and one at level 3 and are not integrated.
The ePortfolio at level 2 gives on-site candidates
access to all lecture material, standard assessment
documentation, and in some instances multi-media.
For level 3 candidates, advisors use Modern
Apprentice (MAs) online ePortfolio system. At level
3, candidates are not a captured audience; therefore
regular remote communication between advisors and
candidates needs to be undertaken. The advisors do
not utilise MAs online for all candidates and as a
result not all level 3 and above candidates are on the
system. Those candidates that do use the system
upload evidence for the advisor to evaluate,
however, the system does not assign the evidence to
a particular unit. This can be time consuming for the
advisors, as they need to spend time, firstly looking
for the evidence and then assigning it to the
appropriate unit. The system does not track
communication between the advisors and the
candidates; therefore there is no paper trail to follow.
The candidates do not have access to lecture or
supplementary material to help with the completion
A MOVE TOWARDS E-LEARNING IN THE COMMERCIAL ENVIRONMENT
67
of knowledge based assessment papers, which must
be completed as part of their qualification.
At level 2, the candidates are based at EKGTA,
either in the workshop or undergoing the knowledge
based (academic) aspect of their qualification
delivered by Langside College. All instructors (min.
6) need to be able to access all candidate ePortfolios
as internal verifiers, therefore whatever system is
utilised, it must have the capability to assign as
many internal verifiers as required. When candidates
enter level three, they return to their company. The
advisors have regular contact with their candidates
and visit them on-site approximately every 12
weeks. For level 3 there is only the need for one/two
internal advisors. Advisors spend time assigning
evidence to relevant scope items – a system that
facilitated mapping of evidence with scope would
free up advisor time. A means whereby, video
evidence could be uploaded to the system could
potentially reduce the number of visits undertaken
by the advisors. Increased communication (via
email/notice board) could also result in less „wasted‟
visits. Instructors and advisors also appreciate the
necessity for an integrated ePortfolio system.
Taking the above into consideration it was
concluded that Learning Assistant best suited the
needs of EKGTA. Learning Assistant is marketed as
an ePortfolio and e-assessment solution for training
centres that deliver vocational qualifications. It has
been designed specifically to meet the needs of the
vocational training environment. Learning Assistant
is designed to replace paper-based portfolios with all
activity carried out on-line (Learning Assistant,
2008). Learning Assistant customised the system to
allow multiple assessors and facilitated the
automatic mapping of evidence to required scope
items.
3.3 Identifying Priority Features
After researching a variety of VLEs and ePortfolio
systems to identify their generic features and the
system(s) that is more suited to the vocational
training environment, it was then necessary to
survey the six workshop instructors and the three
training advisors to identify those features that
would be regarded as a priority for implementation.
This gave an indication of where the end-users see
technology enhancing learning and to help in the
delivery of training. Table 2 provides details of this
survey. The lower the number assigned, the higher
importance assigned. The data demonstrates that the
top five priority features are:
ability to automatically map assessments to
scope/criteria;
a suitable ePortfolio system;
evidence gathering;
uploading of assignments;
a file upload capability.
It should be considered however; at the time of
the survey most end-users were unfamiliar with the
capabilities and advantages that a VLE could bring
to supplement learning, therefore did not consider
those features that they were unfamiliar with.
4 EVALUATION
In the early stages of the project the pilot of Moodle
was to be rolled out within the electrical area of the
work shop, but on further discussion it was decided
that this would not be an inclusive approach. The
decision was taken to implement Moodle throughout
the entire workshop, thus including all instructors.
All trainees go through a week long induction
programme- a general induction and a workshop
induction. A course was developed (induction) and
was populated with two units – general induction
and workshop induction. All lecture material and
presentation were uploaded to Moodle and self-
assessment quizzes designed to reinforce learning.
Figure 1 shows an example page in the EKGTA
Moodle system.
Empirical data is currently being analysed and
will be included in the final draft, however, early
discussions with both instructors and trainees has
been positive. When surveyed initially, instructors
did not place much value on the use of self-
assessment quizzes but this view has since changed.
All instructors have commented on the added value
gained through the use of self-assessment quizzes
and now appreciate how more interactive learning
material can benefit the trainee. The reporting
system within Moodle allows instructors to monitor
trainee progress and can easily identify those
trainees who have not completed the quizzes or
those who are struggling with the material.
The trainees have commented that it will be
advantageous when Moodle is available externally,
as currently Moodle is being hosted internally with
no external access, and therefore trainees can only
gain access whilst on site at EKGTA. They have
also stated that more interactive material and
extended access to Moodle would aid learning.
The selected ePortfolio system, Learning
Assistant, is also being actively used by students and
CSEDU 2010 - 2nd International Conference on Computer Supported Education
68
Table 2: Survey Results for Priority Features.
ePortfolio
Student home page
Assignments
Assessments
Multi-media
1
6
7
2
2
4
13
3
2
14
1
13
6
2
10
6
16
5
3
1
5
12
8
1
7
1
12
5
2
4
4
10
1
2
8
22
82
35
14
46
File up-load
Evidence gathering
External links
Quiz design
Forum
3
3
8
14
15
7
1
11
15
8
9
3
12
11
14
2
7
8
13
14
4
2
11
16
9
6
11
7
8
13
7
3
12
13
11
38
30
69
90
84
Real time chat
Calendar
Admin tools
16
2
3
9
10
6
15
16
5
15
11
9
15
10
6
15
9
10
16
14
6
101
72
45
Figure 1: Example screen from Moodle.
staff (see Figure 2). Empirical data is still being
gathered on Learning Assistant, but again, early
feedback is positive. Both instructors and advisors
have commented on the time saved due to the
automatic mapping of evidence but the advisors are
unsure as yet if there is a reduction on „wasted‟
visits, that is when an advisors meets with a trainee
but knowledge based assessments are incomplete.
Advisors have also commented that the automatic
generation of a message to inform that evidence
from a trainee has been uploaded has reduced the
time they need to spend looking for any evidence
that has been submitted.
4.1 Next Stages
The next stage of the pilot will involve utilising
Moodle to deliver the group project which is
undertaken by all trainees. Trainees are divided into
groups of six/seven and set up a virtual company.
The main objective of the project is to encourage
collaborative working with each group constructing
a truck. Each group is given a nominal budget and
must build the truck within that budget. All team
members must participate in the project and each
member must take on the role of project manager.
To allow assessment of each member‟s contribution
a wiki will be set up for each group and a forum will
be enabled to follow communication between group
members. An assessment activity has also been
created within Moodle: when the project is
completed, all documentation will be uploaded to
Moodle, instructors will be informed that the
A MOVE TOWARDS E-LEARNING IN THE COMMERCIAL ENVIRONMENT
69
assessment has been uploaded and is ready for
marking.
During the project instructors take on the role of
mentor and will have to monitor the content of the
wiki and the forum. This will encourage use of other
features of the VLE and make both instructors and
trainees more familiar with the use of Moodle. It is
also important at this stage to maintain enthusiasm
for Moodle and hopefully instructors will appreciate
the added value of the VLE to the delivery of the
group project.
5 CONCLUSIONS
This project has come with its difficulties, not least
the traditional nature of vocational engineering
training which has made it difficult at times to make
instructors realise the advantages a VLE could bring
to the learning of trainees. But the tide does appear
to be changing. Through the pilot programme,
instructors now appreciate the benefits that can be
gained from using interactive learning material such
as self-assessment quizzes and the reporting system
that clearly shows quiz results and trainees access to
learning material. Learning Assistant also appears to
be an initial success. This can be contributed to the
automatic mapping of evidence to scope items, the
automatic messaging facility that informs instructors
and advisors that evidence has been uploaded for
assessment and the „at a glance‟ progress reports.
Figure 2: Example screen from Learning Assistant.
It is hoped that this project will give EKGTA
advantage over its immediate competitors but in the
long term will improve and streamline the training
and delivery of learning. If implemented
successfully and utilised to its full potential, the
author would conclude that a VLE could supplement
some elements of vocational training, however,
further research will need to be carried out in other
vocational training environments to establish if this
is the case. At the termination of the project, it
should be possible to develop a model for the
implementation of a VLE and ePortfolio into a
vocational training environment, which may be of
use to practitioners.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This project received financial support from the
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships programme
(KTP). KTP aims to help businesses to improve their
competitiveness and productivity through the better
use of knowledge, technology and skills that reside
within the UK Knowledge Base. KTP is funded by
the Technology Strategy Board.
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