A User-Specific Integrated Approach for Designing Knowledge-Based E-Learning (Research Paper Sample)

A User-Specific Integrated Approach for Designing Knowledge-Based E-Learning
Franklyn Chukwunonso 1 Roliana Binti Ibrahim2 Ali Bin Selamat3
Dept. of Information Systems
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
Johor Bahru, Malaysia
E-mail: fchukwunonso2@live.utm.my, roliana@utm.my, aselamat@utm.myAbstract— Higher educational institutions (HEIs) have witnessed a high proliferation of e-learning systems especially in the last decade. Most of these virtual learning environments (VLEs) are centred on information transmission through improved communication, delivery and access to structured content and learning resources without much emphasis on user-specific content and pedagogical framework peculiar to the teaching and learning needs of the local HEI. The major concern has been the lack of flexibility of these VLEs in adapting to the existing variety of teaching and learning methods employed by various HEIs. To address this challenge, we have proposed a user-specific integrated approach for the design of knowledge-based e-learning systems. Using this approach, we developed a framework for the faculty of computing, Univeristi of Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). Our focus was on three vital areas of e-learning: the delivery method, learning approaches, and learning strategies. The major contribution of this paper would be to aid educators understand how to design learning activities themselves that could facilitate their pedagogical use in different contexts.
Keywords-e-learning; systems; integrated; UTM; student; teacher; HEIs; VLEs; Learning; educators.
Introduction
The shift in paradigm of the web, from a simple repository of hypertext documents to a very strong medium of communication has enabled most educational institutions to take advantage of the collaborative tools and educational activities offered by web applications and web-based technologies. These web-based technologies provide e-learning platforms that are best suited for teaching and learning through collaborative sessions between students and between teachers and students [1].
In recent times, we have witnessed the evolution of various types of e-learning theories, models, and frameworks and research into this field is still ongoing [2]. From a behaviourist to the now cognitive-constructivist pedagogical theories, different technological environments required rapid technological developments that best suited the challenges faced in teaching and learning in connected context [3]. From the pre-Web, Web 1.0, Web 2.0, and now Web 3.0 popularly referred to as the Semantic Web [4][5][6][7] more focus is being geared towards the next generational e-learning facility, in which knowledge-enhanced systems are the most important candidates [8].
With so many different approaches to e-learning systems designs based on rigid structured or standard frameworks, one major challenge for educators in HEIs has been how to adapt the services offered by these e-learning frameworks to best suit their teaching methods and individual pedagogical approaches [9]. The lack of inadaptability or lack of flexibility of these VLEs to the variety of different teaching and learning situations, the common administration-centred approach rather than students-centred approach adopted by existing VLEs, and the lack of pedagogical innovation to develop teachers skills in the use of e-learning tools to design learning activities to meet learner specific needs rather than focus on content management, are some of the challenges this study attempts to address. It is our opinion that for VLEs to effectively impact on learning activities and outcome, a user-specific integrated approach to designing these VLEs must be considered in order to give teachers a more active role that goes beyond course management or course administration (course announcement, online lecture notes, Internet references etc.) to employing these technologies to engage students, structure online interactions, and integrate these teaching methods with other learning activities so as to impact effectively on the students’ learning experience and outcome. This proposed approach will change the role of teachers from a course manager to a course developer, which is a lacking phenomenon in most existing VLEs.
The rest of the paper is organized as follows: Section II takes a look at related literature, Section III discusses the main idea of the approach, Section IV presents the framework from this approach, and Section V concludes the paper.
Related Literature
There is a growing demand for user-specific services, collaborative tools, interactivity between users, and open accessibility to reusable knowledge [10]. This drift tends to lay more emphasis on student-focused learning rather than teacher-paced learning where a student’s progress is measured by his ability to grasp the study material or learning module. This new e-learning system reduces cost of learning by delivering real-time, user-specific, on-demand learning at a very affordable cost, which was a great limitation to traditional training models, while at the same time promotes interactivity, collaboration, reusability, self assessment and simulations that aid students to efficiently and effectively assimilate the skills being taught at individual pace and time [11].
Content has always played a central role in any learning activity (whether face to face learning or e-learning). This becomes more challenging with the enormous amount of digital archives and resources available on the World Wide Web (WWW). The main motive behind the creation of digital archive is to provide shareable and reusable content especially in education. However, the experience today is far from satisfactory as information over flooding problems presents the user with more challenges than solutions. This need to specify information based on the context of use gave birth to metadata schemas, which later evolved to learning objects (LOs). Los are applicable in a variety of contexts and several researches have been and is still being carried out on this technology and its radical applicability particularly for the next generation e-learning systems [12]. In order to integrate and relate existing resources into a new context, a variety of learning context dimensions must be considered: the learning system or environment, the learner’s ability, and the learning goal or outcome [13].
The main aim of technology enhanced learning (TEL) is to provide the learner with timely and usable learning content specific to the learner’s need [14]. However, most VLEs and e-learning architectural frameworks adopt the one-size-fits-all approach in their design, thereby constraining rather than enhancing learning by technology. To overcome this challenge, a new learning content has to be developed each time a learner’s environment, activity or specific need is not supported by the existing e-learning system. The problem with this approach, also referred to as the additive approach, is that it is expensive and difficult to sustain, and is unlikely to yield the expected learning outcome. Boys [15] suggested a comprehensive approach as a solution to this. According to [15], existing teaching and learning practices should be reviewed and changed within the institution, and that any development must be student-centered and not to be centered on administration. Boys [15] approach however is difficult to justify or implement by many institution at the moment.
Our integrated approach on the other hand calls for a shift in thinking by both teachers and software vendors. It supports the idea that teachers should not just be content managers as prevalent with most existing VLEs but that an increased role of designing learning activities themselves should be added to them. To achieve this, authoring of adaptive content tools must be provided and supported by the e-learning system [16][17]. This approach also requires that teachers should have appreciable level of skills in the use if these tools. Another major limitation identified in this approach is the labor-intensive activities that may be involved in learning activity design and content creation. However, the complexity of content authoring is dependent on the complexity of the domain models used in the system. For most modern adaptive e-learning frameworks, dedicated and user-friendly authoring tools that effectively support the index of learning content are beginning to emerge [14]. Most of these developments are as a result of the recent development of innovative modeling languages such as the Educational Modeling Language (EML), which later evolved into IMS Learning Design (IMS-LD) [18]. More details on pedagogical meta-model can be found in [19]. The main purpose of the IMS-LD was to allow teachers describe a learning design in their own content and yet in a standardized way such that it can be run on various e-learning platforms or VLEs.
However, until recently, no VLE was capable to run these LDs, coupled with the problem of acute shortage in authoring tools used for designing these LDs. Today, there is a dramatic improvement as work has reached advanced stages in the development Learning Activity Management System (LAMS) and RELOAD project ( HYPERLINK "" ). While LAMS focuses on the creation and running of LDs in sequential forms of a learning activity, RELOAD engages in the production of tools necessary for creating, editing and running both Los and learning activities under IMS/SCORM standards specifications.
The emphasis nowadays is no longer the accessibility to knowledge, but timely access to relevant and useful knowledge [10]. Current e-learning systems are faced with this limitation as users find it difficult to access personalized information that can meet their user-specific needs. Thus, the viability of an e-learning system should be measured by not just training people anywhere ...