ICT IN EDUCATION

Meaning, Scope and Role of ICT in Education

Meaning

ICTs stand for information and communication technologies and are defined, for the purposes of this primer, as a “diverse set of technological tools and resources used to communicate, and to create, disseminate, store, and manage information.” These technologies include computers, the Internet, broadcasting technologies (radio and television), and telephony.

In recent years there has been a groundswell of interest in how computers and the Internet can best be harnessed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of education at all levels and in both formal and non-formal settings. But ICTs are more than just these technologies; older technologies such as the telephone, radio and television, although now given less attention, have a longer and richer history as instructional tools.

Moreover, different technologies are typically used in combination rather than as the sole delivery mechanism. For instance, the Indira Gandhi National Open University in India combines the use of print, recorded audio and video, broadcast radio and television, and audio conferencing technologies.

"ICT" is the Information and Communication Technologies. "ICT in Education" means "Teaching and Learning with ICT". Educational ICT tools can be divided into 3 categories: Input source, Output source and others.

Aims

To provide an international forum for educators to discuss research and practice in
teaching informatics and educational uses of communication and information technologies (ICT)
To establish models for informatics curricula, training programs, and teaching methodologies.
To consider the relationship of informatics in other curriculum areas.
To promote the ongoing education of ICT professionals and those in the workforce
To examine the impact of information and communication technologies on the whole educational environment:- teaching and learning- administration and management of the educational enterprise- local, national and regional policy-making and collaboration.

Scope

IT-Professional and Vocational Education in Information Technology: Focus is on the area of professional and vocational education rather than on specific computing curricula in primary, secondary or tertiary educational institutions.

Distance Learning: To consider what is necessary to prepare the whole society for living in the information age, using a distance learning system

Lifelong Learning: All aspects of the interactive role of informatics and resulting technologies in lifelong learning.

Research on Education Applications of Information Technologies : To provide a forum to identify issues and priorities for research and to map research policies arising from the differing cultures in IFIP Member countries.

Information and Communication Technologies in Elementary Education: The role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in elementary education (age range from pre-school to 13 years).

Informatics and ICT in Secondary Education: The role of both informatics and resulting Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in secondary education (age range from 11 to 18 years).

Informatics and ICT at the level of Higher Education: The role of both informatics and resulting Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in higher education.

Information Technology in Educational Management: Focus is on use of Information technology within the educational management of educational institutions, educational authorities and educational system networks, to enhance educational effectiveness and development.

Role of ICT in learning

We are living in a constantly evolving digital world. ICT has an impact on nearly every aspect of our lives - from working to socialising, learning to playing. The digital age has transformed the way young people communicate, network, seek help, access information and learn. We must recognise that young people are now an online population and access is through a variety of means such as computers, TV and mobile phones.

As technology becomes more and more embedded in our culture, we must provide our learners with relevant and contemporary experiences that allow them to successfully engage with technology and prepare them for life after school.

It is widely recognised that learners are motivated and purposefully engaged in the learning process when concepts and skills are underpinned with technology and sound pedagogy. Learning and Teaching Scotland aims to provide resources for practitioners, parents and pupils to engage with these technologies in order to inform and enhance the learning experience.

DIGITAL DIVIDE

A digital divide is an economic and social inequality with regard to access to, use of, or impact of information and communication technologies (ICT). The divide within countries (such as the digital divide in the United States) may refer to inequalities between individuals, households, businesses, or geographic areas, usually at different socioeconomic levels or other demographic categories. The divide between differing countries or regions of the world is referred to as the global digital divide examining this technological gap between developing and developed countries on an international scale.

Definition and usage

The term Digital divide describes a gap in terms of access to and usage of information and communication technology, including the skills to make use of that technology within a geographic area, society or community. It was traditionally considered to be a question of having or not having access, but with a global mobile phone penetration of over 95%, it is becoming a relative inequality between those who have more and those who have less.

Conceptualization of the digital divide has been described as follows:

Subjects who have connectivity, or who connects: individuals, organizations, enterprises, schools, hospitals, countries, etc.
Characteristics of connectivity, or which attributes: demographic and socio-economic variables, such as income, education, age, geographic location, etc.
Means of connectivity, or connectivity to what: fixed or mobile, Internet or telephony, digital TV, etc.
Intensity of connectivity, or how sophisticated the usage: mere access, retrieval, interactivity, innovative contributions.
Purpose of connectivity, or why individuals and their cohorts are (not) connecting: reasons individuals are and are not online and uses of the Internet and information and communications technologies.
Dynamics or evolution, whether the gap of concern will increase or decrease in the future, when the gap of concern would be maximized.

Digital divide is a term that refers to the gap between demographics and regions that have access to modern information and communications technology, and those that don't or have restricted access. This technology can include the telephone, television, personal computers and the Internet.

Well before the late 20th century, digital divide referred chiefly to the division between those with and without telephone access; after the late 1990s the term began to be used mainly to describe the split between those with and without Internet access, particularly broadband.

The digital divide typically exists between those in cities and those in rural areas; between the educated and the uneducated; between socioeconomic groups; and, globally, between the more and less industrially developed nations. Even among populations with some access to technology, the digital divide can be evident in the form of lower-performance computers, lower-speed wireless connections, lower-priced connections such as dial-up, and limited access to subscription-based content.

Techopedia explains Digital Divide

The digital divide appears in a number of different contexts, including: Differences between rural and urban Internet access. Socio economic differences between people of different races, income and education affect their ability to access the Internet. Differences between developed, developing and emerging nations arise in terms of the availability of Internet.

The digital divide was once used to describe different rates of technology adoption by different groups. In recent times, however, Internet access has increasingly been seen as the primary advantage that many technologies can grant in that it represents a staggering store of knowledge and resources. In this sense, the digital divide may be shrinking as cheaper mobile devices proliferate and network coverage improves worldwide.

CONCEPT OF DIGITAL IMMIGRANTS

A digital immigrant is an individual who was born before the widespread adoption of digital technology. The term digital immigrant may also apply to individuals who were born after the spread of digital technology and who were not exposed to it at an early age. Digital immigrants are the opposite of digital natives, who have been interacting with technology from childhood.

Digital immigrants are believed to be less quick to pick up new technologies than digital natives. This results in the equivalent of a speaking accent when it comes to the way in which they learn and adopt technology. A commonly used example is that a digital immigrant may prefer to printout a document to edit it by hand rather than doing onscreen editing.

The classification of people into digital natives and digital immigrants is controversial. Some digital immigrants surpass digital natives in tech savvy, but there is a belief that early exposure to technology fundamentally changes the way people learn. The actual classification of people into immigrants and natives is tricky as the adoption of digital technology hasn’t been a unified phenomenon worldwide. For North America, most people born prior to 1980 are considered digital immigrants. Those closer to the cutoff are sometimes called digital intermediates, which means they started using digital technology in their early teens and thus are closer to digital natives in terms of their understanding and abilities.

Immigrants think in a straight line, presenting information one topic at a time. Today’s students engage in multiple thoughts, ideas, and programs at the same time. In addition to following a Power Point lecture, they search for a topic online while actively discussing the topic with their peers, all with music playing in the background. Students need to actively multi-task to hold their interest in the material that we present. As one student said “there‘s so much difference between how teachers think and how students think” (Prensky, 2007).

DIGITAL NATIVES

A person born or brought up during the age of digital technology and so familiar with computers and the Internet from an early age .That is ,A digital native is an individual who was born after the widespread adoption of digital technology. The term digital native doesn't refer to a particular generation. Instead, it is a catch-all category for children who have grown up using technology like the Internet, computers and mobile devices. This exposure to technology in the early years is believed to give digital natives a greater familiarity with and understanding of technology than people who were born before it was widespread. The digital native-immigrant concept describes the generational switchover where people are defined by the technological culture which they're familiar with.

As technology continues to advance and become more accessible around the world, experts who study how children learn are developing fresh paradigms designed to reach the new generation of students dubbed “digital natives.”

The term emerged in 2001 from the work of Mark Prensky, a thought leader, speaker, writer, consultant, and game designer in the field of education and learning. According to Prensky, digital natives are the young people growing up in the digital world. They cut their teeth on tech gadgets, smart phones, and the Internet and can’t conceive of a life without technology. Digital immigrants, on the other hand, grew up prior to the tech boom and have taken pains to adopt and adapt to e-mail, Web surfing, and entertainment on demand.

Scientists have discovered that digital natives’ lifelong exposure to technology means that their brains are developing differently. Educators are beginning to understand that reaching them requires a new style of education that accommodates the ways in which these students learn. Not all children born today are digital natives by default. Interacting regularly with technology at a young age is the deciding factor. That said, children today are more likely to be familiar with the terminology of the digital world.

Role in education

Many teachers are still digital immigrants – people who were exposed to technology later in life and teach in the way they were taught. Some people suggest that digital natives need to be taught in a fundamentally different way. These people believe digital natives think differently due to their early exposure to technology and have become accustom to using technology to solve the repetitive tasks that form the basis of traditional learning.

Teachers are learning the hard way that students struggle to sit through a lecture and quietly take notes. Students are not accustomed to such passivity. Instead, they shine in an interactive environment where talking, touching things, and processing information from every angle is encouraged. Gone are the days of rote memorization.

While integrating technology is becoming more commonplace in the classroom, adopters of hybrid models know the best learning has always blended new ideas – with the student-teacher relationship holding everything together. And that’s just what hybrid programs do best.

The ideal hybrid curriculum utilizes the best online tools to support a teacher-led classroom – making the concept incredibly effective. Young learners are encouraged to explore and follow their own paths with computer-based modules, but a teacher who can bring those lessons to life and give them meaning beyond the classroom in an organized structure shape and propels that exploration. The online components of hybrid education may seem impersonal to some teachers, but utilizing interactive online tools is really all about personalizing the learning experience for each student.

Teachers can take advantage of the digital tools to communicate with students at their level, targeting their interests and providing them with opportunities to interact with and explore the world around them. Providing these young people with choices gives teachers the chance to work with students who are more interested in learning.

With computers, students can reach far beyond the walls of a school library to assemble the resources that shape their education. Whatever their interests, the Internet can immediately provide opportunities to learn more. The technology used in hybrid education can engage students unlikely to participate in other educational models.

Hybrid education shows incredible promise as a model that supports teachers and inspires students. And when it comes to digital natives, few alternatives show as much promise in revolutionizing American classrooms.

BLENDED LEARNING-ROLE OF TEACHER AND LEARNING

Blended learning is a formal education program in which a student learns at least in part through delivery of content and instruction via digital and online media with some element of student control over time, place, path, or pace. While still attending a “brick-and-mortar” school structure, face-to-face classroom methods are combined with activities.

Graham defined 'blended learning systems' as learning systems that "combine face-to-face instruction with computer mediated instruction. “Currently, use of the term blended learning mostly involves "combining Internet and digital media with established classroom forms that require the physical co-presence of teacher and students.

The definition of blended learning has also changed from a simple blend of classroom training and e- learning courses to more complex programs that incorporate an array of synchronous and asynchronous learning modalities.

As more schools adopt blended-learning models, the role of the teacher is shifting. As a result, teachers need different skills to be successful. Although it is hard to generalize across the landscape of blended learning because of the rapid pace of innovation in the models, the differences between the models, and the continued changes in technology, there are five common skills that teachers will likely need to be successful in a blended-learning environment.

Comfort With ‘Chaos’

One of the biggest shifts in a blended –learning environment is often that students will be engaged in different activities & working on different concepts & skills. Teachers must learn to be comfortable facilitating learning in this environment & creating a culture that sets high academic expectations & encourages students to own their own learning.

Student- Learning Data Analysis and Decision Making

Many groups make big deal out of teachers using more data to drive better instruction for students, but it’s tough to do in the traditional classroom. Teachers only receive real data on how students are doing every few weeks, & they don’t have a lot of time to do anything with it. Responding to individual student data in real time-or even on a daily basis, as happens in many blended-learning models today-is a significant & important shift for teachers to master.

Teachers are a district's most valuable resource. Blended learning allows your teachers to integrate both traditional and digital content to meet the needs of all students based on their academic readiness and learning styles.

Targeted Learning Opportunities

Historically, teachers have been forced to deliver a relatively unified, monolithic educational experience. Teachers will now need new skills to learn how to support students who are learning different things, at different paces, through different approaches. They will need to be able to facilitate different learning opportunities for students-such as one-on-one tutoring, small group instruction, project-based learning & lectures.

Specialization

As blended-learning models mature, there will be opportunities for team teaching and differentiated roles for teachers. Some may be content experts, other learning coaches or facilitators, and still others must be non –academic teachers who look much more like case workers.

Technological prowess

Because technology is becoming simpler to use and more ubiquitous in our daily lives, teachers won’t actually need as much as people may think in the way of technology skills to teach in blended learning environment.

Role of Online/Blended Teacher

Facilitate and build an online and F2F community of learners
Engage learners in a variety of online and F2F environments through reflective and hands-on activities
Analyze data to assist in individualizing instruction
Personalize the learning through online discussion and group projects• Differentiate instruction (i.e. learning styles, adaptive/assistive technologies, pacing, supplemental activities and remediation.)
Develop and deliver asynchronous and synchronous lessons that use appropriate and effective multimedia design elements
Student academic integrity issues (plagiarism and the safe and legal use of online resources)

Advantages

Blended instruction is reportedly more effective than purely face-to-face or purely online classes. Incorporating the "asynchronous Internet communication technology" into higher education courses serves to "facilitate a simultaneous independent and collaborative learning experience." The uses of information and communication technologies have been found to improve student attitudes towards learning. By incorporating information technology into class projects, communication between lecturers and part-time students has improved, and students were able to better evaluate their understanding of course material via the use of computer-based qualitative and quantitative assessment modules. Students with special talents or interests outside of the available curricula use educational technology to advance their skills or exceed grade restrictions. Some online institutions connect students with instructors via web conference technology to form a digital classroom.

Disadvantages

Blended learning has a strong dependence on the technical resources or tools with which the blended learning experience is delivered. These tools need to be reliable, easy to use, and up to date, for them to have a meaningful impact on the learning experience. IT literacy can serve as a significant barrier for students attempting to get access to the course materials, making the availability of high-quality technical support paramount.

5.2 EDUCATION THROUGH ICT

COMPUTER ASSISTED INSTRUCTION (CAI)

A self-learning technique, usually offline/online, involving interaction of the student with programmed instructional materials. Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) is an interactive instructional technique whereby a computer is used to present the instructional material and monitor the learning that takes place. CAI uses a combination of text, graphics, sound and video in enhancing the learning process. The computer has many purposes in the classroom, and it can be utilized to help a student in all areas of the curriculum. CAI refers to the use of the computer as a tool to facilitate and improve instruction. CAI programs use tutorials, drill and practice, simulation, and problem solving approaches to present topics, and they test the student's understanding.

Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) represents a teaching tool that involves the use of a computer program or programs to facilitate the education of a group of students. Its major goal is to provide practical instruction through interactive programs that teach effectively. The method was first introduced in the 1960s. The term CAI generally refers to educational activities, in which a computer program is used to teach a passive student, or to such courses in which the computer acts as a platform for the creation of a personalized and interactive learning environment.

CAI can be used alone or in combination with other teaching methods. According to certain studies, the combination of CAI and teacher-assisted instruction (TAI) is highly effective in fostering students' achievements. CAI can be applied to all ages and forms of educations, from preschool to professional school and even in many employment areas. It can be used in a wide range of fields, including all the main disciplines in elementary and secondary school.

As the use of CAI varies depending on the target group and subject, CAI programs never follow a single theoretical model of instruction. In many of them the instruction is organized as interaction between a student and a teacher. Other programs seek to create an engaging and motivating environment in a drive to encourage the learning process. CAI programs are developed to offer a specific kind of student interaction with the computer screen. For CAI developers the computer screen represents a programmable interactive communications medium. As these programs seek to address the needs of a particular group of students, their developers aim to create a program that would teach effectively and feature all the available experience and expertise. Each CAI program is tailored for a specific domain, topic and group of students.

One of CAI's key objectives is to provide a rich diversity of environments and problems. To achieve that the programs developed for a single course may differ drastically in their goals, tasks and style. Due to the work's complexity, CAI program developers are required to have significant experience in the computer medium. There are several aspects of CAI that facilitate learning. These include the ability to personalize information; the presence of animating objects on the screen; the available practice activities that incorporate challenges and curiosity and the fact that it provides a fantasy context and gives the learner a choice over their own learning process.

The advantage of personalizing information is that it boosts the students' interest in a given task. It is easier for a person to integrate new information if his or her name or some other familiar contexts appear in a problem. This is especially true when talking about teaching children and young people. The animation of objects that are part of the explanation of a concept scales down the cognitive load on one's memory and thus facilitates learning. This feature of CAI is especially helpful when dealing with natural sciences such as physics. It allows the student to perform search and recognition processes and to make more informational relationships.

CAI lifts up the student's motivation as it provides him or her with a more challenging and stimulating context than conventional teaching methods. Increased motivation may lead to personal satisfaction and the feeling of challenge. It can also create a positive perspective on lifelong learning. Using computers in the education process provides a fantasy context that serves to facilitate engagement. According to Greta G. Fein and Jerome L. Singer who studied the effect of play on children's education, the involvement in fantasy as a whole is highly intrinsically motivating. Another thing that bolsters one's motivation when using CAI is the presence of choice. When a student can control instruction and make choices, he or she gets more motivated, which enhances the learning process. At the same time, the lack of choice in instruction that is not controlled by the learner may have a negative impact on learning. Having control over the process and making choices makes the student feel more competent and self-determined.

Typical CAI provide

1. Text or multimedia content

2. Multiple-choice questions

3. Problems

4. Immediate feedback

5. Notes on incorrect responses

6. Summarizes students' performance

7. Exercises for practice

8. Worksheets and tests.

Types of Computer Assisted Instruction

1. Drill-and-practice Drill and practice provide opportunities for students to repeatedly practice the skills that have previously been presented and that further practice is necessary for mastery.

2. Tutorial Tutorial activity includes both the presentation of information and its extension into different forms of work, including drill and practice, games and simulation.

3. Games Game software often creates a contest to achieve the highest score and either beat others or beat the computer.

4. Simulation Simulation software can provide an approximation of reality that does not require the expense of real life or its risks.

5. Discovery Discovery approach provides a large database of information specific to a course or content area and challenges the learner to analyze, compare, infer and evaluate based on their explorations of the data.

6. Problem Solving This approach helps children develop specific problem solving skills and strategies.

Advantages of CAI

• One-to-one interaction

• Great motivator

• Freedom to experiment with different options

• Instantaneous response/immediate feedback to the answers elicited

• Self pacing - allow students to proceed at their own pace

• Helps teacher can devote more time to individual students

• Privacy helps the shy and slow learner to learns

• Individual attention

• learn more and more rapidly

• Multimedia helps to understand difficult concepts through multi sensory approach

• Self directed learning – students can decide when, where, and what to learn

Limitations of CAI

• May feel overwhelmed by the information and resources available

• Over use of multimedia may divert the attention from the content

• Learning becomes too mechanical

• Non availability of good CAI packages

• Lack of infrastructure

PowerPoint – presentation

PowerPoint is a presentation program developed by Microsoft. It is included in the standard Office suite along with Microsoft Word and Excel. The software allows users to create anything from basic slide shows to complex presentations.

PowerPoint is often used to create business presentations, but can also be used for educational or informal purposes. The presentations are comprised of slides, which may contain text, images, and other media, such as audio clips and movies. Sound effects and animated transitions can also be included to add extra appeal to the presentation. Most PowerPoint presentations are created from a template, which includes a background color or image, a standard font, and a choice of several slide layouts. Changes to the template can be saved to a "master slide," which stores the main slide theme used in the presentation. When changes are made to the master slide, such as choosing a new background image, the changes are propagated to all the other slides. This keeps a uniform look among all the slides in the presentation.

When presenting a PowerPoint presentation, the presenter may choose to have the slides change at preset intervals or may decide to control the flow manually. This can be done using the mouse, keyboard, or a remote control. The flow of the presentation can be further customized by having slides load completely or one bullet at a time. For example, if the presenter has several bullet points on a page, he might have individual points appear when he clicks the mouse. This allows more interactivity with the audience and brings greater focus to each point.

Power point is a just like the name says a powerful tool for learning. It is basically electronic slides where a person can embed files such as texts, music, pictures; diagram etc. The benefit is that you are engaging students not just through words, but also through visuals. Some students learn better by hearing, but other students learn better by seeing. So, immediately you can see the benefits of engaging students through the visual means. Also, it provides for some excitement in that it breaks down the daily routine of lectures.

Some Positives Associated with Using PowerPoint in the Classroom

Quickly create legible presentation materials
“Democratizes” the communication process (anyone can do it)
Displays a logically organized flow of ideas or processes

Chronologically
Order of importance or priority
Item Inclusions in or Exclusions from larger sets

Acknowledges only a limited amount of information can be remembered
Creates entertaining attention grabbers
Allows inclusion of quotes, video, sound, animation, graphics, photos etc.
Easy to embed webpage links into slides
May better engage visual learners
Ultimately an “art form?”
May help overcome presentational jitters
Helps presenter keep focus
May help audience see what’s coming next
Helps to convey authority of presenter
Software is readily available for faculty and students alike

Easy to share materials back and forth via PowerPoint

Software represents “one-stop” shopping for several tools (chalk board, flip charts, slide projectors, overhead projectors, audio/video players, and the internet)
Student presentations with PowerPoint can be easily saved for portfolio or other later assessment
Allows for reinforcing, multi-channeled communication (see and hear, words and pictures)

Some Negatives Associated with Using PowerPoint in the Classroom (“Death by PowerPoint”)

Original purpose was to market products not educate
Why not view original sources and resources
Difficult to show more conceptual interrelationships
Presenter-focused rather than student-focused
May be difficult to obtain student feedback
May omit several types of educational exercises

Class discussions
Reasoning
Investigation
Questioning authority and/or evidence

Low resolution makes some data displays problematic
PowerPoint “bells and whistles” may distract from communication not enhance it
Students confuse the tool and its logistics with critical thinking and communication
May cause students to “stop taking notes”
PowerPoint doesn’t really add anything that can’t already be done with other applications – glorified chalkboard
May cause us to edit our information and ideas to conform to the tool.

Prezi presentation and its educational implications

On the educational scene, Prezi is fast becoming the new kid on the block. Prezi’s unique slick “zooming” function offers an increasingly popular alternative to the traditional PowerPoint presentations in education and business alike. Prezi is an online, Flash-based presentation creator who shares similar functionalities with other information presentation programmes such as Microsoft PowerPoint and Apple Keynotes. It is a visual learning tool which allows you to create maps of texts, images, videos, graphics, etc… and present them in a nonlinear way. The menu for adding elements has a very unique navigational approach and is easy to master.
Prezi’s most noticeable feature is its zoom in and out function which really brings your message to life. Instead of “flicking” from one slide to the next – as you would do in your good old PowerPoint presentation – Prezi gives you a chance to explore a canvas of ideas by focussing on minute detail as well as allowing you to see the big picture. Instead of a slide show which offers information in accumulation, Prezi favours visual learning and works very much like a graphic organiser or a mind map. Therefore, it highlights the way concepts are interconnected.

In many classrooms these days it is fair to say that PowerPoint has become the default setting for information to be communicated. As effective as it may be in presenting ideas to students, overuse of PowerPoint tends to lead to disengagement, to that “not another PowerPoint” feeling your learners (and yourself!) may experience at times... Prezi on the other hand has the WOW factor.

Why prezi in education

Prezi creates stunning visual impact. Import pictures, maps and PDFs and use them as a canvas. With the cinematic experience of the zooming function, your students will feel like they are transported into a “world” that you have designed yourself.
Prezi is interactive whiteboard friendly. It allows you to create exciting and interactive presentations with touch navigation.
Prezi offers more freedom of navigation. Your Prezi can be kept in the public domain and therefore accessed by your students on the Internet. At home, they can navigate the Prezi themselves, observe connections of ideas and visualise concepts.
Prezi is a great tool for interactive classroom sessions or group projects. Students can cooperate in real time with up to ten others, in the classroom or at home, to brainstorm and build a presentation on one shared virtual whiteboard.
If you already have all your notes in PowerPoint, you don’t need to start all over again. Use the PowerPoint Import feature to transfer your existing content directly into your Prezi.

In addition to the benefits listed above, Prezi offers a free educational subscription (simply use an email address that clearly belongs to your educational institution). The tutorials on the website (www.prezi.com/learn) are clear and easy to follow.

Here is a step-by-step guide to your first Prezi for education

Sign up at prezi.com for free and click on “Create New Prezi”.
Think of a metaphor for your message and find a suitable image on the Net. This image will become your background canvas.
Once you have chosen a template, you will gain access to the presentation generating interface. You can click anywhere on the canvas and start typing, but it is easier if you create text fields first. They will allow you to zoom in and out with more ease.
Personalise your text by choosing the font, size and colour. You can then move, scale and rotate your text in order to reinforce your message. Add pictures, diagrams, videos, music and sound effects.
Edit the zooming path with the left-hand side menu, which also allows you to rehearse your presentation before saving it and exporting it.

Thanks to Prezi, you can “fly” from location to location on your chosen canvas, turning elements upside down, zooming in or out, to explore the relationship between ideas. A teacher who uses Prezi becomes a kind of painter of information. He chooses the right visual imagery to convey a memorable message. In contrast to the text-heavy, outline-based methodology of PowerPoint, Prezi packs a powerful punch and certainly deserves its place in modern education.

5.3 Free and open source software

What is Free Software?

The word "Free" in "Free software" is related with liberty, not price. You should think of the word "Free" as in "free speech," not as in "free beer."

The free software movement was started by Richard M. Stallman and GNU in 1984, later the Free Software Foundation was founded.

Free software is defined by the offering of 4 basic freedoms:

The freedom to run the program, for any purpose (freedom 0).
The freedom to study how the program works, and adapt it to your needs (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor (freedom 2).
The freedom to improve the program, and release your improvements to the public, so that the whole community benefits (freedom 3). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.

Non-free software is also called proprietary software. Free software should not be confused with freeware; freeware is free as in free beer, not as in freedom.

What is Open Source?

The open source movement was started in the late 90s, and originated as part of a marketing campaign for Free Software. It emphasize the technical and economical benefits of open source code and open development, and care little or nothing at all about the ethical aspects. However there is very little software acknowledged by the Open Source Initiative that is not also Free Software, hence the term FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) is often used.

Benefits of Free and Open Source Software

These freedoms benefit users in many ways. Without access to the code and the right to modify it and distribute it a distribution like open SUSE would not be possible at all.

Fix the software

These freedoms mean that you can fix bugs, which exist in all software, or you can change the software to do what you need it to do, or even fix security issues. In the case of proprietary software you can ask the provider to add functionality and fix bugs, and maybe they'll do it when it suits them, maybe not.

Free software enables you to share software and thus help your friends and neighbours without you having to breach licenses.

Know and control what is going on

With proprietary software you can't know what a given program really does. Some very well known proprietary software has been caught spying on users and sending information about their behaviour and such. Proprietary software also has a tendency to include various digital restrictions on what the user can do, when, for how long, etc. With free software it is possible to access to the source code and can study what the program does and change it if one don't like it.

Technical benefits

Open source code makes it possible for more people to see the code and fix it; it can develop faster and become better. This system of "peer review" can be compared to the way scientific research works. In comparison proprietary code is kept secret and rarely seen by anybody outside the company behind it.

Economic benefits

It's also a way in which companies can share development costs. For example Novell and Red Hat are competitors yet they develop many of the same programs and thus help each other. IBM and HP could also be seen as competitors yet they both contribute to the Linux kernel, etc., thus sharing development costs.

Free software makes a competitive market for support possible, potentially heightening the quality of support. With proprietary software only the provider who has access to the source code can realistically offer decent support, and thus has a kind of monopoly.

Two important free and open source software are GNU/Linux and Ubuntu.

(1) GNU/Linux

Linux or, computer operating system (OS) assembled under the model of free and open-source software development and distribution. The defining component of Linux is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on 5 October 1991 by Linus Torvalds. The Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to describe the operating system, which has led to some controversy.

Linux was originally developed as a free operating system for personal computers based on the Intel x86 architecture, but has since been ported to more computer hardware platforms than any other operating system. Thanks to its dominance on smart phones, Android, which is built on top of the Linux kernel, has the largest installed base of all general-purpose operating systems. Linux, in its original form, is also the leading operating system on servers and other big iron systems such as mainframe computers and supercomputers, but is used on only around 1.5% of desktop. Linux also runs on embedded systems, which are devices whose operating system is typically built into the firmware and is highly tailored to the system; this includes mobile phones, tablet computers, network routers, facility automation controls, televisions, video game consoles and smart watches.

In Linux, Everything is treated as a file
Availability many small commands for System Administration
Ability to chain programs
System configuration data is stored in text.

Properties of Linux

Linux is free:

As in free beer, they say. If you want to spend absolutely nothing, you don't even have to pay the price of a CD. Linux can be downloaded in its entirety from the Internet completely for free. No registration fees, no costs per user, free updates, and freely available source code in case you want to change the behavior of your system. .

Linux is portable to any hardware platform

A vendor who wants to sell a new type of computer and who doesn't know what kind of OS his new machine will run (say the CPU in your car or washing machine), can take a Linux kernel and make it.

Linux was made to keep on running

As with UNIX, a Linux system expects to run without rebooting all the time. That is why a lot of tasks are being executed at night or scheduled automatically for other calm moments, resulting in higher availability during busier periods and a more balanced use of the hardware. This property allows for Linux to be applicable also in environments where people don't have the time or the possibility to control their systems night and day.

Linux is secure and versatile:

The security model used in Linux is based on the UNIX idea of security, which is known to be robust and of proven quality. But Linux is not only fit for use as a fort against enemy attacks from the Internet: it will adapt equally to other situations, utilizing the same high standards for security. Your development machine or control station will be as secure as your firewall.

Linux is scalable:

From a Palmtop with 2 MB of memory to a peta byte storage cluster with hundreds of nodes: add or remove the appropriate packages and Linux fits all.

(2) Ubuntu

Ubuntu is a Debian- based Linux operating system and distribution, with unity as its default desktop environment for personal computers including smart phones in later versions. Ubuntu is one of the most powerful Linux operating system which is popular for its security. Recently its latest version of Ubuntu operating system was launched that provides better user friendliness good user experiences as compared to other operating systems. It does not require too much of technical skills to work on it as the previous versions of Linux OS. Ubuntu can easily installed with some other operating systems too. Ubuntu also runs network servers. It is based on free software and named after the South African Philosophy of Ubuntu which is often translated as “humanity towards others” or “the belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity”. Ubuntu is built on Debians architecture and infrastructure to provide Linux server, Desktop, phone, Tablet and TV operating systems. Ubuntu releases updated versions predictably- every six months- and each release receives free support for nine months with security fixes, high impact bug fixes and conservative substantially beneficial low risk bug fixes. The first release was in October 2004.

Ubuntu divides most software into four domains to reflect differences in licensing and the degree of support available. Some unsupported applications receive updates from community members, but not from canonical Ltd. Free software includes software that has met the Ubuntu licensing requirements, which roughly correspond to the Debian Free software guidelines. Non free software is usually unsupported, but some exceptions are made for important non free software. Supported non free software includes device drivers that can be used to run Ubuntu on some current hardware, such as binary- only graphics card drivers. The level of support in the restricted category is more limited than that of main, because the developers may not have access to the source code. It is intended that Main and restricted should contain all software needed for a complete desktop environment.

Features

A default installation of Ubuntu contains a wide range of software that includes LibreOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, Transmission, and several lightweight games such as Sudoku and chess. Many additional software packages , including titles no longer in the default installation such as Evolution, GIMP, Pidgin, and synaptic are accessible from the built in Ubuntu software centre as well as any other APT based package management tool. Execution of Microsoft office and other Microsoft windows applications can be facilitated via the wine compatibility package or through the use of a virtual machine such as virtual BOX or VMware workstation.

Advantages of using Ubuntu operating system

Ubuntu is one of the most secured operating system and defines the highest level of security as compared other operating system.
Ubuntu is an open source OS.
Ubuntu is most popular Linux OS.
Most of the softwares in Ubuntu are pre-installed to enhance user experience.
It is available free of cost.
1GHz x 86 processor.
512 MB Ram.
5 GB space must be free on hard drive.
Graphic card with 800 x 600 resolution.
USB port or DVD drives for media installation.

Disadvantages of Ubuntu OS

Though the operating system is powerful and had improved the user experience, but still it carry strong lags that must be taken into consideration before using this OS.

Ubuntu is very conventional to new technologies.
It is very perspective to faults in hardware which make it less steady as compared to other operating systems.
There is a little Hardware support for Ubuntu OS. Some of the users complain that it becomes difficult to configure modem to start work on internet.
Ubuntu is not capable of playing MP3 files by default.
The forum support for Ubuntu is really very poor.
The installation of Ubuntu is one of the major problems. It does not come installed in modern PCs.

Educational Softwares

Educational software is computer software, the primary purpose of which is teaching or self learning. Educational software refers to software that can be used by teachers and students to support teaching and learning. Educational software is essential in any learning environment to allow teachers and students maximize the power of the computer. There are hundreds of educational software titles available on the market but not all are suitable for use in school.

This software can also enable students to gather information that otherwise would have been impossible, time-consuming or costly. For instance, data from outer space can now be utilized. Students can also experiment with the changing aspects of a model like increasing or lowering interest rates in order to see how this affects the economy. All of this can be very motivational for students and these are just some of the numerous advantages of educational software.

Main advantages

Interactive software for preschool children who aren’t ready to use a mouse or keyboard quite yet.
Educational software for teaching academic skills such as math.
Programs that will teach children basic keyboarding skills.
Software that teaches children how to think logically and to solve problems.
Artistic software that your child can use to create and color 3D pictures. These can usually be printed out
Children control their own learning experience, the pace at which they learn and how challenged they are.

Computers help children to use all of their senses to extract information.
Children learn through creating and utilizing hands-on knowledge.
Computers help children develop a positive attitude towards technology.
Computers are beneficial in developing children’s fundamental skills (i.e. letters, numbers, colors, shapes, rhythm, cause and effect, problem solving, procedural thinking, creativity).
Computers are really beneficial to children who have speech, audio or motor limitations because they act as a patient tutor allowing the child to learn at his own pace.
Computers can teach self-confidence and self-esteem.
Computers can teach social skills.

Main Disadvantages

Software needs to be carefully chosen in order to ensure that what is holding your child’s attention is also educating them at the same time.
Some software doesn’t make it obvious that it has no educational value.
It is rare to find a school that has enough computers for every student, thus scheduling can become problematic.
It is difficult to get a student’s attention whenever they are on the computer.
Muscular-skeletal injuries and vision problems can arise whenever students spend too much time using the computer.

List of Some educational softwares

Geogebra
Amiglobe
Stellarium
Math Blaster
Wikipedia
Celestia
NASA world wind

GeoGebra

Geogebra is a multi platform mathematics software that gives everyone the chance to experience the extraordinary insights that math makes possible. Geogebra is an interactive geometry, algebra, statistics and calculus application, intended for learning and teaching mathematics and science from primary school to university level. Geogebra is available on multiple platforms with its desktop applications for Windows, Mac OS and Linux, with its tablet apps for Android, iPad and Windows, and with its web application based on HTML5 technology.

Markus Hohenwarter, started the project in 2001 at the University of Salzburg, continuing it at Florida Atlantic University(2006–2008), Florida State University (2008–2009), and now at the University of Linz together with the help of open-source developers and translators all over the world. In 2013, Bernard Parisse's Giac was integrated into Geogebra's CAS view.

Geogebra is a free dynamics mathematics software created by Markus Hohenwarter for all levels of education that brings together geometry, algebra, spreadsheets, graphing, statistics and calculus in one easy-to use package. Interactive teaching, learning and evaluation resources created with Geogebra can be shared and used by everyone at tube.geogebra.org. Geogebra is the world’s favorite dynamic mathematics software, has received numerous educational software awards, and supports STEM education and innovations in teaching and learning worldwide. Geogebra allows you to directly enter and manipulate equations and coordinates, enabling you to plot functions and work with sliders to investigate parameters. Teachers and students can use Geogebra to make conjectures and to understand how to prove geometric theorems.

Geogebra is a complex application that's aimed strictly at those comfortable with difficult math, but the advantage Geogebra offers over similar apps is that it provides multiple representations of objects that are all dynamically linked. The idea is to connect geometric, algebraic, and numeric representations in an interactive way. This can be done with points, vectors, lines, and conic sections. The complexity of the program is mind boggling for those new to such mathematical applications. Students love it because it makes math tangible.

Educational implications

Geogebra makes a link between geometry and algebra in an entirely new, visual way students can finally see, touch and experience math.
It makes math dynamic, interactive and fun.
Geogebra teaches students math in new and exciting way that goes beyond the blackboard and leverages new media.
It makes math accessible and available.
Geogebra allows students to connect with math anywhere and at any time –in school, At home, on-the-go.it makes math easier to learn.
Geogebra creates the interactions that students need in order to absorb mathematical concepts.
It allows teachers to plan and deliver better lessons.
Geogebra gives teachers the freedom to be themselves, creating lessons they know their students will find interesting.
It allows teachers to connect with other teachers. Geogebra teachers are part of a global math community. It allows teachers to continue teaching. Geogebra doesn’t replace teachers.
It helps teachers to do what they do best-teach.
Students are motivated. Students get better results.

Advantages

Free to use software for learning and teaching.
Fully interactive, easy to use interface with many powerful features
Access to an ever expanding pool of resources at tube.geogebra.org
Available in many languages
A fun way to really see and experience mathematics and science.
Adaptable to any curriculum or project
Used by millions of people around the world.
Provides multiple representations of dynamically linked objects
Covers arithmetic, geometry, algebra and calculus
Allows scripting and editing
Large number of interactive learning and teaching resources at GeoGebraTube

Limitations

Complicated for beginners
It is very difficult to deal with this software.

Stellarium

Stellarium is a free software planetarium, licensed under the terms of the GNU General Public License, available for Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X. It uses OpenGL to render a realistic projection of the night sky in real time. It is a free open source planetarium for the computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what we see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope. It is being used in planetarium projectors. Stellarium is a free downloadable planetarium program. It is simple to download (www.stellarium.org) and intuitive to use. Stellarium is appropriate for people of all ages capable of operating a computer and is great for planetariums, classrooms, or for personal use.

Stellarium was developed by the French programmer Fabien Chereau,who launched the project in the summer of 2001.Other developers include Robert Spearman, Johannes Gajdosik, Mathew Gates, Nigel Kerr, and Johan Meuris, who is responsible for the artwork. Stellarium was featured on SourceForge in May 2006 as a Project of the Month.

Important Features of Stellarium

It shows the real-time positions of the sun and moon, planets, stars, and constellations.
Users can choose to view the sky from anywhere on Earth, and can even look into the future or back into the night skies of the past.
It will allow the users to slow down or speed up time.
Stellarium can be very useful if the user live in a city where bright lights keeps the user from getting a good look at the night sky, or the weather happens to be bad.
It will let the user to turn on labels that will help to identify stars, planets, constellations, and other objects.
Stellarium will also show patterns of the various constellations, and it even has a function that will zoom in on the moon, planets and other objects to view them close up.
It has the ability to add new solar system objects from the online resources, add our own deep sky objects, landscapes, constellation, images, scripts…
Users can see equatorial and azimuthal grids, star twinkling, eclipse simulation, supernovae simulation, shooting stars, skinnable landscapes…
The initial view of the night sky is similar to what is actually seen outside.
Stellarium can replace an expensive and rather powerful telescope for absolutely no cost to users.
A useful feature of the program is the fish-eye mode. This features make it possible to project the stellarium images onto our own dome.
There is a plug-in system for adding satellites, ocular simulation, telescope configuration and more.

Educational Implications

Stellarium may be used as an educational tool for teaching about the night sky, as an observational aid. Stellarium is an excellent teaching resource for teaching astronomy at all levels. In 2006, stellarium 0.7.1 won a gold award in the education category of the Les Trophees du Libre free software competition. Stellarium is under fairly rapid development.

Stellarium makes the study of the sky very interesting, purposeful and effective in students.
It is a substitute for direct experience.
To encourage students to conduct experiments in the program by their curiosity.
With stellarium students can label stars, constellations, etc. by themselves.
Students can enjoy beautiful pictures of the sky.
Students can see heavenly bodies, such as planets, galaxies and the most beautiful object in the cosmos-nebulas.
When student select an object, its detailed description appears at the top left corner of the screen. It helps them to further studies.
Stellarium is a good tool for learning the constellations and in some ways is easier than using a static star chart.
It helps the students in clarifying concepts in the sky,develops scientific attitude, and also there is an involvement of maximum senses.
A teacher could introduce stellarium to students in the classroom and encourage them to explore the program at home.

5.4 E-Learning

I. Concept, Nature and Definition

E-Learning is learning utilizing electronic technologies to access educational curriculum outside of a traditional classroom. It refers to the use of internet or wireless technologies to deliver a broad array of training solutions. E-learners access the learning from a computer via the internet or an intranet, or through a handled device like a palm pilot. In 2001, Marc Rosenberg suggested the following definition of e-learning: “the use of internet technologies to deliver a broad array of solutions that enhance knowledge and performance”. In less than two short years this definition has expanded to include wireless as well as internet technologies with the two technologies often working together to delivery focused learning to the job-site.

We are all familiar with classroom based learning (c-learning) which is face-to-face group learning led by an instructor or subject matter expert. In e-learning environments learner interact with learning materials, their instructors and other learners from various locations and often at various times using network technologies. So by its nature, e-learning offers significant flexibility as to when and how learning occurs. E-leaning can include independent, facilitated, or collaborative approaches to learning.

E-learning can be asynchronous (meaning learners are experiencing the learning at different times) or synchronous (meaning learners are experiencing the learning are experiencing the learning at the same time) or it can incorporate both drawing on the strengths of each. Independent learning is, by definition, asynchronous. Facilitated and collaborative can be either asynchronous or synchronous.

II. Meaning and Modes

E-Learning is learning utilizing electronic technologies to access educational curriculum outside of a traditional classroom. Quite simply, E-Learning is electronic learning, and typically this means using a computer to deliver part, or all of a course whether it's in a school, part of your mandatory business training or a full distance learning course. In most cases, it refers to a course, program or degree delivered completely online. Any learning that utilizes a network (LAN, WAN or Internet) for delivery, interaction or facilitation is called as E-Learning. This would include distributed learning, distance learning, CBT delivered over a network and WBT.

Sometimes it is delivered live, where you can electronically raise hand and interact in real time and sometimes it is a lecture that has been prerecorded. There is always a teacher or professor communicating with you and grading your participation, your assignments and your tests. E-Learning has proven to be a successful method of training and, education is becoming a way of life for many citizens in several countries.

Each institution uses a specific system, but they are all similar in their ability to present course material including the syllabus, assignments, quizzes and also provide video and audio plus a white board screen where the lesson is presented just like it would be on a classroom's video screen or blackboard. Courses are instructor led and in most instances follow the same semester schedule as traditional courses. All specific course information such as how to reach the instructor, what work is expected, and deadlines to turn in assignments and take tests will be found within your course site. Basically, distance education provides the base for E-Learning development. E-Learning can be “on demand”. It overcomes timing, attendance and travel difficulties. More precisely, E-Learning allows each individual to tackle the subject at their own pace, with interactive tasks being systematically set in place to ensure a thorough understanding throughout each module.

III. Characteristics of E-Learning

1. Assessment and curriculum design and development

Organizational and individual needs assessment
Setting competency standards of performance
Goal setting and incentives
Roadman to educational success

2. Branded educational content

Proven, high- quality intellectual capital
Timely, relevant, and consistent information
Keeping fast- changing content current, dynamic, and refreshed
Off the shelf and customized

3. Broad and easy access to information

Anyone, anytime, anywhere, any subject
Multiple technology- based delivery methods
Synchronous and asynchronous
Enabling just-in-time training

4. Engaging user experience

Rich multimedia experience
Realistic simulations and role playing
Video- based teaching and storytelling
Advice and explanations from experts/mentors
Animated case studies and examples

5. Regular reinforcement

Personalized and/or real-time online mentors
Webcasts, interviews, live events
Practical exercises and application
Facilitated workshops and discussion groups
Desktop advice, special events, and updated Gaming opportunities
Weekly newsletters and relevant attacks

6. Collaborative online communities

Access to fellow learners, instructors, business leaders, and experts
Access to system knowledge base
Private company and global communities

7. Centralized tracking and administration

Easy and automatic knowledge management
Tools to evaluate progress of individuals or groups
Assessment try to pinpoint employee needs and goals
Measuring return on investment

8. Scalable Technology

Leveraging existing open industry standards
Scalable to any size enterprise
Flexible technology to include groups of workstations or the entire organization
Easy integration with client's internal systems
Delivering media rich broadband experience

9. Organizational consulting, implementation, and integration

Integration with existing curriculum and training delivery system
HR and IT Administration training
Employee incentive and action programs
Performance reviews
Cultural support for self-study
Customized management training support
Behavioral change measurement and reporting

Liu and Wang (2009) summarize the concepts and definitions of western and eastern (China) E-learning to the following characteristics:

E-learning is learning primarily based on the Internet.
Information is disseminated in the form of courses available on the network.
It is possible a worldwide distribution and sharing of learning resources.
It created a virtual learning environment.
E-learning is one of the methods of study
Learning is flexible (anytime, anywhere).

V Benefits of E-learning

A student can take credit-bearing courses without ever entering a classroom. The course can be taken and followed by a test via Internet .
News groups allows teachers and students to ask questions , request advice and share information .
E-learning provides access to any digital library .
Greater variety of information.
Immediate access to different content.
Facility for repetition.
Any member of students can enroll.
No need for buildings, classrooms, hostels etc.
No delays in examination and results.
Flexibility to add new subjects.
No restriction of time and place of learning.
No bar on caste and creed.

E-resources

E-resources are short term for Electronic Resources or electronic information resources. These are collections of information in electronic or digital format that are accessed on an electronic device, such as a mobile phone, computer, etc. These are published resources in electronic versions/format such as encyclopedias, pamphlets, e-books, e-journals, databases etc.

Advantages of using e-resources

Easy information retrieval.

Ability to do full text search across a huge number of resources in one go
Ability to download, print, or send the desired document instantly (easily manipulate data to suit your need as long as you acknowledge source. i.e. can cut/paste/undo/redo)
Ease to skim and search through.

Currency, quality and timeliness of the information
Convenience of accessing articles any time from your own computer/Home/anywhere
Ability to link directly to additional resources or related content
Ability to create personal collections i.e. favorites, bookmark, etc

Comprehensive (wider range and organized access to high quality information), convenient, diverse, current, time saving and accessible to many users concurrently from anywhere, anytime, whether or not the physical library is open.

Because they provide a wider range and organized access to high quality information they have brought about innovations in teaching, learning, and research at all levels of education in universities i.e. from undergraduate through postgraduate and beyond.

Classification of e-resources:

Generally, e-resources may be classified into two major areas viz, online e-resources and offline e-resources.

Online e-resources		Offline e-resources
e-books	e-learning (courses)	CD ROM based e-resources
e-journals	e-shops	Offline e-books
email	e-dictionaries	Offline e-dictionaries
Gmail	Search engines	MS Office applications (power point presentation)
sms / mms	Meta search engines	Training software ( mouse training)
e-library	Websites	Steganography
e-forum	e-learning (courses)	e-resources on mobile devices

The development of e-resources requires the fundamental knowledge of the following:-

Basic computer skills
Internet skills
Web skills and so on.

M - Learning

Mobile devices have become deeply engrained in our day to day lives. We can’t imagine going about our life for a week without access to our mobile devices. From reading to management to entertainment to GPS (Global Positioning System), the Multi-Purpose Gadgets has influenced our human lives a lot. Mobile learning or m-learning for short, lets learners learn and get performance support via their mobile devices. Mobile Learning is primed to address the 21st century challenges of an increasingly global, mobile and technological workforce and is considered to be the future of workplace learning.

Definition

M-learning or mobile learning is defined as “learning across multiple contexts, through social and content interactions, using personal electronic devices such as handheld computers, MP3 Players, notebooks, mobile phones, tablets etc”. M-learning focuses on the mobility of the learner and the interaction with portable technologies and it has got a prominent place in informal learning.

Mobile Learning Application Architecture

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Features

The key features of m-learning are:

1. Short bite – Micro Sized lessons

Given learners' short attention span on mobile and the small screen size of mobile devices, good m-Learning content is often partitioned into a series of short 3-10 minutes micro-lessons. When possible, interactive elements such as good typography (letters), images, charts and short 2-3 minutes videos are used as these are most memorable and easily absorbed. Even items like file size matters as long videos or high resolution graphics mean a longer loading time and expensive data charges.

2. M-Learning transcends the formal learning space and brings structured learning into an informal learning space (Flexible, self-paced, self-directed)

Informal Learning is like breathing. It happens naturally, always, mostly embedded in other tasks, contextually, often subconsciously, and is always self-initiated. Compared to formal learning and organized structured learning, informal learning is proven to be more effective (70 - 90% of our job-related skills is learnt through informal learning). M-Learning creates an informal learning space by enabling access to learning outside the classroom, empowering learners to take charge of their own learning. Good m-learning platforms often include social elements so that learners are encouraged to share their experiences and learn from each other.

3. M-Learning provides a form of Performance Support (Just-in-time / on demand Learning)

We are living in an age where creativity, knowledge and innovation are powering the world at an ever increasing pace. In order to compete effectively, we need to be able to quickly unlearn and relearn key competencies. M-learning acts as a form of performance support by allowing content to be consumed anytime, anywhere, when in need; enabling learners to make better decisions and satisfy customers. Performance support materials such as checklist, flashcards and guides are often used as reference for m-learning.

The table below illustrates the key differences between m-Learning and e-Learning:

	m-Learning	e-Learning
Main- Objective	Knowledge distribution: Application of knowledge "Just-in-Time". Personalized: "Just-for-Me"	Knowledge presentation: Retention "Just-in-Case"

Approach	Flexible, more informal than eLearning. Can be both structured & unstructured	Formal Structured
Content Type	Concise and situated. Broken up into micro-lessons. Search-enabled, allowing user access for appropriate information when needed	Comprehensive, typically covering: Topic concepts, principles, processes, procedures and facts. Usually follows a liner process which does not allow users to skip chapters/modules
Typical Content	Images, Videos Flashcards, Checklists Guides Discussion forums	Animated slides, Voiceovers, Videos, Quizzes, Case studies

Grading	Performance & Improvement-based	Benchmarking
Devices	Mobile Devices (iPhone, Android devices and tablet)	Laptop/Computer
User Access	Anywhere, anytime at the point of need	At your desk or in static environment

Time Spent	3 - 10 minutes	20 minutes - 1 hour

E- Learning Materials

E-materials are materials to aid in the acquisition and development of knowledge by using electronic technologies. E-materials consist of journals, books, dictionaries, reference books, reference databases of articles, digital library, e-governance. E-materials are portable. We can carry a whole library of hundreds of books with you, on CD, in a laptop, notebook or any e-book reader, without worrying about their weight. With today's technology you can use e-materials everywhere, on the bus, train, airplane, and while standing in line.

E-Book

An electronic book (variously: e-book, eBook, e-Book, e book, digital book, or even e-edition) is a book-length publication in digital form, consisting of text, images or both, readable on computers or other electronic devices. Although sometimes defined as "an electronic version of a printed book, many e-books exist without any printed equivalent. It is downloaded to a computer, PC, Mac, laptop, PDA, tablet, smart phone or any other kind of reading device, and is read on the screen. It is very simple and easy to purchase and download e-books through the Internet. It is exactly like purchasing any other product. E-Books usually come in two formats: (1) .PDF - These can be opened in Adobe Acrobat reader. (2) .EXE - These can be opened on any Windows PC without the need for any additional software to be installed, they won’t however run on MAC`s.

Advantages:

E-books are portable. You can carry a whole library of hundreds of books with you, on CD, in a laptop, notebook or any e-book reader, without worrying about their weight. With today's technology you can read e-books everywhere, on the bus, train, airplane, and while standing in line. E-books are more safely stored and carried from one place to another, than ordinary books. They also withstand time more than books.
E-books take up less space. You practically don't need any space to store them. You don't need a library or a room for them. You can store hundreds and thousands of e-books on your computer or reading device.
E-books are searchable. It is possible to purchase an e-book 24 hours a day, every day of the year, from the comfort of your own house or office. You can easily search for any information in an e-book, instead of turning page after page. It can show links, for easy access to more information and related websites.
Since e-books are delivered through the Internet, there are no packing and shipping expenses.
E-books can be printable, so that if you wish to read an e-book in the traditional way, you can very inexpensively print it with your home printer or at any printing shop.
Fonts in e-books can be resized, making it easier to read for people with disabilities. With additional software it is possible to turn some of the e-books into audio books.
E-books are very easy to sell and distribute.
E-books promote reading. People are spending more time in front of screens and less time in front of printed books.
E-books are good for the environment. E-books save trees. E-books eliminate the need for filling up landfills with old books. E-books save transportation costs and the pollution associated with shipping books across the country and the world.
E-books, faster to produce than paper books, allow readers to read books about current issues and events. E-books are easily updateable, for correcting errors and adding information.
E-books are cheaper to produce. Thus, small presses can attempt to compete with media giants. E-books are cheaper to buy.
E-books normally include dictionaries, and additional language dictionaries may be added. This allows the user to get the meaning of words while reading. This is particularly valuable while reading a text in other than the user's native tongue.

Disadvantages:

E-Book Readers can cost money. Although some E-Book Readers are free software programs, the top 10 reviewed Readers are all commercial devices that cost money to use.

Programs need to be compatible with the computer or device. There are other software programs that can load directly onto a computer or handheld PDA. However, with the many operating systems that are out there and computer devices, not all programs are compatible with every computer.
Anti-Virus, Anti-Malware and Spyware may change registry information
Not all book formats are compatible with the reader. Every E-Book reader will allow different formats of text files to be read. Examples of format types are PDF, Word, PDB, HTML, BBeB, etc. Depending on the file type of the book, the reader a user has may not allow it.
E-Book Readers require power. E-Book readers are special devices or programs on a computer that allow the user to access the book electronically. There is absolutely no paper involved. If there is a power outage and the batteries die the user will not be able to access the book.
E-Books can cause eyestrain. E-Books are read on a computer or special device that is viewed on a screen. The screen does not have the same type of resolution like print on paper has.

E-books do not have a defined life. New technologies are always emerging; for example, new computers or hand held devices. Software and hardware can become outdated that contain components that can run a user’s E-Book reader. When upgrading to newer software, the user runs the risk of losing saved books or losing formatting of the document.

E-Books can be hacked. E-book Readers are able to connect to the internet to shop for different E-books. Hackers are able to use their computers to hack E-Book readers and E-Books. People are now pirating E-Books just as they are able to pirate music.

Electronic journals

Electronic journals, also known as e-journals, and electronic serials, are scholarly journals or intellectual magazines that can be accessed via electronic transmission. In practice, this means that they are usually published on the Web. They are a specialized form of electronic document: they have the purpose of providing material for academic research and study, and they are formatted approximately like journal articles in traditional printed journals.

Some electronic journals are online-only journals; some are online versions of printed journals, sometimes with extra video and interactive media material.

Most commercial journals are subscription-based, and/or allow pay-per-view access. Many universities subscribe in bulk to packages of electronic journals, so as to provide access to them to their students and faculty. It is generally also possible for individuals to purchase an annual subscription to a journal from the original publisher.

An increasing number of e-journals are available as open access journals, requiring no subscription and offering free full-text articles and reviews to all. Individual articles from electronic journals may be found online for free in an ad-hoc manner: in working paper archives; on personal homepages; and in the collections held in institutional repositories and subject repositories. Some commercial journals find ways to offer free materials. They may offer their initial issue or issues free, and then charge thereafter. Some give away their book reviews section for free. Others offer the first few pages of each article for free.

Most electronic journals are published in HTML and/or PDF formats, but some are available in only one of the two formats. A small minority publishes in DOC, and a few are starting to add MP3

What is an electronic journal?

An electronic journal is a periodical publication which is published in electronic format, usually on the Internet.

Electronic journals have several advantages over traditional printed journals:

You can search the contents pages and/or the full text of journals to find articles on a certain subject.
You can read journal articles on your desktop, you don't have to be in the Library.
You can e-mail articles to yourself or download them for printing.
The article that you want to read will always be available, even when the Library is closed.
Hypertext links allow you to move to different sections within individual journals or articles and can link you to related resources on the Internet.
Journals can include more images and audio-visual materials
Journals can be interactive - you can e-mail the author or editor with your comments.

Digital library

Digital libraries are a set of electronic resources and associated technical capabilities for creating, searching and using information. In this sense they are an extension and enhancement of information storage and retrieval systems that manipulate digital data in any medium (text, images, sounds; static or dynamic images) and exist in distributed networks.

The content of digital libraries includes data, metadata that describe various aspects of the data (e.g. representation, creator, owner, reproduction rights) and metadata that consist of links or relationships to other data or metadata, whether internal or external to the digital library. 2. Digital libraries are constructed, collected and organized, by (and for) a community of users, and their functional capabilities support the information needs and uses of that community. They are a component of communities in which individuals and groups interact with each other, using data, information and knowledge resources and systems. In this sense they are an extension, enhancement and integration of a variety of information institutions as physical places where resources are selected, collected, organized, preserved and accessed in support of a user community. These information institutions include, among others, libraries, museums, archives and schools, but digital libraries also extend and serve other community settings, including classrooms, laboratories, homes and public spaces.

A Digital Library is a special library with a focused collection of digital objects that can include text visual material, audio material, video material, stored as electronic media formats (as opposed to print, microform, or other media), along with means for organizing, storing, and retrieving the files and media contained in the library collection. Digital libraries can vary immensely in size and scope, and can be maintained by individuals, organizations, or affiliated with established physical library buildings or institutions, or with academic institutions. The electronic content may be stored locally, or accessed remotely via computer networks. Electronic libraries are the storehouse of knowledge as they maintain the book and other knowledge resource available - mostly in printed form. However, with the advent of digital technology and Internet connectivity, the library scenario is changing fast. Digital technology, Internet connectivity and physical content can be dovetailed resulting in Digital Library. Data available in physical form has been preserved digitally in Digital Library. Digital Libraries have the ability to enhance access to information and knowledge. They also Bridge barriers of time and space.

e-Governance

Over the years, a large number of initiatives have been undertaken by various State Governments and Central Ministries to usher in an era of e-Government. Sustained efforts have been made at multiple levels to improve the delivery of public services and simplify the process of accessing them.

e-Governance in India has steadily evolved from computerization of Government Departments to initiatives that encapsulate the finer points of Governance, such as citizen centricity, service orientation and transparency. Lessons from previous e-Governance initiatives have played an important role in shaping the progressive e-Governance strategy of the country. Due cognizance has been taken of the notion that to speed up e-Governance implementation across the various arms of Government at National, State, and Local levels, a programme approach needs to be adopted, guided by common vision and strategy. This approach has the potential of enabling huge savings in costs through sharing of core and support infrastructure, enabling interoperability through standards, and of presenting a seamless view of Government to citizens.

The National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) has been formulated by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DEITY) and Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG). The Union Government approved the NeGP, comprising of 27 Mission Mode Projects (MMPs) and 10 components.

The National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), takes a holistic view of e-Governance initiatives across the country, integrating them into a collective vision, a shared cause. Around this idea, a massive countrywide infrastructure reaching down to the remotest of villages is evolving, and large-scale digitization of records is taking place to enable easy, reliable access over the internet. The ultimate objective is to bring public services closer home to citizens, as articulated in the Vision Statement of NeGP:

"Make all Government services accessible to the common man in his locality, through common service delivery outlets, and ensure efficiency, transparency, and reliability of such services at affordable costs to realise the basic needs of the common man"

In order to promote e-Governance in a holistic manner, various policy initiatives and projects have been undertaken to develop core and support infrastructure. The major core infrastructure components are State Data Centres (SDCs), State Wide Area Networks (S.W.A.N), Common Services Centres (CSCs) and middleware gateways i.e National e-Governance Service Delivery Gateway (NSDG), State e-Governance Service Delivery Gateway (SSDG), and Mobile e-Governance Service Delivery Gateway (MSDG). The important support components include Core policies and guidelines on Security, HR, Citizen Engagement, Social Media as well as Standards related to Metadata, Interoperability, Enterprise Architecture, Information Security etc. New initiatives include a framework for authentication, viz.
e-content

e-content means electronic content. It is also known as digital content. Digital content can be transmitted over a computer network such as the Internet. Over the last decade, e-learning has grown into a significant component of educational pedagogy worldwide. E-learning has been promoted as being more cost effective and convenient, while increasing opportunities for life-long learning. In this knowledge explosion trend, production of creative contents and incorporating innovative Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for effective dissemination of such contents play a vital role. To develop a knowledge society, integrating ICT at all levels of education is essential. However, even today one of the greatest challenges of integrating ICT in education is lack of quality e-Content. For the upcoming generation i.e. Digital Natives we need to create a digital learning culture and environment. Mastering ICT skills and utilizing ICT towards creating an improved teaching and learning environment is of utmost importance to teachers in creating new learning culture. E-learning serves this purpose in its various forms such as web-based learning, computer-based learning, mobile-based learning, virtual classrooms, and digital collaboration. It includes the delivery of content via internet, intranet/extranet, satellite broadcast, mobile technology. This great transformation poses challenges to educators regarding their basic tenets, to deploy the media in creative and productive ways, as “teachers are the central forces in tapping the learning opportunities created by ICT

In the process of developing a techno-pedagogy for the ‘new’ learner in the ‘new’ environment, learning ‘new’ things using ‘new’ technologies, the first issue to be addressed is the development of content. The ultimate aim of e-Content development is to create an information rich society where everyone, irrespective of caste, religion, race, region, gender etc., are empowered to create, receive, share and utilize information and knowledge for their economic, social, cultural and political upliftment and development. In the process of e-learning, structured and validated e-content can serve as an effective virtual teacher.

Design and developmental process of e-content

The existing materials and documents cannot be automatically transformed into e-content materials by just making them available from a Web site. A systematic and scientific approach is needed to develop quality content. Instructional Design is the teaching device that makes instruction as well as instructional material more engaging, effective and efficient.

There are several approaches to explain the design and development processes of content e-development. Here are some models:-

ADDIE Model

ADDIE is an Instructional Systems Design (ISD) model. Most current ISD models are variations of the ADDIE process. Other models include the Dick & Carey and Kemp ISD models. Rapid prototyping is a commonly accepted improvement to this model. This is the idea of reviewing continual or formative feedback while creating instructional materials. This model strives to save time and money by catching problems while they are still easy to fix. This rapid prototyping is also called SAM, or successive approximation model. Instructional theories also play an important role in the design of instructional materials. Theories such as behaviorism, constructivism, social learning, and cognitivism help shape and define the outcome of instructional materials.

Association for Educational and Communication Technology [AECT] which is a professional organization in the educational technology field in the United States, has proclaimed the five stages of instructional design that can be used to develop any learning situations and learning content, that is the ADDIE model to include Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation. The ADDIE model is a basic model for designing and developing learning courses as well as educational content.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/ADDIE_Model_of_Design.jpg/400px-ADDIE_Model_of_Design.jpg

Figure 1 shows the interactive relationships among the stages.

Phases of ADDIE

Analysis phase

The analysis phase clarifies the instructional problems and objectives, and identifies the learning environment and learner's existing knowledge and skills.

Design phase

The design phase deals with learning objectives, assessment instruments, exercises, content, subject matter analysis, lesson planning, and media selection. The design phase should be systematic and specific. Systematic means a logical, orderly method of identifying, developing and evaluating a set of planned strategies targeted for attaining the project's goals. Specific means each element of the instructional design plan must be executed with attention to details.

In the design phase, developers:

Document the instructional, visual, and technical design strategy
Apply instructional strategies according to intended behavioral outcomes by domain (cognitive, affective, and psychomotor)
Design the user interface and user experience
Create a prototype
Apply visual design (graphic design)

Development phase

This is also the phase where the project manager ensures that books, hands-on equipment, tools, CD-ROMs, and software are in place, and that the learning application or website functions

Evaluation phase

The evaluation phase consists of two parts: formative and summative. Formative evaluation is present in each stage of the ADDIE process.

2) ASSURE Model

The ASSURE Model is a guide for planning and conducting instruction that uses media. The Assure Model has six steps, represented by the acronym in its title that describes a set of tasks central to the informed selection and use of educational technology. The tasks are:

Analyze Learners

State Objectives

Select Media and Materials

Utilize Media and Materials

Require Learner Participation

Evaluate and Revise

Analyze Learners

The audience can be analyzed in terms of their general characteristics (grade level, age, sex, mental, emotional, physical or social problems, socio-economic status etc.) and specific entry competencies (prior knowledge, skills, and attitudes about the topic), and learning styles (visual, musical, verbal, logical, etc.).

State Objectives

The next step in planning is to specifically state the objectives for the instructional experience. Objectives are the learning outcomes, that is, what will the student get out of the lesson? Hence, they must be stated in behavioral terms of what the learner (not the teacher or presenter) will be able to do as a result of instruction.

Select methods, media and materials

Once you know your audience and have a clear idea of what they should get out of the lesson, then it is time to select the appropriate method for the given learning task, select available materials, modify existing materials, or design new materials to help accomplish this task.

Utilize media and materials

Now you must decide how the media, materials and technology must be used to carry out your method/s. It is important to preview the materials before using them. If you decide to use electronic equipment, practice using the equipment in advance to be sure everything works. It is also important to practice the lesson itself before it is implemented. Next, prepare the room and make ready the necessary equipment and facilities. Learners should be prepared for the learning experience. Then, conduct the instructional experience.

Require Learner Participation

It is important to note that students learn best when they are actively involved in the learning experience. Whatever your teaching strategy, be sure to incorporate questions and answers, discussions, group work, hands-on activities, and other ways of getting students actively involved in the learning of the content. Allow them to construct knowledge as opposed to trying to "teach" them knowledge. Feedback must be provided before any type of evaluation is administered.

Evaluate and Revise

This last stage is often overlooked but it is the most important of all. After instruction, you must evaluate the entire instructional process. You must reflect upon the lesson, the stated objectives, the instructional strategy, the instructional materials, and the assessment and determine if these elements of the lesson were effective or if one or more of them need to be changed. If there are discrepancies between what you intended and what actually happened during the lesson, make appropriate revisions before using the lesson again.

E-content offers a competitive learning atmosphere beyond space and time constraints; especially, it is effective in presenting various visual materials. E-learning content has positive and negative learning effects on learners.

5.5 Web-based learning

Web-based learning is one way to learn, using web-based technologies or tools in a learning process. In other words, learner uses mainly computers to interact with the teacher, other students and learning material. Web-based learning consists of technology that supports traditional classroom training and online learning environments. "Pure" web-based courses are wholly based on computer and online possibilities. In this case all the communication and learning activities are done online.

Web-based learning can be also formal or informal. Formal web-based learning is purposed and learning activities are organised by teachers. Informal learning takes place while you are searching material from the Internet. It is self-paced, depending on your goals and ambition to learn.

E-learning, Web-based learning, online learning, and distance learning are widely used as interchangeable terms. However, these terms represent concepts with subtle, yet consequential differences.

Different types of web based learning

Web-based learning and traditional learning are similar in terms of desired goals: to acquire new knowledge and skills. In both ways the teacher is mentoring and students are doing various learning activities. Differences between them are seen when we take a closer look at learning activities and tools, teaching approaches, communication issues, etc.

The biggest difference between web-based learning and traditional learning is in communication issues. Web-based learning offers many opportunities for interaction with both fellow students and instructors. Communication can take place via various communication tools such as e-mail, telephone, chat etc. In a traditional way of learning communication and interaction take place mostly at the same time and place as face-to-face meetings.

Web-based learning enables learner-centred approach. Learning is seen as an active construction of meaning. The main idea behind teaching is to guide and facilitate learning. Group work and independent learning are at the same time the key words of web-based learning. In traditional learning teacher-centred approach is more common, teacher giving/providing knowledge and students passively receiving it.

Prerequisite for using new approaches is changes of roles of teachers and students. In web-based learning, the teacher is a motivator who encourages and supports students in independent and group work activities. Teacher should be an organiser who plans learning activities to support students in learning process. In addition, teacher has to be a mentor who guides and tutors students through learning material and learning tasks. Students are active in their learning process. Students should construct their own knowledge and organise their learning. Furthermore, they should be able to adopt new technology-based learning tools and approaches.

As a result from new teaching and learning approaches student assessment in web-based courses is also different. In a classroom setting it is usual to have an oral or written exam after the course. The most popular ways to assess students in web-based learning are:

discussion forums, where teacher can observe the student's active participation;
online multiple choice test, where you can do (self)test;
e-portfolio, where you have collected all your material and assignments electronically during the course;
report or essay, where you can analyse and express your comprehension based on the content of the course.

Assessments are carried out mainly by tutors or computer. In web-based learning also self- and peer assessment have become popular ways of evaluating students' progress.

Web-based learning assumes different learning tools compared to classroom learning. Modern technology (computers, CD, audio, video, PDA, mobile) is used to create suitable learning environments, disseminate information and carry out various learning activities.

Motivated and independent learners will handle web-based learning better. Knowledge and skills related to the use of computers and their devices are also prerequisites for successful web-based learning.

Merits and Demerits

Factor	Advantages	Disadvantages
Learning theories and approaches	New learning theories and approaches enable to learn and teach in a more effective way. Students can experience a sense of equality. Course work and challenging assignments are stimulating for knowledge building.	Teachers and learners have to adopt new learning theories and approaches. Role changes of teachers and learners may cause frustration and confusion. Without the common structures of a traditional class, students may feel lost or confused about course activities and deadlines.
Independent and learner centred learning	Students can work at their own pace, when they want. Web-based learning enables to study more deeply areas of interest. It encourages exploring material on your own and enables to skip over materials already mastered. Web-based learning supports personalised learning and is self-directed. It builds self-knowledge and self-confidence and encourages students to take responsibility for their own learning.	Learners who are not self-motivated, self-directed and independent are not able to plan their own learning and may have problems. Material and assignment instructions might be too complicated to understand independently. Some of the students may lose motivation without certain deadlines. Independent learning requires certain skills: technological, communication skills, self-motivation and effective study habits.
Flexibility	Web-based learning enables to join discussions at any hour and encourages also those who don't like to speak. It facilitates learning through a variety of activities. Learners have access to courses, which enables to reduce travel time and costs.	Learners with low motivation or bad study habits may fall behind. They may have difficulties in organizing their learning.
Interaction	Web-based learning provides interaction between students and instructors. Students can share their ideas with other students, which may help to understand the material better.	Prohibits those who are not active learners in a group. Human contact is missing as interaction is relied on electronic communication.
Access to material	Students can study anywhere and anytime if they have an access to computer and Internet. Web-based learning provides continual and also direct access to materials, resources in many different formats and of good quality.	Problems with technology might prevent the access: low speed connection, difficulties to download information, problems with communication tools. Some courses and materials might be out of date. There may be lack of quality control.
Contact with instructors	Working on the web offers an opportunity to communicate with students using e-mail, discussion boards etc. Teachers receive students' work quickly and they provide timely feedback to students' questions.	Teachers are overloaded with students and their contacts. Students may feel isolated from the instructor and classmates. Instructor may not always be available when students are studying or need help.
Use of technology	When you learn to use one browser and certain software, you will probably be able to use other browsers and software as well. Some of the software and web browsers are free of charge on the internet. Web-based learning develops knowledge of the Internet and computer skills that help learners throughout their lives and careers.	Managing computer files and online learning software can be complex for students with beginner-level computer skills. Poor usability may cause troubles with navigation, computers crash or have viruses, impossible to send mails. Software and access to the Internet and e-mail is not free all the time

Online learning

Online learning is an education in which instruction and content are delivered primarily over the internet. The term does not include printed-based correspondence education, broadcast television or radio, videos, and stand-alone educational software programs that do not have a significant internet-based instructional component.

Approaches to online learning

Two approaches to online learning have emerged. Synchronous and asynchronous learning . Synchronous learning is instruction and collaboration in “real time” via the internet. It typically involves tools, such as:

Live chat
Audio and video conferencing
Data and application sharing
Shared whiteboard
Virtual “hand raising”
Joint viewing of multimedia presentations and online slide shows

Asynchronous learning methods use the time delayed capabilities of the internet. It typically involves tools such as:

E-mail
Threaded discussions
Newsgroups and bulletin boards
File attachments

Asynchronous courses are still instructor-facilitated but are not conducted in real time. Which means that students and teacher can engage in course-related activities at their convenience rather than during specifically coordinated class sessions .in asynchronous courses , learning does not need to be scheduled in the same way as synchronous learning , allowing students and instructors the benefits of anytime, anywhere.

There are several distinct advantages and disadvantages of designing, developing, and delivering web based training. By carefully weighing your audience and training content against this list of advantages and disadvantages, you should be able to better judge if what you have in mind is right for web dissemination

Advantages

Extendibility, accessibility, and suitability- users can proceed through a training program at their own pace and their own place. They can also access the training at any time, receiving only as much as they need. in other words , “just in time and just enough.”

Quicker(and cheaper) turnaround of finished product

Collaborative and exploratory learning environments.

Easy and affordable training delivery- chances are( and you will want to access this before embarking on WBT) your audience has access to a browser. Validate what browser (S) your audience has and what version(s) and you can capitalize on the delivery onvehicle

Cross platform- WBT can be accessed by web browsing software on any platform: windows,MAC,Unix,etc. Basically, you can deliver your training course to any machine over the internet or company intranet without having to develop a different course for each unique platform.

Inexpensiveworldwide distribution- No separate or distinct distribution mechanism is needed. WBT can be accessed from any computer anywhere in the world while at the same time keeping deliverycosts down

Reduced technical support- Web-based training course decreases some of the more “potent and deadly” technical support issues that often enshroud technology based training

Ease of content update- the changes you make to any of your content are immediately available to your learning audience across the world.

Installation option on private networks for security or greater bandwidth. If you opt for intranet delivery. You have more control over plug-ins and bandwidth , giving you more options for inclusion WBT

Travel cost and time savings – learning is delivered directly to the learner instead of the other way around

Web browsers and internet connections widely available – most computer users have across to a browser have access to the internet

WBT- based development is easier to learn and pick up then CBT-based development. You should be able to draw from a larger pool of WBT developers than is available for creating traditional CBT .

Vast, untapped market for training – the untapped WBT market is still large. If you’re looking for commercial markets, the internet also offers a huge audience hungry for material via the Net.

Access is controllable – you can direct and monitor who receives web training – when, how many times, and in what sequence

Billing options – you can bill – and collect on that bill-through Net distribution, billing by user ID, number of accesses, date and time access, or any other means which you want to assess usage.

Direct access to many other training resources - the internet gives access to the largest library in the world.

Disadvantages

Bandwidth /browser limitations may restrict instructional methodologies

Time required for downloading application

Student assessment and feedback limited

Web-based training has high-fixed costs

Are computers replacing human contact...?

Virtual learning

Virtual learning is about the learning that takes place outside of the school, or bringing what is outside of the school into the school. So, we are thinking about the online environment as a way of connecting students who may be located physically in a school with their learning that is somewhere else.

Another area that virtual learning is impacting on is the connection between school and home. The fact that they can continue with their learning in a seamless way and connect with the work that they are doing in online worlds, makes the use of a virtual learning environment very high.

Another factor about virtual learning is the global reach that’s now possible for students. Once they had to rely on resources from the local library. Or, from time-to-time, a visitor to the school could provide them with a feel or an insight into what it might be like in other lands or countries that they might be studying. Now, global reach means that they can reach directly into the lives of those who live in some of those countries and lands. They can talk to experts who have visited there, and are familiar with the geography, the terrain, and some of the social issues that might occur there. And they can connect with learners in those areas to collaborate on projects, to look at topics that are germane to them. So, the global reach is becoming increasingly important as students become prepared to be citizens in a much more globalised society than they have previously.

Virtual learning has a very broad application. It’s not only about online courses, but also about the way that we extend what is happening in the premise of school—way beyond the school gang.

A virtual learning environment (VLE)

http://www.easy2learn.com.my/images/virtual_class_img1.jpg

VLEs typically: allow participants to be organized into cohorts, groups and roles; present resources, activities and interactions within a course structure; provide for the different stages of assessment; report on participation; and have some level of integration with other institutional systems. For those who edit those VLEs may have a de facto role as authoring and design environments. VLEs have been adopted by almost all higher education institutions in the anglosphere. The following are the basic or the main components required for a virtual learning environment or online education curriculum to take place.

MOOC

Technology and globalization have increased accessibility to higher education. However, with the increased number of opportunities come uncertainties. In recent years, the concept of online or distance learning has expanded to include a growing number of Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs), free higher education courses open for enrolment for any Internet user. MOOCs are a recent trend in distance learning promoted by several prestigious universities.

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are free and open online courses offered by some of the country’s leading universities and institutions including Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Stanford. In recent years, there have been a growing number of MOOCs on the Internet. Accessibility, student engagement, and experiences for lifelong learning are recognized as the advantages of MOOCs. Additionally, challenges are discussed regarding individual instruction, student performance assessment, and long-term administration and oversight.

MOOCs are built on the characteristics of massiveness, openness, and a connectivist philosophy. McAuley, Stewart, Siemens, and Cormier (2010) explained that MOOCs use strategies similar to social networking to connect the masses but with the added benefits of subject matter experts to facilitate the content and to coordinate a vast array of free, online materials. Students also have the opportunity to engage with others throughout the world with some organizing sub-groups specific to their learning goals and interests. MOOCs easily accommodate large numbers of students.

The software used, the curriculum, the sources of information, the assessment processes, the learners are open to a range of different learning environments and registration is also open to anyone. Some of the areas in which MOOCs have been the most beneficial include increased options for accessibility, increased potential for student engagement, and expanded lifelong learning opportunities. MOOCs bring a new perspective to traditional education but are still in the infancy stage. It seems that institutions, as a whole, might be apprehensive about MOOCs as they relate to access, affordability, and student success.

AV Conference

Audio- video conferencing enable two groups to connect from separate locations over the internet or directly through an organization's private wide area network (wan) that allows all participants to see, hear and speak to each other almost as if everyone were in one room. Standard video conferencing is easy to set up and can be done in small conference room or large auditoriums. The audio-video conference is suited for business, education, healthcare and government entities. Audio visual services related to professional audio- video communication applications, computer and video display systems, video projections, integrated control systems, acoustics, sound reinforcement, theatrical lighting, broadcast and video conference.

This creative atmosphere helps them apply and share their skills with clients who seek systems in business, education, government, healthcare, nonprofit and other sectors around the world.

Av conference is best suited for:

Video conference
E-learning
Seminars
Live support
File sharing
Live events broadcasting
One to one, one to many, many to many chat scenarios
Secure live video/audio/text chat over the internet or intranet
Screen sharing.

Advantages

Eliminates the needs for participants to travel long distances to participate.
Participants can see, hear and interact with each other as though meeting in the same room.
Body language and gesture can be visible if within video camera range.
Easy to set-up for regular use if portable or installed equipment is available in house.
Choice of various two-way collaborative features available.
One-site tech support may not be necessary if in-house staff is experienced.
Can be recorded for review or on-demand viewing for anyone who cannot attend in real time.

Disadvantages

Video conferencing over the internet can be troublesome without sufficient band with high speed.
Video conferencing over a private wan is more reliable than the internet but more expensive Ti an organization.
More complex to arrange and conduct than on-line meeting or webinars.
Adequate bandwidth must be verified at each participating site to reduce the risk of long time or disruption.
Tech support for set-up and troubleshooting advisable unless video conference is of a routine nature.
Equipped meeting space in an office building, hotel or conference center required at all participating sites.
Participants are less relaxed and spontaneous in front of a camera than face-to-face.
Body language is visible only when video camera captures every participant.
Eye-to-eye contact is simulated by ineffective.
Can be expensive if equipment no already leased or purchased.
Tele presence is the only life- like video conference technology available today.

Will need:

Conference room or auditorium equipped with high speed interface that is adequate at each site.
Microphone , video camera, TV monitors, loudspeakers, camera operators.
Self-contained portable or installed consoles for small conference room.
Self-contained installed console for large rooms.
Back- up tech support available at each site advisable.
Trusted audio visual service provider to produce complex or sophisticated video conference.
Advance notice to viewers of computer system and high-speed internet requirements.
Detailed instructions and contact into sent in advance to all presenters and participants.
Your own detailed checklist using planning helper's free sample as a guidance.

E- Communication

Communication using electronic media is known as electronic communication. Such communication allows transmission of message or information using computer systems, fax machine, e-mail, tele or video conferencing and satellite network. People can easily share conversation, picture, image, sound, graphics, maps, interactive software and thousands of things for the development of electronic communication. Due to electronic technology, jobs, working locations and cultures are changing and therefore people can easily access to worldwide communication without any physical movement.

According to L.C. Bovee “Electronic communication is the transmission of information using advanced techniques such as computer moderns, facsimile machines, voice mail, electronic mail, teleconferencing, video cassettes, and private television”

Advantages of Electronic Communication

1. Speedy transmission: It requires only few seconds to communicate through electronic media because it supports quick transmission.

2. Wide coverage: World has become a global village and communication around the globe requires a second only.
3. Low cost: Electronic communication saves time and money. For example Text sms is cheaper than traditional letter.

4. Exchange of feedback: Electronic communication allows instant exchange of feedback. So communication becomes perfect using electronic media.

5. Managing global operation: Due to advancement of electronic media, business managers can easily control operation across the globe. Video or teleconferencing e-mail and mobile communication are helping managers in this regard.

Disadvantages of Electronic Communication

Electronic communication is not free from the below limitations:

1. Volume of data: The volume of telecommunication information is increasing in such a fast rate that business people are unable to absorb it within relevant time limit.

2. Cost of development: Electronic communication requires huge investment for infrastructural development. Frequent change in technology also demands for further investment.

3. Legal status: Data or information, if faxed, may be distorted and will cause zero value in the eye of law.

4. Undelivered data: Data may not be retrieved due to system error or fault with the technology. Hence required service will be delayed

5. Dependency: Technology is changing everyday and therefore poor countries face problem as they cannot afford new or advanced technology. Therefore poor countries need to be dependent towards developed countries for sharing global network.

I: Forum/Discussion forum

It is a shared area where users post messages called "posts" to be viewed by others. It's similar to an email mailing list except the posts do not come into your email inbox they are stored in one location and you typically need to go to the forum/board to read or contribute. Some tools allow you to subscribe to a forum in order to receive copies of new messages by email.

Discussion forums provide an online message board that can be used for a variety of purposes:

Online discussions - either started online or continuing from face-to-face discussions
Announcements and news
Support - either from the tutor or from peers

II: Blogs

A blog (a truncation of the expression weblog) is a discussion or informational site published on the World Wide Web and consisting of discrete entries ("posts") typically displayed in reverse chronological order (the most recent post appears first). Until 2009 blogs were usually the work of a single individual, occasionally of a small group, and often covered a single subject. More recently "multi-author blogs" (MABs) have developed, with posts written by large numbers of authors and professionally edited. MABs from newspapers, other media outlets, universities, think tanks, advocacy groups and similar institutions account for an increasing quantity of blog traffic. The rise of Twitter and other "micro blogging" systems helps integrate MABs and single-author blogs into societal new streams. Blog can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog. The emergence and growth of blogs in the late 1990s coincided with the advent of web publishing tools that facilitated the posting of content by non-technical users. (Previously, knowledge of such technologies as HTML and FTP had been required to publish content on the Web.)

A majority is interactive; allowing visitors to leave comments and even message each other via GUI widgets on the blogs, and it is this interactivity that distinguishes them from other static websites. In that sense, blogging can be seen as a form of social networking service. Indeed, bloggers do not only produce content to post on their blogs, but also build social relations with their readers and other bloggers. However, there are high-readership blogs which do not allow comments, such as Daring Fireball.

Many blogs provide commentary on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries; others function more as online brand advertising of a particular individual or company. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, Web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability of readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important contribution to the popularity of many blogs. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (art blogs), photographs (photo blogs), videos (video blogs or "vlogs"), music (MP3 blogs), and audio (podcasts). Micro blogging is another type of blogging, featuring very short posts. In education, blogs can be used as instructional resources. These blogs are referred to as edu blogs.

On 16 February 2011, there were over 156 million public blogs in existence. On 20 February 2014, there were around 172 million Tumblr and 75.8 million Word Press blogs in existence worldwide. According to critics and other bloggers, Blogger is the most popular blogging service used today, however Blogger does not offer public statistics. Technorati has 1.3 million blogs as of February 22, 2014

Advantages of blog

They are a free way for you to write and express your knowledge and thought about areas of interest.
Are dynamic. They can be updated at any time with corrections and the latest updates.
It’s a two-way communication tool (for most blogs). Readers are able to add comments to individual posts (this is up to the blog host – comments can also be turned off or moderated).
You can get it in many different ways—e-mail, RSS feed and other social networks. The method is up to the reader, not the writer.
Anyone can read the content on the blog. It’s searchable in search engines.
No content is lost when you view on an Internet-capable phone. Since receiving e-mail on a smart phone requires an Internet connection, you’ll be able to view the blog (a webpage, essentially) from your mobile browser.
There’s no permanent deletion. All of the past content is still viewable (in case you missed it, or if you want to read it again).
You can search for other relevant content by clicking on categories and tags, or using the search bar.

Disadvantages of blog

Blogging infringes privacy
Undermines communication between people
Brings a negative effect on our studies
Reduces the amount of time spent with our family and friends
Sometimes this lead to big frustration

III. Bulletin boards/ Electronic Bulletin Boards

Electronic bulletin boards (also known as message boards) are online communication systems where one can share, request, or discuss information on just about any subject. E-mail is a way to converse privately with one or more people over the Internet; electronic bulletin boards are public. Any visitor to a message board can read and respond to any message found there, although registration of some kind is usually required before "posting" privileges are granted. A large collection of electronic bulletin boards is known as a newsgroup. Thousands of newsgroups populate the Internet, each dedicated to a single topic.

Participation in bulletin boards messaging is simple. Any person can start a discussion on a topic and then wait for replies. The initial message alone—and others responding to it, if any—constitute a "thread." Some threads continue on for days or weeks or months. Sometimes a poster with a question or a statement, however, is completely ignored. The longer threads tend to find people responding not only to the original post but to subsequent replies as well. The latecomer who happens to hit on one of the items in a long thread may have to "unwind" the thread a long ways back to learn what the initial impetus was all about.

Bulletin boards provide a genuine service to the public in that they create an open forum for the discussion of issues and problems of the most diverse nature—but these discussions are easily accessible because search engines will ultimately pinpoint threads of interest to the searcher. Experts are similarly drawn to the BBs. Problems posed on a message board will draw answers from knowledgeable individuals pleased to enlighten the puzzled. To be sure, the answers may not always be correct—or, more likely, complete—but any flaw in a thread will tend to be corrected by others eventually. The initial poster may, indeed, request more detail. The ultimate judge of the received information, however, must be the individual asking the question or posing the problem.

On the downside, the accessibility of bulletin boards also attracts those merely seeking stimulation and attention. Troublemakers delight in stirring up controversy, badmouthing everyone and everything in "virtual" sight—and they do so from behind the handy "mask" of user names (handles) which hide their actual identity. In response to such invasions by less-than-helpful visitors, many BBs use editorial functions, some automated, to filter out unwanted material. Spamming is also a bulletin board problem. Very active bulletin boards require massive computer memory resources; for this reason older messages may be scrubbed from the system. BBs therefore do not always serve archival reference purposes well.

IV: Social networks

Social network can be defined as a network of social interactions and personal relationships. It can also be a dedicated website or other application which enables users to communicate with each other by posting information, comments, messages, images etc. A social structure made of nodes (processing location-it can be a computer or some other device) that are generally individuals or organizations. A social network represents relationships and flows between people, groups, organizations, animals, computers or other information/ knowledge processing entitles. The term itself was coined in 1954 by J.A. Barnes.

A social networking service is an online service, platform, or site that focuses on facilitating the building of social networks or social relations among people who, for example, share interests, activities, backgrounds, or real life connections. Most social network services are web-based and provide means for users to interact over the internet such as e-mail and instant messaging. Online community services are sometimes considered as a social network service, though in a broader sense, social network service usually means an individual- centered service whereas online community services are group-centered. Social networking sites allow users to share ideas, activities, events, and interests within their individual networks.

A social network site allows people who share interests to build a ‘trusted’ network/ online community. A social network site will usually provide various ways for users to interact, such as IM (chat/ instant messaging), email, video sharing, file sharing, blogging, discussion groups, etc.The main types of social networking sites have a ‘theme’, they allow users to connect through image or video collections online (like Flicker or You Tube) or music (like My Space). Most contain libraries/ directories of some categories, such as former classmates, old work colleagues, and so on (like Face book, Linked in, etc). They provide a means to connect with friends (by allowing users to create a detailed profile page), and recommender systems linked to trust.

Some of the most popular social networks are Facebook, twitter, yahoo, blogger, slideshare etc.

Advantages of social networks:

Fast communication
Direct communication
Low costs
Be informed about your friends
Share your experients (music, video etc.)
Keeping contact with family, friends and colleagues
Building new/ old friendships
Sharing interests and hobbies
Exchange with people around the world
Employees are searched by companies

Disadvantages of social networks:

Photos, comments etc. that we post will be forever on the Internet
Privacy is suddenly no longer privacy
Will be accessible to the general public
We spend a lot of time on PCs
Cases of online mobbing (Cybermobbing) and stalking
Poorly regulated
Name, location, age etc. can be used to commit online crimes

Social networks are formed between Web pages by hyper linking to other Web pages. A hyperlink is usually an explicit indicator that one Web page author believes that another page is related or relevant. The possibility to publish and gather personal information is a major factor in the success of the Web. Weblogs have become prominent social media on the Internet that enable users to quickly and easily publish content including highly personal thoughts. Bloggers might list one another’s blogs in a Blogroll and might read, link to a post, or comment on other blogs’ posts (A post is the smallest part of a blog which has some contents and readers can comment on it. A post also has a date of publish). Social network analysis [SNA] is the mapping and measuring of relationships and flows between people, groups, organizations, computers or other information/knowledge processing entities. The nodes in the network are the people and groups while the links show relationships or flows between the nodes.

Webinar

Webinar is the short form for Web- based seminar. It is a presentation, lecture, workshop or seminar that is transmitted over the web using video conferencing software. A webinar is a virtual lecture or training session presented live on the Internet. The session includes PowerPoint presentation, handouts, video, interactive questions and answers. A key feature of a Webinar is its interactive elements- the ability to give, receive and discuss information. Contrast with Webcast, in which the data transmission is one way and does not allow interaction between the presenter and the audience. Merriam-Webster defines Webinar as: “a live online educational presentation during which participating viewers can submit questions and comments”.

Webinars are events which are completely online. This enables you to reach a large and specific audience. Members of the target group participate live via a PC, Mac, tablet or smart phone, wherever they are. And if they are unable to join the webinar live, they can watch the recorded broadcast afterwards instead. Since webinar is a live meeting it can be a presentation, discussion, demonstration, or instructional session. Participants can view documents and applications via their computers, while shared audio allows for presentation and discussion. Minitex webinars are typically limited to small groups and generally range between 30-90 minutes. Webinars are an efficient way to transmit and share information. Nonprofits use webinars for a variety of purposes, including software training, sharing information about a new product or service, or promoting a program. Moreover, new online tools are making it easy for any organization or charity to host a webinar, even with limited technology expertise.

In general, there are three main players in a webinar: the organizer/facilitator, the presenter or presenters, and assistants.

Organizer/facilitator- The organizer is the person responsible for developing the webinar topic, locating a speaker, marketing the event, setting up the registration, and communicating with participants.
Presenter(s) (also known as subject matter experts)- Ideally, presenters should concentrate their efforts on preparing their demonstration and their PowerPoint slides.
Assistants- Assistants can help by answering questions that the organizer and the presenter don't have time for.

Webinar viewers are actively engaged; they ask questions and give feedback. Webinar participants don't know the size of the audience or whether their colleagues, customers or competitors are among the online listeners. Since webinars can be watched after the live broadcast, time to time this enables one to increase the reach and impact of our message. Alive seminar can be dynamic and interactive experience.

During a webinar, in which the audience views an audiovisual presentation on their computers, opportunities for technical problems are virtually limitless. Body language is missing from virtually every webinar. In a typical webinar, the viewer never sees the presenter. The presenter provides voiceover while a facilitator transmits his deck of slides onto the viewer's computer screen. The audience misses important nonverbal cues, such as eye contact, gestures and facial expressions that add context and interest to the experience.

5.6 Learning management systems (LMS) and Course management systems (CMS)

E-Learning has been reported to improving organization credibility in all areas including skills training, compliance laws and business ethics. The features also provide verifiable proof that employees have been schooled in the laws and regulations governing business practices, improving organization credibility. The benefits of e-Learning are widely published including lowering training costs, increasing competency, reducing turn-over and improving productivity. LMS and CMS are two effective tools in e-learning.

Learning management systems (LMS)

A learning management system (LMS) is a software application for the administration, documentation, tracking, reporting and delivery of electronic educational technology (also called e-learning) education courses or training programs.

LMS is the infrastructure that delivers and manages instructional content, identifies and assesses individual and organizational learning or training goals, tracks the progress towards meeting those goals, collects and presents data for supervising the learning process of the organization as a whole. A Learning Management System delivers content but also handles registering for courses, course administration, skills gap analysis, tracking, and reporting.

LMSs range from systems for managing training and educational records to software for distributing online or blended/hybrid college courses over the Internet with features for online collaboration. Colleges, universities, school districts, and schools use LMSs to deliver online courses and augment on-campus courses. LMSs also act to augment the lessons the teacher is giving in a brick and mortar environment not just replace them. Corporate training departments use LMSs to deliver online training, as well as to automate record-keeping and employee registration.

Advantages of an LMS

Like many information technology innovations from the past few decades, LMS software is able to add a level of efficiency to companies’ learning systems, with a number of other benefits emerging as well, such as:

Easily adapting and reusing materials over time.
More choices for creators of curriculum, such as method of delivery, design of materials, and techniques for evaluation.
Creating economies of scale that make it less costly for organizations to develop and maintain content for which they used to rely on third parties.
Improvements in professional development and evaluation, allowing companies to get more value from human resources while empowering individuals with additional tools for self-improvement.

Course Management Systems (CMS)

A course management system (CMS) is a collection of software tools providing an online environment for course interactions. A CMS typically includes a variety of online tools and environments, such as:

An area for faculty posting of class materials such as course syllabus and handouts
An area for student posting of papers and other assignments
A grade book where faculty can record grades and each student can view his or her grades
An integrated email tool allowing participants to send announcement email messages to the entire class or to a subset of the entire class
A chat tool allowing synchronous communication among class participants
A threaded discussion board allowing asynchronous communication among participants

In addition, a CMS is typically integrated with other databases in the university so that students enrolled in a particular course are automatically registered in the CMS as participants in that course.

On the surface, the CMSs and LMSs seem similar. Both let you enrol participants in courses, communicate with learners, track performance, and launch learning materials. But the two were designed for very different uses. As a result, although one system may seem intriguing, if you use it for a purpose for which it was not originally designed, problems in applying the system may arise.

CMSs: designed to support academic classroom courses

Course management systems (CMSs) are online systems that were originally designed to support classroom learning in academic settings, such as universities and high schools. CMSs provide instructors with the ability to perform the following tasks:

Place course materials online. Most CMSs provide pre-programmed buttons for the course syllabus, course schedule, and course materials linked to specific lessons, such as copies of readings and PowerPoint slides from lectures.
Track student progress through assessment features, which enable instructors to give quizzes and tests online, and an online grade book, where instructors can post student grades.
Discussion board, where instructors and students can discuss readings and continue class discussions between formal class sessions.
Other communications tools, which let instructors send announcements to classes and communicate individually with students
Lock box for students, where students can store class materials in asafe place either a presentation to give later in class or backing up class assignments in a safe place.
Course statistics, which provide information on the use of the course site, including who used the course site and when.

Because CMSs enable instructors to easily create a course website by following a template and uploading existing documents in PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Acrobat and other popular formats without converting them to a web format (like HTML), they require few specialized skills. As a result, CMSs are easy to learn and were quickly adopted by instructors, even those who might claim to be luddites. Indeed, some universities report that well over 70 percent of their instructors have created course websites using CMSs.

CMSs also have proven popular in managing asynchronous academic distance courses, too, because of their ability to manage discussions. In addition, given that CMSs were already installed and in wide use only adds to their popularity. When using a CMS to manage a distance course, instructors post a core lesson—a master script, of sorts, that guides students through readings, discussions, and learning activities—instead of merely posting readings and PowerPoint slides for each lesson,. Instructors then use the discussion board to manage the course discussions, which are usually more extensive than those used in classroom courses.

Although easy to use and widely installed, CMSs pose a few challenges for their users. In exchange for the ease of use, most CMSs provide instructors with a limited flexibility in designing course. CMSs typically come with standard sections that instructors must provide, and the section names are not easily altered.

Limited capability to provide interactive e-learning.
Limited testing and record keeping abilities.
Cost.

LMS and LCMS Platforms

There are common features that LMS and LCMS platforms will often include.

Learning Management Systems (LMS) allow organizations to develop web-based training programs and educational coursework, manage class registrations and rosters, provide distance education, provide methods of testing and assessments, and to implement other e-learning features.

Learning Content Management Systems (LCMS) include many of the same features as Learning Management Systems. However, Learning Content Management Systems are more complex platforms and focus on the creation, development and management of content for online and web-based courses. Learning Content Management Systems also feature a learning object repository which is a searchable digital library containing learning materials and metadata.

Examples of LMS/CMSs include the commercial products Blackboard, Desire2Learn and the open source system, Moodle.

Blackboard

Blackboard Learn (previously the Blackboard Learning Management System), is a virtual learning environment and course management system developed by Blackboard Inc. It is Web-based server software which features course management, customizable open architecture, and scalable design that allows integration with student information systems and authentication protocols. It may be installed on local servers or hosted by Blackboard ASP Solutions. Its main purposes are to add online elements to courses traditionally delivered face-to-face and to develop completely online courses with few or no face-to-face meetings.

Blackboard provides a variety of education technology platforms including Blackboard Collaborate, Blackboard Engage and Blackboard Mobile. The Blackboard platform makes it possible to create MOOCs for K-12, higher learning institutions, professional, corporate, and government organizations.There is a Blackboard Collaborate API available that developers can use to integrate the platform with an existing LMS, CMS and other systems.

Functions: Blackboard Learn provides users with a platform for communication and sharing content.

Announcements: Professors and teachers may post announcements for students to read. These can be found under the announcement tab, or can be made to pop-up when a student accesses Blackboard.
Chat: This function allows those students who are online to chat in real time with other students in their class section.
Discussions: This feature allows students and professors to create a discussion thread and reply to ones already created.
Mail: Blackboard mail allows students and teachers to send mail to one another. This feature supports mass emailing to students in a course.

Content

Course content: This feature allows teachers to post articles, assignments, videos etc.
Calendar: Teachers can use this function to post due dates for assignments and tests.
Learning modules: This feature is often used for strictly online classes. It allows professors to post different lessons for students to access.
Assessments: This tab allows teachers to post quizzes and exams and allows students to access them via the internet
Assignments: This features allows assignments to be posted and students to submit assignments online
Grade Book: Teachers and professors may post grades on Blackboard for students to view.
Media Library: Videos and other media may be posted under this function.

Criticism

Blackboard Inc has had several legal issues, including faulty patent rights claims. In addition, a number of educational institutions, teachers, and students have expressed concerns about the reliability of Blackboard. Citing numerous glitches and high costs, many universities are turning to the cheaper, open source alternative Moodle, The system has also been criticized for having poor Linux compatibility and support.

Moodle

Moodle is a free and open- source software learning management system written in PHP and distributed under the GNU General Public License. Developed on pedagogical principles, Moodle is used for blended learning, distance education, flipped classroom and other e-learning projects in schools, universities, workplaces and other sectors.

With customizable management features, it is used to create private websites with online courses for educators and trainers to achieve learning goals. Moodle (acronym for modular object-oriented dynamic learning environment) allows for extending and tailoring learning environments using community sourced plugins.

Moodle was originally developed by Martin Dougiamas to help educators to create online courses with a focus on interaction and collaborative construction of content, and it is in continual evolution. The first version of Moodle was released on 20 August 2002. Nowadays the Moodle Project is led and coordinated by Moodle HQ, an Australian company of 30 developers which is financially supported by a network of sixty Moodle Partner service companies worldwide. Moodle's development has also been assisted by the work of open-source programmers.

Moodle as a learning platform can enhance existing learning environments. As an E-learning tool, Moodle has a wide range of standard and innovative featuressuch as calendar and Grade book. Moodle is a leading virtual learning environment and can be used in many types of environments such as education, training and development and in business settings.

Features of Moodle

Moodle was designed to support a collaborative and participative teaching and learning environment. Because Moodle is an open-source system, local technologists have some ability to customize it to meet new teaching and learning challenges. In addition to the tools/features described in the introduction, Moodle allows instructors to:

Extend capabilities for student collaboration, including student self- and peer- evaluation.
Have greater flexibility due to Moodle being open source new features/feature requests can be implemented more quickly
Use Feedback Manager to efficiently provide feedback to essay-style questions in large classes
Create activities based on a course wiki
Use specialized features supporting foreign languages and symbolic mathematics

Desire to learn

Desire2Learn@UWM (abbreviated D2L) is UW-Milwaukee’s learning management system — a software application for the administration, documentation, tracking, reporting and delivery of technology-enhanced, blended and online learning. The Brightspace product (formally named Desire2Learn) is used by all UW System institutions. Design and technical support is offered for course instructors and department support staff by the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. Student D2L support is provided by the UWM Help Desk.

In D2L, instructors (faculty, teaching academic staff, and teaching assistants) may develop course-specific sites that include a comprehensive set of tools designed to encourage pedagogically-sound online course practices.

D2L is designed to support many fundamental, online needs for teaching and learning such as distributing class materials, hosting online discussions, collecting assignments, and administering quizzes and grades. D2L course sites offer a design that is familiar and consistent across most courses.

What do D2L and Moodle have in common?

Both D2L and Moodle provide tools that allow instructors to:

Communicate with students via email and web conferencing
Host online discussions
Collect assignments
Manage grades
Customize appearance of course pages
Share course content and multimedia with students
Easily enroll students in credit-bearing courses
Comment on assignments
Create instruction and assignments in foreign languages
Create instruction and assignments utilizing mathematical notation

5.7 Flipped classroom, Augmented Reality, TPACK

Flipped classroom

Flipped classroom is an instructional strategy and a type of blended learning that reverses the traditional educational arrangement by delivering instructional content, often online, outside of the classroom and moves activities, including those that may have traditionally been considered homework, into the classroom. In a flipped classroom model, students watch online lectures, collaborate in online discussions, or carry out research at home and engage in concepts in the classroom with the guidance of the instructor

Traditional and Flipped teaching

In the traditional model of classroom instruction, the teacher is typically the central focus of a lesson and the primary disseminator of information during the class period. The teacher responds to questions while students defer directly to the teacher for guidance and feedback. In a classroom with a radically traditional style of instruction, individual lessons may be didactic and entirely content oriented. Student engagement in the traditional model may be limited to activities in which students work independently or in small groups on an application task designed by the teacher. Class discussions are typically centered on the teacher who controls the flow of the conversation. Typically, this pattern of teaching also involves giving students the task of reading from a textbook or practicing a concept by working on a problem set, for example, outside school.

The flipped classroom intentionally shifts instruction to a learner-centered model in which class time is dedicated to exploring topics in greater depth and creating meaningful learning opportunities, while educational technology such as online videos are employed to deliver content outside of the classroom. In a flipped classroom content delivery may take a variety of forms. Oftentimes video lessons prepared by the teacher or third parties are used as a content delivery mechanism, though online collaborative discussions, digital research, or text readings may be utilized as well.

Flipped classrooms also redefine in-class activities. In-class lessons accompanying flipped classroom may include activity learning or more traditional homework problems, among other practices, to engage students in the content. Class activities vary but may include: using math manipulative and emerging mathematical technologies, in-depth laboratory experiments, original document analysis, debate or speech presentation, current event discussions, peer reviewing, project-based learning, and skill development or concept practice Because these types of active learning allow for highly differentiated instruction, more time can be spent in class on higher-order thinking skills such as problem-finding, collaboration, design and problem solving as students tackle difficult problems, work in groups, research, and construct knowledge with the help of their teacher and peers. Flipped classrooms have been implemented in both schools and colleges and been found to have varying differences in the method of implementation.

As a result of this method, a teacher's interaction with students in a flipped classroom can be more personalized and less didactic and students are actively involved in knowledge acquisition and construction as they participate in and evaluate their learning.

History

Harvard professor Eric Mazur played a significant role in the development of concepts influencing flipped teaching through the development of an instructional strategy.

In practice

Woodland Park High School chemistry teachers Jonathan Bergmann and Aaron Sams became driving forces in flipped teaching at the high school level when, in 2007, they recorded their lectures and posted them online in order to accommodate students who missed their classes. Bergmann and Sams note that one person cannot be credited with having invented the inverted or flipped classroom. Furthermore they assert that there is no one 'right' way to flip a classroom as approaches and teaching styles are diverse, as are needs of schools.

Flipped Mastery

In traditional schools, each topic in class receives a fixed amount of time for all students. Flipped mastery classrooms apply a mastery learning model that requires each student to master a topic before moving to the next one.

In a flipped mastery classroom, students view each lecture and work on each exercise or project when they have mastered the precursors.

Flipped mastery eliminates two other out-of-class routines: daily lesson planning and grading papers. The latter happens in class and in person. Replacing lectures with group and individual activities increases in-class activity. Every student has something to do throughout the class. In some classes, students choose how to demonstrate mastery - testing, writing, speaking, debating and even designing a related game. It creates a different test for each student from a pool of questions. Advocates claim that its efficiency allows most students to do a year’s work in much less time. Advanced students work on independent projects while slower learners get more personalized instruction. Some students might not get through the year’s material, but demonstrated competence on the parts they did complete.

Limitations and Criticisms

Critics argue the flipped classroom model has some drawbacks for both students and teachers.

For students there exists a ‘digital divide.’ Not all families are from the same socio-economic background and thus access to computers or video-viewing technology outside of the school environment is not possible for all students. This model of instruction may put undue pressure on some families as they attempt to gain access to videos outside of school hours.

Additionally some students may struggle due to their developing personal responsibility. In self-directed, home learning environment students who are not at the developmental stage required to keep on-task with independent learning may fall rapidly behind their peers.

Others argue that the flipped classroom leads to increased computer time in an era where adolescents already spend too much time in front of computer screens. Inverted models that rely on computerized videos do contribute to this challenge, particularly if videos are long.

Additionally, flipped classrooms that rely on videos to deliver instruction suffer some of the same challenges as traditional classrooms. Students may not learn best by listening to a lecture and watching instructional videos at home is still representative of a more traditional form of teaching. Critics argue a constructivist approach would be more beneficial.

Teachers may find challenges with this model as well. Increased preparation time is initially likely as creating high quality videos requires teachers to contribute significant time and effort outside of regular teaching responsibilities. Additional funding may also be required to procure training for teachers to navigate computer technologies involved in the successful implementation the inverted model.

Augmented Reality

Abbreviated as AR, Augmented Reality is a type of reality that aims to duplicate the world's environment in a computer. An augmented reality system generates a composite view for the user that is the combination of the real scene viewed by the user and a virtual scene generated by the computer that augments the scene with additional information. The virtual scene generated by the computer is designed to enhance the user's sensory perception of the virtual world they are seeing or interacting with. The goal of Augmented Reality is to create a system in which the user cannot tell the difference between the real world and the virtual augmentation of it. Today Augmented Reality is used in entertainment, military training, engineering design, robotics, manufacturing and other industries.

Augmented reality is a live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented or supplemented by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data. It is related to a more general concept called mediated reality, in which a view of reality is modified (possibly even diminished rather than augmented) by a computer. As a result, the technology functions by enhancing one’s current perception of reality.By contrast, virtual reality replaces the real world with a simulated one. Augmentation is conventionally in real-time and in semantic context with environmental elements, such as sports scores on TV during a match. With the help of advanced AR technology (e.g. adding computer vision and object recognition) the information about the surrounding real world of the user becomes interactive and can be digitally manipulated. Artificial information about the environment and its objects can be overlaid on the real world.

Role of Augmented Reality in Education:

Augmented reality applications can complement a standard curriculum. Text, graphics, video and audio can be superimposed into a student’s real time environment. Textbooks, flashcards and other educational reading material can contain embedded “markers” that, when scanned by an AR device, produce supplementary information to the student rendered in a multimedia format. Students can participate interactively with computer generated simulations of historical events, exploring and learning details of each significant area of the event site. On higher education, there are some applications that can be used. For instance, Construct3D, a Studiers tube system, allows students to learn mechanical engineering concepts, math or geometry. This is an active learning process in which students learn to learn with technology. AR can aid students in understanding chemistry by allowing them to visualize the spatial structure of a molecule and interact with a virtual model of it that appears, in a camera image, positioned at a marker held in their hand. It can also enable students of physiology to visualize different systems of the human body in three dimensions.Augmented reality technology also permits learning via remote collaboration, in which students and instructors not at the same physical location can share a common virtual learning environment populated by virtual objects and learning materials and interact with another within that setting.

This resource could also take of advantage in Primary School. Students learn through experiences, besides when children are so young, they need to see and learn. For instance, they can learn new knowledge about astronomy, which is usually difficult to acquire to them, for example children might better understand the solar system when using AR devices because they would be able to see it in 3D. In addition, learners could change the pictures of their science book by using this resource.

For teaching anatomy teachers could visualize bones and organs using augmented reality to display them onto the body of a person.

Mobile apps using augmented reality are emerging in the classroom. The mix of real life and virtual reality displayed by the apps using the mobile phone's camera allows information to be manipulated and seen like never before. Many such apps have been designed to create a highly engaging environment while transforming learning.

Children have been seen to show improvement by engagement of the use of augmented reality. Educational leaders in the industry have explained that they have used platforms like Aurasma (www.aurasma.com), Augthat (www.augthat.com), Daqri (www.daqri.com) and others to make the learning environment more "real life".

Technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK)

Technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) attempts to identify the nature of knowledge required by teachers for technology intergration in their teaching, while addressing the complex, multifaceted and situated nature of teacher knowledge. TPACK conceptual framework espoused by Mishra and Kochler (2006), underpins much of the national directions for describing use of ICT in learning and for professional work. Specifically it highlight the nuanced and complex relationship between three forms of knowledge. Pedagogical knowledge (PK), content knowledge (CK) and technological knowledge (TK). The TPACK in classroom must have a sound curriculum fit and meet the pedagogical needs for implementing the idea. The TPACK (Technological pedagogical content knowledge) framework is represented in the following diagram.

https://edcrunch.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/tpack-model.png?w=900

The seven components of TPACK

TPACK consist of seven different knowledge areas: (i) content knowledge (CK), (ii) pedagogical knowledge (PK), (iii) Technology knowledge (TK), (iv), Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), (V) Technological content knowledge (TCK), (VI) Technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK), and (vii) Technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK). All of these knowledge areas are considered within a particular contextual frame work.

Technology Knowledge (TK)

Technology knowledge refers to an understanding of the way that technologies are used in a specific content domain. For example, for physics teachers, it is an understanding of the range of technologies that physicists use in science and industry. Within the context of technology integration in schools, it appears to most often refer to digital technologies such as laptops, the internet, and software applications. TK does however go beyond digital literacy to having knowledge of how to change the purpose of existing technologies (eg. Wikis) so that they can be used in a technology enhanced.

Content Knowledge (CK)

Content knowledge may be defined as “a thorough grounding in college – level subject matter” or “command of the subject” (American council of Education, 1999). It may also include knowledge of concepts, theories, concepetual frameworks as well as knowledge about accepted ways of developing knowledge (Shulman, 1986).

Pedagogical Knowledge (PK)

Pedagogical knowledge includes generic knowledge about how students learn, teaching approaches, methods of assessment and knowledge of different theories about learning. This knowledge alone is necessary but insufficient for teaching purposes. In addition a teacher requires content knowledge.

Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK)

Pedagogical content knowledge is knowledge about how to combine pedagogy and content effectively (Shulman, 1986). This is knowledge about how to make a subject understandable to learners. Archanbault and (ripen (2009) report that PCK includes knowledge of what makes a subject difficult or easy to learn, as well as knowledge of common misconceptions and likely preconceptions students bring with them to the classroom.

Technological Content Knowledge (TCK)

Technological content knowledge refers to knowledge about how technology may be used to provide new ways of teaching contents. For example, digital animation makes it possible for students to conceptualize how electrons are shared between atoms when chemical compounds are formed.

Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK)

Technological pedagogical knowledge refers to the affordances and constrains of technology as an enabler of different teaching approaches (Mishra and Koehler, 2006). For example online collaboration tools may facilitate social learning for geographically separated learners.

Technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPK) technological pedagogical content knowledge refers to the knowledge and understanding of the interplay between CK, PK and TK when using technology for teaching and learning. It includes an understanding of the complexity of relationships between students, teachers, content, practices and technologies.

Implications of the TPACK framework

We have argued that teaching is a complex, ill-structured domain. Underlying this complexity, however, are three key components of teacher knowledge: understanding of content, understanding of teaching, an understanding of technology. The complexity integration comes from an appreciation of the rich connect. Ions of knowledge among these three components these are applied in multifaceted and dynamic classroom contexts.

Since the late 1960’s a strand of educational research has aimed at understanding and explaining “how and why the observable activities of teachers professional lives take on the forms and functions they do”. A primary goal of this research is to understand the relationships between two key domains: (a) teacher thought processes and knowledge and (b) teachers actions and their observable effects. The current work on the TPACK frame work seeks to extend this tradition of research and scholarship by brining technology integration into the kinds of knowledge that teachers need to consider when teaching. The TPACK framework seeks to assist the development of better techniques for discovering and describing how technology- related professional knowledge is implemented and instantiated in practice. By better describing the types of knowledge teachers need (in the form of content, pedagogy, technology, contexts and their interactions), educators are in a better position to understand the variance in levels of technology integration occurring.

In addition, the TPACK framework offers several possibilities for promoting research in teacher education, teacher professional development, and teachers’ use of technology. It offers options for looking at a complex phenomenon like technology integration in ways that are now amenable to analysis and development. Moreover, it allows teachers, researchers, and teacher educators to move beyond over simplified approaches that treat technology as an “add-on” instead to focus again, and in a more ecological way, upon the connections among technology, content, and pedagogy as they play out in classroom contexts.

Comments

ath'har naseem19 November 2016 at 19:17
thanks miss..
it is really usefull
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Sunitha Susan Jose

note on unit 5

Aims

Advantages

Advantages of using e-resources

Development phase

III. Bulletin boards/ Electronic Bulletin Boards

In practice

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