The need for change within the Further Education sector in line with technological developments in our current society was apparent within my teaching practice. This led to a number of thoughts about virtual learning environments and its application within the teaching role. The role of the computer as a real socio-cultural learning environment was explored to examine if this environment could be nearer to the concrete experiential and situated learning environment that students came from at an early age. It was hoped that this would be a different learning environment that would start slowly and grow in an organic way. It involved the growth of a very different culture of learning, a learning environment that may include a different literature and with different ways of thinking about what is to be learned and how to learn it. It was also hoped that the virtual learning environment would provide a very powerful strategy to allow the operation of the principle of variation and selection which it needed within the college Learnwise Educational system. Education should shift from individual, technology-free cognition to a resourceful collaborative learning, and distributed intelligence. Learners should be empowered through thoughtful and innovative use of technologies, and benefit from social distributions of cognitions. Salomon et al.'s (1998) commented that education should pay more attention to the "effects of" technology rather than the "effects with" technology, so that autonomous performance may be achieved. The attempt of the first part of the research has been to investigate a student-centred strategy in a computer supported collaborative learning environment to see whether this kind of higher-order knowledge can be distributed among peers and environment. The starting point of the second part of my research focussed on the links between constructivist theory and knowledge management in relation to college teaching practice. Since this research formed part of a whole college restructuring of teaching and learning, a baseline for current practice was necessary. Literature concerning the use of technology was explored in order to benchmark where the college was at the start of the research. As a result of this initial investigation, a survey of current college practice resulted in a paper being accepted by the HE Academy at their 8th Annual Conference in 2007. Page 6 Results from this research indicated that, although the college displayed similar results to other FE establishments, it was imperative that a move to a new building with a digital environment philosophy required more than merely a physical move. As a result, research into emerging technologies was deemed to be important if the college was to take advantage of a new digital teaching concept. Investigation into collaborative tools and Web 2.0 techniques was seen as appropriate at this stage. The study of computer-supported collaboration included the study of this software and social phenomena associated with it. Through this element of research it was hoped to investigate these collaborative techniques in the light of constructivist theories in order to develop an appropriate and effective digital teaching model. Expanding the research to explore portal technologies, with a particular focus on the integration of teaching practice, would hopefully highlight a possible path connecting current practices to an educational portal and illuminate the benefits and challenges of such an endeavour. Acquiring and deploying Web-based collaborative functionality within an organisation has become a strategic move to improve relationships between employees, partners and customers. The ultimate aim of the research and hence the thesis being addressed, will be to show that it is possible to create a “Learning or College Gateway” as a solutions framework that helps improve education by integrating the tools staff and students already use and puts them to work connecting people with the information and processes they need to teach, learn and manage more effectively. This will create a powerful educational portal that enables the people throughout the college to share information and work together on activities from a single point of access. The gateway will therefore use innovative collaboration and communications technologies to help staff get more out of existing applications using familiar tools and extending the value of investment made in existing learning environment technologies. The aim of the research was partly answered by using project based scenarios which gave some staff a new insight into the use of ICT. However, those involved in projects were generally the more pro-active teachers. A slightly different approach is needed and College Management has been advised to explore the use of an interactive college intranet and a dedicated eLearning team as a possible way forward.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In Chapter 1, the basis of the thesis is discussed, and presents the question, “How can we apply the methodologies that make up the semantic web to to the practice of knowledge management, in order to assist knowledge workers to better do their jobs?” A few premises are established and definitions provided for key concepts. Chapter 2 provides an understanding of learning and organisational theory. It covers some aspects of the history and context of organisational learning and hones in on which theories are most suited to understanding the focused area of technology enhanced learning. In Chapter 3 the focus is placed on online collaborative learning theory and why it is required as a new learning theory for the knowledge age. Chapter 4 introduces the idea of semantics and more particularly, the semantic web. Components of the semantic web and their uses are discussed before the chapter is concluded with current criticisms and industry applications of the semantic web. Chapter 5 relates what has been discussed in chapters 2 and 3 to semantic web tools discussed in chapter 4. The concept of the semantic learning organisation is introduced and the various possibilities for semantic web applications within the learning organisation are discussed. In chapter 6, several problems with the semantic web are presented after which the researcher proposes a possible solution to the problems. Finally, an example implementation is presented and a few observations explored. The thesis comes to the conclusion that implementing a semantic learning network is possible, but only by incorporating its social aspects. Guidelines are presented for organisations for implementing a semantic learning infrastructure. Avenues for further research are outlined and the parameters for the final test implementation are proposed together with a short description of possible problem areas. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In Hoofstuk word die basis van die tesis bespreek, en stel die vraag: Hoe kan ons die metodologieë van die semantiese web toepas op kennisbestuur ten einde kenniswerkers te help om hul werk beter te doen? In die proses word die tesis se aannames gestel en die sleutelkonsepte gedefinieer. Hoofstuk 2 gee 'n oorsig van leer- en organisasieteorie. Dit dek 'n paar aspekte van die geskiedenis en konteks van organisatoriese leer en identifiseer daardie teorieë wat geskik is vir die verstaan van die fokus-area van tegnologie-gesteunde leer. In Hoofstuk 3 verskuif die fokus na aanlyn samewerk leer-teorie (online collaborative learning theory) en waarom dit benodig word as 'n nuwe leerteorie vir die kennis-era. Hoofstuk 4 stel die idee van semantiek en in besonder, die semantiese web, bekend. Komponente van die semantiese web en hul gebruike word beskryf en dan krities bespreek voor die hoofstuk afgesluit word met 'n oorsig van die toepassings van die semantiese web in die organisasie-wêreld. Hoofstuk 5 bring die leerteorieë van hoofstukke 2 en 3 in gesprek met die semantiese web gereedskap wat in hoofstuk 4 bespreek is. Die konsep van die semantiese leerorganisasie word hier ontwikkel en die verskillende moontlikhede vir semantiese web programme in die lerende organisasie word bespreek. Hoofstuk 6 bespreek verskeie probleme van die semantiese web, waarna gespekuleer word oor moontlike oplossings vir hierdie probleme. Ten slotte word 'n voorbeeld implementering beskryf en 'n paar waarnemings word op die basis hiervan gemaak. Die tesis kom tot die gevolgtrekking dat die implementering van 'n semantiese leer netwerk moontlik is, maar slegs deur sosiale aspekte in te sluit. Riglyne word voorgestel vir organisasies vir die implementering van 'n semantiese leer infrastruktuur. Daar word gespekuleer oor moontlike verdere navorsing en die parameters vir 'n finale toets implementering saam met 'n kort beskrywing van moontlike probleemareas.

There is a lack of studies on the current status of the use of on-demand learning in organizations and factors that may accelerate or hold back the acceptance and implementation of on-demand learning in organizations. The purpose of this study is to contribute to a better understanding of the adoption of on-demand learning in organizations in the United States. More specifically, this research was conducted to answer the following questions: 1) Are training professionals familiar with the concept of on demand learning? 2) What are the most commonly practiced on-demand learning applications in organizations? 3) What are the most commonly used on-demand learning devices? 4) Which subject areas are appropriate for applying on-demand learning? 5) What factors explain and predict the adoption of on-demand learning? 6) Does organizational nature (non-profit vs. for-profit) have an impact on the adoption of on-demand learning? 7) Does economic sector have an impact on the adoption of on-demand learning? 8) Does organizational size have an impact on the adoption of on-demand learning? and 9) Does training budget have an impact on the adoption of on-demand learning? Study results indicated that although many factors influence the adoption of on-demand learning in organizations, compatibility and top management support were the most significant determinants in general. The training budget was a moderator for the adoption of on-demand learning and it amplified the effects of top management support and organizational centralization on the adoption process. The adoption of on-demand learning among small organizations, non-profit organizations, or organizations with relatively small training budgets, was primarily determined by available organizational resources, such as technical infrastructure, financial resources for experimental innovations, professional development opportunities, and investment on training and development. But among for-profit organizations or large organizations (i.e., 1,000 employees and over), the adoption of on-demand learning was primarily determined by its compatibility with organizations and organizational openness. Moreover, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, costs, and customer demand were not significant determinants in this study. In short, organizational factors had a greater explanatory power than innovative, environmental, or individual variables. Recommendations were proposed for future studies.

For Maldives, an island nation consisting of over 1190 islands, eLearning is the ideal form of delivery for higher education students on the 200 inhabited islands. This study explores Maldivian college students’ and their institutes’ eLearning readiness. Mixed methods research has been conducted using two questionnaires (one for the students and one for the lecturers) and semi-structured interviews. One hundred and eleven students from two private higher education institutes completed the questionnaires, 10 students were selected for interviews out of which 9 completed the interview. Students’ technological skills, access to technology and learning abilities, as well as their level of eLearning efficacy, are measured and further explored through interviews. Their lifestyle and family and workplace environments’ conduciveness for eLearning is explored. Similarly, 45 lecturers completed the questionnaire to obtain lecturers’ and institutes’ readiness for online teaching. The responses from the questionnaires allow exploration of Maldivian higher education students and institutes’ readiness for eLearning. Lecturers’ readiness is assessed by their skills and abilities to support eLearning students. Readiness of institutes are explored using semi-structured interviews with 2 senior staff from each college. The role of the three elements of the Community of Inquiry Framework: Cognitive Presence, Teaching Presence and Social Presence, in eLearning, is also explored through questionnaires and interviews. The research study’s findings are significant as it is the first research in the Maldives to provide such a case in support of eLearning readiness in higher education. The research study supports the transferability of the findings to comparable colleges and student populations in the Maldives.

With rapid development of science and technology, introduction of the ICT different methodologies into the learning environment today becomes one of the most important factors. Application of IT tools in classroom learning in and methodology for teaching and learning processes creates number of issues, which could be solved with the help of online Learning Management System (LMS). This paper presents experiment results using of Moodle, at the course of Linear algebra and analytic geometry (LAAG) in the first semester of 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 study year. The paper presents quantitative and qualitative rationale interdependence analysis and experiment conclusion based on midterm and final exam results of the freshman students of the National University of Mongolia.

The impact of Internet technology on critical thinking is of growing interest among researchers. However, there still remains much to explore in terms of how critical thinking can be fostered through online environments for higher education. Ten years ago, Garrison, Anderson, and Archer (2000) published an article describing the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework which provided an outline of three core elements that were able to describe and measure a collaborative and positive educational experience in an online learning environment, namely teaching presence (design, facilitation, and direct instruction), social presence (the ability of learners to project themselves socially and emotionally), and cognitive presence (the extent to which learners are able to construct and confirm meaning through sustained reflection and discourse). This dissertation extends the body of research surrounding the CoI framework and also the literature on developing critical thinking in online environments by examining and exploring the extent to which teaching and social presence contribute to cognitive presence. The researcher was able to do this by offering 189 learners enrolled in 10 research methods courses and educational research courses an opportunity to use an innovative online resource (Research Design Learning Resource – RDLR) to assist them in learning about educational research and developing research proposals. By exploring how participants used this resource the researcher was able to gain insight into what factors contributed to a successful online learning experience and fostered cognitive presence. Quantitative and qualitative research approaches (mixed methods) were used in this study. The quantitative results indicated that both social and teaching presence had a strong positive relationship with cognitive presence and that learners generally perceived to have a positive learning experience using the RDLR. The qualitative findings helped elaborate the significant quantitative results and were organised into the following themes: making connections, multiple perspectives, resource design, being a self-directed learner, learning strategies, learning preferences, and barriers to cognitive presence. Future directions for critical thinking in online environments are discussed.

This report describes the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of a web-based tutorial designed to teach graduate students about the statistical concept of power. It contains a literature review of techniques used to teach statistics, similar computer-based programs for representing the concept of power, and instructional theories that pertain to web-based tutorials. It describes the process of designing and developing this tutorial in detail. The results section contains a description of the product implementation with three different groups and discusses the qualitative and quantitative findings from each of these implementations. Finally, there is a discussion of the tutorial's strengths and weaknesses.

With the enormous competition in the industry, organizations must frequently find better ways to embrace organizational learning. This research study advocates eLearning to be one of the best methods for organizational learning, and this is the study’s main area of interest. This research explored a case at a telecommunication organization named ComTek (pseudonym). The research study addressed a problem of eLearning low usage rate, which resulted in ComTek not meeting their set learning targets during the time of the study. The usage rate was measured using the number of enrolled assessments. The study uses qualitative methods to propose a conceptual framework to understand the causes of low eLearning usage. This conceptual framework illustrated the use of the activity theory elements to understand the problem of eLearning low usage, paired with the use of cloud computing services to access eLearning, and the use of content delivery techniques to help understand eLearning low usage. This conceptual framework took advantage of cloud services like Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). This research study focused on the periods from 2016 to 2017 for collecting data and creating an understanding of the research setting, while other data was derived from historical documents about the phenomenon studied. During this period, there was inadequate literature about cloud computing and other aspects to consider within the domain of telecommunication organizations. The literature study, therefore, comprised of literature from different domains. During the study, ComTek used eLearning with the aid of learning management systems (LMS) to manage learning and leverage employee skills. During the period of the study compared to other years, about 50% of assessments had a usage rate of below 80%, a standard target established by ComTek as a benchmark, placing compliance and training at a low rate. Of the 50% of assessments, some were just above 40% in usage rate, were of a high stake, and were in the categories of compliance and training iv assessments. While this was the case, this study did not consider the technical implementation of the application systems involved, and did not create any form of intervention, but focused on understanding the activities that were involved in the learning environment. This research study used a paradigm that was constructive and interpretive in nature, using qualitative methods with the belief that there were multiple realities in understanding the situation at ComTek and possible solutions to it. To unpack the multiple realities, an exploratory case study was conducted as a research approach. In this study, the researcher used multiple data collection methods, including open-ended questionnaires and unstructured interviews. / School of Computing

A challenge faced by higher education is whether online orientation that is offered before the start of class can impact academic performance for online students. The purpose of this quantitative research study was to determine if there are significant differences in retention, academic success, and persistence between first time online students who have participated in an online orientation and those who did not participate and if there was a significant difference in retention, academic success, and persistence by gender of first-time online students. The sample for this study was extracted from archived data originating from 433 first-time online undergraduate students at a 2-year technical college in South Carolina. Student retention was measured by midterm grades, academic success as measured by final course grades, and persistence as measured by enrollment in at least 1 online class in subsequent semester. The results of this study indicated a high level of statistical significance in male and female first-time online students with academic success as well as overall persistence in students who successfully completed online orientation with a grade of 80 or better. Additionally, statistical significance was found in relation to male and female first-time online students and retention. These results can support a shared purpose among educational leaders to transform online education into a collaborative learning environment that promotes growth, competence, and a thriving learning community. The results of this study reinforced awareness and understanding among educational leaders at colleges and universities about online orientation and its impact to online students' success.

The purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of the readiness assurance process of team-based learning (TBL) in virtually isolated settings. Many Internet sites offer courses for adults to use on their own without access to mentors or other learners. However, educational theory suggests that people learn better with others than by themselves. The focus of this investigation was whether the inclusion of the readiness assurance process would increase participants’ levels of learning based on Bloom’s revised taxonomy within the limits of virtual isolation. In this study an experimental pretest-posttest design was employed. Using a 2- day mini-course about listening in marriage, 117 participants were randomly assigned to three groups. In the TBL group, married couples worked together following the principles of the readiness assurance process. In the independent group, one spouse from a marriage worked alone, also following the principles of the readiness assurance process. In the baseline group, one spouse from a marriage took the pretest and posttest only. The first posttest, called posttest-L, measured lower levels of learning (remembering and understanding). The second posttest, called posttest-D, measured deeper learning (applying and evaluating). Using ANCOVA with the pretests as the covariates, results showed a statistically significant difference in learning gains between the TBL group and the independent group for lower levels of learning (ES = .39). However, statistical significance was not achieved for deeper learning. Moreover, TBL scores and independent scores were no different from the baseline scores for measures of deeper learning. Along with explanations for these results, limitations of the study are described and suggestions for future research are offered.