Research has revealed that during systems design and development of e-learning technologies there is a tendency of neglecting the needs of end users and focus on the design process and the technology factors, and this has traditionally been the reason for poor usability of otherwise well conceptualized systems, as a result a number of IT-based learning tools ended up not being usable and not being utilized effectively. This study aims to investigate the impact of e-learning technologies, how people perceive the usage of e-learning technologies towards community skill development. An evaluation of four different e-learning technologies was conducted to investigate the role and efficacy of e-learning technologies within the surrounding communities. Data was analyzed as nominal data using IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software 24. Descriptive analysis, frequency, reliability and correctional analysis and also measures of central tendency were computed. Reliability was evaluated for assessing the internal consistency of the items using Cronbach’s alpha. To analyze the relationship between variables matrices of Pearson’s correlation was used. Pearson’s correlation can only be accepted when the significant effect (P>.05), this indicates that there is a positive or a negative relationship between two variables, if these conditions are not met then the proposed correlation or hypothesis can be rejected. Results indicate a poor perception and poor acceptance of e-learning technologies due to a number of factors, these factors include lack of computer-self efficacy which leads to computer anxiety, affordability of internet connectivity which leads to inaccessible of e-learning technologies. The findings also indicated that LAMS was found to be less useable and less useful by a number of students. However, students who enjoy working in groups found LAMS to be useable because it was supporting their preferred learning style, whereas individualistic students preferred Moodle and Dokeos because it was supporting their personal preferences and assessment styles. Having understood all the characteristics of learning tools, relevant learning technologies that are suitable for students can then be recommended.

Online learning environments are being increasingly utilised in academic settings, with many universities developing online and blended programmes (Adekola, 2016). The student experience, in relation to working with others, when studying online, has been widely researched (Garrison et. al, 2000, Kehrwald, 2008). The tutor experience has not (Arbaugh, 2014). There are now a generation of experienced online tutors, particularly in institutions who were quick to take up online delivery, who have developed expertise teaching online. Their experience and knowledge of practice can add to the research, and knowledge base, on effective online learning. This research observed the role of the online tutor, when utilising collaborative activities in their teaching. An ethnographic observation of online practice was drawn, using an iterative mixed-methods approach. Data from the online space was used to observe the participation patterns of over fifty tutors, and over eight hundred students. Fifteen tutors were then interviewed, ten of whom took part in a subsequent focus group. Taking a narrative approach to analysis, the data gathered painted a rich picture of collaborative online practice. Qualitatively different approaches were observed in tutor's facilitation of collaborative online tools. Tutors were observed to be situated within layers of context, online teaching being culturally situated and mediated by the digital technology utilised. Text-based communications reified dialogue, mediating the interactions between participants. Many of the face-to-face feedback cues which tutors utilised in their teaching were lost in the online environment. The setting was opaque, but at the same time mediated higher levels of disclosure. The online environment challenged traditional physical and temporal boundaries; the responsibility for establishing boundaries becoming that of the tutor, rather than the institution. Tutors drew on previous experiences; their participation was shaped by the situated nature of their practice and their own aspirations for the future. The observation drawn, of pedagogic collaboration, highlighted the social and cultural nature of online participation.

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The 21st century is a century that the information is popularized in full and the Internet resources are abundant, e-learning has gradually become a global phenomenon no only in formal education institutions but also in educational training organizations. Due to the rapid development of broadband Internet, online courses can now offer asynchronous learning activities as well as synchronous learning activities. Some literature have pointed out that online synchronous teaching is the key to engage online learners. How to evaluate the quality of online synchronous teaching becomes an important research topic. However, there is still very little research discussing this issue. Therefore, this study aims to develop a quality scale for evaluating online synchronous teaching from information system perspective. To achieve the research goal, we first identify some general quality indicators from literature survey; we then conduct a focus group interview to select those essential indicators. A questionnaire of the quality scale is then developed based on those essential indicators. A survey with 308 subjects has been conducted and data were collected to analyze the validity of the quality scale. The results showed that the discrimination, reliability and validity are all conformed to the standardization of scale development procedure. The result also showed that the developed quality scale has a good reliability and validity. The developed quality scale would be a good reference for administrators of educational organizations, teachers, and researchers. This quality scale will contribute to the planning and operation of the service of online synchronous teaching for administrators, and for teachers to better instructional designs for their online synchronous teaching. Researchers interested in synchronous teaching and learning can tackle the further research issues.

This study is located at the interface of online learning within a context of English language studies and academic literacy and is underpinned, from a critical theoretical perspective, by an understanding of the implications of the digital divide for South Africa. The thesis includes an exploration of online learning, as mediated by information and communication technology (ICT), in an undergraduate English language and academic literacy classroom at a university in Johannesburg, South Africa. The study draws on research and theorising by Warschauer (2002a, 2002b, 2003), who argues for the need for technology in developing countries as a means of social inclusion. The aim is to explore the extent to which communities of practice (COPs) are enabled in an online environment, among English non-mother tongue speakers, who have minimal previous access to ICT. To achieve the aim the study examines the extent to which the learners participate, negotiate meaning, construct identities, and perceive themselves as autonomous in online spaces. This is a case study that explores asynchronous lCT practices such as the use of the Internet (Net), e-mail, and discussion threads in an online Web course management system. From a sociocultural perspective, and recognising that learning does not occur in isolation, the work of Lave and Wenger (1991, 1996,2002) is used to frame the study, concerned as it is with learning, technology and empowerment. Lave and Wenger (1991, 2002) locate learning as a form of interaction and co-participation, and argue that learning occurs within specific contexts or communities of practice. Thus they focus on how individuals become members of 'communities of practice'. The study suggests that practice and participation are underpinned, and to some extent determined, by the identities constructed by participants In the on line communities. Participants' ICT practices are examined from the perspective of literacy, in this case electronic literacy, as a social practice and New Literacy Studies, where the work of Gee (1996, 1997, 2000), Street (1984, 1993a, 1993b, 2003), Barton, Hamilton and lvanic (2000), and Lankshear and Knobel (1997, 2004) are drawn on to examine the use of technology. Constructions of identity are examined from Hall's (1992) post-structuralist view that old identities, which stabilised the social world as we knew it, are in decline, giving rise to new identities and fragmenting the modem individual as a unified subject. From observations, participant-interviews, questionnaires, written data, and the analysis of messages posted to discussion threads over the duration of a year, the study demonstrates that the online environment facilitates the construction of communities of practice, by enabling participants to develop and sustain local and global relationships, construct identities, and engage autonomously in the medium. My findings suggest that online environments be considered, not merely as alternative modes of delivery in the language classroom, but for social inclusion, provided that facilitators and learners are adequately prepared for the use of digital technology. The study further suggests a model for the adoption of ICT in relation to learning within the South African context. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2006.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2009. / Title from PDF title page (University of Texas Digital Repository, viewed on Sept. 9, 2009). Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

The intent of this study is to identify correlations that might exist between Web-based instruction and higher assessment scores in secondary education. The study framework was held within the confines of a public high school chemistry classroom. Within this population there were students identified as gifted and talented (GT) as well as those without this designation. These two classifications were examined for statistically higher assessment scores using a two-tailed t-test. Results indicated that females outperformed males on pre- and post- instructional unit tests. All subgroups improved their logical-thinking skills and exhibited positive attitudes towards Web-based instruction. In general, Web-based instruction proved beneficial to improving classroom performance of all GT and non-GT groups as compared to traditional classroom instruction.

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The thesis of this dissertation is that by utilizing a biblical-theological framework, best practices of online graduate-level ministerial training can be presented in such a way that the role of the faculty, the objectives of the classroom, and the purpose of the institution are focused more effectively on the formation of students as ministers of the gospel. It is argued the role of the faculty member should be a model for students to follow, which necessitates institutions prioritize theological competencies ahead of technological and pedagogical competencies when hiring faculty, and institutions prioritize the faculty member's ongoing spiritual formation in the development and evaluation of theological, pedagogical, and technological competencies. In addition, it is argued the objectives of the classroom should be formation-centered, which necessitates the faculty member should utilize social presence within online courses that prioritizes the formation of students over the learning of students, and the faculty member should create community with and among students, beyond social presence, that prioritizes the formation of students over the learning of students. Finally, it is argued the purpose of the institution should focus on the ministerial effectiveness of the student, which necessitates online graduate-level ministerial training should extend beyond the online classroom by utilizing the student's local church context for the spiritual formation and ministerial preparation of the student, and online graduate-level ministerial training should elevate the formation of the student as a minister of the gospel within the local church over the retention of the student or the knowledge gained by the student. Chapter 1 introduces the resource, Best Practices of Online Education: A Guide for Christian Higher Education, as one of the only resources seeking to present a comprehensive approach to the integration of theology, pedagogy, and technology. Chapter 2 considers how theological anthropology affects pedagogy and concludes with a presentation of David Powlison's Comprehensive Internal model as a biblical-theological framework. Chapters 3 through 5 focus on Powlison's epistemological priorities--articulating biblical truth; critiquing, debunking, and reinterpreting alternative models; and, learning from defective models as it applies to online graduate-level ministerial training.