“Impact of E- learning on student

learning and employability – A study in India”

Thesis Submitted to the D. Y. Patil University,

School of Management
in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the award of the Degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
In
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Submitted by
Zuleika Firdosh Homavazir
(Enrollment No. DYP – PhD- 126100001)

Research Guide
Dr. R. GOPAL
DIRECTOR

D.Y. PATIL UNIVERSITY,

School of Management,
Sector 4, Plot No. 10,
CBD Belapur, Navi Mumbai – 400 614
June 2015

i
 “Impact of E- learning on student
learning and employability – A study in India”

ii
 DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the thesis titled “A research on the Impact of E- learning on student

learning and employability – A study in India” submitted for the Award of Doctor of

Philosophy (Ph.D) in Business Management at D.Y. Patil University, School of

Management is my original work and the thesis has not formed the basis for the award of

any degree, associate ship, fellowship or any other similar titles.

The material borrowed from other sources are incorporated in the thesis has been duly

acknowledged.

I understand that I myself could be held responsible for plagiarism, if any declared later

on.

The research papers published based on the research conducted out of and in the course of

study are also based on the study and not borrowed from other sources.

Place: Navi Mumbai. Zuleika Firdosh Homavazir

Date: Enrollment no: DYP-PHD-126100001

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 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the thesis entitled “A research on the Impact of E- learning on

student learning and employability – A study in India” and submitted by Zuleika

Firdosh Homivazir is a Bonafide research work for the award of the Doctor of Philosophy

in Business Management at the D. Y. Patil University Department of Business

Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of

Doctor of Philosophy in Business Management and that the thesis has not formed the

basis for the award previously of any degree, diploma, associate ship, fellowship or any

other similar title of any University or Institution.

Also it is certified that the thesis represents an independent work on the part of the

candidate.

Place: Navi Mumbai

Date:

Guide Head of the Department

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I raise my heart with gratefulness towards the Good Lord for the providential succour

provided towards me all through my life, especially during the three years of my

association with D.Y. Patil University for my Doctoral studies.

I am indebted to D.Y. Patil University and the School of Management for giving me this

great opportunity to have my doctoral studies under its protective wings.

I thank Dr R. Gopal; my Guide & mentor, who inspired and encouraged me to complete

my work. My heartfelt gratitude is due for his scholarly guidance, constant availability,

his unmatched human concern and wholehearted support.

I am highly indebted to him for this work of mine and the personal growth in me.

I express my thanks to my family members especially my parents for source of inspiration

and continuous support in my success.

Place: Navi Mumbai Zuleika Firdosh Homivazir

Date:

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 Table of Contents
Chapter Title Page Number
No

Preliminary Cover Page i

Declaration ii

Certificate iv

Acknowledgement v

Table of Contents vi

List of Figures viii

List of Tables ix

List of Abbreviations x

Executive Summary xi

1. Introduction 1

1.1. Learning 1

1.2. The Concept of E- Learning 5

1.3. E- Learning in Corporations 19

2. Literature Review & Gap Analysis 46

3. Objectives of the Study and Research Methodology 99

4. Role of Education & Higher Education in India 106

4.1. Higher Education Sector – The India Story 108

4.2. Skilled Resources 112

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4.3. Technology Paradigm in Education 117

4.4. Understanding D- Learning, E- Learning and M- 123

Learning

5. Technology in Education 133

5.1. Education and Technology 133

5.2. E- Learning and International Knowledge Transfer 144

6. Employability and Employability skills 151

7. Data Collection and Data Analysis 166

8. Major Findings 177

9. Recommendations and Suggestions 184

10. Future Scope for Research 186

11. Bibliography 187

12. Annexure 192

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 List of Figures

Fig No Description Page No

Fig. 1. LMS Modules 39

Fig. 2. Requirement of Qualified Manpower in India by 2015 113

Fig.3. The place of m- learning as part of e-learning and d- 124

learning

Fig.4. UTAUT model 132

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 List of Tables

Table no Description Page No

1 Rise in Internet usage in India 117

2. Level of course chosen for E- Learning 167

3. Type of Course study method chosen among E- Learner’s 167

4. Weightage parameters for pursuing a course through E- 168

Learning
5. Weightage given to the Location 169

6. Weightage given to Technology 169

7. Weightage given to ease of availability of the course 170

8. Weightage given to the Institution 170

9. Weightage given to Author/ Instructor of the course 171

10. Weightage given to cost 171

11. Weightage given to flexibility of time 172

12. Awareness level of the HRs 172

13. Number of employees engaged in E- Learning Courses 173

14. Age- wise analysis of employees engaged in E- Learning 173

courses
15. Course-wise analysis of employees pursuing E- learning 174
courses
16. Analysis of E- Learner’s according to the level of 174
Management at the workplace
17. HR preference during recruitment 175

18. HR analysis on equivalency of courses 175

19. Impact of E- Learning degrees during employee’s 176

performance appraisal

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 List of Abbreviations

AICTE All India Council for Technical Education

CMI Computer Managed Instruction
DVD Digital Video Disc
GDP Gross Domestic Product
GER Gross Enrollment Ratio

HR(s) Human Resource

HTML HyperText Markup Language

HTTP The Hypertext Transfer Protocol

ICT Information and Communications Technology

KPMG - CLSA Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler – Credit Lyonnais Securities Asia

LCD Liquid-crystal-display

LMS Learning Management System

LTSC Learning Technology Standards Committee

MHRD Ministry of Human Resource Department

NASSCOM National Association of Software and Services Companies

PDF Portable Document Format

PC Personal Computer

SPSS Statistical Package for Social Sciences

TAM Technology Acceptance Model

UGC University Grants Commission

UTAUT Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology

XML Extensible Markup Language

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 Executive Summary

Higher education can be defined as the education at universities or similar educational

establishments, especially to degree level. Higher education is of vital importance for the

country, as it is a powerful tool to build knowledge-based society of the 21st Century.

With the growing size and diversity of the higher education sector particularly in terms of

courses, management and geographical coverage, it has become necessary to develop a

sound database on higher education. Existing data base on higher education is inadequate

and out-of-date. Collection and dissemination of data on higher education suffers from

incomplete coverage, inordinate time lag etc. Due to this, Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER),

which is being calculated on the basis of available data, does not reflect the correct

picture of the country’s development in respect of Higher Education sector. Government

has set a target of increasing the GER from the present level of about 12% to 15% by the

end of XI Five Year Plan and to 30% by the year 2020. Various new initiatives have been

taken during XI Five Year Plan to increase the GER. Reliable and comprehensive data-

base is an immediate requirement to measure the actual GER and efforts taken to improve

the GER. A sound database on higher education is also required for planning, policy

formulation, fulfilling International Commitments, Research etc. To better understand

the scenario of higher education in India it is important to understand the various

commissions and councils that act as watchdogs for the education system. The University

Grants Commission (UGC) of India is a statutory organisation set up by the Union

government in 1956, charged with coordination, determination and maintenance of

standards of university education. It provides recognition to universities in India, and

disburses funds to such recognized universities and colleges. UGC was recommended in

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1945 and formed in 1946 to oversee the work of the three Central Universities of Aligarh,

Banaras and, Delhi. In 1947, the Committee was entrusted with the responsibility of

dealing with all the then existing Universities. After independence, the University

Education Commission was set up in 1948 under the Chairmanship of S. Radhakrishnan

and it recommended that the UGC be reconstituted on the general model of the

University Grants Commission of the United Kingdom. UGC was formally inaugurated

by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the Minister of Education, Natural Resources and

Scientific Research on 28 December 1953. In order to ensure effective region-wise

coverage throughout the country, the UGC has its headquarters are in New Delhi, has

decentralised its operations by setting up six regional centres at Pune, Hyderabad,

Kolkata, Bhopal, Guwahati and Bangalore. The All India Council for Technical

Education (AICTE) is the statutory body and a national-level council for technical

education, under Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource

Development. Established in November 1945 first as an advisory body and later on in

1987 given statutory status by an Act of Parliament, AICTE is responsible for proper

planning and coordinated development of the technical education and management

education system in India. The AICTE accredits postgraduate and graduate programs

under specific categories at Indian institutions as per its charter. It is assisted by 10

Statutory Boards of Studies, namely, UG Studies in Eng. & Tech., PG and Research in

Eng. and Tech., Management Studies, Vocational Education, Technical Education,

Pharmaceutical Education, Architecture, Hotel Management and Catering Technology,

Information Technology, Town and Country Planning. The AICTE has its headquarters

in 7th Floor, Chanderlok Building, Janpath, New Delhi, which has the offices of the

xii
chairman, vice-chairman and the member secretary, plus it has regional offices at

Kolkata, Chennai, Kanpur, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Guwahati, Bhopal, Bangalore,

Hyderabad and Gurgaon. The environment of higher education has evolved considerably.

Rising costs, shrinking budgets, and an increasing need for distance education (New

Media Consortium, 2007) is causing educational institutions to reexamine the way that

education is delivered. In response to this changing environment, e-learning is being

implemented more and more frequently in higher education, creating new and exciting

opportunities for both educational institutions and students. E-learning, or electronic

learning, has been defined a number of different ways in the literature. In general, e-

learning is the expression broadly used to describe “instructional content or learning

experience delivered or enabled by electronic technologies”. With the increase in internet

use and availability of personal computers the basic concept of education has undergone

fundamental changes (Zhang and Nunamaker, 2003). The Information and

communications technology (ICT) revolution has led to many radical changes across

communities such that ICT is today a luxury but as an urgent necessity. Schofield et al.

(1997) predict that the real impact of the ICT revolution is to be seen not behind, but

ahead of us. E-learning is possibly the most important development in the educational

world today. E-learning is a new dimension in education, which helps to guide decision

makers, educators, learners and the wider society so that they can step beyond simple

opinions about e-learning’s usefulness and base their judgments on systematic

assessments of its effectiveness. The theory and application of ICT attracts systematic

methods through inter-related theories in technology, psychology and education to

develop its bases, principles, and applications for higher education. So now universities

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can be open, virtual, and electronic by using the internet and can consider it as the main

tool for communication with learners (Hamdi, 2003), principally by providing an

interactive environment between the learners and the educational material (Alkateeb,

2003). The production of materials and software for e-learning in education and training

by schools and universities now increases daily. The internet is acceptable in workplaces

for both learning and training, justifying the assumption that e-learning is a key part of

the future of learning. This trend is evidenced in Saudi Arabia, one of the countries that

adopted the internet for university and college use in the 1990s (Alhajeri, 2005).

The online learning education industry is divided into three major market segments

 Content organisations: firms that furnish course structure, multimedia, simulations,

testing and assessment; both off-the-shelf solutions as customized applications. 

 Learning services firms: firms that provide needs assessments, program-building

components, content-design, development and programming, technical and systems

integration, site management and hosting, maintenance and online mentoring. 

 Delivery solutions companies: firms selling technologies associated with e-learning,

including training, authoring tools, course management systems, collaborative

software and virtual classrooms and add-on tools. 

Growing demands for e-learning require a combination of methodologies, tools, and

technologies to effectively scale by e-learning development throughout the organization.

As e-learning is definitely a growing field in the educational and training market and e-

learning standard is a new emerging area, there are many challenges in implementation of

undergoing technological changes and developments. The security of services, the

encryption of messages and the common taxonomies to describe services and service

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access points in e-learning systems environments are all in need of consideration.

However, Supporters of e-learning are always looking forward some new developments.

Technology advancements will continue to reshape learning over the Internet with

increasing use of advanced tools and techniques.

Many business houses are now moving towards using e - learning technologies for

induction and refresher trainings. The key drivers influencing businesses to consider e-

learning technologies: 1. Cost: e-Learning can reduce costs of travel and lost productivity

associated with face-to-face training, and can also reduce costs of content development

because content can be reused and repurposed. 2. Scalability: Networking or Internet

capabilities permit content to be scaled up to large numbers of learners, with multiple

presentations of learning material to cater for differences between learners and variations

in access to computers and networks. 3. Modularity: The creation of e-Learning content

in short ‘chunks’ increases potential for flexible access. 4. Timeliness: e-Learning

technologies can be used to enable learners to gain access on an as-needed, where-needed

basis and deliver immediate knowledge required for performance-improvement needs. 5.

Relevance: Access methods and content can be customized and adapted to the learner’s

needs and context. 6. Accountability: Evaluation can be enhanced by electronic

mechanisms for providing feedback on the performance of learners, managers and e-

Learning developers.

The various literatures were studied and reviewed. The literatures done by the researchers

were primarily from the subjects of learning, e- learning and employability skills. It

cannot be emphasized enough that individual learning styles must be taken into account

in the instructional design template used in online education. Alina Zapalska and Dallas

xv
(2010) argue that when students’ learning styles are identified, it is possible to define an

appropriate context of learning. Teaching strategies in online courses while recognizing

the four learning styles can be identified as (1) Auditory learners, (2) Visual learners, (3)

Kinesthetic learners, (4) Read/ write learners. It could be concluded that the achievement

of online learning can be improved by providing instruction in a manner consistent with

each student’s learning style. However, it is important to keep in mind that, even if a

specific student learns best in a certain way, he or she should be exposed to a variety of

learning experiences to become a more versatile online learner. Clyde W. Holsapple and

Anita Lee-Post (2006) researched how to define, evaluate, and promote e-learning

success from an information systems perspective. The research introduced the E-

Learning Success Model, which posits that the overall success of an e-learning initiative

depends on the attainment of success at each of the three stages of e-learning systems

development: system design, system delivery, and system outcome. Four cycles of

development were traced, each comprised analysis, design, implementation, testing, and

enhancement An online version of an undergraduate quantitative methods core course for

business students that was developed using a prototyping strategy confirmed the validity

of using the proposed success model for e-learning success assessment.

E-learning systems support the needs of the new workforce and drive employee

engagement in a number of ways such as 24/7 access to training materials, familiarity

with the technological platforms that are used for learning, connection to subject matter

experts, real-time collaboration and sharing of best practices, personalized learning,

engaging content formats, freedom to fail, greater efficiency and environmental

consciousness (Colleen Longstreet and Michelle Winkley, 2011). The key impacts and

xvi
challenges of elearning, as seen by the EDUCause Centre for Applied Research

highlights that introduction of elearning in an educational institution gives the faculties an

opportunity to learn to use various technological platforms as well as provides an

occasion to rethink the course concepts currently in use. In contrast, there are far more

challenges identified including the additional hours a faculty/ instructor needs to devote

to replying to students via emails, etc. Additionally, in most cases, the students may not

have access to high bandwidth internet connections as well as the face- to- face activities

that a student would participate in when in a classroom as minimal or omitted. Also,

corporate managers are constantly looking for more cost-effective ways to deliver

training to their employees. E-learning is less expensive than traditional classroom

instruction (Judith B. Strother, 2002). In addition, many expenses – booking training

facilities, travel costs for employees or trainers, plus employee time away from the job –

are greatly reduced.

Neil Moreland (2006) in his paper on entrepreneurship and employability argues that

entrepreneurship can be seen as a special form of employability. When universities and

colleges promote employability, they are also promoting elements of entrepreneurship.

However, if this is to lead to self-employment, more is needed. Students need to

understand what it means to be self-employed, what sources of help are available and

where the main pitfalls lie. A study conducted by the Department of Education,

Government of Australia (2008) points out that the employability skills facilitation;

requires the design of an overall teaching and learning and assessment strategy in which

e-learning is just one of the tools used. This study found, however, that the use of e-

xvii
learning to widen the perspectives of participants through team work and learning

through interaction with other people is not as well developed as it should be.

Following a thorough literature review, the gaps in the literature were identified as that

there was no study conducted on this topic-“A research on the Impact of E- Learning on

student learning and employability- A study in India”. Many of the researches and studies

are conducted in other countries and same studies were in other areas not in mentioned

title or area. There is no study stating the intended learning outcomes from the E-

learning courses. So this study mainly focuses on linking E- learning and employability

of the student.

A number of studies were considered, but those that fell in the following categories, were

not considered for the literature review:

 Those applied in a specific or particular situation and with particular software or

specializing in a definite area like the private sector, vocational training , health

sector , industrial sector (there is no need to explain the difference between those

areas and the educational field)

 Any studies carried out in general education (pre-university) levels of education

 Any studies carried out by businessmen and investors which were interested in the

income and economic investment from the use of e-learning more than the

educational return or any study aiming to evaluate the specific educational

program of a designer or developer, which are often made by the producers of

those programs

The following were the objectives for conducting the study were then derived;

1) To study the various aspects of e-learning on stakeholders i.e., learners and employers.

xviii
2) To assess the perceptions and attitudes of potential learners about e-learning education.

3) To study the key challenges faced by learners in an e-learning program

4) To study the impact of e-learning both positive and negative on the employability of
the student.

Inorder to fulfil each of the objectives of the study, the following hypotheses were
considered for the study:

H01: The positive aspects of e-learning have no significant impact on learners.

H11: The positive aspects of e-learning have significant impact on learners.

H02: The positive aspects of e-learning have no significant impact on employers.

H12: The positive aspects of e-learning have significant impact on employers.

H03: The negative aspects of e-learning have no significant impact on learners.

H13: The negative aspects of e-learning have significant impact on learners.

H04: The negative aspects of e-learning have no significant impact on employers.

H14: The negative aspects of e-learning have significant impact on employers.

H05: There are no significant factors influencing the intended e-learning outcomes of the
learners.

H15: There are significant factors influencing the intended e-learning outcomes of the
learners.

H06: There is no significant impact of e-learning outcomes of learners on job

performance.

H16: There is significant impact of e-learning outcomes of learners on job performance.

H07: There is no significant impact of e-learning outcomes on business performance of an

organisation

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H17: There is significant impact of e-learning outcomes on business performance of an
organisation

H08: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of content has no significant
impact on the learner

H18: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of content has significant
impact on the learner

H09: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of technology has no

significant impact on the learner

H19: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of technology has significant
impact on the learner

H010: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of range of e-learning

requirements has no significant impact on the learner

H110: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of range of e-learning

requirements has significant impact on the learner

The research methodology was then formulated considering the area of research and the

intended outcomes.

The research was Descriptive in nature. The dependent variables in this study had been

chosen as:

1. Learner's intended outcomes

2. Learner's employability.

Learner's intended outcomes: To study the effective' use of ILT (information and learning

technology) on students' intermediate outcomes, namely:-

 Acquisition of knowledge and skills and

 Development as autonomous learners.

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Effects relating to knowledge and skill could be divided into: engagement factors,

making students more receptive to learning; cognitive factors, making the learning

materials more accessible and aiding understanding; and performance factors, producing

better outputs and developing skills.

Effects relating to developing maturity as autonomous learners incorporated: the

development of self esteem, particularly for students who have had little success in the

past; motivation to learn; and autonomy, taking more responsibility for their own learning

and learning how to learn.

Learner's Employability could be measured as outcomes that contribute to learner’s

performance on the job and overall improved business performance. This is based on

moderating variables such as ROI and productivity ratios.

The Learner's Learning Outcomes and Learner's Employability are influenced by the

following independent variables or elements:

1. Learner's qualities

2. E- learning environment

3. The learning activity

Learner's qualities - Age, education, experiences, job profile, needs, motives, prior

experience of learning, social and interpersonal skills, preferred learning styles, ICT

competence.

Learning environment (face-to-face or virtual) – available resources, tools, facilities and

services and their match with the learners’ needs.

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The learning activity and approach taken - the means by which the faculty bring about

learning and seeks to influence the development of the learners by the use of various

learning styles, inclusion, and assessment.

The Secondary Data was collected from various available sources through desk research

including literature survey and referring e-libraries etc. Review of literature and other

available information from various published and unpublished reports, Journals, books,

newspapers etc (including databases like Ebsco, Pro-quest, India Business Insight

Databases and others).

Inorder to test the questionnaires a pilot study was conducted in Mumbai for HR

Executives or Officers and E-Learners to test the reliability of the instruments. The study

was conducted with a sample of 10 HR Executives and 20 E-Learners. The Cronbach

alpha value was determined to be 0.70.

Since the pilot study results yielded an acceptable reliability outcome, Primary Data

collection was undertaken using the instruments in the study. Questionnaires were used

as instruments for data collection from the respondents (HR- Executives and E-Learners).

The target population of the study was identified as students and corporate organisations

from across the country. Since the universe cannot be defined, the sample size of the

study was considered to be a total of 300 interviews of past and present learners and HR

executives.

n = Z2 × (P) × (1-P)

C2

Where,

Z = Z value (1.96 for 95% Confidence level)

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P = Percentage picking a choice, expressed as a decimal (0.5 used for sample size

needed)

C = Confidence interval, expressed as a decimal (e.g. 0.04 = ± 4)

The study was conducted across India. The sampling method used was Stratified Random

Sampling. The sample units were HR-Executives and E-Learners across India. The total

sample size was ascertained to be 300 and 500 questionnaires were circulated. Out of

these 300 questionnaires were returned. 100 questionnaires were ascertained to be invalid

as they samples were not users of E- learning and therefore the valid samples were

considered to be 153 E- learners and 36 were HRs. The research was conducted using a

coded questionnaire for learners and the HR executives. It comprises of quantitative and

qualitative statements. The quantitative section was tested using SPSS 20.

After the sample was ascertained, the process of data collection was undertaken for

collecting data from HR- Executives and E-Learners. The questionnaire designed for the

HR- Executives was to identify the various details of employees working in their

organisation. The questions one to four and question seven were framed to analyse the

demographic details of the respondents. The questions five, six, eight and ten were

designed to analyze the employer’s details about the employees as this would help the

objective of identifying the employability factor. The questions nine, eleven, twelve and

fourteen help the researcher to fulfill the objective of understanding the key challenges

ahead. Similar questions were framed for the E- learners. The questions one to four were

to determine the demographics of the sample. The questions six to nine were to identify

the student’s choice of course. The questions five and ten to fifteen describe about the

students access towards online education, syllabi, and course materials. The questions

xxiii
sixteen to twenty- two focus on the medium of the instructors, language of

communication, facilities provided by the institute and the accessibilities through

technical devices.

The data was analyzed and the following findings were derived from the study. The e-

learning models of higher education today find their roots in conventional distance

education. Distance learning was initially introduced to allow individuals in remote and

rural areas to gain access to higher education; however it has evolved significantly over

time. More recently, the advent of the Internet has enabled tremendous innovation in the

delivery of education at all grades – kindergarten to professional courses. . As time goes

by, more and more people are gaining access to the Internet, resulting in the cost of

computer ownership decreasing, and overall computer literacy increasing. These trends

provide educational institutions an ideal channel for the delivery of educational content.

There are many reasons for the growth of the higher education e-learning industry, both

from the institutions’ and students’ perspectives.

Key Findings from the Learner’s Survey:

From the data collected, the following findings have been arrived at.

From the survey conducted on the E - learners, it has been found out that majority of the

sample allotted the highest preference to the ease of availability of the course. The

research also analyzed that the sample considered the author/ instructor of the course to

be very important. The other factors determined state that technology that is required to

undertake the course is also an important aspect for the learners. In the order of the

statistical determination, it has been observed that the institution providing the course is

also considered to be an important factor when selecting a course. Location and cost of

xxiv
the course were also determined to be important factors. However, the data analysis

pointed out that the flexibility of the time for undertaking the course was given the least

preference by the sample. Also, there was negligible difference of choices between the

male and female persons in the sample. With reference to the relevance of the course

materials; both male and female persons equated the same value to the factor. The sample

also considered that the expectations of the instructors had been clearly stated to them

during the course of the study. There was no marked difference been between the male

and female persons in the sample with reference to the testing and evaluation procedures.

When considering the workload against the credit hours allotted; both males and females

stated the experience to be similar and no difference was observed. The following were

the inferences obtained on analyzing the institution’s support with regards to the facilities

provided. They were analyzed on the basis of whether the service was available on a

mobile phone or not. With regards to accessing the library resources; a greater part of the

students stated that the service was available on a mobile device. The research showed

that a considerable amount of the students stated that they were able to check their grades

online on a mobile phone. A majority of the students stated that they were able to register

for their courses online through a mobile phone while many stated that they were able to

access financial aid information. With regards to the LMS system; a clear majority of the

students claimed that they were able to easily access the system for study purposes. Most

students stated that they were able to order their transcripts online. A clear majority of the

students stated that they were able to access information about events and students

activities from a mobile device. Additionally, almost all the students affirmed that they

were able to schedule appointments through a mobile portal. In all of the factors, there

xxv
was no marked difference between the responses received from male and female

students. With regards to the institutional rating, both male and female rated the

institution positively. There was no marked difference between their ratings. Both male

and female counterparts stated that the institution had a good library resource. Similarly,

a clear majority acknowledged that they were able to easily register for courses as well

access their grades. Also, access to information with regards to financial aid and ordering

transcripts was effortlessly available to them. The e-learners also stated that the LMS

used by the institute was of a remarkable quality. A clear majority stated that they were

able to obtain information about the various events of the institute as well as get

information about a range of student clubs and organisations quite easily during the

course of their study. Almost all students stated that they were able to schedule

appointments with regards to obtaining academic advice or counseling sessions could be

arranged with no trouble. The data inferred that a striking majority felt that they were

able to interact with their instructors during the course discussions. A greater part of the

sample also felt that on the overall the instructors were effective. A similar majority felt

they found the instructors available for consultation during office hours or by

appointment.

Key Findings from the HR perspective on E- learning courses:

Majority of the sample consisted of HR having a generalist profile and few from cadres

of Vice President and Director. The HR were also classified based on the genders to

analyze their views. A majority of the HRs that were surveyed stated that they were not

aware of the E- Learning courses their employees are pursuing. Additionally, a majority

stated that less than 5 employees from their organisation are pursuing an e- learning

xxvi
course. A bulk of the HR’s stated that 5-20 of their employees were pursuing e- learning

courses. On analyzing the sample according to the age groups, it was found that majority

of the employees were in the age group of 31-40 years; there were also a significant

number of employees from within the age group of 25 – 30 years who were pursuing E-

Learning courses. The study also focused on analyzing which were the courses that were

most preferred and the research pointed out that the management degrees have been

preferred more than the other available graduate or post graduate level courses.

Additionally, majority of the sample undertaking e- learning courses belonged to the mid

level and lower level of management. Almost all HR’s that were interviewed stated that

they preferred to recruit persons with a classroom taught degree as against a person from

an e-learning course. However, majority stated that they consider e- learning courses as a

value addition during the performance appraisal of the employees.

Considering the findings and conclusions for the study, the following Recommendations

and Suggestions were derived on the basis of the study.

1) It has been found out from the research that there is no differentiation in gender in

the preference of E- learning courses. However, it has been found out that the

male gender preferred the quality of the author and the technology of the course.

Therefore, these aspects must be highlighted when promoting the course. This

further gives insights on how the E- learning industry can increase its market

presence in India with targeting the male audience for the courses.

2) It has been observed that the female gender gave more importance to the

location, time schedules and the availability of course material. Therefore the

xxvii
 flexibility in the timings of the course could be an advantage to tap the market for

female students.

3) The research survey undertaken among the HR’s proves that students gaining

degrees from traditional classroom teaching courses are more preferred to the

students pursuing the E- learning courses. There should be an awareness created

among the HR about the equivalence of e-learning courses.

4) The number of the students choosing to pursue E- learning courses is higher in the

age group of 30-40 followed by 20-30. The number of learner’s undertaking E-

learning courses in the age of 40 and above is low because of the technological

complexities involved. Inorder to tackle this issue, institutions must make the

LMS more students friendly and easy to use.

5) The secondary researches state that there are various challenges that are faced by

E- learners while undertaking the course. The respondents stated that they had no

trust on the authenticity of the courses and the value addition that the E- learning

course will have on their career aspect. Additionally, another challenge that was

stated was the disparity in the technological advances with the students being

unable to meet the growing changes and up-gradations required. These vital issues

must be addressed in other to increase the ease of undertaking the E- learning

courses and thereby encouraging higher pursuance.

5) The research pointed out that there is still a higher preference being given by

recruiters to persons with a traditional classroom learning degrees as against those

from E- learning courses. It is therefore suggested that more awareness must be

created about the equivalence of the E- learning courses.

xxviii
 6) The preferences of learner’s are also found to be higher in the middle

management and followed by the lower level management. So this research helps

the institutions understand that the middle management professionals must be

targeting while promoting e- learning courses.

The limitations for the study were assumed to be that the study could not be conducted all

over the country as it was difficult to analyse the samples. Most of the learners keep the

education confidential and the institutes too refuse to divulge the student details and this

made the researcher not get much of data. The number of universities with e based

learning were also less in number. The other factors which were difficult for the

researcher were the data and perspectives of the HR’s of the industries as many refused to

opinion their views for the research.

xxix
 Chapter 1

Introduction

1.1. Learning

A learning activity can be defined as an interaction between a learner and an environment,

leading to a planned outcome. It is the planned outcome which makes learning a

purposeful activity. Learning is defined as a change in behavior. In other words,

learning is approached as an outcome – the end product of some process. It can be

recognized or seen. Learning is measureable and relatively permanent change in

behaviour through experience, instruction or study. Whereas individual learning is

selective, group learning is essentially political. Its outcomes depend largely

on power playing in the group. Learning itself cannot be measured, but its results can

be. In the words of Harvard Business School psychologist Chris Argyris, learning is

"detection and correction of error" where an error means "any mismatch between our

intentions and what actually happens." There are many types of learning methods and

theories but e-learning is developing very fast. E-learning is well accepted due to many

reasons and same areas are explored in this research study. Learning is a product of

interaction. Depending on the epistemology underlying the learning design, learners

might interact with instructors and tutors, with content and/or with other people.

Many educators expend enormous amounts of effort to designing their learning to

maximize the value of those interactions. Regardless of the approach taken, a series

of questions consistently arises: How effective is the course? Is it meeting the needs

of the students? How can the needs of learners be better supported? What interactions

are effective? How can they be further improved? If we are to know if “significant

learning” is taking place in the classroom, we must be capable of recognizing it when

1
it occurs. Looking up the definition of “learn” in a dictionary, will tend to lead to the

following results: 1) to acquire knowledge of a subject or skill through education or

experience, 2) to gain information about somebody or something, or 3) to memorize

something, for example, facts, a poem, a piece of music, or a dance. This definition is

not particularly insightful, although it reminds us that the word can be used to

describe the acquisition of both knowledge and skill, and that acquisition can be by a

variety of means, including education, experience, or memorization. Still, we are left

without a clear understanding of what it means to acquire knowledge or skill. Other

things that we acquire are obtained by physical means. It is important to understand

how it relates to learning. Additionally, it is relevant to understand if there are

different degrees of acquisition and if so, whether they represent equal types of

learning. For example, there is a marked difference in memorizing a fact and learning

to interpret a complex text. The Oxford English Dictionary also provides a definition

that acknowledges the importance of teaching as a vehicle for learning, a welcome

reminder for teachers. Taking a different view, Atkinson et al. (1993) describe

learning as “a relatively permanent change in behavior that results from practice."

Others (e.g., Simon 1996) have pointed out that the purpose of learning has recently

shifted from being able to recall information (surface learning) to being able to find

and use it (deep learning)

1.1.1. Conceptual Approaches of Learning

Objectivism: Objectivist conceptions of learning assume that knowledge can be

transferred from teachers or transmitted by technologies and acquired by learners.'

Jonassen (1999) Objectivists are primarily concerned with assuring that the content they

create and implement is comprehensive and accurate with respect to ultimate "truth" as

they know it. [Reeves, T (1994)]

2
Instructivism: Instructivists stress the importance of goals and objectives that exist apart

from the learner. Direct instruction demands that content be sharply defined and that

instructional strategies focus as directly on pre specified content as possible. [Reeves, T

(1994)]

Behaviorism: "Behaviorism is a worldview that operates on a principle of "stimulus-

response."'

Cognitivism: 'The cognitivist paradigm essentially argues that the "black box" of the mind

should be opened and understood. The learner is viewed as an information processor (like

a computer).

Humanism: Humanism is a paradigm / philosophy / pedagogical approach that believes

learning is viewed as a personal act to fulfill one's potential. It emerged in the 1960s, focuses

on the human freedom, dignity, and potential.

Constructivism: Constructivism as a paradigm posits that learning is an active,

constructive process and that people actively construct or create their own subjective

representations of objective reality. New information is linked to prior knowledge, thus

mental representations are subjective.

Connectivism: Connectivism is the integration of principles explored by chaos, network,

and complexity and self- organization theories. Learning is a process that occurs within

nebulous environments of shifting core elements. Learning defined as actionable

knowledge can reside outside of ourselves i.e. within an organization or a database, is

focused on connecting specialized information sets, and the connections that enable us to

learn more are more important than our current state of knowing. Siemens (2005)

Discovery / Inquiry learning: Discovery Learning is a method of inquiry-based instruction;

discovery learning believes that it is best for learners to discover facts and relationships

for themselves.
3
Experiential learning: A four-stage cyclical theory of learning, Kolb's experiential

learning theory is a holistic perspective that combines experience, perception, cognition,

and behavior.

Case based learning: Case-based learning has developed a variety of interpretations and

applications. The approach is most broadly defined as requiring "students to actively

participate in real or hypothetical problem situations, reflecting the kind of experiences

naturally encountered in the discipline under study" (Ertmer & Russell, 1995).

Problem based learning: Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is an instructional method of

hands- on, active learning centered on the investigation and resolution of messy, real-

world problems.

Scenario based learning: Errington (2008) describes scenario- based learning as

educational approaches that involve an intentional use of scenarios to bring about desired

learning intentions.

Situated learning: Collins (1988) defined situated learning most simply as; "the notion of

learning knowledge and skills in contexts that reflect the way the knowledge will be

useful in real life”. 'The model of situated cognition is based upon the notion that

knowledge is contextually situated and is fundamentally influenced by the activity,

context, and culture in which it is used (Brown, Collins & Duguid, 989) cited in

McLellan, H (1996) p. 6)

Authentic learning: For authentic learning to occur, learners must be engaged in an

inventive and realistic task that provides opportunities for complex collaborative activities.

Authentic learning has its foundations in the theory of situated cognition or situated

learning, together with other pedagogical approaches developed over the last two decades,

such as anchored instruction.'

4
1.2. The Concept of E-learning

American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) described e-Learning as

anything delivered, enabled, or mediated by electronic technology for the explicit

purpose of learning. It also refers to the technology and services that help create,

deliver, and manage those activities (as cited by Piskurich, 2003). The American

Society for Training and Development’s definition of e-Learning covers a wide set of

applications and processes, such as Web-based learning, computer-based learning,

virtual classrooms, and digital collaboration. It includes the delivery of content via

Internet, intranet/extranet (LAN/WAN), audio-and videotape, satellite broadcast,

interactive TV, and CD-ROM.

E-Learning means a lot of different things and it is understood differently by players

with very different roles. The E-Content Report (2004) describes e-learning "as an

umbrella term describing any type of learning that depends on or is enhanced by

electronic communication using the latest information and communication

technologies (ICT)".It is also defined as "a generic term covering a wide set of ICT

technology-based applications and processes, including computer-based learning,

web-based learning, virtual classrooms, digital collaboration and networking''

(Hambrecht, 2000; Kaplan - Leiserso's online glossary). Simplifying, others refer to it as

teaching and learning that is web-enabled. Building on the above descriptions the

“eEurope: Promoting Digital Literacy initiative” describes it as the the use of new

multimedia technologies and internet for improving the quality of learning by means

of access to resources and services, and long distance collaborations and exchanges.

Further, the Commonwealth of Learning in 1998 described e-learning in two ways: i)

the application of information and communication technologies (ICT) to core

institutional functions such as administration, materials development and distribution,

5
course delivery and tuition, and the provision of learner services such as advising,

prior learning assessment and programme planning. ii) As an organisation that has

been created through alliances and partnerships to facilitate teaching and learning to

occur without itself being involved as a direct provider of instruction.

The rapid technological and social change puts forward need for lifelong learning.

Conventional classroom learning is not able to satisfy such need. E-learning is an

increasingly preferable alternative to conventional classroom learning. The move to

conduct teaching and learning over the Internet is rapidly gaining momentum along

with the advance of computing technology and the deep researches into the pedagogical

methodology on the Internet. Web based learning has become an important part of the

routine landscape of education and training. It has been recognized that Web based

learning can enable more learners to have access to the learning materials and provide

students and teachers with unprecedented flexibility and convenience. However many

current instructional Web sites just simply deliver course materials over the Internet

and do not provide effective and efficient supports for using these materials to construct

knowledge. As a result, learners only passively receive the presented materials.

Educational systems are thus looking to e-learning programs to help address these

challenges and to substantially improve the quality and content of their education.

Integrating e-learning into existing secondary educational system can, however, be a

major challenge. Secondary educational systems in developing countries are undergoing

rapid change, particularly an increase in the number of schools and rise of student

enrollment related to the recent emphasis of universal primary education.

Investment in e-learning is, however, not an alternative to investment in education

generally; the two should be seen as being complementary. Integrating e-learning

programs into existing educational systems can promote, however, a transformation.

6
Implementing a comprehensive e- learning program would mean changes to the

curriculum, infrastructure, teacher professional development, textbooks, and exams. A

major benefit of integrating e-learning into governmental educational systems would be,

however, a long-term commitment to growing and maintaining the program. The

concept of e-learning integration into an educational system begins with the teacher

and the ways in which teachers teach. The academic approach to this subject discusses

the theoretical perspectives of behaviorism versus constructivism and, for the purposes

of this paper, how they apply to a technological secondary school classroom. A

simplistic description of the view is that of “chalk and talk” and the teacher as the

ultimate authority and purveyor of knowledge – the “sage on the stage”. This

compares to the constructivist model or method where students work collaboratively

and socially construct new knowledge. In a technological classroom there will most

likely be elements of both perspectives blended in a way that makes teaching

comfortable for the teacher and takes advantage of new tools and opportunities.

1.2.1. Evolution and Scenario of e-Learning

Fifty years ago, workers could expect to use the same skills throughout their careers.

Employers, in turn, could expect to realize a good return on any initial training

provided to those workers. No more. In the computer age, the challenge for employers

and employees alike is to keep abreast of the constantly changing technology. The

training, and retraining, never stops. Corporations are making training programs

increasingly virtual (Salopek & Source, 1999). Since their advent, computer

technologies have been adapted not only to reinforce existing learning theories, but

also to promote new approaches to learning (Pena-Shaff, Martin, & Gay, 2001). In a

world where technology degrees have a shelf life of less than five years, and demand

is growing for education and training at the desk, home, hotel and place of work, it
7
will be the institutions that move quickest that win, indicated Peter Cochrane, Head of

Research at BT Laboratories (as cited in Leer, 1999). Mason & Rennie (2006, p. xiii)

indicated that the "growth in e-Learning has been fuelled by the growth in importance

of lifelong learning." They further explained that the relevant features of this

movement are: the need to update knowledge and skills; the need to retrain, as jobs-

for-life have all but vanished; and the need to maintain currency in the face of

exploding information on the internet. These trends and expectations emphasize the

fact that there is an immense need for not only basic education but also continuous

learning. It is necessary to embrace the power of technology to enhance the process of

learning, globally.

1.2.2. E-Learning, a New Way of Learning

Education today has evolved considerably because of advances in Web technology.

The Internet enables the ordinary person to have access to never-ending quantities of

information and knowledge efficiently and conveniently. The growth of the World

Wide Web, high-capacity corporate networks, high-speed desktop computers and all

kinds of mobile devices will make learning available to people 24 hours a day, seven

days a week around the globe. Since many traditional education organizations are

using Web technology to deliver educational content, it is possible now for a high

school student to seek assistance with mathematics questions at any time of the day or

a graduate student at home to take some courses through long distance education.

Web-based learning not only improves the achievement of students from kindergarten

to university, but also enhances the productivity of the corporate workforce.

Turbulent corporate environments, caused by market dynamics, have made

knowledge and skills indispensable for effective performance in the workplace.

Knowledge in the workplace is no longer implied but required at different times and
8
different quantities. Traditionally, corporate training has existed in organisations to

impart knowledge to individual workers as off-the shelf learning packages. In this

model, learning takes a reactive approach to problem solving encountered by

organisations, and learning programs take place in a specific location. However,

recent advances in the fields of distributed and ubiquitous computing, artificial

intelligence, cognitive learning theory, and multimedia have converged to provide

more distributed learning systems over the Internet and World Wide Web (WWW). A

requirement for knowledge and skills distribution across different systems, space, and

time is pertinent to unique learning requirements of individual learners within all

kinds of organisations. The infrastructure to support such knowledge distribution is in

the form of electronic learning, normally referred to as e-Learning. Commonly, e-

Learning is defined as Internet-enabled learning, or convergence of learning and the

Internet, including any use of computers and the Internet to facilitate education

[Downs 1998]. The components of e-Learning can include content delivery in

multiple formats through the Internet, management of the learning experience, and a

networked community of learners, content developers and experts. E-Learning covers

a wide set of applications and processes such as Web-based learning systems,

computer-based learning systems, virtual classrooms, and digital collaborative

learning GroupWare packages. E-Learning content is mainly delivered via Internet,

intranet/extranet (LAN/WAN), audio- and videotape; satellite broadcast, interactive

TV, DVD and CD-ROM, and the still to emerge wireless application protocols

(WAP) [ASTD, 2001]. It is estimated that the e-Learning market will grow

substantially over the next five years. Moreover, with the improvement of bandwidth,

video, and storage technology, the demand for e-Learning products and service will

increase exponentially [Wiley 2001].

9
1.2.3. The Features of E-Learning

E-Learning has the potential to revolutionize traditional education, because it could

provide faster learning at reduced costs, increased access to learning, and clear

accountability for all participants in the learning process. It enables businesses or

schools to distribute training and critical information to multiple locations easily.

Employees and students can then access training when it is convenient for them, at

home or in the office.

In today's fast-paced culture, organizations that implement e-Learning will provide

their work force with the ability to turn change into an advantage. However, e-

Learning is just now in its infancy [Downes 1998]. As pioneers struggle with new

technologies and new practices, the discipline evolves almost daily. Despite the rapid

change, some significant features of future e-Learning can be identified as the

following:

• Personalization. The education of the future will become deeply

personalized. The learning topics will be selected based on student interest,

student aptitude and educational level, and societal need. The menu of

available courses presented to any given student will be determined

dynamically by the student's prior learning assessment, by the prerequisite for

the new course, and by the learning management system. A student's daily

menu will be varied and constantly changing, building on each day's

achievement.

• Interoperability and reusability. E-Learning systems with different

environments and contents from multiple authors must have the ability to

work together. There must be a semantic relationship between different e-

Learning systems. Learning content may be reused in multiple applications

10
 and environments regardless of the tools used to create them. This requires

that content be separated from context-specific runtime constraints so that it

can be incorporated into other applications. For reuse to be possible, content

must also have common interfaces and data.

• Flexibility. Courses could be generated in a variety of forms based on

standard style sheets. Different forms of layout could be available depending

on the purpose of the course and the preferences of the learner. A student can

use various kinds of devices with different processor speeds and memory

capacity, from desktop computers, laptop computers, and mobile devices such

as Palm computers, to access the learning content.

E-Learning Types – Internet based mode

Online Learning-

 In this type of learning the learner can access the all study material online in

form of word documents, visuals, pictures, videos with audio.

Video Conferencing-

 In this type of learning the learner can communicate face to face with teacher

or instructor who is seating somewhere else. In video conferencing instructor can

communicate with multiple learners. As compare to other e-learning technologies this

technology is costlier.

Webinars/ Web based Learning-

 This type of learning is like online seminar so it is called as Web-

seminar/webinar. In this type of learning the instructor uses the audio, video to instruct

multiple learners online as seminar. After whole presentation participants can ask

related queries or questions. Generally this form of webinars are industry focus and

very beneficial because it saves time of participants and also helps in reducing cost of
11
travelling and other expenditure.

Remote Access-

 This form of method is very exceptional. In this method the instructor can

access the device of learner and instructor performs all activities on that device instead

of learner. Instructor can guides how to perform various tasks on devices for better

understanding of learner.

1.2.5. E- Learning Techniques – the Historical background.

1) Correspondence teaching- This dates back to 1728, when Caleb Philipps,

professor of short hand, published an advertisement in the Boston Gazette offering

teaching materials and tutorials. However, the first testimony of an organized

correspondence course in which there was bidirectional communication comes from

England, in 1840, when Isaac Pitman initiated a short hand course. From those early

stages, correspondence institutions appeared in the United States and other European

countries.

2) Multimedia teaching- This stage is a product of the 1960s, when the British Open

University was founded (Aretio, 2001 cited by Alcalá, n.d). Here the use of printed

materials was joined by audiotapes, videotapes, radio, TV broadcasts, telephone, etc.

3) Telematic teaching- This dates to the dates the 1980s. This decade marks the

arrival of modern telecommunications in the education scene.

4) Teaching through the Internet- It is the Internet age and e-learning was described

as fourth generation distance teaching, virtual campus, virtual teaching, flexible

learning model, etc. It involved the application of two-way communication. Added to

all these developments ICT supported education quickly became the hot topic in the

1990's due to spreading use of the World Wide Web and its fast developing

applications. Rieber, & Welliver, (1989) defined e- learning as "web-delivered and/or

12
web-supported teaching and learning using computer, multimedia, and internet

technologies." E-learning is a means of education that incorporates self-motivation,

communication, efficiency, and technology. E-learning is also called Web-based

learning, online learning, distributed learning, computer-assisted instruction, or

Internet- based learning. E-learning instructional techniques encompass all the

instructional approach involving the use of electronic medium for instruction. This

will includes Computer assisted instruction (CAI) and web/online/mobile and also

learning through radio, tapes, video tape, internet and television. E-learning literally

means electronic learning. The use of e- learning in instruction adopts in its main

the principles of artificial intelligence. E-learning in the delivery blend enables

teachers to cater to a wide range of learning styles such as auditory learning, visual

learning and self-testing through puzzles and quizzes, and kinetic learning through

workplace simulations.

Technology is developed to solve problems associated with human need in more

productive ways. If there is no problem to solve, the technology is not developed

and/or not adopted. Applying this principle to educational technology would mean that

educators should create and adopt technologies that address educational problems, of

which there are many. Further, a technology will not be adopted by educators where

there is no perceived need or productivity gain. This is what Lankshear and Snyder

(2000) refer to as the 'workability' principle, therefore when discussing applications of

computer technology to education the question must always be asked as to what

educational problem(s) needs to be addressed. This question needs to be asked at all

levels of decision-making, from the teacher planning a programme, to a school

administrator purchasing hardware and software, to an educational system officer

developing policy and strategic plans. E-learning is beneficial to education, corporations

13
and to all types of learners. It is affordable, saves time, and produces measurable

results. E-learning is more cost effective than traditional learning because less time

and money is spent traveling. Since e-learning can be done in any geographic location

and there are no travel expenses, this type of learning is much less costly than doing

learning at a traditional institute. Flexibility is a major benefit of e-learning. E-learning

has the advantage of taking class anytime anywhere. Education is available when and

where it is needed. E-learning can be done at the office, at home, on the road, 24 hours

a day, and seven days a week. E-learning also has measurable assessments which can

be created so the both the instructors and students will know what the students have

learned, when they've completed courses, and how they have performed.

1.2.6. E-Learning Technologies in Classrooms

E-Learning is a thus broad term that covers teaching, learning and the enabling

educational environment. It can use a range of pedagogical approaches and electronically

supported technologies. Some examples of using technologies in e-learning classrooms are

below:

1) One-to-Many (communication between the teacher and the class as a whole):

a) Online classes. Content can include lecture notes, assignments, message

boards, linked bibliographies of readings and websites, quizzes, and chats.

b) The viewing of TV shows, videos or other previously prepared material at a

central location. The teacher in a multi-media classroom projecting content

using a projector or screen, or using an interactive whiteboard. The content can

range from PowerPoint slides, news broadcasts, interactive websites, and the

teacher drawing graphics, to educational software demonstrating a virtual

chemistry experiment.

c) Distant learning classroom or video-conferencing, in which a teacher is

14
 broadcast live to a single or to multiple remote classrooms. The distant rooms

can communicate to the teacher and others through text or audio chatting, or

video.

2) One-to-One (student and teacher communicate

a) Teachers monitors individual student activity and progress using a feedback

program

b) Teacher reviews assignments, questions.

3) One-Alone (student alone with course content, self-paced

a) E-reading devices with textbook or other reading material

b) Interactive lessons, exercises, quizzes, games or other software that a student

accesses through a computer, mobile phone, tablet or other. Applications may

predict and suggest content based on student behavior and progress.

c) Student conducted research, writing and other homework preparation on a

laptop or other computer.

4) Many-to-Many (students communicate among themselves)

a) Students communicate in a class discussion group, share information or

communicate with people outside the classroom

b) Student group presentations.

5) Teacher Training

a) Teachers access training materials, exercises and take tests using online or

hosted material and software

b) Teachers form a “community of practice” to share experiences; get ideas in a

social media type of environment.

6) School Administration

a) Learning management system

15
 b) Computer aided assessments (tests, grades).

1.2.7. E-learning Technological Up gradation in Classroom

There are many e-learning settings and technologies available to use in schools, each

with their own advantages and applications. Often the best solution is a combination

of technologies depending on the particular need and learning environment.

Multimedia Classroom

In a multi-media classroom, educational content is delivered to students in a one-to-

many approach. This is cost efficient per pupil, and can provide a large amount of

educational resources to students. Classrooms would be equipped with a projector,

screen (or large LCD), speakers and a classroom computer. The teacher could display

various types of content that is housed either on the classroom computer or on the

teacher’s laptop or other device. The teacher would be able to adapt and project

various content (e.g., videos, PowerPoint slides, augmented reality, multimedia

presentations, the teacher drawing a graph, etc.). A connected classroom would have

wireless or wired communications to a “cloud” of resources. The teacher would thus

have access to a wide range of content from the library on the cloud. The computer

housing the content could be locally based at the school (which would obviate the

need for inter-school communications, and be reliable), at a district or national

educational headquarters, or elsewhere.

Connected multi-media classrooms would permit distant classroom teaching, in which

a teacher in one school or from a studio could deliver live, interactive lectures to

classrooms in other schools. The distant classrooms would need to be outfitted with

video cameras and microphones, as well as projectors and speakers, to communicate

with the distant teacher.

16
Computer Lab

A computer lab is among the most recognizable form of e-learning technologies. A

computer lab usually consists of many single personal computer stations. This is a

common arrangement found in schools throughout the world. There are many

educational software packages available that could be installed for student use.

Separate stations permit individual students to move at their own pace through

material. Teachers can also lead students or student teams through guided exercises,

with each following on their own station. Free computer time itself is a valuable

educational resource. Installing separate computers is an easy to set up, since it is

simply single stations behaving independently. Computer labs can be, however, more

expensive per student due to the individual computers and software licenses. They

may also have higher power consumption demands, depending on the computer or

device, necessitating low-cost power solutions. Multi-seat computing consists of

using one powerful personal computer with extra video cards to support up to eight

independent “seats” (each with its own monitor, keyboard and mouse running

separately). They can be put in a computer lab for students or teachers to use, or in

classrooms. There are several commercially available multi-seat operating system

software options including by Microsoft and Linux. This system has the advantage of

using much less power than other options. It is usually the least expensive per user as

well.

Single Station, Personal Computers

A variety of types of single station devices are available.

1) Personal computer (PC). A PC is a common approach for using computers in

homes and offices. It consists minimally of a computer, one or two monitors, a

17
 keyboard and mouse. Each computer has its own operating system and software

programs. From a setup and maintenance standpoint this type of system is

advantageous. It is easy to maintain and does not generally require a specially

trained computer technician to fix most hardware and software problems.

However, if each student were to have a computer, this would be among the more

costly options to implement, particularly in rural areas reliant on solar power. This

would be useful particularly for teacher stations or single stations in the back of

classrooms.

2) Micro Computer. A microcomputer is similar to a standard single station except

that is uses a small form factor case with a generally slower processor. Power

consumption can be much lower than a single station, and thus suitable when

power is limited. The computers are, however, difficult to repair and may be prone

to theft and overheating; the lifespan of these devices is not yet known. Software

maintenance is similar to a standard single station.

3) Laptop or notebook. Laptops and notebooks are among the easiest educational

solution to set up. They usually come with software preinstalled and only a power

outlet is needed to begin using the system. The power consumption is low

compared to a personal computer. Hardware maintenance can be difficult, but

software maintenance is standard. One of the disadvantages is product lifespan;

they are easy to steal and are prone to accidents (a spill on the keyboard can easily

destroy it; new rugged laptops reduce this risk). New design and battery

technologies are lengthening battery life in some machines. Laptops may be an

excellent solution for teachers. Teachers could bring a laptop to work from home,

and then connect it to the classroom projector.

4) Small, Personal Devices

18
 Small, personal devices such as tablets, smart phones and e-readers are similar in

that they are all relatively new technologies. They are rapidly gaining popularity

due to their declining price, large number of web-based software applications,

powerful graphics, and enjoyment of use. Educational uses could include listening

to audio lessons or audio books, gaming, watching videos, and reading. Writing is

more difficult if the device doesn’t have a keyboard. Schools and teachers can

develop teaching material applications for mobile devices using existing software.

Nevertheless, the maintenance requirements and lifespan of smart phone and other

small devices in difficult environments are not yet known. Similar to laptops, they can

be easily lost or stolen, and are prone to accidents. A difficulty in adapting

educational software is that the various brands and styles have different operating

systems and screens, and each may require separate configuration. Their batteries

need to be frequently recharged, but individual external solar panels could be used.

The cost of Internet or telecommunications time for teachers, students or schools may

also be a limiting factor. Some of these challenges are being addressed by private

companies and others who are designing engineering solutions and new software for

the devices

1.3. E-Learning in Corporations

As the Information Age advances, organizations are placing greater emphasis on

attributes such as agility, adaptability and responsiveness. People are valued not only

for their skills but also for their ability to embrace change and continuous learning.

From an organization’s point of view, developing agility is much more than managing

existing knowledge. It is about creating learning processes that enable workforce to

generate new knowledge and adapt old knowledge to new ends. "Speed is a key

element in this process" (Bowles, 2004, p. 119). "e-Learning has progressed from
19
simply delivering learning outcomes to encompassing first knowledge management

and now human capital management" (Bowles, 2004, p. 51). e-Learning already has

thousands of success stories, e-Learning – the combination of tools, processes, and

content - is already helping companies in achieving its learning goals, emphasized

Clark Aldrich (as cited by Piskurich, 2003).

1.3.1. Key drivers influencing businesses to consider e-Learning technologies

Cost: e-Learning can reduce costs of travel and lost productivity associated with face-

to-face training, and can also reduce costs of content development because content

can be reused and repurposed.

Scalability: Networking or Internet capabilities permit content to be scaled up to large

numbers of learners, with multiple presentations of learning material to cater for

differences between learners and variations in access to computers and networks.

Modularity: The creation of e-Learning content in short ‘chunks’ increases potential

for flexible access.

Timeliness: e-Learning technologies can be used to enable learners to gain access on

an as-needed, where-needed basis and deliver immediate knowledge required for

performance-improvement needs.

Relevance: Access methods and content can be customized and adapted to the

learner’s needs and context.

Accountability: Evaluation can be enhanced by electronic mechanisms for providing

feedback on the performance of learners, managers and e-Learning developers.

In addition to lower delivery cost, e-Learning is more cost effective because there is a

reduction in training time known as learning compression. This refers to cost of staff

attending the training course rather than the direct delivery costs in terms of trainers,

course materials, travel and accommodation. e-Learning can deliver benefits by

20
reducing the time it takes to train people. According to Brandon Hall (2000) these

factors can add up to an average compression (savings of learning time) of 35 to 45

percent when a course is taken out of the classroom and delivered as e-Learning.

1.4. Emerging Policy Issues in E- Learning

Equity of access to higher education.

Many assert that the primary benefit of online education is that access to higher

education is increased. However, online education requires that students have access

to appropriate and often costly technology as well as know how to use such

technologies (Phipps and Merisotis, 1999). Concerns also about special challenges

students with disabilities face in accessing distance education have been raised

(Chronicle of Higher Education, 1999). Currently, there is very little information

available on how many students are actually making use of e-learning course

offerings as well as their characteristics. Without such information, there is no way

that one can know whether e-learning is reaching those who might not otherwise have

access to higher education, or simply accommodating those who already take

advantage of such opportunities (Gladieux and Swail, 1999).

The costs of developing and implementing e-learning programs.

Some have asserted that e-learning programs are a cost-savings approach to providing

higher education, but cost information is scanty (Gladieux and Swail, 1999). There is

some evidence to suggest that these costs savings are not being universally realized

(New York Times 1998). Given these concerns, it is important to note that more than

60 percent of colleges and universities do not have an information technology

financial plan in place (Green, 1998).

21
Accreditation of and quality assurance in e-learning programs.

In many e-learning initiatives many fear that quality assurance mechanisms are being

bypassed, that the risk is a degradation of public perception about the meaning of a

college degree and an increase in the potential for consumer fraud and abuse (Phipps,

Wellman, and Merisotis, 1998).

Copyright and intellectual property rights.

As more course syllabi, readings, and discussions occur on line, ownership of

intellectual property is a continuing source of debate in the university setting. A fourth

of colleges and universities have a campus policy regarding intellectual property for

Web-based instructional resources developed by faculty (Green, 1998).

Changes and challenges facing the role of Higher education faculty.

The rise of online education poses significant and substantial challenges to faculty

compensation practices and existing norms of faculty development (Sherron and

Boettcher, 1997), including promotion and tenure, course load, course updating,

revision, and consistency across departments.

Pressures on existing organizational structures and arrangements.

As previously mentioned, changes in e-learning technologies are having an impact on

the strategic objectives and structures of participating higher educational institutions

(Ehrmann n.d.; Gallick, 1998). For instance, institutions are being forced to define the

differences between (traditional) residential and online programs, and new

arrangements between business, government, and education sectors are emerging that

are challenging the traditional organization of higher education.

1.5. Participants or Stakeholders of E-learning

Education Sector- KG to PG: Use of e-learning is growing very fast in education

sector due to many reasons. It helps students to understand various topics easily. It was
22
started with audio tapes for KG students and then due to development in technology

today many schools and colleges have virtual classrooms. The use of technology with

latest hardware and software configuration helps teachers/instructors to make difficult

topics very simple. Softwares like animation, tutorials, videos supported by audios in

related subjects help students in understanding the subject matter.

The use of CAD/CAM changed the designing industry drastically and benefited

Mechanical, Civil engineers and other stake holders from the technical fields.

Industry and Corporate world: Employers are spending a millions of rupees to train

their employees annually. Training and Development is am important activity for all

the organizations to keep pace with market demand. Successful organizations focus

more on learning platforms inside and outside the organizations to update themselves

with the current market demands. It helps in faster learning cycles for new tasks and

benefits in gaining competitive advantage over the rest of the players in industry.

In last few decades globally organizations were more focused towards knowledge

management and knowledge driven economy.

Internally Developed E-learning Platforms

Business Houses are developing culture by implementing various policies, procedures

and practices to develop knowledge internally with use of Intranet, extranet, webinars,

video conferencing, telephonic conference and other forms of e-learning platforms.

Externally Developed E-learning Platforms: Many organizations are unable to

spend for developing e-learning setup or they lack in technical knowhow due to poor

IT department. Such organizations generally outsource their work to consultants or

software companies to develop e-learning platforms for them. In such type of method

there is chance of accessibility of internal information to outsider.

People from different backgrounds: After the decline in cost of accessibility for
23
internet and price of devices to use software many people started using such

technology and it was noticed that India will take over the US in internet users by

2015. People across globe access information on various topics to learn and

understand in their respective areas and update themselves. For example- A house wife

learns various culinary practices or cooking methods online by accessing online

magazine on cooking or accessing you tube videos.

1.5.1. Advantages of E-learning

Cost cutting: Investing in E-learning infrastructure and technology is one time

investment for stakeholders and regular up gradation & maintenance is required.

Time saving: It saves time of instructor as well as learners by accessing the

information from anywhere.

Development in Knowledge: It helps in developing new theories or practices due to

participation of multiple learners and instructors from various places.

Social Cause: Education Institute or Instructor can distribute n number of copies of

modules or software to learners free of cost as a social responsibility. In country like

India many NGO’s are already practicing such modules under Right To Education

Policy.

Environment Protecting: Proper use of devices and technology replacing paper and

other resources of learning which were manufactured by companies.

1.5.2. Disadvantages of E-learning

Cost and Knowhow: For developing customized e-learning the investment

requirement might be very high and the technical expertise need to be proper.

Cyber Crime: There are chances of unethical hacking of confidential information and

putting unwanted virus or information on instructor and learner’s portal or devices.

24
Authenticity and Reliability: In case of open access software the authenticity and

reliability is biggest problem for learner and instructor. In open access platforms the

information and data is shared by multiple persons and there are chances of outdated,

unreliable data and information and this may lead to wrong perception and wrong

learning for learner.

Environment Safety: The policies related to development of e-learning infrastructure

and the use of devices till its disposal is not regulated by stakeholders properly. One of

the biggest threats for environment is e-wastage and this type of wastage is highly

hazardous to ecology. Various types of diseases are found in employees those who are

working in e-wastage work. Many small children between age group 7 to 15 are

working in this industry because it’s highly unorganized.

1.6. Learning Content Development

Idea and Principles behind Learning Content Development

From its genesis, learning objects have been imagined to be something such as Lego

pieces, which may be combined with each other freely. It is expected by some

initiators that just as the Lego pieces can be assembled into an automobile and then

reused to construct a castle, learning objects may be easily reused in different

instruction structures. However, such a simplistic way of thinking about learning

object will harm its practical use in the real-world environments. If the results from

the combination of learning objects are not instructionally meaningful, the

combination will fail no matter whether we get it automatically or manually. A

learning object is a small and reusable component that can be combined and

recombined with other learning objects to form larger instruction courses. However,

the combination of learning objects should be ruled by some outside laws. Actually,

in this research, a learning object should be viewed as an atom, which, itself a

25
combination of some smaller bits, such as neutrons, protons, and electrons, is still the

basic component of any larger object. At the same time, the larger objects are formed

only in some certain ways. Unlike Lego pieces, the combination of learning objects

has its own features:

• Not every learning object is combinable with every other learning object.

• The reusability of a learning object may heavily depend on the way that this

learning object is developed, or in another words, its internal structure.

• Learning objects can only be assembled in certain ways prescribed by some

external structures.

It is obvious that developing reusable learning objects and combining learning objects

into different instructions require a deep understanding of instructional design and a

careful arrangement of learning content. In this e-Learning system, we follow several

rules for developing learning content:

• An instruction course incrementally introduces complexity in small,

cognitively manageable learning objects. The structure of the course explicitly

links and tailors concepts to justify different instruction objectives. The

content packaging file is used to describe the interrelatedness and web-like

nature among the learning objects.

• A learning object is created to explain or describe one core concept, which

solves a real need in an instruction. The development of learning objects needs

a careful design. It is desirable that learning objects themselves are complete,

self-contained, and roughly independent of the context. Therefore, each

learning object may fulfil a certain instruction objective in any instruction

context.

• When a new course is developed, it is desirable to find appropriate learning

26
 objects from the existing library of learning objects. The course may adopt

those learning objects directly or rebuild new learning objects based on the old

ones.

1.6.1. A New Approach to E-Learning Content Development

Despite the wide spread use of e-Learning infrastructure in corporate and educational

environments, current approaches to the development of e-Learning content are

expensive and time consuming. It is common that content developed by a single

vendor or educational institution can be difficult to reuse by a second vendor or

institution, even though the content shares the same meaning and quality [Downes,

2001]. Failure of systems to interoperate or exchange content and differences in

content ontology between institutions make content reusability and sharing difficult,

although content sharing and reusability will reasonably reduce production cost.

In order to make e-Learning content less expensive to produce and portable across

different hardware and software systems, a new way of developing e-Learning content

has been proposed. This new approach assumes that e-Learning content can be

organised and disseminated in a uniform format as small chunks of learning materials

commonly referred to as learning objects or knowledge objects [Clayton 2000]

[Feemster 2000]. It seems that developing and delivering learning content as objects

will promote reusability, interoperability and content sharing between different

training vendors and educational institutions. When combined, the learning objects,

due to their reusability in different learning scenarios may form educational resources

that can be used in different environments by different individuals. This realization

leads many course developers to believe that the learning object can become the

foundation of adaptive instructional systems that deliver individually tailored learning

materials to large number of people at the same time. With standards and compliance
27
in place, it is possible for learning materials to be reused and to travel on different

systems. However, another problem comes up due to unstructured nature of most of

the information available: how can someone search through a vast online repository of

objects to enable them to get what they need? The answer is that learning objects must

be associated with appropriate metadata. They must be labelled as to what they

contain, what they teach and what technical requirements are needed for their use. It

should be also noted that issues of content relevance, systems compliance, and the

nature and structure of content are important problems to solve when designing

reusable e-Learning content. Currently, the main technology used for tagging learning

objects is the eXtensible Makeup Language (XML) [Fox 2000] [Gerber 2001].

1.6.2. Learning objects

Background Literature on Learning Objects

The complexity and contradictions about what constitutes a learning object are

reflected in the different views expressed in its definition. The IEEE Learning

Technology Standards Committee (LTSC) describes learning objects as “any entity,

digital or non-digital, which can be used, re-used or referenced during technology

supported learning” [LTSC 2002]. It goes on to argue that learning objects include

multimedia content, instructional content, learning objectives, instructional software

and software tools, and persons, organizations, or events referenced during

technology supported learning. However, this definition is so broad that anything

related to learning can be interpreted as a learning object. Therefore, several groups

outside the LTSC have accordingly created some new definitions of learning objects,

which normally narrow the scope to something more specific. Following are some

definitions that have been adopted by various organizations and companies:

 [IDC 2001] white paper asserts that a learning object is a standalone piece or
28
 chunk of education that contains content and assessment based on specific

learning objectives and that has descriptive metadata wrapped around it.

 [Shepherd 2001] defines a learning object as a small, reusable digital

component, which can be selectively applied - alone, or in combination - by

computer software, learning facilitators or learners themselves, to meet

individual needs for learning or performance support.

 [Wiley 2001] concludes a learning object is any digital resource that can be

used to support learning. He claims that this definition is sufficiently narrow to

define a reasonable scope: reusable digital resource, and is also broad enough

to include the estimated 15 terabytes of information available on the publicly

accessible Internet.

Given all these definitions, there still seems to be little clarity, specifically on what

forms a learning object. However, important features of learning objects, shared by

most of the definitions, are centred on the grounds that the use of learning objects

should be focusing on reusability and sharing. Those definitions explicitly rule out

any non-digital and non-reusable resources, such as actual people, events, books, or

other physical objects. Examples of learning objects includes the smaller digital

resources, such as images, paragraphs of text, questions, animation, audio or video

clips, and also the larger resources, such as entire web pages that combine text,

images and other media applications to deliver complete instruction. These objects,

which are reusable, should be stored in repositories and the copies of their metadata

should be available in computers easily accessible by users [Downes 2001]; [Shata

2001]. The idea shared by these definitions is that by building learning resources as

reusable learning objects, developers of learning materials, learning managers and

learners themselves will all stand to gain [Klassen 2000]. The benefits can be
29
summarized as the follows:

 Courses can be constructed using learning objects from a wide range of

resources. Course developers do not need to prepare all course materials from

scratch, therefore they can produce courses more economically;

 Courses can be customized to suit the needs of different learners by selecting

different learning objects according to the requirement and the interest of

learners;

 Learning objects can be reused to meet a range of learning needs. It is not

necessary to develop similar learning objects for multiple times;

 The same objects can be employed across a variety of hardware and software

platforms, when common standards are followed by the learning objects.

1.6.3. Reusability of Learning Objects

Reuse has existed in the field of software engineering for decades. Software reuse is

the process of creating software systems from predefined software components

[McClure, 1995]. The greatest benefit of reuse arises from the possibility for rapidly

assembling small components into complex ones. With object-oriented design and

programming, a completely new way of thinking about the construction of complex

systems was originated. Object orientation allows software components to be used as

building blocks for future software developments and takes components created by

others rather than creating new ones from scratch. In this sense, learning objects are

an application of object-oriented design to the world of learning. Reusable learning

objects represent an alternative approach to content development. Learning objects

treated as small components are pedagogically broken down into small chunks. Better

yet, from a pedagogical perspective, each chunk plays a specific role within an

instructional design methodology. The basic requirement for each chunk is its ability
30
to communicate with any learning systems using a standardised method that does not

depend on a specific system. Akin to the behaviour of small software objects in the

object-oriented programming model, what happens within an individual learning

object is trivial, since this is obscured from the designer and the user.

Each learning object must have a description that enables designers and computer

agents to search for and find the right objects for the right job. This implies that

objects must be wrapped in metadata. Whatever the properties the learning object has,

the metadata itself should be straightforward. Moreover, since the metadata is

machine-readable, it must be possible for a specific system to interpret the metadata

from other sources and then reuse the learning objects. However, it should also be

noted that metadata is limited because it is only a wrapper for the search engine to

identify one object from another. The knowledge bits inside a learning object cannot

be distinguished by metadata.

1.6.4. Problems with Learning Objects

Although it is a good idea to develop course content based on learning objects, some

problems still exist. The learning objects are designed not only for direct human

processing but also for automatic machine processing. They should allow processing

by intelligent services such as information brokers and search agents, which provide

greater functionality. For example, one important benefit that these reusable learning

objects can offer is that, by mixing and matching them, an e-Learning system may

customize learning for individuals. It is also described in the proposal of the Learning

Objects Metadata Working Group formed by LTSC, which tries “to enable computer

agents to automatically and dynamically compose personalized lessons for an

individual learner” [LTSC 2002]. However, several questions will be raised when we

design an e-Learning system to fulfill this goal:

31
 • How should we define the level of granularity of learning objects? Does it

make sense to view any single image, paragraph of text or a question as a

learning object?

• Is it possible to use search agents to select and integrate the learning objects in

an appropriate way to form a higher level of course unit, which make

instructional sense?

• Are metadata sufficient to facilitate the combination of learning objects?

The important issue not clearly addressed in the literature on learning objects is the

granularity and combination of learning objects. Granularity refers to the size of the

learning object and combination refers to the manner in which learning objects can be

combined and assembled into larger structures to enhance learning [Wiley 2000]

[Jamlan 2001]. For two extreme examples, a learning object can be as small as a piece

of an image or as large as a complete course. For the former, such a learning object

may be reused by a lot of courses, however it is difficult, if not impossible, to select

those individual learning objects and combine them directly by computer agents in a

way that makes instructional sense. For the latter, although one can easily re-sequence

a complete course in a new context, the potential reusability of this learning object

will be low. [TechLearn 2001] has reported that there are no clear standards for the

size (or granularity) of a learning object. However, studies show that larger learning

objects are typically harder to reuse than smaller ones [Daniel, 2001]. From an

“efficiency” point of view, the decision regarding the granularity of learning objects

can be viewed as a trade-off between the possible benefits of reuse and expense of

combination. Granularity and combination issues in the design of learning objects are

tantamount to issues of scope and sequencing of learning materials in instructional

design [Wiley, et. al, 2000]. The way in which learning objects can be combined with
32
other learning objects is very much dependent on their scope and structure. However,

traditional instructional design theories that provide explicit scope and sequencing

support are not applicable to learning objects. [Wiley 2000] further argues that the

structure of learning and the combination of objects are like molecular bonding

process; molecules of the same nature can be combined to form complex structures.

Currently a clear ontology for defining learning objects is lacking. Furthermore, if

learning objects are solid entities, which can be referenced by others, as proposed by

the principles of object orientation, then a learning object should support some kind of

data structure. To address those problems, [Daniel 2001] has initiated a new attempt

to characterize learning objects as pieces of instruction but not just pieces of digital

information. He claims that a learning object should provide instruction on a

relatively small, discrete skill or unit of knowledge, and the content of a learning

object should be self-sufficient, independent of the context. Even so, it should be

possible for a learning object to be used in more than one sequence of instruction.

1.6.4 Schema for Learning Objects

New Definition of Learning Objects

As mentioned above, if we define learning object in too broad a way, we lose any

useful meaning about learning object. Although reuse is the core of the learning

object notion, as flexibility, adaptivity, and interoperability are all facilitated by the

property of reuse, there is still a trade-off between the benefit of reuse and the cost of

combination and re-sequencing. In this research, we prefer a much narrower

definition, which makes the automatic construction of individually tailored courses

possible. According to a common definition, a learning object is a small, reusable

digital component that can be selectively applied - alone or in combination – to

support learning. This definition makes it impossible to develop a schema for learning
33
object, since any digital resource, such as a single picture or a whole web site, can be

viewed as learning objects. It is difficult to find a common structure among those

resources and to define the granularity of learning objects. However, to travel across

different platforms, learning objects should have a uniform format. Moreover, such a

format should be able to facilitate the reuse and re-sequencing of learning objects.

Therefore, we need a more specific definition. In this research study, a learning object

is defined as a combination of smaller knowledge bits, such as text, image, and audio

or video clips, which are integrated together to explain or describe a single core

concept in a course. Each learning object can stand alone as a collection of content

items, practice items and assessment items that are combined based on a single

learning objective. The critical features of a learning object may be summarized as

follows:

 A learning object is an integrated knowledge object, focusing on a core

concept, not just a piece or a chunk of information.

Normally, a learning object is smaller than a course, a module, or a lesson. However,

in order to describe or explain a single core concept clearly, a learning object may still

include some integrated knowledge bits, which may be in different formats, such as

text, pictures, video clips, maps or simulations. All materials in a learning object will

be organized to surround and describe a core concept. It is likely that the organization

of a learning object should include a definition of the core concept, detailed

description of the concept and sometimes several examples, a conclusion, and some

test items or exercises. When a single text, image, video clip or a combination of

those materials cannot provide a comprehensive instruction independently and needs

be joined with other materials to explain a core concept, it will not be viewed as a

learning object.
34
  A learning object cannot include a complex hierarchical structure.

Learning objects are the lowest level of curriculum structure; therefore unlike the

upper level structures of a course, such as lessons, modules, units or topics, they

cannot have embedded concepts or units. Normally, a learning object should just have

a flat structure. The constituent parts in one learning object are all in identical status.

It is prohibited that a description about the core concept also contains another

definition and description about a new concept. This means that if a learning content

for one concept is constructed by several smaller sub-concepts, and each of the sub-

concepts can form a stand-alone content, the instructional content about this concept

may not be developed as a learning object. Instead, several smaller learning objects

should be established to describe the sub-concepts, which are then assembled and

combined to instruct a more complex concept.

 A learning object is the basic reusable unit.

The greatest potential for reuse exists when the learning object centres on a single,

core concept and does not rely on the support of other course contents or context to

clearly provide instruction on this concept. A learning object can be used in more than

one sequence of instruction. For example, when designing the hierarchical structure of

a new course, the designers can just indicate what kind of learning objects are

necessary, and then the search engine may find the appropriate learning objects from

the global repository of learning objects. However, the knowledge bits in a learning

object are not necessarily reusable units which can be handled directly by a search

engine. If the designers only want to reuse some parts of the knowledge bits in a

learning object, they should inherit this learning object or construct a new learning

object by using some knowledge bits in this learning object. However, in such case,

the work must be done by the instruction expert, not by a search engine.
35
  Several learning objects may describe the same concept.

Since the users of a course may have different backgrounds, studying abilities and

diverse levels of interests, for one specific concept, a learning system should provide

different learning objects that may range from easy to difficult or from simple to

complex. However, the learning objects that describe the same concept will probably

have some common parts. To avoid multiple duplications of the content, some

disciplines in object-oriented programming may be adopted, such as inheritance.

Therefore, from one basic learning object, a set of extended stand-alone learning

objects can be developed, which may be more difficult or more comprehensive. In

such a case, a schema can be used to keep a consistent structure, which enhances

inheritance between learning objects

 A learning object often includes some test items to evaluate the learner’s

performance.

To make learning objects independent of course context and reusable in different

course sequences, learning objects should include the test items by themselves.

Directly tied to the core concept, test items may be used to identify whether a learner

has mastered a given learning object. With test items a learning object will not solely

depend on the high-level context to evaluate the learner’s performance, and therefore

fulfils a special learning objective on its own.

 A learning object must be searchable.

Each learning object should be associated with metadata. The attached metadata can

implement the express goal of interoperability, which allows search engines

throughout the world to be able to successfully find and use learning objects.

 A learning object will normally be embedded in a hierarchical structure.

36
Each learning object provides stand-alone instruction, so it is difficult to define the

connection between learning objects in the content of a learning object itself. To help

the learner comprehend the whole structure of a course or smooth the flow in the

instruction, a hierarchical structure about the instructional content is necessary, which

is used to connect learning objects.

 The preferred form of representation of learning objects is XML.

Learning objects in the form of text can be directly represented in XML. The XML

tags make the data in the learning objects meaningful, so the components in the

learning objects can be searched, extracted and reused in various ways. In addition,

learning objects in XML can be transformed to a variety of forms, such as PDF or

WML, based on standard style sheets. This makes the whole system more flexible.

In general, the granularity and combination of learning materials are implemented at

two levels. At the low level, the learning object combines several knowledge bits to

explain a concept, and at the higher level, the hierarchical structure describes the

aggregation of learning objects to form courses. This constitutes the solid

underpinnings of a schema for learning objects.

1.6.5. Developing Learning Content

This section gives a detailed description of how the schemas previously defined help

to develop proper learning content for the e-Learning system. As discussed in the

previous section, an instruction course should be presented in a structure that

explicitly links and tailors concepts to fit for practical use. All learning objects in this

tutorial can be divided into four parts. The first part includes some basic knowledge

about mathematics. To understand how encryption works, every learner should be

sure to know something about prime numbers, great common division, modulus

function, and binary numbers. However, due to diverse backgrounds of different

37
learners, it is not necessary for every learner to go through this part identically. In this

case, a quiz is designed to examine whether the learners may skip the mathematic

part. Anyone who passes the quiz may go directly to the next part, the introduction of

encryption. The second part is an introduction about encryption. It includes a

description of the history of encryption and some simple encryption methods. This

part is the same for all learners. A quiz is also set to assess learner’s performance.

1.6.6. Design of the Learning Management System

Learning Management System

A Learning Management System (LMS) is a single, integrated software tool based on

standard technology platforms that will fit with the existing infrastructure of e-

Learning. With the rapid growth of the Internet and the development of e-Learning

technology standards, many designers of e-Learning system now use the term LMS to

replace Computer Managed Instruction (CMI) so as to include new functionalities and

capabilities not historically associated with CMI systems. The new features in LMS

enable one to have more ability to assess, plan, deliver, manage, and improve e-

Learning in a Web-based environment. With the open standards in place, a LMS

developed by any organization can be used to handle learning materials from different

resources. The term LMS can apply to very simple course management systems, or

highly complex enterprise-wide distributed environments. However, the basic

functions of a LMS can be summarized as follows:

• Select and tailor learning materials to meet learners’ needs;

• Establish learning path and sequence;

• Monitor and correspond with individual progress;

• Assign exercises and quizzes, and evaluate learner’s performance;

• Manage and update learner information;

38
 • Integrate learning materials from multiple sources

Design of the LMS

In this thesis, a specific Learning Management System is designed to provide a run-

time environment for our e-Learning system. The figure below shows, the

components that make up this LMS include six modules: Learning Management

Module, Sequencing/Tracking Module, Testing/Assessment Module, Searching

Module, Learner Profile Module, and Delivery Module. Every module provides some

specific functionality. This section gives a brief description of how each module

works and interacts with other modules.

Figure 1: LMS Modules

In general, the whole Learning Management System is developed based on servlets,

which accept requests from a client (via the Web server), performs some tasks, and

returns the results. These servlets implement the following functions:

39
 • Verify the learner’s identification, and then load the learner’s background

information;

• Check the current progress of the learner, load the content packaging file, and

select the proper learning objects according to the learner’s need and

performance;

• Transform learning content to the appropriate formats, such as HTML or PDF,

by using some standard XSLT files;

• Load proper quizzes to evaluate learner’s performance;

• Update learner’s information along with learner’s performance.

1.6.7. Learning Management Module

Learning Management Module is the central part of the LMS. It mainly contains a

series of interfaces between the server and the client, and implements the basic

functions that a server should provide. In order to get a better understanding of the

details of this module, a brief knowledge about server and servlet is required. In the

client/server architecture, the server manages the data resource: it stores, retrieves,

and protects data. The services provided by conventional Web servers are mainly

restricted to the delivery of files. For this reason, if more complex services are

required, a powerful interface is needed between the actual application and the HTTP

server. One of the basic interfaces is the Servlet API. Sun developed this application

programming interface to provide Java programs on the server with a simple and

flexible basis on which to run. Like CGI, the programmer can use the API to access

environment variables and write the response to the request in a stream. In addition to

that, the API provides cookie support and session management. It is left open whether

the application on the server runs in the same process as the server or a different

process. In a nutshell the Learning Management Module is used to wait for client
40
HTTP requests. When these requests arrive the module does whatever is needed to

serve the requests by invoking the appropriate applications to provide the necessary

content to the learners. Therefore the basic performance of this module includes the

following functions:

• It provides an interface for the learners to log into the e-Learning system;

• When the status of learners is validated, the module sets up a session between

the client and the server. Therefore, the system may begin to track the

learner’s progress. Moreover, it also loads the content packaging file and the

learner’s profile information for future use;

• When a request arrives from the learner, it checks and decides if a certain

request belongs to another module. If so, it invokes the right module to handle

this request;

The result of every request is sent to the Delivery Module, where the XML

documents are transformed into HTML documents and provided to the learner.

Sequencing/Tracking Module

Most Web sites deliver content essentially one-way: from the server to the user.

Occasionally information is entered by the user, for example when ordering

something online, which is then posted back to the server. But for the most part, Web

servers do not keep track of what the user is doing with the content until a specific

request is made. However, an LMS, on the other hand, must track a learner progress,

assess a learner’s performance, and then select the next appropriate learning content.

This involves gathering learner profile information, monitoring key interactions and

performance within the content and then determining what the student should next

experience. This functionality is implemented by the Sequencing/Tracking Module.

When the Sequencing/Tracking Module is invoked, it imports the content packaging

41
file and gets the learner’s information from the Learner Profile Module. Based on the

rules defined in the content packaging file and learner’s information, the module will

select the next appropriate learning objects. Every time such a selection is made, the

learner’s profile information should be updated by Learner Profile Module.

Testing/Assessment Module

The Testing/Assessment Module implements two functions:

• When a quiz is invoked, this module finds the proper quiz file or forms a quiz

file dynamically from the learning objects’ <test> elements. Associated with

this file, the quiz applet file is sent to the client side, which runs in the

browser to show the quiz content. After the learner finishes the quiz, the result

of the test is sent back to the LMS.

• After getting the test result, this module updates the learner’s profile

information to include the result of the quiz. Moreover, the module changes

the status of the learner’s studying capability according to the scores.

Search Module

The Search Module provides a way for the system to find the appropriate learning

objects by keywords. The course developers or learners can use this module to

retrieve learning objects that they need for course design or learning. According to the

keywords input by users, the module compares the keywords with the <keyword>

elements in each learning objects and return a series of learning object that fit the

requirement.

Learner Profile Module

The Learner Profile Module keeps updating the learner’s progress and performance.

This information may dynamically form a content menu for learners. Moreover, it

also provides learner information to other modules that need the information to make
42
a proper decision or choice.

Delivery Module

The Delivery Module includes a set of standard XSL files, which transform the XML

files into HTML files. Every time when some content needs to be presented to the

learners, this module invokes the right XSL file for transformation. Therefore, the

content can eventually appear in the right format on the browser of client side.

In the late 1960s, in order to make access to computers widely available, the National

Science Foundation (NSF) supported the development of 30 regional computing

networks in US, which included 300 institutions of higher education and some

secondary schools. By 1974, over two million students used computers in their

classes in US. In 1963, only 1% of the US‘s secondary schools used computers for

instructional purposes whereas, by 1975, 55% of the US schools had access and 23%

were using computers primarily for instruction (Molnar, 1975). In the early seventies

at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Seymour Papert set out to develop a

new and different approach to computers in education. He developed a programming

language, LOGO, to encourage rigorous thinking about mathematics. He wanted it to

be accessible to children and to be easy to express procedures for simple tasks like

many non-numerical problems familiar to children. He used it to teach mathematics

by teaching LOGO in a wide variety of interesting "micro world" environments such

as music and physics. Papert insisted that we should not teach mathematics, but

should teach children to be mathematicians. LOGO soon became the language of the

elementary school computer literacy movement (Papert, 1980). In 1959, at the

University of Illinois, Donald Bitier began PLATO, the first, largescale project for the

use of computers in education. The several thousand-terminal systems served

undergraduate education as well as elementary school reading, a community college

43
in Urbana, and several campuses in Chicago. Thus, the era of computers in education

is little more than 35 years old (Molnar, 1990).Later, Papert extended LOGO to work

with LEGO construction kits. The Constructivist approach viewed learning as a

reconstruction of knowledge. Papert asserted that learning is more effective when the

learner actually constructs a meaningful product. In building computer-driven LEGO

constructions, the student learns to define a problem and the tacit practical problem-

solving skills needed to solve it. Papert has tried to move education from "computer

literacy," an appreciation of computing, to "computer fluency," the application of

computers to solve real problems (Papert and Harel, 1991).

Initially, as computers were expensive, educators purchased time-shared systems and

adopted procedures to ration or restrict usage to provide access to as many people as

possible, considering the limited resources. Soon, the large time-shared systems

shifted to low-cost microcomputers and the personal computer revolution began. By

the late seventies, personal computers were everywhere - at the office, the school, the

home, and in laboratories and libraries. The computer was no longer a luxury, but was

now a necessity for many schools and universities. Many universities required

incoming students to own a computer. What began as a grassroots revolution driven by

students, teachers and parents, was now a new educational imperative as important as

having books and libraries.

1.7. E-Learning Standards

It is important to develop standards for e-Learning. Some inspiration could be drawn

from the Lego system, the children’s construction toy. Although individual Lego

pieces have different shapes and sizes, they always follow the standard units of

measurement and standard interfaces. Therefore, no matter how one wants to

reassemble the pieces, they always fit together. The idea behind standards for e-
44
learning is exactly the same. If the learning objects and metadata follow common

standards, the course developers or computer agents can eventually form an integrated

course by assembling all kinds of learning objects. In the e-Learning community,

XML forms the basic foundation for inter-application communication, however it

does not ensure that communication will happen. For example, people speaking

different languages cannot understand each other. Even in the same language, such as

English, words may have different meanings; the word “football” represents different

sports in England and North America. To make communication possible, a set of

vocabularies with clear definitions should be shared by speakers. That is what some

organizations are doing; developing standards in XML for e-Learning.

1.7.1. Standards Initiatives for E-Learning

Strictly speaking, there are just a few e-Learning standards now. Several

organizations are concerned with e-Learning specifications that the learning

community may support. Amongst them, Learning Technology Standards Committee

(LTSC) from Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), the Aviation

Industry Computer-Based Committee (AICC), the Instructional Management System

(IMS), the Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) and the Educational Modelling

Language (EML) are the leading ones.

45
 Chapter 2

Literature Review

This chapter includes a review of literature relating to e-learning as against traditional

forms of classroom teaching, attitudes and perceptions of faculty and students towards

e-learning, etc.

The following is a brief description on the literature review that has been undertaken.

Internet education is soon to become the dominant form of education in the world. It

emphases that a lot of effort is being devoted into furthering the work methods and

communication among students and professors, aimed at bettering the quality of this

kind of studying (Mirjana Radovic- Markovic, 2010). A special emphasis has been

put on the great utility value for all developed economies, which have made great

progress in the development rate and in the spreading of virtual faculties’ network.

The extent to which a country will become part of the global educational Internet

network, will, to a great degree, depend on the degree of utilization of new Internet

technologies and the level of popularization of this form of education. The author

emphases that this does not mean that “classrooms without walls” will fully replace

traditional faculties. They will continue to exist and to attract those students who

prefer classical learning models, yet they will also have to change in accordance with

the needs and requirements of contemporary education. In keeping with this, it may

be concluded that virtual faculties and their expansion will have positive

consequences and impact on innovating traditional faculties work as well.

Sangeeta Kakoty, et. al. (2011) analyses the current e-learning procedure and showing

the new dimension of research work on this area that follows the important and most

neglected research areas till today in this domain. It also analyses the importance of e-

46
education system and recent market of e-learning procedure. This study shows that

globalization of education, cross-culture aspects and culturally complex student

support system in distance education as well as in e-learning environment is a

prospective research area. Improvements in these areas could be made by integrating

new technologies and ICT tools. The ELAM (E-learning Acceptance Model)

identifies four determinants of e-learning acceptance are – (1) Performance

expectancy, (2) Effort expectancy, (3) Social influence and (4) facilitating conditions.

Performance expectancy is based on beliefs about perceived usefulness, interactivity

and flexibility. Effort expectancy is based on the beliefs about ease of learning,

perceived ease of use and efficacy. Social influence is based on subjective norm and

image. The main contribution of the paper is that it presents a framework to

understand e-learning acceptance as governed by the teacher, students and

institutional factors. Ventatesh, et.al. (2003) identifies the key factors in acceptance of

e-learning as measured by behavioural intention to use the technology and actual

usage in the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology.

It cannot be emphasized enough that individual learning styles must be taken into

account in the instructional design template used in online education. Alina Zapalska

and Dallas (2010) argue that when students’ learning styles are identified, it is

possible to define an appropriate context of learning. Teaching strategies in online

courses while recognizing the four learning styles can be identified as (1) Auditory

learners, (2) Visual learners, (3) Kinesthetic learners, (4) Read/ write learners. It could

be concluded that the achievement of online learning can be improved by providing

instruction in a manner consistent with each student’s learning style. However, it is

important to keep in mind that, even if a specific student learns best in a certain way,

47
he or she should be exposed to a variety of learning experiences to become a more

versatile online learner.

E- Learning can deliver the following substantial positive effects: (1) Students are

more engaged and able to develop 21st century skills. (2) Teachers have a more

positive attitude toward their work and are able to provide more personalized

learning. (3) Family interaction and parental involvement may increase. (4)

Communities benefit from bridging the digital divide. Thereby economically

disadvantaged students and children with disabilities benefit particularly. (5)

Economic progress can result from direct job creation in the technology industry as

well as from developing a better educated workforce. (The Positive Impact of

eLearning— 2012 UPDATE, White paper on Education Transformation). The

student’s approach to e-learning, and their perceptions of the tutor’s role was studied

by Dr Jennifer Gilbert (2007). The study revealed (1) The student approach to e-

learning—students do not learn in the systematic way that is implicit in the careful

design and structuring of a learning package. Instead they interact in discussion

groups to varying extents they engage with material in different sequences, and are

selective in their reading and interactions, and they print out significant comments of

the material to read off-line. (2) Student perceptions of the tutors role—students are

unsure about the tutor’s role in e-learning; they do not know what tutors are supposed

to do, and can not judge the level of interaction that they can reasonably expect with

the tutor.

Kyriaki Anagnostopoulou et.al (2009) discussed the relationships that first-year

students have with learning and with technology. Evidence of a deficit approach to e-

learning appears to manifest itself in both groups and technologies that promote social

interaction were primarily reserved for personal use rather than within an institutional
48
context. Recommendations from this research include the need to learn how

technologies promoting social interaction are used and incorporate lessons learnt into

the design of e-learning experiences. E- Learning was studied thoroughly in Japanese

universities and learners for e-learning are mainly focused in a study conducted by

Keiko Watanabe (2005). First, e-learning cases are classified into three categories:

type I, correspondence courses where students can obtain credits and/or degrees

mainly based on e-learning; type II, on-campus courses where students can obtain

some credits based on e-learning; and type III, on-campus courses where the faculty

uses e-learning tools as a supplemental measure of their classes. A Survey conducted

by National Institute of Multimedia Education clearly shows that the needs of

universities for type III is comparatively high. Based on case studies, this paper

clarifies the following two points: first, students such as working students, foreign

students, and those who study specialized areas are the main beneficiaries of types I

and II ; second, all types meet students’ needs by improving the qualities of classes. It

seems reason-able to conclude that type III is expected to become the most popular

model of e-learning because it responds to the needs of students and universities and

that promotion of type I and/or II is possible if universities are successful in providing

curriculums that suit the needs of potential students. This paper uses a broader

definition of e-learning since it aims to inclusively cover various practices made by

universities, especially full-scale, university- wide practices and practices that can be

properly positioned as systems. Although this paper defines e-learning as “distance

education using the Internet and/or other information technologies,” a broader

definition of the term “distance education” is used, instead of adopting the

conventional practice to regard distance education as a “correspondence course.” The

term “distance education” as used in this paper includes education, learning and/or
49
educational support practices that became available outside campuses owing to the

development of computer and network technologies (such as the Internet, satellite

communications, and videoconferencing. Dialogue is arguably one of the most

important components of any learning process (Eileen Webb, et. al, 2004). However,

as student numbers increase and more emphasis is given to electronic delivery of

courses, opportunities for effective dialogue may be missed. The technology to

support e-learning dialogue is readily available, but design of the dialogue structures

and understanding of learners’ online communication behaviour requires further

research. A study was conducted on the use of asynchronous discussion forums to

support online dialogue in undergraduate learning and teaching in two groups of

students. Initial empirical evidence, obtained from online communication behaviour

data and assessment results, is presented to support a positive association between

students' participation in e-learning dialogues and learning outcomes. Other factors

that could influence effective exploitation of e-learning dialogues such as tutor

intervention, students' perceptions, dialogue quality and learning outcomes are

discussed, along with implications for the design of such systems.

Naser-Nick Manochehr (2007) attempted to compare the effects of e-learning versus

those of traditional instructor-based learning, on student learning, based on student

learning styles. Another goal was to determine if e-learning is more effective for those

with a particular learning style. The Kolb Learning Style Inventory (LSI) measured

the learning styles of students. This post-test, intact-group design examined the

dependent variable of student knowledge based on the learning style of each subject

and the learning method to which each was exposed. The results revealed that for the

instructor-based learning class (traditional), the learning style was irrelevant, but for

the web based learning class (e-learning), the learning style was significantly
50
important. The results indicated that students with the Assimilator learning style

(these learn best through lecture, papers and analogies) and the Converger learning

style (these learn best through laboratories, field work and observations) achieved

abetter result with the e-learning (web-based) method. The results of this research

paper revealed that students’ learning styles were statistically significant for

knowledge performance. This conclusion is consistent with earlier findings on the

importance of learning style. For the instructor-based learning class (traditional), the

learning style was irrelevant, but for the web-based learning class (e-learning),

learning style was significantly important. The results showed that students with

learning styles Assimilator (these learn best through lecture, papers and analogies)

and Converger (these learn best through laboratories, field work and observations) did

better with the e-learning method. This mean that those learners that like to learn

through thinking and watching and thinking and doing would learn better with e

learning. In addition, students with learning styles Accommodator (these learn best

through simulations and case study) and Diverger (these learn best through

brainstorming and logs) received better results with traditional instructor -based

learning. In other words, with the Assimilator and Converger learning styles there was

a slight increase in score performance as the method of delivery changed. Staff

incharge of curriculum development, and corporate leaders, will have to motivate

their learners to use e-learning as a formal learning and training tool. The result of this

study could be of specific interest in educational foundations and training institutes; in

particular those that want to transfer some of their conventional courses onto the web.

Vic Lally & Elizabeth Barrett (1999) reports the findings of a research project,

conducted within the Division of Education at the University of Sheffield, which used

computer‐mediated communication (CMC) to support postgraduate students in

51
distance‐education contexts. Following Moore's theory of transactional distance, the

project aimed to identify and explore the ways in which CMC may reduce

transactional distance by mediating the academic and social dialogue between

distance‐education students and their tutors. In particular, we were interested in (a) the

extent to which a ‘community’ of learners could be constructed within an on‐line

environment and (b) the socio‐academic nature of such a community. The research

findings indicate that CMC can support the construction of an on‐line learning

community capable of providing significant social and academic support to students.

It was suggested however, that the construction of an effective on‐line learning

community may depend upon the provision of adequate opportunities for

socio‐emotional discourse and the establishment of co‐operative frameworks for

learning. Concepts of democratization and equalization of learning are discussed with

reference to the structure (for example, group size) and process (for example, the

nature and timing of on‐line events) of the on‐line community. It is important to

understand the nature of learning communities constructed among a diverse group of

adult learners in an online graduate-level course. Minjuan Wang, Christina Sierra &

Terre Folger (2003) engaged students in both independent and team tasks to complete

several project deliverables. The 21 students enrolled in this online course came from

across the USA and countries as far away as Hong Kong, Japan, Argentina and

Venezuela. Students and their instructor communicated via a variety of computer-

mediated communication (CMC) tools, including synchronous webcasts and chat

sessions and asynchronous e-mail and discussion boards. Discourse artefacts, student

profiles, survey responses, and project evaluations were content analysed for evidence

of the formation of learning communities, particularly for evidence of three markers:

participation, shared identity and the establishment of a social network. This action
52
research also generates pedagogical implications for promoting adult learners' active

participation in online learning and instructional strategies to facilitate the

community-building process.

Abdullah Mohammad (2006) sought to explore female faculty and student attitudes

toward adopting online instruction, the benefits of implementing online instruction, as

well as the most important barriers that might prevent effective implementation of

online instruction. Three hundred ten female faculty and students in two female

institutions of higher education in Saudi Arabia participated in the study. A

descriptive study was used to accomplish the objectives of the study and data were

collected through survey questions. The findings revealed that faculty and students

have positive attitudes toward online instruction; female faculty and students received

the greatest benefits of online instruction; and students had a significantly better

positive attitude towards online instruction than faculty. The results indicated that

students' access to a home computer was significantly correlated with students'

attitudes toward online instruction. Similarly, if the students had home Internet access,

they were more willing to take courses online and the better the students' English

language skills were, the more willing they were to take courses online. This study

found that experience in using educational technology did not significantly predict

attitudes of faculty toward online instruction. In contrast, experience in using

Microsoft Office, imaging devices, online course support, threaded discussions, and

the computer in general, did significantly influence students' attitudes towards online

instruction. The study also discovered that female faculty and students combined

agreed that there were several barriers preventing implementation of online

instruction. The study also explored what both faculty and students considered were

some advantages and disadvantages of online instruction, and they corresponded to

53
the findings in the survey study. Conclusions that have been drawn from this study are

that female faculty is willing to teach online courses and female students are willing

to take courses online once the environment of online instruction is available. E-

Learning is one of the modern tools in various educational institutions worldwide.

Few Middle Eastern countries integrated e-Learning systems in the educational

structure. In Saudi Arabia, e-Learning is new system that academic staff used in

improving the academic sources. The respondents in the study are faculty members

and administrators of higher education. The proponent of the research get the

perception of the Qualitative approach is used in the study to solicit experiences and

feelings from the respondents. The study significantly found out that there are barriers

that impede full adoption and utilization of e-Learning in Saudi universities. One of

the major technical risks that come in the way of this new system is the

accessibility/availability of the Internet. If the system is weak or the servers are down,

the students will have problems completing their class. Recent researches shows that

the students who do not have internet access at their homes have low grades than the

students who can access internet at their homes. Also, hacking poses a threat to e-

Learning. Lastly, one of the major factors that hinder its success is absence of e-

Learning regulations from the government. In view of the lack of a holistic structure

of factors to estimate the excellence of e-Learning system, the objective of this study

is to hopefully add to the body of information in this area, by developing a structure

for the assessment of quality in e-Learning programs. Changes in the e-Learning

integration to the curriculum will help in fully maximizing the benefits delivered by e-

Learning in tertiary education. The students’ perception of e- learning is of paramount

importance to any university planning to conduct such courses. Christina Keller &

Lars Cernerud (2002) conducted a study with students at Jönköping University in

54
Sweden as an example. The students had experiences from two years of e‐learning on

campus. Students (n = 150) filled in a questionnaire with closed as well as open‐ended

questions. The answers were analysed in a multiple regression analysis, putting the

students’ perceptions in relation to gender, age, previous knowledge of computers,

attitudes to new technology, learning styles and the way of implementing e‐learning at

the university. Advantages and disadvantages of e‐leaming were categorized in a

qualitative content analysis. The main conclusion from the study was that the strategy

of implementing the e‐leaming system at the university was more important in

influencing students’ perceptions than the individual background variables. Students

did not regard access to e‐learning on campus as a benefit. Male students, students

with previous knowledge of computers and students with positive attitudes to new

technologies were all less positive to e‐ learning on campus than other students.

Another aspect that must be considered is that of gender. It is of great importance esp.

when luring students to a university. Nai Li and Gill Kirkup (2002) studied the gender

differences between the Internet use of British and Chinese students. It reports on a

questionnaire survey carried out on male and female undergraduate students aged

between 18 and 23 in four universities in China and in Britain. The results showed

some significant geographical and gender differences, but no significant difference in

attitude toward the Internet between the two cultures. The ability to use information

and communication skills is becoming a necessary form of literacy at all levels of

education. The particular skill of searching the global Internet for reliable information

resources, evaluating these resources and making use of them is becoming a crucial

skill for students in higher education. The 'digital divide' has many facets - gender is

one, geographical location and language are two important others. The dynamics of

these at the global level seems to be changing. Surveys of Internet users show
55
increasing numbers of women using the Internet in many countries worldwide, and an

exponential increase in access to technology and networks in some less developed

countries. Most research on gendered use of the Internet comes from research in the

more developed countries, and it is yet unclear whether gender differences in attitude

to, and use of the Internet, are stable over time, or consistent across countries and

cultures. This paper reports on research carried out with higher education students

studying in China and Britain, which investigated their attitudes towards using the

Internet and their Internet searching skills, to explore what, if any, gender differences

are observed between the two countries/cultures. It reports on only one aspect of the

research: a questionnaire survey carried out with samples of male and female

undergraduate students in the 18-23 age group. Basic common gender differences

were observed in students in both countries. These cannot be explained by shared

cultures or shared language, only by shared technology. It also draws light on the

nature of cultural difference in a global society, and whether gender is best understood

as located in particular places or as one of the many aspects of cultural 'flows'

identified by Castells (1996) as replacing 'place' in the new global economy.

Santosh Panda and Sanjaya Mishra (2007) conducted a study with faculty and

students of IGNOU, India’s premier university for distance learning. The mean

attitude score for the sample was calculated as 3.81 indicating that the sampled faculty

at IGNOU had a moderately positive attitude towards e-learning. The researchers

recommended that only an e-learning experience can change the faculty perceptions,

therefore the faculty training program should preferably be designed and delivered on

the web. Additionally, online faculty development programs must be conducted to

provide training on both technology and pedagogy of e-learning, faculty must be

encouraged to use the computer and correspond via email; students must be provided
56
with internet access in order to facilitate the e-learning process.

Semantic Web is a "web of data" that are defined and linked in a way that enables

machines to understand the semantics, or meaning, of information on the World Wide

Web. It is an intuitive web application with the ability to access information which is

needed precisely. The Semantic Web has opened new horizons for internet

applications in general and for E-Learning in particular. This paper discussed the

significance of semantic web in E-Learning content and the use of ontology in

developing E-Learning content (T. Sheeba et.al, 2012). It is important to understand

E- learning from the Information systems perspective. Anita Lee-Post (2009)

conducted a study and reported the observations made and experience gained from

developing and delivering an online quantitative methods course for Business

undergraduates. Inspired by issues and challenges experienced in developing the

online course, a model is advanced to address the question of how to guide the design,

development, and delivery of successful e-learning initiatives based on theories of a

user-centered information systems development paradigm. The benefits of using the

proposed model for e-learning success assessment is demonstrated through four

cycles of action research after two action research cycles of pilot study. Findings from

our empirical study confirm the value of an action research methodology for

promoting e-learning success. Merits of the proposed model must be defined in terms

of how to define, assess, and promote e-learning success. This research moves us a

step closer in harnessing the power of Internet-based technologies to enhance

learning. It demonstrates of the applicability of an e-learning success model to guide

the design, development, and delivery of e-learning through four action research

cycles. A primary contribution of this research is in furthering our understanding of

how to define, assess, and promote e-learning success. To this end, success in e-
57
learning is defined as a multi-faceted construct that can be assessed along six

dimensions including system quality, information quality, service quality, use, user

satisfaction, and net benefits occurring in three stages. The first stage is to attain

system design success by maximizing the three quality dimensions. The second stage

is to attain system delivery success by maximizing the use dimension. The final stage

is to attain system outcome success by maximizing net benefits and user satisfaction

dimensions (Anita Lee-Post, 2009). Each success dimension is quantified as a single

numeric measure by aggregating the ratings of its set of attributing factors obtained

via a course evaluation survey instrument. The overall success of e-learning can then

be evaluated for each dimension. A low score for any success dimension signifies a

deficiency in that area and efforts can be devoted accordingly to rectify the

deficiency. Although the findings of the current study are drawn from one

undergraduate quantitative methods course, there is no reason to doubt that the e-

learning success model proposed here cannot be applied to other disciplines and

graduate level of courses as well. In addition, to broaden the current student-centered

perspective, an extended e-learning success model is proposed that gives recognition

to the role that students, instructors, and institution play in making e-learning a

success. Future testing and validating of both the proposed and the extended model

will be beneficial to the continued growth of this important research area. Jong-Ki Lee

Kyungpook (2009) suggested a research model, based on a successful e-learning

model, which presents the relationship between e-learner’s self-regulated learning

strategies and the quality perception in LMS (learning management systems). This

research model focuses on self-regulated learning strategies and satisfaction with the

learning environment. This learning environment consists of a learning management

system, learning content, and interaction that are provided by e-learning. Especially,
58
this study suggests that e-learner’s self-regulated learning strategy is very important in

e-learning performance. The validity of the model was shown empirically.

The semantic web movement has grown around the need to add semantics to the web

in order to make it more usable by people and by information systems (Marie, 2004).

Even more important than semantics is pragmatics; that is, to really enhance web

usability it is critical to capture and react to aspects of the end use context. Most

centrally, to make the web truly responsive to human needs, it is necessary to

understand the "users" of the web and their purposes for using it. In this paper the

researcher elaborates this argument in the context of e-learning systems. The

researcher proposed an approach to the design of e-learning systems that he called the

ecological approach. Moving from the open web to repositories of learning objects,

the researcher shows how the ecological approach shows promise not only to allow

information about learners actual interactions with learning objects to be naturally

captured but also to allow it to be used in a multitude of ways to support learners and

teachers in achieving their goals. In a phrase, the approach involves attaching models

of learners to the learning objects they interact with, and then mining these models for

patterns that are useful for various purposes. The ecological approach turns out to be

highly suited to e-learning applications. It also has interesting implications for e-

learning research, and perhaps even for research directions for semantic web research.

In this paper the researcher makes arguments for an approach to the design of e-

learning systems called the ecological approach that shows promise to allow

information about how learners use a system to be naturally captured and then used in

a multitude of ways. In a phrase, the approach involves attaching models of users to

the information they interact with, and then mining these models for patterns that are

useful for various purposes. The information and the data mining algorithms interact
59
with one another in an ecosystem where the relevance and usefulness of information

is always being adjusted to suit the changing needs of learners and teachers and to fit

changes in the external environment and the system's perceptions. The researcher

drew on ideas and techniques from AIED, user modelling, collaborative filtering,

case-based reasoning, the semantic web, data mining, multi-agent systems,

information retrieval, recommender systems, learning objects, cognitive science,

instructional design, and other social sciences. Particularly important are learning

objects in which learning activities and material are encapsulated; the semantic web

with its notions of user-centric open access and metadata to expand usability; learner

modelling with its focus on individual learners and adaptivity to their needs;

collaborative filtering for its concentration on similarities among users; and data

mining to make sense of large amounts of unstructured data. An evolving e-learning

system which can adapt itself both to the learners and the open the web could be a

method of choice in today’s fast paced era. Tang, T. & McCalla, G. (2005) proposed

two pedagogy features in recommendation: learner interest and background

knowledge. A description of paper value, similarity, and ordering are presented using

formal definitions. The researchers also studied two pedagogy-oriented

recommendation techniques: content-based and hybrid recommendations. It has been

argued that while it is feasible to apply both of these techniques in our domain, a

hybrid collaborative filtering technique is more efficient to make "just-in-time"

recommendations. In order to assess and compare these two techniques, we carried

out an experiment using artificial learners. Experiment results are encouraging,

showing that hybrid collaborative filtering, which can lower the computational costs,

will not compromise the overall performance of the RS. In addition, as more and more

learners participate in the learning process, both learner and paper models can better
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be enhanced and updated, which is especially desirable for web-based learning

systems. The recommendation mechanisms with real learners, and the results were

very encouraging. India being a developing country, makes it extremely imperative

that consideration must be given to the aspect of E- learning in an developing

economy. The reasons for choosing of the course as well as the expectations of the

course will defer greatly in comparison to those in a developed economy. Annika

Sophie Andersson and Åke Grönlund (2006) concluded that these challenges are

equally valid for both developed and developing countries; however in developing

countries more papers focus on access to technology and context whereas in

developed countries more papers concern individuals. A further finding is that most

papers focus on one or two categories of challenges; few papers exhibit a

comprehensive view. Because challenges are interrelated, based on the findings we

propose a conceptual framework of emerging issues for e-learning in developed and

developing countries. The framework is useful to guide both practice and research.

This paper set out to answer two research questions: “What has existing research

identified as the major challenges for e-learning?” and “Is there a difference

concerning challenges for e-learning between developing countries and developed

countries?” This paper has identified 30 challenges for e-learning that were grouped

under four main categories: 1. Course challenges: Research concerned with content,

design and delivery of courses; 2. Challenges pertinent to individuals’ characteristics,

students as well as teachers; 3. Technological challenges: Research concerned with

infrastructure, costs, usability and appropriateness of technology; 4. Contextual

challenges: Research concerned with organisational, cultural and societal challenges.

The major contribution of this paper is to develop a comprehensive conceptual

framework on challenges for e-learning in developing countries. This is a contribution

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to practice as the framework can be used as a check-list of factors that should be

addressed when designing a project. It is also a contribution to research as it can be

used to guide research, both in focus and in outcomes. In focus, because the

framework helps understand which factors are currently under-researched and should

be given more focus. E-learning is a system and for it to be best designed there needs

to be a balance between all important factors.

On comparing India, a developing economy to Nigeria, an underdeveloped economy;

the following conclusions could be drawn. The breakdown of the statistics available

on Nigeria shows the following: more than 55% is female, the poverty rate is about

67.8% (Federal Office of Statistics, 1999), and the majority of the population (70%)

lives in the rural areas, and has a young population in which over 60 per cent are

under 15 years of age. These statistics indicate that the majority of Nigerians fit the

main focus of this Global Forum which is to reach those who are yet to be reached

(the class of the poor, illiterate, women, marginalized, and those living in remote

areas) through one form of education or the other. In particular, women and minority

communities such as nomads, fishermen, and unemployed youths are examples of

these hitherto neglected communities in Nigeria. Given the current situation in

Nigeria, it is no coincidence that the main preoccupation of the Federal Government

through its Federal Ministry of Education momentarily is the need to reach every

nook and corner of the country in order to take education to the citizens no matter

where they may be located. A major educational activity through which the above is

being carried out is the national open and distance learning programmes (NODLP).

The NODLP is experimenting with the massive use of the information and

communication and technologies (ICT) as the veritable medium to reach the

unreached in Nigeria. A number of other related issues necessary to situate the effort
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of the country would be given a cursory mention. In terms of its economy, although

Nigeria earns about 90 per cent of its annual revenues from petroleum, exports 2

million barrels of oil daily, and ranks as the seventh largest oil reserves in the world,

her less – than desirable economic growth makes it almost impossible to cope with the

resources needed by the huge and fast growing population to develop the country and

uplift the welfare of the ordinary person especially in the rural areas.

Clyde W. Holsapple and Anita Lee-Post (2006) researched the understanding of how

to define, evaluate, and promote e-learning success from an information systems

perspective. The research introduces the E-Learning Success Model, which posits that

the overall success of an e-learning initiative depends on the attainment of success at

each of the three stages of e-learning systems development: system design, system

delivery, and system outcome. To study this model, an online version of an

undergraduate quantitative methods core course for business students was developed

using a prototyping strategy. Four cycles of development are traced, each comprised

analysis, design, implementation, testing, and enhancement. Findings from the study

confirm the validity of using the proposed success model for e-learning success

assessment. In addition, an action research methodology is also found to be a valuable

impetus for promoting e-learning success through an iterative process of diagnosing,

action planning, action taking, evaluating, and learning. Another concept that is now

very popular among the student community is that of learning through mobiles.

Gaskell and Mills (2010) conducted a study and concluded that there is much

evidence that mobile technologies are playing an increasing role in education and the

use of mobile technologies is increasing in the developed world in a number of areas,

for instance in context related education, and how hand-held devices can be used for

basic language, skills, numeracy and health and safety training and some aspects of
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teaching and learning across the developing and developed world. The use of

handheld technologies provides a major opportunity to enhance access to learning and

will enable many institutions to develop learner and administrative support and

learning opportunities in ways which will build on current methods. To better

understand and measure students' attitudes and perceptions towards the effectiveness

of mobile learning; Dr. Fahad N (2009) conducted a study on the student’s attitudes

and perceptions towards the effectiveness of mobile learning in King Saud University,

Saudi Arabia. The survey consisted of one hundred eighty six undergraduate female

students at King Saud University about their attitude and perception to the use of

mobile technology in education. The author attempted to determine how this

technology can be optimally used to improve student retention at Bachelor of Art and

Medicine programmed at King Saud University in Saudi Arabia. Result of this survey

clearly indicated that offering mobile learning could be the method for improving

retention of B.A, and M.D. students, by enhancing their teaching/learning. The

biggest advantage of this technology is that it can be used anywhere, anytime and

adopt their mobile learning systems with the aim of improving communication and

enriching students' learning experiences in their open and distance learning.

Regardless of existing till now disadvantages the m-Learning will became lesser and

lesser relevant with the progress of information and communication technologies. Its

common use with the traditional education will correspond to the needs of educational

quality improve. The educational process will become more flexible and will fulfill to

the needs of life long learning. M-Learning also can assure good educational

opportunities for disabled people. Tsvetozar Georgiev et.al (2004) discusses the

existing devices and technologies to realize m-Learning as new stage of the progress

of distance learning (d-Learning) and e-Learning. By nature the m-Learning is a form

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of existing d-Learning and e-Learning. Historically the distance education has more

than one hundred years of experience and traditions. Its main characteristic is the

distance and time separation between teacher and students. The e-Learning offers new

methods for distance education based on computer and net technologies.

Simultaneous to e-Learning the other forms of d-Learning still exist. S.K. Nayak et al.

(2010) discussed the various problems, considerations, issues and approaches to e-

learning in India while giving stress on important features of e-learning and benefit of

e-learning for rural child development and e-learning’s applicability and acceptance in

a developing country like India. It stresses the role of ICT in Early childhood

education and its appropriate use with young children. The benefits of E- learning

include (1)Accessibility, (2) Collaborative learning, (3) Tools for innovation, (4)

Flexible study, (5) Just-in-time learning, (6) Adaptability, (7) Cost effectiveness, and

(8) Easy management and administration. This study also enlists the problems

regarding implementation of E-learning in school education as intensive training

required to be imparted to the teachers, frequent awareness and workshops for

teachers, bandwidth limitations of the internet connections in remote areas of the

country, reduction in the manpower requirements in schools and budgetary constraints

of various school administrations.

Colleen Longstreet and Michelle Winkley, (2011) explored a critically important

factor of E- Learning and its impact on employee engagement. E-learning systems

support the needs of the new workforce and drive employee engagement in a number

of ways such as 24/7 access to training materials, familiarity with the technological

platforms that are used for learning, connection to subject matter experts, real-time

collaboration and sharing of best practices, personalized learning, engaging content

formats, freedom to fail, greater efficiency and environmental consciousness. The key
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impacts and challenges of elearning, as seen by the EDUCause Centre for Applied

Research highlights that introduction of elearning in an educational institution gives

the faculties an opportunity to learn to use various technological platforms as well as

provides an occasion to rethink the course concepts currently in use. In contrast, there

are far more challenges identified including the additional hours a faculty/ instructor

needs to devote to replying to students via emails, etc. Additionally, in most cases, the

students may not have access to high bandwidth internet connections as well as the

face- to- face activities that a student would participate in when in a classroom as

minimal or omitted. Also, corporate managers are constantly looking for more cost-

effective ways to deliver training to their employees. E-learning is less expensive than

traditional classroom instruction (Judith B. Strother, 2002). In addition, many

expenses – booking training facilities, travel costs for employees or trainers, plus

employee time away from the job – are greatly reduced. However, some firms that

have spent large amounts of money on new e-learning efforts have not received the

desired economic advantages. Here is always a focus on the fiscal bottom line in

corporate training; the comparatively low costs of e-learning are attractive. Even so,

more corporations are looking at such options as blended learning, using more than

one method of delivery (e.g., e-learning plus traditional classroom delivery of content,

to increase training effectiveness), even if it raises costs. However, Clark (in Online

Learning News 2001b) points out that many training managers are not sure how to

find the optimal blend for their corporate training programs. He feels they are making

decisions based on programs they are familiar with rather than on concrete

information about which programs actually produce effective results. While few

people debate the obvious advantages of e-learning, systematic research is needed to

confirm that learners are actually acquiring and using the skills that are being taught
66
online, and that e-learning is the best way to achieve the outcomes in a corporate

environment. This research must be grounded in solid theoretical precepts to assure

that meaningful results are obtained. Until a more solid research methodology is

developed for measuring e-learning results, we can rely on the mainly qualitative

feedback from corporations that are using e-learning to deliver their training. Firms

praise online training as a cost-effective, convenient, and effective way to deliver

corporate education. Early studies seem to demonstrate that e-language-learning in

business is a win-win proposition for all – the learner, the corporation, and the

customers served by the corporation.

Hong, K.-S., Ridzuan, A. A., & Kuek, M.-K. (2003) researched the Students' attitudes

toward the use of the Internet for learning. The study considered the success of a

technology and Internet-enriched teaching and learning environment in molding

positive attitudes among students toward using the Internet for learning at a university

in Malaysia. Students were provided with computers facilities, required to complete

two compulsory generic courses in information technology, and the lecturers actively

encouraged the use of information technology, in particular, the Internet in the

teaching and learning processes. Results from the study indicated that students had

positive attitudes toward using the Internet as a learning tool, adequate basic

knowledge of the Internet, and viewed the learning environment as supportive of

using the Internet for learning. Students with better basic Internet skills and who

viewed the learning environment as promoting the use of the Internet favored using

the Internet for learning. The university achieved its objectives of promoting the use

of the Internet for teaching and learning purposes. As the university begins to offer

Web-based courses, the generic courses in information technology should likewise be

redesigned to introduce the concepts of Web-based learning environments. These

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courses should in fact be conducted as Web-based courses to prepare the students to

learn in these learning environments. Wagner, N., Hassanein, K., & Head, M. (2008)

discusses e-learning, describes the needs and concerns of the various stakeholder

groups, and derives a Stakeholders' Responsiblity Matrix to summarize the

responsibilities of each stakeholder group. A matrix consisting of the various

stakeholders i.e. Student, Instructor, Institution, Content Provider, Technology

Provider, Accreditation Body and Employer is used to define the relationship between

the various stakeholders involved in higher education. A study conducted at the

University of York by Beastall, L. & Walker R (2006) offers a description of an

implementation model for e-learning and organisational change, which is currently

being employed at the University of York, UK. Discussion focuses on the need for

effective project management and an approach to change management that is flexible

and able to vary in pace according to the needs of the individual staff, students and

departments. The York approach involves a four year cycle of pilot projects and

evaluation, culminating in a full availability roll out in 2008/9. This work in progress

concludes provisionally that successful change management relies on clear strategic

‘top down’ management combined with ‘bottom up’ active involvement in order to

successfully implement sustainable change that is pedagogically sound, yet retains a

clear focus on the needs of the students.

Thinq's Research Department (2008) researched a extremely relevant question that

most universities ask. E – Learning facilities come at a tremendously high expense

and therefore it is important to study how E-Learning can increase ROI for training.

This research explores how e-learning can increase ROI for training. The researcher

gave 10 points about e-learning benefits and increased ROI for training (1) E-learning

saves time without decaying learning benefits, (2) minimizes travel costs, (3) you can
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learn from E-learning away from work, (4) it is cost effective, (5) meet the need of

Geographically diverse employees, (6) more consistent course delivery, (7) more

individual instruction, (8) better learning result than traditional learning, (9) Less

employees turnover, (10)Customer satisfaction increases. Thomas P. Burke says that

– many companies use e-Learning to cut cost, and to reach a scattered audience, in

many ways, on-line learning – known as e-Learning – has made it much easier to cope

with the delivery and management of workforce training. E-Learning is cost effective

and it is more effective than traditional training and it give positive impact on

employee performance. The key to developing a successful learning environment is to

rely on training professionals to design and implement the training. However, it’s up

to management to identify and target specific training needs that will measurably

benefit the business.

Employability can be defined as: ‘a set of achievements – skills, understandings and

personal attributes – that make graduates more likely to gain employment and be

successful in their chosen occupations, which benefits themselves, the workforce, the

community and the economy’ (Mantz Yorke (2004) 'Employability in Higher

Education: what it is - what it is not', Higher Education Academy/ESECT).

Employability is not the same as gaining a graduate job, rather it implies something

about the capacity of the graduate to function in a job and be able to move between

jobs, thus remaining employable throughout their life. The last half-decade has seen

considerable proactive development of employability in higher education institutions,

augmented by collaborative activities with employers. Employability initiatives are

varied in character and are increasingly being integrated into programmes of study

rather than left on the margins. Furthermore, more institutions are taking a strategic

approach to employability development. Some institutions are better at embedding

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employability in the curriculum than others. Some institutions prioritize the role of

central services. Others have excellent relations with employers and have made

enormous progress in developing and acknowledging work experience opportunities.

Some institutions have taken a strategic approach - which in Wales has been

encouraged by the funding council (Harvey et al., 2002). Education is both a cause

and consequence of development. It is essentially seen as an aid to individual’s

economic achievement as well as national development. Skill development is the key

factor for increased employability and productivity, which in turn will lead to

economic growth of the nation. Governments of the developing countries will have to

rethink education and training policies recognizing the multiplicity of channels

through which skills are acquired by an individual. Skills can be acquired through pre-

employment training, on-the job training and through formal programs. These include

technical and vocational education at schools, universities, and tertiary institutions

like NGO’s and other enterprises. The literature on Economics is built on the Shultz-

Becker Individual Choice Model of Human Capital Investment, in which the

individual compares the income benefit of further education with the cost of ongoing

study i.e. opportunity cost (Dr. Aarti Srivastava, 2012). Initially these models focused

on a single choice made at a key moment in a young person’s transition from school

to work; more recent contributions have treated human capital decisions as sequential

choices repeated year after year. Economic models have sought to explain how

individuals choose their careers and their levels of education based on their innate

abilities. ‘Signaling’ or ‘Sorting’ models assume that individuals know their abilities

while their potential employers do not.

Reports examining graduate employment issues suggest that employers are concerned

by the lack of employability skills exhibited by entry level job applications. It is also
70
suggested that employers consider it the responsibility of educational institutions to

develop such skills Simon Cassidy, (2006) identified peer assessment as a potential

strategy for developing employability skills and aims to examine – from a students'

perspective – the process of introducing peer assessment into higher education

teaching programmes. It is found that structured work experience and employer

involvement in degree course design and delivery have clear positive effects on the

ability of graduates to secure employment in ‘graduate level’ jobs. However, a

measure of departmental involvement in explicit teaching and assessment of

employability skills is not significantly related to labour market performance. Geoff

Mason, et.al (2009) makes use of detailed information gathered at university

department level, combined with graduate survey data, to assess the impact of

different kinds of employability skills initiative on graduate labour market

performance.

Recent shifts in education and labour market policy have resulted in universities being

placed under increasing pressure to produce employable graduates. However,

contention exists regarding exactly what constitutes employability and which graduate

attributes are required to foster employability in tertiary students. Ruth Bridgstock

(2009) in her article argues that in the context of a rapidly changing information‐ and

knowledge‐intensive economy, employability involves far more than possession of

the generic skills listed by graduate employers as attractive. Rather, for optimal

economic and social outcomes, graduates must be able to proactively navigate the

world of work and self‐manage the career building process. A model of desirable

graduate attributes that acknowledges the importance of self‐management and career

building skills to lifelong career management and enhanced employability is

presented. Some important considerations for the implementation of effective

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university career management programs can be outlined. There is a growing

awareness in the UK and mainland Europe of the importance of higher education to

the development of a knowledge‐based economy. European universities are

increasingly required to produce highly mobile graduates able to respond to the

ever‐changing needs of the contemporary workplace. Following the Bologna

Declaration (1999), higher education across Europe has expanded rapidly. This has

resulted in questions being raised about the quality of the graduate labour market and

the ability of graduates to meet the needs of employers. Jane Andrews & Helen

Higson (2008) analyses graduate and employer perspectives of graduate

employability in four European countries (UK, Austria, Slovenia and Romania). In

doing so it adds to current debates in this area. The UK Government is calling upon

higher education students to see their learning as an investment that will give them

direct benefits in the labour market. At the same time, the relationship between

educational credentials and their returns in labour market has been changing in recent

times. Based on a qualitative study with 53 final‐year undergraduate students in a

pre‐1992 university, this article examines the way higher education students

understand the role of their educational credentials in relation to their future

employability. It shows that students perceive their academic qualifications as having

a declining role in shaping their employment outcomes in what is perceived to be a

congested and competitive graduate labour market (Michael Tomlinson, 2008). While

academic credentials are still seen as a significant dimension of their employability,

students increasingly see the need to add value to them in order to gain an advantage

in the labour market. In a context of considerable changes in the labour market and

higher education sector in the UK, a discourse of employability has become

increasingly dominant. Universities are urged to ensure that they produce

72
‘employable’ graduates, and graduates themselves are exhorted to continually develop

their personal skills, qualities and experiences in order to compete in the graduate

labour market. Drawing on a study of ‘non‐traditional’ graduates from a post‐1992

inner‐city university in England, Marie‐Pierre Moreau & Carole Leathwood (2006)

offer a critical appraisal of the discourse of employability. In contrast to assumptions

of a level playing field in which graduates’ skills and personal qualities are the key to

their success in the labour market, social class, gender, ethnicity, age, disability and

university attended all impact on the opportunities available. It is argued that the

discourse of employability, with its emphasis on individual responsibility and neglect

of social inequalities, has potentially damaging consequences for these graduates. Lee

Harvey (2001) explained the concept of employability is analysed and the prevailing

tendency to create employability measures based on outcomes is critiqued. The

outcome approach results in employability as being construed as an institutional

achievement rather than the propensity of the individual student to get employment.

The operationalisation of employability as a concept is examined and the implicit

'magic bullet' notion of employability-development opportunities is revealed. An

alternative, more complex model is outlined but its applicability is subverted by the

'irrational' activities of graduate recruiters, which render useless any employability

indicator based on the proportion of graduates obtaining work. An alternative

approach, based on an audit of employability-development within institutions, is

explored and some methodological pitfalls are outlined. The conclusion suggests that

any evaluation of employability needs clearly to indicate areas for internal

improvement rather than simply ranking institutions. Enhancing Graduate

Employability skills is considered as an important task within the Sri Lankan

university community (Susima Samudrika Weligamage, 2009). Susima (2009)

73
conducted a study with the objective of identifying the employer skills needs in

different countries, various definitions related to employability skills, previous

research done in different countries related to the employability skills requirement and

their recommendation. The study is based on a literature survey of educational

reports, empirical and theoretical research papers. Studies done in Sri Lanka and in

other countries as well as those comparing the inter-country situation are also

summarized in this paper. Review findings reveled that skills definitions, employer

expectation and requirement differ according to different countries. Employers needs

and also the learners skill enhancement capabilities should be taken into account in

formulating future skills assessments. Universities should identify skill sets that will

best serve the future labor market and align programmes to meet those needs (Susima

Samudrika Weligamage, 2009). Neil Moreland (2006) in his paper on

entrepreneurship and employability argues that entrepreneurship can be seen as a

special form of employability. When universities and colleges promote employability,

they are also promoting elements of entrepreneurship. However, if this is to lead to

self-employment, more is needed. Students need to understand what it means to be

self-employed, what sources of help are available and where the main pitfalls lie.

Higher education already does something to meet these needs but provision is

restricted and not, in practice, equally available to all students. The lack of systematic

research in this area means that there is a shortage of evidence about interesting and

effective practices; about ‘quality signals’ - indicators that provision is of the highest

quality; and about the connections between entrepreneurship, employability and

mainstream higher education curricula in all subject areas at postgraduate and

undergraduate levels. The question of whether employees in possession of a high

degree of professional expertise can look forward to unlimited mobility and

74
employability is one that has allured thinkers for decades (Beatrice van der Heijden,

2002). Similarly, the question arises if they are able to cope easier with new job

assignments and re‐employment in different fields. These thought‐provoking

questions and others need to be thoroughly investigated. In view of improvements in

human resource management, it would seem of importance to find out to what extent

their career performance is exemplary and whether it should be imitated. For this

reason, Beatrice discusses the relationship between five dimensions of professional

expertise and the degree of future employability of 406 higher level employees. The

central position is that the possession of expertise is necessary to guarantee

employability throughout the career. Since lifetime employment within the same

organisation is no longer a prerogative for all, job security has to be safeguarded

differently (Anneleen Forrier & Luc Sels, 2003). In this respect, lifetime

employability; instead of lifetime employment is often put forward as the new

protection in the labour market. Although employability became a buzzword in

organisational literature, no clear consensus about its meaning and measurement can

be found. The conceptual model offers a framework for future empirical research on

employability. It can help to identify the main factors that may influence labour

market transitions for individuals. In addition, it may clarify the role government and

employers can play in shaping these career moves. Employability concerns the extent

to which people possess the skills and other attributes to find and stay in work of the

kind they want (Andrew Rothwell and John Arnold, 2007). It is thought by many to

be a key goal for individuals to aim for in managing their careers, and for

organisations to foster in workforces. The purpose of this paper is to report on the

development of a self‐report measure of individuals' perceived employability. It also

seeks to examine its construct validity and correlates. This author believes that the
75
scale can be applied to other occupational groups, in organisational consultancy, and

in individual career development. It can be used either as one scale or two, depending

on the purpose of the investigation. The Business/Higher Education Round Table (B-

HERT) brings together leaders of Australia’s business, research and academic

communities to examine and pursue initiatives which advance the goals and improve

the performance of both businesses and higher education for the benefit of Australia

(Hager, Paul, et.al, 2002). The position paper outlines the nature and scope of generic

skills and looks at why they have become an issue of policy interest. It is presented in

six main sections: the first section explains the term ‘generic skills’; section two

outlines the growing importance of generic skills and covers the demand for generic

skills from business and employers, the economic and technological reasons for the

adoption of generic skills, and the reasons for the adoption of generic skills by

educational providers; section three discusses the benefits of focusing on generic

skills in terms of better learning and employability and highlights the holism,

contextuality and relational level of generic skills as well as the links to lifelong

learning and its current status in higher education; section four offers a learning

framework for generic skills at different levels.

Dawn Leggott and Jane Stapleford (2005) analyzed how progress files could be used

in enhancement of the student’s employability skills. Their study, which was inspired

by the Dearing Report, aimed to explore the nature of student perception of their skills

development. Taking place over five years and involving 35 undergraduate students,

the study found that students had a low awareness of the skills that they were intended

to develop and many of them were unaware of the skills requirements of employers.

As a result of these findings, Personal Development Plans were used to bridge this

gap and it is hoped that the experience gained form this study can be transferred to
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other contexts. In conclusion, the presentation gave an example of the lack of student

awareness of the importance and extent of their own skills development and

demonstrated ways in which PDP for Progress Files has been used on one course to

bridge the gap between the students' perceptions of their skills development and the

skills requirements of 21 st century employers. It is hoped that the experience gained

from this case study may be transferable to other contexts and thus contribute towards

the enhancement of the quality of students' higher education experience and their

preparation for life beyond university. A study conducted by the Department of

Education, Government of Australia points out that the employability skills

facilitation; requires the design of an overall teaching and learning and assessment

strategy in which e-learning is just one of the tools used. This study found, however,

that the use of e-learning to widen the perspectives of participants through team work

and learning through interaction with other people is not as well developed as it

should be. Sue Cranmer (2006) in her study on enhancing employability skills

discusses the impact of employability skills teaching and learning on graduate labour

market prospects. The findings of the study cast doubt on the assumption that these

skills can be effectively developed within classrooms. Detailed information gathered

at university department level is drawn on to assess how academics perceive and

engage in the teaching and learning of employability skills. It is argued that, despite

the best intentions of academics to enhance graduates’ employability, the limitations

inherent within the agenda will consistently produce mixed outcomes. Furthermore, it

is argued that resources would be better utilised to increase employment‐based

training and experience, and/or employer involvement in courses, which were found

to positively affect immediate graduate prospects in the labour market and, therefore,

support graduates in the transitional stage into employment. There are “connected”
77
models of individual learning and of the institutional integration of enterprise,

personal and career development. These are located within a critique of existing

approaches to graduate employability, including examples of innovative practices.

David Rae, (2007) in his article builds on the early experiences of connecting

graduate enterprise and employability in the UK and proposes that further research is

required as the field develops in experience and complexity. The article provides

models, strategies and examples of effective practices for embedding enterprise and

employability in higher education. The article is innovative at a conceptual level in

arguing for a “connected” and holistic approach to employability and enterprise

development for students and graduates. All stakeholders identify clear connections

between international experience and employability given outcomes associated with

the forging of networks, opportunities for experiential learning, language acquisition

and the development of soft skills related to cultural understandings, personal

characteristics and ways of thinking (Joanna Elizabeth Crossman & Marilyn Clarke,

2010). Higher education staff needs to understand more clearly the relationship of

career development learning to strategies designed to enhance the employability of

students (A G Watts, 2006). Career development learning is concerned with helping

students to acquire knowledge, concepts, skills and attitudes which will equip them to

manage their careers, i.e. their lifelong progression in learning and work. The Guide is

aimed particularly at: Staff who is responsible for curriculum design. Staffs within

teaching departments and careers services that are responsible for the delivery of

curriculum components concerned with career development learning. Themes covered

include: The nature of employability strategies within higher education, and the place

of career development within such strategies; the nature of career development

learning; ways in which career development learning can be implemented within

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higher education and the roles of teaching departments and of careers services in

implementing career development learning. Nele De Cuyper (2008) studied the

relationship between employability and employee wellbeing. He investigated the

relationship between employability and both work-related (engagement) and general

(life satisfaction) well-being and how employability may be relevant in times of high

job insecurity. Results based on a sample of 559 respondents from divisions of seven

Belgian organisations support the study. It can therefore be concluded that

employability may be a means to secure one's labour market position, rather than a

means to cope with job insecurity. Jos Sanders and Andries de Grip (2004) analysed

whether low‐skilled workers' training participation and task flexibility contribute to

their firm‐internal and firm‐external mobility, and found that both training

participation and task flexibility contribute only to firm‐internal employability.

However, the workers' participation in training plays a much more explicit role in

their firm‐internal career than their task flexibility does, as the former appears to be an

important means to increase their opportunities in the firm‐internal labour market.

Neither the low‐skilled workers' participation in training nor their task flexibility

contributes to their external employability. Task‐flexible, low‐skilled workers are less

likely to expect to be externally employable than non‐task flexible workers are. The

focus of the low‐skilled workers on their firm‐internal employability can be explained

by the fact that such workers usually have more opportunities to improve their

position in the firm‐internal labour market than in the external labour market.

The integration of new technologies in the classrooms opens new possibilities for the

teaching and learning process. Technologies such as student response system (e.g.

Clicker) are getting popularity among teachers due to its effects on student learning

79
performance. Awedh (2014) investigated the effect of Socrative with combination of

smartphones on student learning performance. The researchers also observed the

benefits of interactivity between the teacher and the students and among classmates,

which positively influences collaborative learning and engagement of students in the

class. The relationships were tested experimentally in a community college class

environment using data from a survey answered by students in information

technology associate degree. The results of the study reveal that collaborative learning

and engagement of student in the class improves student learning performance. It is

recommended to use these tools in educational settings to support the learning

process. It is ironic that universities and other educational organisations which support

teaching, learning and research are so apparently resistant to change and, unlike the

'learning organisation' described by Peter Senge in his book The Fifth

Discipline:'(where) people continually expand their capacity to create the results they

truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where

collective aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning how to

learn together (Senge 1990: 3). In higher education, increasing differentiation has

resulted in more competitive marketing of institutions and programmes with

information technology identified as a core capability. Many institutions are investing

heavily in upgrading their technology infrastructure and developing applications

which will give them a competitive advantage. This chapter is a response to the need

for educational institutions to adapt and respond to the changing environment, in

particular through developing the capacities of their staff. It focuses on the

development of skills around the use of the Internet and how this process is in it a

means of developing a learning organisation, one which enables the flow of ideas and

actions from its entire staff through participative management processes. Internet
80
applications such as the Web provide both a mechanism and a metaphor for staff

development strategies which will assist educational institutions in their efforts to

reframe themselves for survival in the twenty-first century. The Internet and the Web

are a powerful mechanism and a vital metaphor for transformation. Through these,

universities and other institutions can learn how to adapt to the changing external and

internal environments. They can empower intra- organisational communication and

knowledge communities an inter-organisational exchange and alliances. Universities

which learn how to develop a 'collective aspiration' will achieve the results they

desire. Understanding, how to harness this new technology as a tool for organisational

transformation", requires that individuals are assisted, encouraged and eventually

obliged to act. However, widespread literacy and application will not occur without

substantial commitment, resources and support to address the currently high

percentage of IT-illiterate and resistant individuals (Forster, A., and Hewson, L.,

1998). Investing in staff development strategies which enable the powerful

application of the Internet and the Web to teaching and in organisational growth and

development is a low-risk strategy. There is still much that we do not understand

about the new technologies. The Internet is a new medium which requires analysis,

reflection, trial and retrial. TV was first described as radio with pictures; the Web has

been described as a distribution medium for multimedia. More importantly, it is a new

space for a new community wherein new- kinds of relationships and interactions are

possible. It offers a vast range of resources and opportunities which must be managed

within a framework that values the learning intention, defines the proposed outcomes

and provides the design blueprint. The lure of this technology lies in the fact that it is

so easy to use. Its technical brilliance and Potential can certainty lead to superficiality

and inefficiency, but used well, the technology can provide the means of transforming
81
staff development, creating previously unachievable relationships and activities and

helping universities and colleges not only to be great places to learn, but also great

learning organisations. New technologies provide the opportunity for teachers to

make learning interactive and collaborative by using a social constructivist approach

to teaching and learning (Dorit Maor, 2003). This involves creating a student-centred

approach where the teacher takes the role of the facilitator and the students engage in

peer learning. This paper reflects on the author's role as a facilitator in a higher

education online unit that was designed for science and mathematics teachers who

were geographically and socially isolated. The goal in designing the unit was to create

a networked community of learners that encouraged peer learning and focused on

reflective thinking. Qualitative data from students' and teacher's postings to the

Activity Room can be analysed to identify the diverse roles of the online instructor in

creating an online learning community. The 'four hats' metaphor of pedagogical,

social, managerial and technical actions was used as a framework to discuss the

activities of the instructor and to examine the extent to which she was able to establish

and maintain a community of learners. This framework also served as a tool to

analyse the pedagogies used by the instructor to promote peer-learning and reflective

thinking.

Several studies show firm evidence that innovations designed to strengthen the

frequent feedback that students receive about their learning yield substantial learning

gains. The perceptions of students and their role in self‐assessment are considered

alongside analysis of the strategies used by teachers and the formative strategies

incorporated in such systemic approaches as mastery learning (Paul Black & Dylan

Wiliam, 1998). There follows a more detailed and theoretical analysis of the nature of

feedback, which provides a basis for a discussion of the development of theoretical

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models for formative assessment and of the prospects for the improvement of

practice. While it is generally acknowledged that increased use of formative

assessment (or assessment for learning) leads to higher quality learning, it is often

claimed that the pressure in schools to improve the results achieved by students in

externally‐set tests and examinations precludes its use. A study conducted by Dylan

Wiliam, Clare Lee, Christine Harrison & Paul Black reports on the achievement of

secondary school students who worked in classrooms where teachers made time to

develop formative assessment strategies. A total of 24 teachers (2 science and 2

mathematics teachers, in each of six schools in two LEAs) were supported over a

six‐month period in exploring and planning their approach to formative assessment,

and then, beginning in September 1999, the teachers put these plans into action with

selected classes. In order to compute effect sizes, a measure of prior attainment and at

least one comparison group was established for each class (typically either an

equivalent class taught in the previous year by the same teacher, or a parallel class

taught by another teacher). In this study the mean effect size in favour of the

intervention was 0.32. According to Maddalena Taras (2002) Innovation in

assessment is no longer an option in higher education in Britain if we examine the

aims and the claims that are being made. From the Dearing Report to our module

guides, we claim to wish to support independent and life-long learning, put the

students at the heart of the learning process and to help students take responsibility for

their own learning. This cannot be done without including students in mainstream

summative assessment and without reconciling the contradictions that currently

contribute to impeding the students this access. The article explained briefly the aims

of higher education; provide an overview of current thinking on student learning and

formative assessment as a framework for offering one possible practical solution to

83
the problem. This possible solution is Taras's (2001) version of student self-

assessment which works within the theoretical framework of Sadler's (1989) theory of

formative assessment and of what we know about student learning.

The growing demand for lifelong learners and reflective practitioners has stimulated a

re-evaluation of the relationship between learning and its assessment, and has

influenced to a large extent the development of new assessment forms such as self-,

peer, and co-assessment. In a study by F. Dochy, M. Segers & D. Sluijsmans (1999)

three questions were discussed: (1) what are the main findings from research on new

assessment forms such as self-, peer and co-assessment; (2) in what way can the

results be brought together; and (3) what guidelines for educational practitioners can

be derived from this body of knowledge. A review of literature, based on the analysis

of 63 studies, suggested that the use of a combination of different new assessment

forms encourages students to become more responsible and reflective. Cavus and

Ibrahim (2009) conducted a study in North Cyprus for the first year undergraduate

students of Computer Information Systems to assess attitude using mobile phone as

the tool. The results were positive and the students believe that the system brought

greater flexibility to their learning; interest of students to use mobile phones has

helped them to learn new words; students wanted the system to be used in other

classes. In another similar experiment study, Cavus and Uzunboylu (2009) using

individual projects, group discussion and assessment, they found that the students

attitude towards the usefulness of a mobile learning system improved by the end of

the experiment. Uzunboylu, et. al., (2009) performed one more study and they found

that majority of the students liked using the mobile devices for learning; students

realized the potential use of mobile technologies for learning in any subject and

perceived importance of using discussion tools with m-Learning. All the 3 studies
84
concluded with a positive result.

DeLone and McLean (1992) suggested the information systems success (ISS) model

that is measured through six dimensions: system quality, information quality, use,

user satisfaction, individual impact, and organizational impact. Furthermore a

perceived usefulness (PU) suggested by Davis (1989) with technology acceptance

model (TAM). And, Seddon and Kiew (1997) replaced the perceived usefulness with

use concept. Information quality is defined as a quality of system outputs of the

product, and the usage and user satisfaction is defined as the recipients’ interaction of

information and information system product (Shannon and Weaver, 1949; Mason

1978; DeLone and McLean, 1992; Lee J. K. and Lee W. K., 2007). The effects on e-

learning are measured with an ISS model because it is also one of the information

systems. The e-learning success model (ELS; Lee, 2004) evaluates e-learning

effectiveness based on an ISS, constructivism, and self-regulatory efficacy. The

learning management system (LMS) is applicable to the information process system

that processes learning content and supports all matters related to other learning.

Learning content is the product created through LMS in the ELS model. The

interaction between teacher and students is applicable to the human service process in

the ELS model (Lee, 2004). Jerome Delaney, et.al (2010) explained the students’

perceptions of effective teaching in higher education by using a unique online

approach to data gathering. Students were asked to isolate the characteristics they

believe are essential to effective teaching. An open-ended online survey was made

available to over 17,000 graduate and undergraduate students at Memorial University

of Newfoundland during the winter semester of 2008. Derived from this rich data is a

set of student definitions that describe nine characteristics and identify instructor

behaviors’ that demonstrate effectiveness in teaching. The survey also takes into
85
account the opinions of students studying both on-campus and at a distance via the

web, with the intention of determining if the characteristics of effective teaching in an

online environment are different from those in the traditional face-to-face setting.

Students identified nine behaviors’ that are characteristic of effective teaching in both

on-campus and distance courses. Instructors who are effective teachers are respectful

of students, knowledgeable, approachable, engaging, communicative, organized,

responsive, professional, and humorous. Students indicated that the nine

characteristics were consistent across modes of delivery. Respondents to the distance

portion of the survey, however, did place different emphasis from the on-campus

responses on the significance of each characteristic. A model was developed in 1960

by Daniel Stuffelbeam. It had four aspects: context, input, process, and product.

Stuffelbeam recommended evaluation in all four aspects in order to judge the value of

the program and help decision-makers to answer questions such as what should be

done and how should it be done? Is it performing as planned? (Stufflebeam 2003).

This informed the present research focus on the learners' perceptions of the process of

e-learning, the goals of the study being similarly to facilitate decision making at

university level. Levy proposed combining the value of selected characteristics of e-

learning and the satisfaction learners expressed about each to assess e-learning's

effectiveness and he suggested this would present a clear picture about how to

improve the effectiveness of elearning. He used survey tools to elicit the learner’s

perceptions of the comparative importance of e-learning s characteristics. This was

done on a value satisfaction grid, to allow learners to rate his collection of 48

significant characteristics. Examples of these characteristics were the quality of

technical support, learning at any time of the day, access to all courses from one area,

availability of course content, amount of professor student interaction, amount of

86
interaction with classmates, and so on, all classified in four dimensions: technology

and support, course, professor and learner. Indeed, he said that elearning is considered

effective when learners perceive its characteristics as highly important and are highly

satisfied by those same characteristics (Levy, 2006, p.2). Nevertheless, his study is

based on the previous assumption that e-learning is an optimal pedagogy and that its

general effectiveness is already proven. The present study does not take the

effectiveness of e-learning as a given. On the contrary, it asks questions to validate the

technology and its pedagogical use whilst assessing its effectiveness. Having clarified

the three terms on which this work was proposed: perception, effectiveness and

evaluation, the following section will consider the relationship of the four main

models to this research. Khan (2005) suggested that the evaluation dimensions of e-

learning included evaluating learners and learning and the teaching environments and

focusing on input, individuals, processes and outputs. Although, important questions

dominated the field of ICT in education, for example its vocational, pedagogical and

societal impact (Wellington, 2005), it was the quality of learning, through e-learning

that demanded close consideration. Dempster (2008) mentioned that evaluation

should cover the use of ICT, its effectiveness, the materials and sources, skills, and

feasibility and those evaluations of effectiveness could include one or all of the

following areas: input, processes, and output. Hall and Hall (2004) also recognised the

importance of: content evaluation under the headings of design, interaction,

leadership, motivation, methods, assessment, enthusiasm and interactivity, storing,

instructor evaluation (attitude and competence). They also advocated learner

evaluation, involving performance objectives of knowledge, skills and competence

and implementation evaluation which assessed the roles of the instructors and learners

and their ability to use the programs, together with the constraints and barriers
87
perceived by the learners. Diaz, D. P., & Cartnal, R. B. (1999) compared student

learning styles in an online distance learning class and an equivalent on- campus

class. On-campus students displayed collaborative tendencies that were positively

related to their needs to be competitive and to be good class citizens. Thus, on-campus

students appeared to favor collaborative styles to the extent that it helped them to

obtain the rewards of the class. In contrast, online students were willing and able to

embrace collaborative teaching styles if the instructor made it clear that this was

expected, and gave them form and guidance for meeting this expectation. Online

students appeared to be driven more by intrinsic motives and clearly not by the reward

structure of the class. With the push for more online courses and programs, students

are expecting courses to be offered online and institutions are demanding more from

instructors. David Dietrich (2015) stressed the importance of why instructor

satisfaction cannot be ignored. He pointed out that as an online instructor, it can begin

to feel as though we are caught up in the machine of technology-expected to be just

another cog connecting mechanical pieces together-rather than independent, creative

educators. High levels of interaction with students, along with high-quality

interaction, can impact instructor satisfaction and motivation. A concern many novice

online instructors share involves feeling less connected to students. The better able

instructors are to overcome this fear and find ways to stay connected to students the

more satisfied they become. This could take the form of email, synchronous chats,

webcams, or telephone contact. All of these tech-based methods can help to bridge the

gap created by physical distance between instructor and student. It is important to note

the value of high-quality interaction here. Instructors are not likely to be motivated by

hundreds of emails from students a day, especially if the content of these emails is

superficial. When contact involves quantity and quality, satisfaction increases.

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Instructors are more likely to be satisfied when students are actively involved in their

own learning. The more students engage with the material and discuss concepts, the

higher the level of instructor satisfaction. This often takes the form of interaction

between students. When students share their ideas, viewpoints, and experiences with

each other, instructors are more satisfied with their course. A common misconception

shared by instructors new to eLearning is teaching online creates more distance

between students. However, in most online courses, all students are required to

participate in discussion boards, or some other form of collaborative learning. When

every student is given a chance to take an active role in learning, instructor

satisfaction increases. Narjis Hyder and Judith Gilliam (2015) researched that in the

United States, the rate of attrition for doctoral programs is alarmingly high. One of the

major issues causing such high rates of attrition and poor retention of students is the

culture of blaming the student for dropping out rather than looking to the school,

faculty, or administrators. Efforts to improve this rate should be focused on financial

support, professional development, academic preparation, and mentoring

relationships. Because experienced mentors share and provide guidance, mentoring

can be beneficial to any student who may need help. The benefits of mentoring have

also been seen in non-graduate study environments. Many studies from the business

arena have found positive relationships among mentors and mentees' promotions and

compensations. Mentoring programs have been offered at colleges and universities for

decades, but as the field of distance education has increased significantly so has e-

mentoring. The Biotechnology program at UMUC maintains an e-mentoring program

in which the mentor-mentee relationships are considered essential for student success.

Their mentoring model consists of: 1. Graduate level resources embedded in the

degree program. 2. Participants who are geographically dispersed and use web-based
89
technologies to enable flexibility in participation and management of resources.3. A

potentially sustainable structure through the participation of program graduates as

mentors.4. A mentor assistant (MA) is allotted for each mentor- mentee pair to

facilitate and to monitor their interaction, and to ensure that any questions or issues

are addressed promptly. The Learning House and Aslanian Market Research surveyed

1,500 online college students for their annual study. The students, who were at least

18 years old with a high-school degree or equivalent, were in various stages of

enrollment (recently enrolled, currently enrolled or planning to enroll within a year) in

an online certificate, licensure, undergraduate, or graduate program. Most answers

were an aggregation of both undergrad and graduate students unless there was a

striking difference between the two groups. Although the program's authors believe

the "patterns and preferences of the sample of individuals interviewed is reflective of

online students as a whole, and the data reflect a national template of the behavior and

preferences of these students," tracking online student data is still in its infancy.

However, with 1,500 students interviewed, the study's sampling error comes in at +/-3

percent at a 95 percent confidence level making the conclusions drawn worth noting,

particularly for administrators who want to recruit and retain online students (Rachel

Wang, 2015). Walker. R (2015) in his article on creating the conditions for effective

peer exchange through peer observation for online distance learning tutors discusses

about how online distance learning tutors working within a higher education context

may be supported in their professional development through participation on an

institutional peer observation programme. Drawing on the reflections of participants

from two cohorts (2011 and 2012) at the University of York, the article reviews the

learning outcomes arising from the peer observation process and investigates the

necessary conditions for fostering critical reflection on practice between tutors.

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Feedback from participants highlighted the importance of investing time in

relationship-building at the outset of the process – a necessary first step before free-

ranging and critical exchanges can flourish between partners. Pairings which invested

time at this stage appeared to develop greater levels of trust, enabling them to probe

their tutoring practices in a more critical way and explore areas of perceived weakness

as well as tackling emergent themes in their dialogue. These observations have

informed the development of a guidance framework for peer exchange at the

University of York, which is summarized in the concluding part of this paper.

Blended learning occupies a prominent place within higher education teaching

strategies, yet there is no clear definition for what we mean by this term as an

instructional approach. Walker, R, & Baets (2008) presents a working definition for

blended learning that is based around a learner-centred framework, and outline three

instructional models for blended course design in support of student-centred learning.

The researchers studied the reception of these models by students and their relevance

to Net Generation learners in promoting socially active learning through collaboration

and experience sharing. Drawing together the lessons learned from a series of course

experiments; the instructional framework for course designers was presented,

focusing on the key phases in the delivery of a blended course and the accompanying

instructional responsibilities which underpin this instructional approach. Mobile

devices are increasingly being adopted in educational institutions to help students in

their learning process. These technologies significantly affect the motivation of and

the collaboration among students in their learning activities. These technologies bring

numerous benefits to the students, teachers, and school administrators, which have

greatly contributed to their increasing popularity in the education sector over the last

91
decade. A study conducted by Kamil W.A. et. al (2014) to explore the concept of a

mobile school to aid Ffce-to-face learning interface for Iraqi students in Malaysia.

Iraqi citizens residing in Malaysia demanded for quick, cheap, and accessible

education through a mobile application that supports the distance education of Iraqi

students who are studying in faraway schools in Kuala Lumpur. It has been argued

that cell phones are a perfect vehicle for making educational opportunities accessible

to rural children in places and times that are more convenient than formal schooling

(Anuj Kumar, 2010). The participant observations were carried out to identify the

opportunities in their everyday lives for mobile learning. Further a 26-week study was

conducted to investigate the extent to which rural children will voluntarily make use

of cell phones to access educational content. The results show a reasonable level of

academic learning and motivation. It also reports on the social context around these

results. The goal was to examine the feasibility of mobile learning in out-of-school

settings in rural, underdeveloped areas, and to help more researchers learn how to

undertake similarly difficult studies around mobile computing in the developing

world. Norman Peterson, et.al; (1999) in their book titled An occupational

information system for the 21st century: The development of O*NET; describes a 2-

yr effort to develop a comprehensive occupational information system, suitable for

many purposes that would primarily reside in electronic media. The product of this

effort is a prototype of the national occupational information system intended to

replace the "Dictionary of Occupational Titles" (U.S. Dept of Labor, 1991) and its

supporting technology. As a result of the many changes taking place in the

workplace, it's difficult to forecast the long-term effects of these changes. This book

proposes to address the issue of how we should change the ways in which we think

about, analyze, and structure occupations. The authors believed that by drawing on
92
the best available thinking and research about the purposes, methods, and uses of

occupational analysis, we could develop a comprehensive yet flexible occupational

information system that would have the capability to meet the needs of a diverse set

of users in an efficient, timely manner and they developed a working prototype of that

system. Gaby Atfield and Kate Purcell (2010) presented a research on the graduate

labour market supply and demand with respect to Final year students’ perceptions of

the skills they have to offer and the skills employers seek. This paper engaged with

the literature on ‘employability’, pointing out that a plethora of diverse phenomena

has been gathered under this heading. These have ranged from basic literacy and

numeracy skills, attitudinal and personality traits, social skills, evidence of potential to

engage in further learning and adapt to new environments, through commercial

awareness and general organisational skills, to the formally learned skills and

knowledge that constitute competence in a specific occupation or context. There is a

tendency on the part of some advocates of work experience to assume that

development of ‘employability skills’ is implicit in work experience. Final year

students who completed the questionnaire had been asked to evaluate their basic

written and spoken communication skills, numeracy and computer literacy at all three

stages of the survey so far, and to rate their self - confidence before embarking on

their courses and as they approached graduation. They were also asked about the

extent to which they had developed particular skills within the academic and

employability skills spectrums cited by skills and ‘employability’ stakeholders within

and beyond higher education. An examination of the responses of the Futuretrack

cohort members approaching the end of their undergraduate courses in 2009 showed

that they were well able to distinguish between skills possessed and skills acquired in

HE, both formally, as part of the curriculum, and informally, through the process of
93
being a student. They generally also exhibited systematic understanding of

distinctions between the market value and wider intrinsic value of different kinds of

educational qualifications, in terms of subject studied, skills development and

expectations of employment. Once again, the heterogeneity of the UK undergraduate

system is illustrated by these findings. Two significant areas of discrepancy emerge in

the analyses: A discrepancy between the extent to which graduating students believed

they possessed the key skills and competences included under the broad heading of

‘employability skills’ and the extent to which they believed that these had been

developed on their courses; and A discrepancy between students’ self- evaluations of

their skills and employment - readiness and employers’ reported opinions about the

skills and employability of recently - qualified new graduates. Another aspect that

deserves mention when it comes to E – learning, is about migration of students from

e- learning courses to traditional classroom courses. In this regard a practical study

was conducted by Marion Bowl in 2001 and the study describes part of the study of

the experiences of 32 mature, ‘non-traditional’ students as they make the transition to

higher education. The paper draws on the stories of three of the participants to

highlight some of the financial and institutional barriers experienced by mature

minority ethnic students. It points to the need for institutional change if nontraditional

students are to thrive within a system that purports to be directed towards widening

participation. The study reveals the non-traditional student as a frustrated participant

in an unresponsive institutional context and questions the tendency to problematize

students from non-traditional backgrounds, rather than the educational institutions

responsible for their progress This paper is based on research carried out with adults

involved in a community based, flexible access to higher education project in an

inner-city area of the UK. The study involved the development of a participatory
94
research design to encourage mature students to speak directly to an academic

audience and to reflect on their experiences as they made the decision to aim for

higher education entry, and as they entered a variety of part-time and fulltime higher

educational establishments and courses.

Baker, et. al., (2010) found Podcasting was a growing trend in higher education.

Major software companies, such as Apple, had dedicated entire website to podcasting.

These podcasts are available to college students to be used as supplemental material

for specific coursework at their particular college or university. Unfortunately, due to

the new and progressive nature of the technology, empirical studies of the

effectiveness of this pedagogical device are rare. The study presents an empirical

study of the effectiveness of podcasting when incorporated as supplemental course

material in a university course. Podcasting has become a popular medium for

accessing and assimilating information and podcasts are increasingly being used to

deliver audio recordings of lectures to campus‐based students. Copley, (2007)

described a simple, cost‐effective and files size‐efficient method for producing video

podcasts combining lecture slides and audio without a requirement for any specialist

software. The results from a pilot scheme delivering supplementary lecture materials

as audio and video podcasts were also presented, including data on download patterns

and responses to a survey of students on podcast use. The results revealed students'

enthusiasm for podcast recordings of lecture materials and their primary use by

students in revision and preparation for assessments. Survey responses also suggested

little likely impact on lecture attendance as a consequence of podcasting, but indicate

that podcast recordings of lectures may not be effective in facilitating mobile learning.

Podcasting involves downloading a series of audio or video broadcasts (files) onto a

digital media player, via a computer, over a period of weeks. These can then be
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watched or listened to when, where and as often as students choose. The use of digital

media players, popularized by Apple's iPod, is widespread amongst undergraduate

students. A pilot survey of Business and Management students indicated that over

74% owned some form of digital media player, with a further 7% indicating that they

intended to purchase one in the next six months. Whilst podcasting is being utilized as

a teaching tool by some educators in the secondary sector, its use in higher education,

and its effectiveness as a learning tool for adults, remains to be established. In our

study, separate groups of just fewer than 200 first-level students were given a series of

revision podcasts after completing a course in Information and Communications

Technology (and prior to their examination). As part of the subscription process, they

had to complete an online questionnaire about their experience. The questionnaire

utilized a five‐point Likert scale comparing their attitudes to lectures, podcasts, notes,

textbooks and multimedia e‐learning systems. Statistical analysis of the results of the

study indicates that students believe that podcasts are more effective revision tools

than their textbooks and they are more efficient than their own notes in helping them

to learn. They also indicate that they are more receptive to the learning material in the

form of a podcast than a traditional lecture or textbook. The study suggests that the

use of podcasts as a revision tool has clear benefits as perceived by undergraduate

students in terms of the time they take to revise and how much they feel they can

learn. Coupled with the advantages of flexibility in when, where and how it is used,

podcasting appears to have significant potential as an innovative learning tool for

adult learners in Higher Education. Thanks to advanced developments in wireless

technology, learners can now utilize digital learning websites at anytime and

anywhere (Chen and Huang, 2010). Mobile learning captures more and more attention

in the wave of digital learning. Evolving use of knowledge management plays an

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important role to enhance problem solving skills. Recently, innovative approaches for

integrating knowledge management into practical teaching activities have been

ignored. This was the first study to focus the design of a mobile knowledge

management learning system that encouraged learners to acquire, store, share, apply

and create knowledge. When learners used different mobile devices to learn, larger

screens perform better than smaller ones in the task performance and system working

quality. Analyzed by learning achievements, the experimental group has a rather

significant effect in adopting mobile knowledge management learning system than the

control group of traditional classroom lectures. After evaluating the system

acceptance by questionnaire survey, the experiment results indicated that (1)

perceived easy to use can positively predict perceived usefulness by learners, (2)

perceived easy to use and perceived usefulness can positively predict behavioral

intention of the system acceptance. Perceived usefulness is the key factor for learners’

willingness to be guided through the system's learning process. Another facet that

must be considered is the hand of the media in influencing decisions relating to

various courses and choices of institutions. Richard E. Clark (1994) stated that media

will never influence learning. is to explain and sharpen different points of view about

the impact of media and attributes of media on learning, motivation and efficiency

gains from instruction. The paper attempted to summarize arguments about the

research and theory in this area and to respond to Robert Kozma's criticism of the

researcher’s earlier discussion of these issues. Firstly the researcher summarizes the

arguments about media effects and attempted to characterize the many reactions to the

controversial claim that media do not influence learning or motivation. Finally, he

responded to the specific criticisms advanced by Robert Kozma on this issue.

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Limitations of the Study
A number of studies were considered, but those that fell in the following categories,

were not considered for the literature review:

 Those applied in a specific or particular situation and with particular software

or specializing in a definite area like the private sector, vocational training ,

health sector , industrial sector (there is no need to explain the difference

between those areas and the educational field)

 Any studies carried out in general education (pre-university) levels of

education

 Any studies carried out by businessmen and investors which were interested in

the income and economic investment from the use of e-learning more than the

educational return or any study aiming to evaluate the specific educational

program of a designer or developer, which are often made by the producers of

those programs

Gaps Identified:

After doing literature review it has been identified that there was no study conducted
on this topic-“A research on the Impact of E- Learning on student learning and
employability- A study in India”. Many of the researches and studies are conducted in
other countries and same studies were in other areas not in mentioned title or area.
There is no study stating the intended learning outcomes from the E- learning courses.
So this study mainly focuses on linking E- learning and employability of the student.

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 Chapter 3

Objectives of the Research and Research Methodology

Online e-Learning is an alternative to traditional face-to-face education. Many

institutions will implement e-Learning to meet students’ needs, especially those of

non-traditional students with full time jobs. Since e-Learning is conducted using the

Internet and World Wide Web, the learning environment becomes more complicated.

Students’ initial perceived satisfaction with technology-based e-Learning will

determine whether they will use the system continually. This research identifies

critical factors influencing e-Learners’ satisfaction and employability. The study will

review the key factors influencing e-Learning implementation and will provide a

comprehensive review of its impact on the stakeholders i.e., learners (students/

employees), educators and employers.

The objectives of the research are mentioned as under:

1) To study the various aspects of e-learning on stakeholders i.e., learners and

employers.

2) To assess the perceptions and attitudes of potential learners about e-learning

education.

3) To study the key challenges faced by learners in an e-learning program

4) To study the impact of e-learning both positive and negative on the employability

of the student.

Hypothesis:

The following hypotheses are proposed for the study and have been tested at 5% level

of significance:

H01: The positive aspects of e-learning have no significant impact on learners.

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H11: The positive aspects of e-learning have significant impact on learners.

H02: The positive aspects of e-learning have no significant impact on employers.

H12: The positive aspects of e-learning have significant impact on employers.

H03: The negative aspects of e-learning have no significant impact on learners.

H13: The negative aspects of e-learning have significant impact on learners.

H04: The negative aspects of e-learning have no significant impact on employers.

H14: The negative aspects of e-learning have significant impact on employers.

H05: There are no significant factors influencing the intended e-learning outcomes of

the learners.

H15: There are significant factors influencing the intended e-learning outcomes of the

learners.

H06: There is no significant impact of e-learning outcomes of learners on job

performance.

H16: There is significant impact of e-learning outcomes of learners on job

performance.

H07: There is no significant impact of e-learning outcomes on business performance of

an organisation

H17: There is significant impact of e-learning outcomes on business performance of an

organisation

H08: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of content has no

significant impact on the learner

H18: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of content has significant

impact on the learner

H09: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of technology has no

significant impact on the learner

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H19: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of technology has

significant impact on the learner

H010: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of range of e-learning

requirements has no significant impact on the learner

H110: The quality of e-learning programs measured in terms of range of e-learning

requirements has significant impact on the learner

Scope of the Study

The study would help to analyse the potential of the need for Electronic Based

education. The research analyses the market share and the various levels of

competitors. It would also study about how technology has craved in to education and

opened more avenues. The research also studies about how much is the acceptability

of E- Learning courses at work places. The study verifies the age group preference for

E-Learning Courses and if they are acceptable by the Industries at par with traditional

class room learning. The e-learning research studies about the various governing and

accrediting bodies and their roles in the education industry. This research conducted

would help Education industry to completely analyse the growth of E-Learning

market, preference of industries for such courses, types of courses on demand, the

various age groups and their preferences and the need for technological innovation in

Education.

Importance of the Study

The study would help Educational boards and Institutions to upgrade to the

technological need of the market. It would help educational institutions to simplify

and make the programmes more consumer friendly by easily available. It would also

study about the rise of the technological needs such as the Internet, various software

and applications, need for devices such as smart phones, laptops and I-pads. The
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research would also help understand how institutions noticing the surge in demands

need to adapt to the required infrastructure than the traditional classroom based

blackboards and chalks. This study would also help Internet based service providers

to study the demand and upgrade to higher technological versions in terms of internet

speed.

Research Methodology:

Descriptive Study:

The research is Descriptive in nature. The dependent variables in this study have been

chosen as:

1. Learner's intended outcomes

2. Learner's employability.

Learner's intended outcomes: To study the effective' use of ILT (information and

learning technology) on students' intermediate outcomes, namely:-

 Acquisition of knowledge and skills and

 Development as autonomous learners.

Effects relating to knowledge and skill could be divided into: engagement factors,

making students more receptive to learning; cognitive factors, making the learning

materials more accessible and aiding understanding; and performance factors,

producing better outputs and developing skills.

Effects relating to developing maturity as autonomous learners incorporated: the

development of self esteem, particularly for students who have had little success in

the past; motivation to learn; and autonomy, taking more responsibility for their own

learning and learning how to learn.

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Learner's Employability could be measured as outcomes that contribute to learner’s

performance on the job and overall improved business performance. This is based on

moderating variables such as ROI and productivity ratios.

The Learner's Learning Outcomes and Learner's Employability are influenced by the

following independent variables or elements:

1. Learner's qualities

2. E- learning environment

3. The learning activity

Learner's qualities - Age, education, experiences, job profile, needs, motives, prior

experience of learning, social and interpersonal skills, preferred learning styles, ICT

competence.

Learning environment (face-to-face or virtual) – available resources, tools, facilities

and services and their match with the learners’ needs.

The learning activity and approach taken - the means by which the faculty brings

about learning and seeks to influence the development of the learners by the use of

various learning styles, inclusion, and assessment.

The Secondary Data is collected from various available sources through desk research

including literature survey and referring e-libraries etc. Review of literature and other

available information from various published and unpublished reports, Journals,

books, newspapers etc (including databases like Ebsco, Pro-quest, India Business

Insight Databases and others).

Pilot Study

Pilot Study was conducted in Mumbai for HR Executives or Officers and E-Learners

to test the reliability of the instruments. The study was conducted with a sample of 10

HR Executives and 20 E-Learners. Cronbach’s alpha value was 0.70.

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Primary Research

Data collection was undertaken in two stages: in the first stage, a pilot survey was

conducted to ascertain the research parameters and to test the validity and reliability

of the instruments used in the study. In the second stage, the primary data was

collected using the instruments in the study. Questionnaires were used as instruments

for data collection from the respondents (HR- Executives and E-Learners).

Size and Design of Sample

The study was conducted across India. The sampling method used was Stratified

Random Sampling. The sample units were HR-Executives and E-Learners across

India.

Sample Size: The total valid sample for the study was 153 E-Learners and 36 HR-

Executives.

Sampling Plan

The target population of the study is identified as students and corporate organisations

from across the country. Since the universe cannot be defined, the sample size of the

study is ascertained to be 300 interviews of past and present learners and HR

executives.

n = Z2 × (P) × (1-P)

C2

Where,

Z = Z value (1.96 for 95% Confidence level)

P = Percentage picking a choice, expressed as a decimal (0.5 used for sample size

needed)

C = Confidence interval, expressed as a decimal ( e.g. 0.04 = ± 4)

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The sample units were HR-Executives and E-Learners across India. The total sample

size was ascertained to be 300 and 500 questionnaires were circulated. Out of these

300 questionnaires were returned. 100 questionnaires were ascertained to be invalid as

they samples were not users of E- learning and therefore the valid samples were

considered to be 153 E- learners and 36 were HRs.

Research Instrument

The research was conducted using a coded questionnaire for learners and the HR

executives. It comprises of quantitative and qualitative statements. The quantitative

section was tested using SPSS 20.

Limitations of the Study

The study could not be conducted all over the country as it was difficult to analyse the

samples. Most of the learners keep the education confidential and the institutes too

refuse to divulge the student details and this made the researcher not get much of data.

The number of universities with e based learning were also less in number. The other

factors which were difficult for the researcher were the data and perspectives of the

HR’s of the industries as many refused to opinion their views for the research.

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 Chapter 4

Role of Education in India:

Education has a directly proportional effect on the economic and social development

of the country. India, like any other growing economy, depends on the development

of its educational sector. Higher education drives the competitiveness and

employment generation in India. However, research findings have shown that the

overall state of higher education is depressing in our country. There is a severe

constraint on the availability of skilled labor (Agarwal, 2006). India faces a 3-fold

shortage in adequately qualified teachers in some parts of the country. Additionally,

we lack the technology that can address this through remote solutions (NASSCOM

McKinsey Report – Perspective 2020, 2009). There is also a considerable constraint

in the availability of skilled labor. In many parts of the country; there are many socio-

economic, cultural, time and geographical barriers for people who wish to pursue

higher education. When considering employability skills of the youth in our country,

we find that there exists a lacuna in the quality of education and training imparted to

students pursuing higher education. The challenges before the education system in

India can be said to be of the following nature:

 Access to education- Although we may have been able to rid the education

system of bias among students during admission processes, there still other

constraints such as infrastructure, socio- economic, linguistic and physical

barriers in India for people who wish to access education.

 Quality of education- The syllabi for many courses remain unchanged and

therefore reduce the quality of the education.

 Resources allocated- there is a substantial lack of resource allotment for the

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 education sector. Central and State Governments reserve only about 3.5% of

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for education as compared to the 6% that has

been aimed.

Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) is a statistical measure used by the United Nations to

measure the total population of all ages enrolled in different education programs to

the total population of the country in the age group of 18-23. The current level of

GER in India stands at a figure of 12.4% and compares very low compared to world

averages of 23.2%; 36.5% for developing countries and 45% for developed countries.

As per the All India Survey on Higher Education - Pilot Report by Ministry of Human

Resource Development (MHRD), Department of Higher Education Planning,

Monitoring and Statistics Bureau 2011; Government has set a target of increasing the

GER from the present level of about 12% to 15% by the end of XI Five Year Plan and

to 30% by the year 2020. Various new initiatives have been taken during XI Five

Year Plan to increase the GER. There exist drawbacks in general education in India as

well as all over the world like lack of learning materials, teachers, remoteness of

education facilities, high dropout rate etc (UNESCO, 2002). The number of students

pursuing higher education in India is considerably very low. Whilst the industries

keep questioning the employability skills of a recent college graduate, they do not

indulge in activities with the educational institutions in order to improve the quality of

education. This becomes increasingly important when we consider as to how prepared

are the students to take on more responsible roles in the industry. Innovative use of

Information and communication technology can potentially solve these problems. In

this chapter, the researcher attempts to broadly introduce the various aspects of

Higher Education and Technology.

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4.1. Higher Education Sector – The India Story

India, throughout history has always presented itself as a leading center for

knowledge and education. India has made valuable contributions in various fields.

However, in spite of such a lineage, it is saddening to observe that a mere handful of

Indian institutions providing degrees of higher education are considered to meet the

present global bench-marks. The Indian Education system has itself in a

distinguishingly peculiar situation. On one hand many Indian students and

researchers are valued on the global platform to be outstanding while on the other

hand; we still have a very high illiteracy rate. Plagued with the challenge of brain-

drain and limited access to education for its population, India, however, strives to be

a knowledge economy. It is a known fact that regular educational reforms are a must

inorder to develop innovation and development as well as to act as a driver to

generating good quality research. As per the Radakrishnan Commission report on

university education, Education is a powerful instrument of social, economic and

cultural transformation for the realization of natural goals. Inorder to take stock and

provide improvement measures towards management education, the Govt. of India

had appointed various committees from time to time. The National Knowledge

Commission (NKC) was established by the Prime Minister of India in 2005 in the

country. The commission had appointed a working group on management education

under the chairmanship of Prof. S. L. Rao (Rao, 2005). This working group had

referred various reports on management education since 1981 and along with

existing state of business education in India like:

 Nanda Committee Report – 1981

 Kurian Committee Report – 1991

 Ishwar Dayal Committee Report – 2001

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  The Management Review Committee Report – 2003

 U. R. Rao Report on Faculty Development Programme – 2004

 All India Management Association (AIMA) Report – 2005

Some of the common findings across these reports, stressed on the need for:

 Ensuring Quality Faculty

 Promoting Faculty Development programmes

 Internationalize Management Education

 Integrate technology towards delivery

Realising this need for an improved set of skills and competencies, the Government of

India has begun emphasing on the education sector. This is particularly vital in this

era of globalization and the greater need for skilled labour. The Eleventh Five Year

Plan has allocated an increased expenditure in both primary and higher education. The

education sector is witnessing rapid growth with an implied need for physical

infrastructure to support the growth and increase outreach. As per the KPMG, CLSA

Report (2011), Education is one of the largest service sector industries in India with a

combined market size of more than 450mn students and USD 50BN per annum.

However, there is still a huge demand-supply mismatch and there is a requirement for

greater investment in order to meet expected demand. There is a robust growth rate

expected i.e. 10 to 15% over the next decade and also expected are higher rate of

returns especially in the field of higher education. The estimated market size for

Higher Education segment is approx. USD 10.3BN and accounts for 12% of the

overall Education sector. However there are challenges such as Low GER, Low

spending on Higher Education, Not-for-profit mandate of the government and lack of

large players in the market inhibit the higher education sector from blossoming to its

full strength. Innovative use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

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can potentially solve this problem.

University Grants Commission (UGC)

The University Grants Commission (UGC) of India is a statutory organisation set up

by the Union government in 1956, charged with coordination, determination and

maintenance of standards of university education. It provides recognition to

universities in India, and disburses funds to such recognized universities and colleges.

Prof. Ved Prakash, a noted academician and education administrator, is the incumbent

Chairman of UGC, India. Its headquarters are in New Delhi, and six regional centres

in Pune, Bhopal, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Guwahati and Bangalore. UGC was

recommended in 1945 and formed in 1946 to oversee the work of the three Central

Universities of Aligarh, Banaras and, Delhi. In 1947, the Committee was entrusted

with the responsibility of dealing with all the then existing Universities. After

independence, the University Education Commission was set up in 1948 under the

Chairmanship of S. Radhakrishnan and it recommended that the UGC be reconstituted

on the general model of the University Grants Commission of the United Kingdom.

UGC was formally inaugurated by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the Minister of

Education, Natural Resources and Scientific Research on 28 December 1953. The

UGC has the unique distinction of being the only grant-giving agency in the country

which has been vested with two responsibilities: that of providing funds and that of

coordination, determination and maintenance of standards in institutions of higher

education.

The UGC's mandate includes:

 Promoting and coordinating university education.

 Determining and maintaining standards of teaching, examination and research

in universities.
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  Framing regulations on minimum standards of education.

 Monitoring developments in the field of collegiate and university education;

disbursing grants to the universities and colleges.

 Serving as a vital link between the Union and state governments and

institutions of higher learning.

 Advising the Central and State governments on the measures necessary for

improvement of university education.

All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)

The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) is the statutory body and a

national-level council for technical education, under Department of Higher Education,

Ministry of Human Resource Development. Established in November 1945 first as an

advisory body and later on in 1987 given statutory status by an Act of Parliament,

AICTE is responsible for proper planning and coordinated development of the

technical education and management education system in India. The AICTE accredits

postgraduate and graduate programs under specific categories at Indian institutions as

per its charter. It is assisted by 10 Statutory Boards of Studies, namely, UG Studies in

Eng. & Tech., PG and Research in Eng. and Tech., Management Studies, Vocational

Education, Technical Education, Pharmaceutical Education, Architecture, Hotel

Management and Catering Technology, Information Technology, Town and Country

Planning. The AICTE has its headquarters in 7th Floor, Chanderlok Building,

Janpath, New Delhi, which has the offices of the chairman, vice-chairman and the

member secretary, plus it has regional offices at Kolkata, Chennai, Kanpur, Mumbai,

Chandigarh, Guwahati, Bhopal, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Gurgaon. In its 25 April

2013 judgement the Honorable Supreme Court said "as per provisions of the AICTE

Act and University Grants Commission (UGC) Act, the council has no authority
111
which empowers it to issue or enforce any sanctions on colleges affiliated with the

universities as its role is to provide guidance and recommendations."

The AICTE comprises ten bureaus, namely:

 e-Governance (e-Gov) Bureau

 Faculty Development (FD) Bureau

 Undergraduate Education (UG) Bureau

 Postgraduate Education and Research (PGER) Bureau

 Quality Assurance (QA) Bureau

 Planning and Co-ordination (PC) Bureau

 Research and Institutional Development (RID) Bureau

 Administration (Admin) Bureau

 Finance (Fin) Bureau

 Academic (Acad) Bureau

For each bureau, adviser is the bureau head who is assisted by technical officers and

other supporting staff. The multidiscipline technical officer and staff of the Council

are on deputation or on contract from government departments, University Grants

Commission, academic institutions, etc.

4.2. Skilled Resources

4.2.1. Demand Supply Gap:

The National Skill Development Co-ordination Board Planning Commission’s

Report on the Recommendations of the Sub- committee have established an

Institutional mechanism for proving access to key information on Skills Inventory

and Skills Maps on a real time basis targets specific sectors of skills training.

According to 2007-08 Economic Survey, 64.8% of India‘s population would be in

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the working age of 15-64 years in 2026 up from 62.9% in 2006. Other projections

also indicate emergence of young India with 800 million in the productive age group

by 2020 compared to 600 million in China.

Fig 2: Requirement of Qualified Manpower in India by 2012 (Millions), Source: NSSO Updates,

MHRD 2004-05; Press releases; Estimates. Ref. KPMG – CLSA Report (2011)

According to a study conducted by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Boston

Consulting Group (CII & BCG); India has a large population base of 1.14 billion with

demographic shift in favor of working age group (15-59 years) while the overall

population is projected to grow at 1.4% over the next five years the working age

group is expected to grow at 2.15%. Continuing with the expected trends, 109 million

persons came to be of the mature and working age during the period of 2007-2012.

The net addition to workforce was, therefore, found to be an estimated 90 million of

which around 13 million were found to be of the skilled labour category – graduates

and about 57 million were projected to be school drop outs or illiterates.

Another study by Boston Consulting Group for Progress Harmony Development -

Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHD CCI) has estimated that by 2020 the world

will have shortage of 56 million working people but India will have a surplus of 47

million. Therefore, in order to harvest the benefits of this disparity, India will have to

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encourage a higher number of students to undertake higher education and equip this

human resource with employability skills necessary to meet the requirements of the

global talent pool.

4.2.2. Skills Development:

The PHD CCI report also states that it is no overstatement to state that India’s growth

in the known high-growth sectors namely, BFSI, Retail, Construction, and hospitality

etc. are significantly affected mainly due to the lack of skilled man power; rather than

the lack of funding, lack of access to fair markets or even due to restrictive

government or trade policies. Hence, the skill development mission is truly a mission

mode project to accomplish the ambitious goal of creating 500 million skilled

professionals by 2022. The targets are based on projected employment potential in the

concerned sectors.

4.2.3. The Telecom Revolution:

The success of telecom revolution has fuelled the information and communication

reach to the masses at affordable costs. India is now poised for a revolution in the

higher education sector with the availability of low cost technology and is being

catalyzed by the ubiquity of equally economical mobile devices. As per the Telecom

Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Report dated May 2012, there are already

over 923 million mobile subscribers in India. 64.24% of these are urban subscribers,

whereas 35.76% are rural subscribers. Additionally, the broadband subscriptions rose

to 14.31 million in May‘2012. With the introduction of 3G and 4G internet that is

now available on mobile phones, it presents itself as a golden opportunity for students

and teachers alike to take advantage of this technology in order to enrich the learning

experience. Considering technology, mobile phones are the fastest growing

technology platform in the developing world. India is the largest market for mobile
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phones worldwide, with the majority being bought by illiterate and semi-literate users.

Today almost every mobile phone user in India possesses a smart phone that provides

access to the World Wide Web. Almost all of these phones feature multimedia

capabilities for photos, videos and gaming. These devices are a perfect means for new

kinds of out-of-school learning, which can occur at places and times that are more

convenient than school. These facilities when properly utilized provide an opportunity

for complementing the formal educational system. It also provides those in even the

rural parts of the country to enhance their skills which in turn will help create avenues

for employment as well as generate interest for higher education.

As per the Internet and Mobile Association of India (Apr’2011), some interesting

facts that would help us in understanding the exponential growth and reach of the

mobile and telecom revolution that the country is witnessing are as follows:

 71% of India‘s population uses mobile phones – that is 858,370,000 individuals

 While there are so many mobile phones, internet penetration is still very low – as

low as 8%.

Some facts as per the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on the growth of

mobile subscribers in India:

 Mobile subscription rate in India is growing at an Annual rate of 34% there are

roughly 290,000,000 rural mobile subscribers in India Penetration of Mobile.

 Subscriptions in India are 71% as compared to 61% TV subscription in Indian

households.

 There were 346,670,000 Mobile Data subscribers in India in June 2011.

70% of Indian Internet Users watch online videos

The Indian telecom sector has seen an exponential growth in the last few years. High

proliferation of mobile services has created a unique opportunity to deliver

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information and innovative services to the masses. The mobile phone has evolved

from a device just to support communication requirements to a smart phone with

ability to provide a plethora of information & services usually known as Mobile

Value Added Services (MVAS). These applications possess features and functions

that are unique to mobile devices such as mobility, flexibility to use at anytime and

anywhere. MVAS is likely to provide innovative services to customers and new

revenue stream for service providers.

Currently, the contribution of Value Added Services (VAS) to the total revenue of

Indian telecom operators is just 9-10%, which is significantly lower when compared

with developed markets. The potential for VAS revenues appears all the more

significant at the present juncture, given that India is set to expand 3G services, a

standard that allows operators to offer wide range of advanced services.

4.2.4. Internet Revolution:

As per the Internet World Statistics (IWS), India ranks 2nd in Asia in Internet usage

with 121 million internet users (as on 31st Dec‘2012). This brings about the

penetration population of 10.20 as the total Indian population is approx. 1190 million.

There is a steep rise in Internet users as compared to year 2000, where India

accounted for 5.5 million Internet users. Below table enumerates the steady rise in the

Internet usage in India.

YEAR Users % Penetration Usage Source

1998 1,400,000 0.10% ITU

1999 2,800,000 0.30% ITU

2000 5,500,000 0.50% ITU

2001 7,000,000 0.70% ITU

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 2002 16,500,000 1.60% ITU

2003 22,500,000 2.10% ITU

2004 39,200,000 3.60% C.I. Almanac

2005 50,600,000 4.50% C.I. Almanac

2006 40,000,000 3.60% IAMAI

2007 42,000,000 3.70% IWS

2009 81,000,000 7.00% ITU

2010 100,000,000 8.50% IWS

Table 1: Rise in the Internet usage in India. (as on 31st Dec 2012)
Source: http://www.internetworldstats.com/asia/in.htm

4.3. Technology Paradigm in education:

4.3.1. Global Rise of Technology in education:

With the advent of technology and the changing global dynamics, there has been a

growing emphasis with respect to transforming course curriculums and learning

pedagogies. There is a greater stress on raising current standards to make the

curriculum more relevant to professional requirements, and in line with international

standards. To a considerable extent, the rise of private sector educational institutions

and universities has helped improve supply, in terms of the number of seats available.

However, these have also impacted the quality problem. Not only is there wide

variance in the quality of graduates from different institution, there are too many with

unacceptably low standards both in the government and private sectors. Therefore, in

the pursuit for quality, even as efforts are made to enhance student learning by

improving curriculum and pedagogy, or by easing entry for the private sector - there
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remains a critical element that is still missing from the picture – how effective is the

current classroom training methodology. The rapidly increasing use of computers in

education, and in particular the migration of many university courses to web-based

delivery, has caused a resurgence of interest among educators in non-traditional

methods of course design and delivery. Countries such as America, Australia have

made significant strides when it comes to the usage of technology in Higher

Education. There is currently a boom in demand for secondary, career and vocational

education in the United States of America. Asian countries such as Japan and South

Korea are not too behind and have been one of the early embracers of technology in

higher education too. Typically technology is used for delivering classroom content,

course completion, and assignment follow-up, assigning project work, attendance

tracking, feedback, quizzes and examinations.

4.3.2. Leveraging Technology in Indian Management Education:

Realizing the importance of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) the

Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) as per the Mission Document,

ICT is the tool in education available to enhance the current enrolment rate in Higher

Education, at present 15 percent to 30 percent by the end of the 11th Plan period. The

Ministry also launched a web portal named ―SAKSHAT a One Stop Education

Portal‘. The high quality e-content once developed will be uploaded on SAKSHAT in

all disciplines and subjects. Several projects are in the completion stage and are

expected to change the way teaching and learning is done in India. The case in point

is the project, ―Developing suitable pedagogical methods for various classes,

intellectual calibers and research in e-learning, anchored by IIT Kharagpur. Faculties

from all the IITs and several NITs are participating in this curriculum development

project. The National Mission on Education through Information and Communication

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Technology (ICT) has, under its aegis, created Virtual Labs, Open Source and Access

Tools, Virtual Conference Tools, Talk to Teacher programs, a Non-Invasive Blood

Glucometer and also for simulated lab experiments, a Di. Electric frequency shift

application development of resonator for low cost oscillators. The National Mission

on Education through Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been

envisaged as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme to leverage the potential of ICT, in

providing high quality personalized and interactive knowledge modules over the

internet/intranet for all the learners in Higher Education Institutions in any time any

where mode. This is expected to be a major intervention in enhancing the Gross

Enrolment Ratio (GER) in Higher Education by 5 percentage points during the XI

Five Year Plan period and in ensuring access and equity in Higher Education. The

Mission has two major components viz., (a) content generation and (b) connectivity

along with provision for access devices for institutions and learners. It seeks to bridge

the digital divide, i.e., the gap in the skills to use computing devices for the purpose of

teaching and learning among urban and rural teachers/learners in Higher Education

domain and empower those, who have hitherto remained untouched by the digital

revolution and have not been able to join the mainstream of the knowledge economy.

It plans to focus on appropriate pedagogy for e-learning, providing facility of

performing experiments through virtual laboratories, on-line testing and certification,

on-line availability of teachers to guide and mentor learners, utilization of available

Education Satellite (EduSAT) and Direct to Home (DTH) platforms, training and

empowerment of teachers to effectively use the new method of teaching learning etc.

On the one hand, the Mission would create high quality e-content for the target groups

and on the other, it would simultaneously seek to extend computer infrastructure and

connectivity to over 18000 colleges in the country including each of the departments
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of nearly 400 universities/deemed universities and institutions of national importance.

The peer group assisted content development would utilize the Wikipedia type of

collaborative platform under the supervision of a content advisory committee

responsible for vetting the content. Interactivity and problem solving approach would

be addressed through ―Talk to a Teacher segment. The Mission would also have a

component of Teacher Empowerment through proper training and digital literacy of

teachers to be able to use the e-contents. Renowned institutions would anchor various

activities in their areas of excellence. The Mission would seek to enhance the

standards of education, in Government as well as in private colleges. Enlistment of

support and cooperation of States/Union Territories, Institutions and individual

experts would be an integral part of the Mission. National Programme of Technology

enhanced Learning (NPTEL) Phase II and III will be part of the content generation

activity. An amount of Rs. 4612 crore is to be incurred during the 11th Five Year Plan

for the National Mission on Education through ICT. This mission is an opportunity as

well as a challenge for the bright faculty members of our Universities and Institutions

of Excellence to invest their intellectual capital for the knowledge empowerment of

all the learners in India. This would help in synergizing individual efforts in this

direction.

4.3.3. Limited use of Technology in the Education Sector:

Change has been gradual but slow in the Indian context. For the sake of argument,

let‘s take into account the number of examinations held by at various levels by the

universities such as:

 Entrance exams to test potential candidates on minimum acceptable standards for

course entries.

 In-course (internal) exams help students understand the need for further
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 guidance, improvement and feedback.

 End-course (final) exams are final verdicts of student performance, to determine

the knowledge, skills and abilities imbibed by the student from the course.

With steadily rising enrollment numbers across Management institutions and new

courses being introduced each year, this number is expected to grow substantially in

the coming years as per the researchers‘estimates, the number of examinations might

well exceed millions across the country. Indian Management educational institutes

spend much time, money and effort to manage these exams, which are as yet being

conducted through traditional paper and pen methods with manual evaluation. The

prevailing system is marred with many challenges. Leverage of technology towards

examination is still in its infancy and the major breakthrough has been through the

Common Admission Test (CAT) Entrance examination. This is an exciting

proposition and the questions that we face today are: Is this the beginning of a trend?

Can technology really make a difference? Moving beyond Examinations and taking a

broader horizon in education, believers think that under the right conditions

technologies can have a monumental impact on the expansion of learning

opportunities to wider populations, beyond the confines of teaching institutions and

over the lifetime of the individual. Also, technologies can improve the

teaching/learning process, enhance higher levels of cognition, and facilitate

institutional management, thereby contributing to enhancing education in a

development context in a number of ways such as:

1. Increasing the number of qualified teachers by accelerating teacher training

(Unwin, 2004),

2. Improving achievement levels by helping to counter adverse factors such high

student: teacher ratios, shortage of basic teaching materials and poor physical
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 infrastructure (Bass, 2011),

3. Reducing drop-out rates by making learning more interesting and stimulating

(Light, 2009),

4. Overcoming geographical obstacles through distance learning (Rye, 2009)

5. Changing pedagogical practices and providing access to educational content and

up to date resources (Webb and Cox, 2004).

Other student benefits may include greater opportunities for post-school employment,

and greater motivation for information technology related careers.

4.3.4. Understanding the Technology Acceptance Dimension:

One of the important dimensions useful in the study is the user acceptance of

technology. Significant research has been done to examine the parameters that

provide insights into the user acceptance of technology. It is called Technology

Acceptance Model (TAM). It was formulated by Fred D. Davis to provide a valid

measurement scale for assessing user acceptance of computers (Davis, 1989; 1993).

TAM is focused more on technology, and is claimed to be different from previous

measurements as it provides a valid measurement scale to predict user acceptance of

Information Technology. To measure user acceptance, TAM uses two variables,

―perceived usefulness and ―perceived ease of use (Davis, 1989; 1993). Perceived

usefulness (PU) refers to the degree to which the user believes the new technology

would enhance job performance (Davis, 1989; 1993; Davis, et. al., 1989). Perceived

Ease of Use (PEU) refers to the user‘s belief that using the new technology would

require minimum effort (Davis, 1989; 1993; Davis, et. al., 1989). TAM suggested that

the user‘s intention to use new technology is jointly determined by attitudes toward

using and perceived usefulness (Davis, 1989, 1993; Davis, et. al., 1989). PEU may be

influenced by two factors: the ―availability of training and support and ―perceived
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accessibility of the new technology (Karahanna and Straub, 1999). PEU is also

influenced by computer self-efficacy, objective usability, and direct experience

(Venkatesh and Davis, 1996). PU may be influenced by three factors: the availability

of training and support; the social presence of the technology through communication

channels; and the social influence to use the new technology (Karahanna and Straub,

1999). However, in TAM the main focus to measure user acceptance is PU and PEU.

Technology in education today are delivered in various forms i.e. d-Learning

(distance), e-Learning (electronic) and m-Learning (mobile). From the research

perspective it is important to understand these terms as they are most often used inter-

changeably and misunderstood.

4.4. Understanding d-learning, e-learning and m-Learning:

At this point it is important to understand and bifurcate the important terms that sound

so synonymous and are relatively mis-interpreted.

D-Learning: General term used to cover broad range of teaching and learning events

in which the student is separated (at a distance) from the instructor, or other fellow

learners. The acquisition of knowledge and skills through mediated information and

instruction, encompassing all technologies and other forms of learning at a distance.

e-Learning (D-Learning utilizing electronic device): Learning from any device

dependent upon the actions of electronics, such as television, computers,

microcomputers, videogames, cable, audio books and all the other devices in the

process of being invented that are electronic in nature

m-Learning: An approach to e-learning that utilizes mobile devices through the

intersection of mobile computing (the application of small portable, and wireless

computing and communication devices) and e-learning.

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 Fig.3: The place of m-Learning as part of e-Learning and d-Learning (Georgiev, et. al., 2004)

Relationship between d-, e-, and m-Learning:

To distinguish e- from m-Learning Upadhyay (2006) designed a model where the

delivery methods were differentiated through a continuum consisting of functionality

and mobility

4.4.1. Introducing m-Learning

Global emergence of m-Learning emergence in education:

M-Learning has now emerged as a new wave of development, based on the use of

mobile devices combined with wireless infrastructure. Mobile Learning has a strong

foundational base when it comes to how the student will learn when there is an

interaction of the learning material, technological platform, and the wireless network.

Just like wireless technology which was built on numerous technological advances,

m-Learning also is a combination or a hybrid of more than one system.

Quality Improvement Agency (2010) mentioned out that most mobile devices are

useful in the field of education and following are some of the advantages:

 Learners can interact with each other and with the practitioner instead of

hiding behind large monitors.

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  It‘s much easier to accommodate several mobile devices in a classroom than

several desktop computers.

 PDAs or tablets holding notes and e-books are lighter and less bulky than

bags full of files, papers and textbooks, or even laptops.

 Handwriting with stylus pen is more intuitive than using keyboard and mouse.

 It‘s possible to share assignments and work collaboratively; learners and

practitioners can e-mail, cut, copy and paste text, pass device around a group,

or beam the work to each other using the infrared function of a PDA or a

wireless network such as Bluetooth.

 Mobile devices can be used anywhere, anytime, including at home, on the

train, in hotels – this is invaluable for work-based training.

 There devices engage learners – young people who may have lost interest in

education – like mobile phones, gadgets and games devices such as Nintendo

or Playstation Portable.

 This technology may contribute to combating the digital divide, as this

equipment is cheaper than desktop computers.

Furthermore, findings from studies conducted by Kennedy et. al. (2008a) and

Kennedy et. al. (2008b), mobile devices allowed users to conduct 9 activities in higher

education as the following:

i. To send pictures or movies to colleagues

ii. To use mobile phone as MP3 player

iii. To access information or services on the web

iv. To make video calls

v. To take digital photos or movies

vi. To send receive email

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vii. To use mobile phones as a personal organizer (e.g. diary, address book)

viii. To send or receive SMS to colleagues

ix. To call the communicators or others

4.4.2. M-Learning the new enabler:

With the ubiquity of mobile networks and portable devices, distance learning has

evolved from desktop computer to mobile device. Mobile learning is the use of

mobile or wireless devices for learning while the learner is on the move. Mobile

devices provide a new medium for learning - which can be either formal or informal;

and has unique offerings such as just-in-time, just-in-place learning. Mobile Learning

is not about courses, but instead supports a broad definition of learning, including

innovation, collaboration, research, design and more, generating new products,

services, and problems solved. Whether providing needed tools, augmenting learning,

or connecting individuals, mobile is a powerful new tool for supporting performance.

Fetaji, in his study, (Fetaji, 2008) says as non-traditional methods of education

become more prevalent and thus, informal and flexible learning environments become

necessary for students in an ever connected society, research of m-Learning will play

a significant role in determining if institutions can support 21st century needs.

Based on this Pollara and Broussard (2011) did a study to enable researchers to

identify current research practices in order to understand the current direction of

mobile learning and further research in this growing field. Their study summarized,

evaluated, and explained the research applicable to understanding student perceptions

of m-Learning. They showed that several studies found that m-Learning did generate

strong interest among the students. In the majority of the studies, students reported

having a strong, positive reaction to integrating m-Learning into the classroom.

Moreover, learners found that learning with mobile devices was enjoyable. Students
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also recognized the potential for future m-Learning opportunities as new technologies

are integrated into education and wanted to use devices in an educational setting in

the future. Students reported competence and ease in using the devices and

performing the learning tasks. In addition, participants found that using mobile

devices was convenient and enabled learning to be flexible and portable because of

the portability and perceived convenience associated with mobile applications and

tools although students felt if additional personal expense was needed to perform the

tasks (i.e. if they had to purchase a cell phone data plan or their equipment was not up

to date) that these factors would act as a deterrent. Few studies noted that students

were already aware of m-Learning and the student reported little or no change in their

perceptions either positively or negatively. In recent times, many researchers have

focused on m-Learning and its environment, such as users‘acceptance in m-Learning

(Phuangthong and Malisawan, 2005; Liu, 2009), setting the environment for m-

Learning (Chao and Chen 2009; Brown et. al., 2006, Liu et. al., 2008), and the

application of m-Learning in developed countries (Paul, 2008). The adoption of

mobile device is not the same in all countries.

4.4.3. Benefits of D-Learning:

No other learning approach matches the integrated, continuous flow of m-Learning:

 Seamless access to learning resources: With mobile learning, you can learn and

study anywhere - from the classroom to your desktop or laptop to your pocket. A

true mobile learning system allows users to take a course on any device.

 Flexible, portable convenience: The ability to customize learning schedules is a

key advantage to m-Learning. Learners are not restricted to a specific physical

environment, a particular delivery channel, or a fixed set of times for

undertaking training and education. Using the latest technology, students can
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 update their knowledge base on a just-in-time basis to prepare for meetings or

presentations.

 Freedom, power, and choice: m-Learning students can choose where, when,

and how they will study. The new range of options includes online synchronized,

online self-paced, downloaded courseware, and computer-based training. m-

Learning offers new levels of freedom with the ability to exercise control over

learning patterns.

 Organized productivity: With only a cell phone, handheld device, PDA, or

hybrid unit, users can access administrative functions, download courses, and

review their learning history through a learning management system. m-Learning

offers an efficient way for learners to access key information and maximize their

time.

 Collaborative Learning: Both the capabilities of mobile devices and their wide

context of use contribute to their propensity to foster collaboration. Mobile

devices can easily communicate with other devices of the same or similar type,

enabling learners to share data, files and messages. They can also be connected

to a shared data network, further enhancing possibilities for communication.

These devices are also typically used in a group setting, and so interactions and

collaboration will tend to take place not just through the devices but also at and

around them as well. Research into collaborative learning with mobile devices is

greatly informed by previous research on Computer-Supported Collaborative

Learning (CSCL). In reality, much current research into mobile learning can be

classed as mobile-CSCL or MCSCL, and there is a specific focus on the use of

mobile technologies to promote, facilitate and enhance interactions and

collaborations between students.

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Good ideas are less likely to be lost, and thoughts can be followed through without

regard to the normal time constraints. Opinions can be considered on their merits,

without some of the stereotypical assumptions that may be superimposed in a face-to-

face environment based on the speaker‘s gender, physical appearance, or mannerisms.

Employers - whether private or public corporations, government organizations, or

small business - are today more than ever ranking generic skills at least as highly as

subject content knowledge when they select Management graduates. Among the most

frequently listed and highly prized of those generic skills are computer literacy and

the ability to work effectively in a team environment. If introduced appropriately into

the curriculum, collaborative learning has the potential to provide students with both.

A number of problems are apparent, among the most prominent of which is the simple

problem of inertia. It is often the case in higher education institutions that it is easier

for educators to follow accepted practices than to carve out new paths. Those brave

enough to attempt to replace the traditional lecture-tutorial model with something as

radical as group work may risk finding themselves subject to abuse from superiors,

colleagues, and students, who may regard nontraditional methods of instruction with

suspicion and distrust. The problems can therefore be broken down into three

categories: those occurring because of the influence of other stakeholders; those

affecting the instructors; and those directly related to the students and the learning

process. Panitz (1997, 1999, 2001) in his articles deals with many fundamental topics,

such as why teachers often resist collaborative learning techniques, why students

resist collaborative learning, and the reactions of other stakeholders (such as parents

and administrators). With regard to the faculty, it is typically the case that teaching

staff are most comfortable using the traditional methods by which they themselves

were taught.
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4.4.3. The Global D-Learning scenario:

As per Ambient Insight, a leading US based Market research report dated Sep‘2011

'The Worldwide Market for Mobile Learning Products and Services: 2010 2015

Forecast and Analysis: Ambient Insight Comprehensive Report'; the worldwide

market for Mobile Learning products and services reached $3.2 Billion in 2010. The

five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is 22.7% and revenues will reach

$9.1 billion by 2015. The country-by-country dynamics of the worldwide market are

changing fast. In the 2010 market, the US was the top Mobile Learning buying

country, followed by Japan, South Korea, the UK, China, and Taiwan. By 2015, the

top buying countries will be the US, China, India, Japan, Indonesia, and Brazil,

respectively. Interestingly, the countries with the highest growth rates (all over 60%)

are China, India, and Indonesia.The projections for the future state that greater

number of courses and study material shall be made available for several types of

handheld devices including:

 Mobile phones (feature phones and smartphones)

 Personal media players & Personal digital assistants (PDAs)

 Handheld tablets and eReaders

 Mobile internet devices (MIDs)

 Personal learning devices designed solely for learning and performance support

A major global catalyst is the rapid adoption of tablets and eReaders across all buyer

segments. As of 2010, tablets and eReaders were still largely a trend concentrated in

developing economies. This is changing quickly with prices falling for general

purpose devices and the recent availability of low-cost devices designed for

education. The government mandated migrations to electronic content in school

systems around the world is driving sales of the devices.

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The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT):

The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model is one of

the most widely used in the field of Information and Communication Technology. It

was developed by Venkatesh et. al (2003). UTAUT was formulated based on

conceptual and empirical similarities across Eight important Technology Acceptance

Models:

i. Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) (Davis, 1989);

ii. Innovation Diffusion Theory (Rogers, 1995);

iii. Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975);

iv. Motivation Model (MM) (Davis et. al. 1992);

v. Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) (Ajzen, 1991);

vi. Combined TAM and TPB (Taylor and Todd, 1995);

vii. Model of PC Utilization (MPCU) (Thompson et.al.,1991); and

viii. Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) (Bandura, 1986).

Venkatesh et.al (2003) defined these factors as follows:

 Performance Expectancy, which is ―the degree to which an individual

perceives that using the system will him or her to attain gain in job

performance;

 Effort Expectancy, which is ―the degree of ease associated with the use of

the system;

 Social Influence, which is ―the degree to which an individual perceives that

important others believe he or she should use the new system;

 Facilitating Condition, which is ―the degree to which an individual believes

that an organizational and technical infrastructure exists to support the use of

the system;
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 Behavioral Intention, which is ―the person‘s subjective probability that he or

she will perform the behavior in question; UTAUT could explain 70% of

technology behavior (Masrom, Hussein 2008).

UTUAT consists of Four Key concepts that are:

i. Performance Expectancy (perceived usefulness),

ii. Effort Expectancy (Perceived ease of use)

iii. Social Factors and

iv. Facilitating conditions that have a direct influence on intention to use it. The

variables of gender, age, experience and voluntariness of use moderate the key

relationship in the model. This model is as follows:

Fig.4: UTAUT Model, Venkatesh et. al (2003)

After the UTAUT model was considered; the researcher selected and adopted

UTAUT Model in this research. The conceptual research framework takes into

account various stakeholders (faculty and students) and their varied needs for

technology adoption. This research based on UTAUT Model, used five main factors

that gave immediate effect to the intention to use in m-Learning and the mediator

variables such as gender, age, experience and voluntariness of use. The below

diagram identifies the contextual research framework.

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 Chapter 5

TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION

5.1. Education and Technology

Education is the driving force of economic and social development in any country

(Cholin, 2005; Mehta and Kalra, 2006). India, like any other knowledge economy,

depends on the development of its educational sector. Higher education drives the

competitiveness and employment generation in India. However, research findings

have shown that the overall state of higher education is depressing in the country.

There is a severe constraint on the availability of skilled labor (Agarwal, 2006). There

exist socio-economic, cultural, time and geographical barriers for people who wish to

pursue higher education (Bhattacharya and Sharma, 2007). When it comes to

employment and further education, we are still challenged with the quality of

education and training imparted at the higher levels. Whilst the industries keep

questioning the employability of the freshers, hardly any collaborative efforts are

made by the industry to improve the quality of education imparted by the institutions

and therefore make the students more prepared to take on more responsible roles in

the industry. Innovative use of Technology can potentially solve this problem.

Talking about technology, mobile phones are the fastest growing technology platform

in the developing world. India is the largest market for mobile phones worldwide,

with the majority being bought by illiterate and semi-literate users. A growing

percentage of these phones feature advanced multimedia capabilities for photos,

videos and gaming. These devices are a perfect vehicle for new kinds of out-of-school

learning, which can occur at places and times that are more convenient than school.

These factors create an extraordinary opportunity for complementing the formal

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educational system towards enhancing skills in young Indians, which is the fastest

way to open the doors for employment and also further education.

5.1.1. Use of Technology in education – A brief history

The history of the modern computer age is a brief one. It has been about 50 years

since the first operational computer was put into use: the MARK 1 in 1944 at Harvard

and ENIAC in 1946 at the University of Pennsylvania. Early use of computers in

education was primarily found in mathematics, science and engineering as a

mathematical problem-solving tool, replacing the slide rule and thus permitting

students to deal more directly with problems of a type and size most likely to be

encountered in the real world (Levien, 1972). At Dartmouth, in 1963, John Kemeny

and Thomas Kurtz transformed the role of computers in education from primarily a

research activity to an academic one. They did not like the idea that students had to

stand in long lines with punch cards for batch processing. So they adopted the

recently demonstrated concept of time-sharing that allowed many students to interact

directly with the computer. The university developed the time-shared system and

expanded it into a regional computing center for colleges and schools. At the time,

most programs were written in machine language or FORTRAN. Kemeny and Kurtz

developed a new, easy-to-use language, called BASIC. It spread rapidly and was used

for the creation of computer-based instructional materials for a wide variety of

subjects and for all levels of education.

5.1.2. Growth of ICT in Education in India

There have been a number of initiatives taken by government and private institutes

where ICT has become an integral part in imparting education. At the institutional

level many institutes, mainly private as of now, have entered into online distance

education and the private sector in India has already geared up to this challenge.
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 Forays have been made in the field of e-learning in the form of Brihaspati, an

e-learning platform developed as open source freeware which IIT Kanpur has

developed, supported by Ministry of Communications and Information

Technology, Government of India. Faculties are using this platform to post

lecture notes, handouts and reference material (in electronic format) on the

intranet for supporting classroom teaching. Brihaspati has also been deployed

at over 75 universities/institutes across India, and the list is growing.

 Yet another project to provide web-based training is the National Programme

on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL), which is being funded by the

Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) to pave the way for

introducing multimedia and web technology to enhance learning of basic

science and engineering concepts.

 Significant infrastructure has been set up earlier for production of video-based

teaching material by the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Bangalore-

based Indian Institutes of Sciences (IISc) and Technical Teacher Training

Institutes (TTTI). It caters to needs of students of all disciplines of

engineering.

 Sharing resources from NPTEL, in the South, the Kerala Education Grid

portal has been designed to increase and facilitate access to education

resources by the educational community and to facilitate collaboration,

sharing of knowledge, best practices and cooperation to improve the quality of

education and learning.

 Another computer-based solution over a computer network, Vartalap, creates

an environment modelled closely on a real-world classroom. The virtual

classroom system is proving to be a very useful and effective support facility

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 to enhance the learning experience, especially for distance learning course

participants.

 In India there is relatively high penetration of mobile phones and widespread

network availability. While some pilot initiatives are underway to explore how

effectively mobile technology can be used in the education space, in the

existing scenario it was seen that use of mobile phones is predominant in

informal education programs such as for promoting adult literacy,

disseminating information for farmers and fishermen, support services in

education programs, and distance learning programs.

 The typical uses of mobile phones include generating reminders, creating

alerts, scheduling appointments, administrative support tasks such as

retrieving MIS reports and other e-Governance initiatives. Given the

limitation of the screen size and amount of data being exchanged, in their

current commonly available models, mobile phones are not being utilized

extensively in actual educational content delivery in formal education

 India is making use of powerful ICT tools such as open source, satellite

technology, local language interfaces, easy to use human-computer interfaces

and digital libraries, with a long-term plan to reach the remotest of villages.

University Grants Commission (UGC)-INFONET provides electronic access

to scholarly literature available over the internet in all areas of learning to the

university sector in India. UGC too conducts IT/ICT orientation programs for

university and college. For enhancing the ICT skills of teachers, organizations

like the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) and

National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) have been launching

schemes from time to time. Some more such initiatives are as follows.
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 Tamil Virtual University designed to promote Tamil language, literature and

culture internationally, through the medium of internet-linked computers, has

come into existence and is offering quality Tamil education over the web.

 Azim Premji Foundation conceived the concept of Computer Assisted

Learning Centre (CALC) in response to the need of the people in rural

Karnataka. The immediate objectives were attracting children to schools,

creating excitement in and around the school, simplifying difficult concepts

thereby making learning exciting and fundamentals strong and creating sound

foundation to IT literacy. The CALCs targeting Government Higher Primary

Schools (Std. 1-7), have been operational since 2001 and now covering

states/UTs of Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka, Orissa,

Pondicherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttaranchal encompassing

over 10,000 schools. The efforts have been quite effective in creating scalable

models significantly improving the quality of learning in the school and in

ensuring satisfactory ownership by the community in the management of the

school.

 President‘s Virtual Institute for Knowledge (PREVIK) was an attempt by the

President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, to reach out to students, teachers and scientists

all over the country, even in remote locations.

 MHRD‘s Sakshat is one stop educational portal for 50,00,00,000 users. With

content developed by UGC, AICTE, IGNOU, NCERT, KVS, NVS, CBSE,

IITs and IISc, Sakshat will provide links to vast resources and other links

available on the web. Sakshat aims at tapping talent and will address all

education and learning related needs of students, scholars, teachers and

lifelong learners.
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 Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) a Scientific

Society of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology,

Government of India has launched eSikshak, a e-learning framework and is

offering free computer courses in Telegu, a regional language over its portal.

 The much talked about NIIT NetVarsity offers training to 500,000 students

annually through a network of nearly 3,500 centres spread across 33 countries.

One of the world‘s leading management colleges, IIM Calcutta, amongst

others entered into a strategic alliance with NIIT, Asia‘s largest IT trainer, to

offer executive development programs through virtual classrooms.

 Jadavpur University has been evolving a model of Multimodal Digital

Distance Education (MMDDE) and has applied the concept for dissemination

of postgraduate education. M.Tech-IT (Courseware engineering) and post

graduate diploma in multimedia and web technologies are being offered in

MMDDE format. It is the first formal AICTE approved post-graduate course

of its kind in the country. The modes of dissemination methods being used are

print material, CD-ROM based self-learning packages, education through

web-based learning environment, live broadcast of some lead-lectures by

eminent personalities through video conferencing and one-way video with two

way audio for interaction, real time chat facility, online quiz and assignments,

laboratory and project work at work centres. The examinations are conducted

in the conventional manner as is done in classroom method at Jadavpur

University. The university already has a digital library, and a content

management and development system using an m-learning authoring tool.

 BITS Pilani is a technological university currently offering Master‘s degree

and Doctoral programs in various areas of science, humanities, management

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 and various branches of engineering and technology. These programs were

earlier offered to only on-campus students but ever since the launch of the

―Virtual University courses in BS, engineering technology, BS information

systems, MS manufacturing management, MS software systems are being

offered online. The e-learning program at BITS, Pilani is a mere extension of

its distance-learning program that was started way back in early 1979. BITS

had a significant expertise in distance learning pedagogy and instructional

design.

 Hughes Escorts Communications Limited (HECL) (www.hughes-

ecomm.com) is a joint venture between Hughes Network Systems (HNS) and

Escorts Limited providing Networking Solutions using satellite media.

HughesNet Global Education platform seeks to re-define the next generation

of education, i.e. real time interactive on-site learning. The platform

seamlessly integrates the strengths and advantages of the traditional method of

education with the latest in technology. Using a very powerful interface,

HughesNet Global Education enables a student to have highly interactive

sessions with students and instructors all over the country, using video, voice

and data. These programs are convenient, accessible, and targeted to suit the

continuing education needs. HughesNet Global Education has made higher

education simpler than ever before.

 In Karnataka, Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) was the main

beneficiary of the pilot project under the first phase of EDUSAT

implementation. Under this pilot project, all engineering colleges of VTU

have been networked with one hundred nodes. The web site has enabled

students to access quality content materials of various subjects, including

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 graphics, video and well-designed notes, free of cost. VTU is collaborating

with ISRO in providing quality technical education in rural areas and is

helping in bridging the gap between rural and urban areas. Using this

EDUSAT network, VTU is training students on skills such as engineering,

problem solving, leadership qualities, communication skills,

experimentalskills, teamwork, time and crisis management, techno-

entrepreneurship development, design orientation, creativity and career

planning.

 Sikkim Manipal University of Health, Medical and Technological Sciences, is

offering distance education programs in association with Manipal Academy of

Higher Education (MAHE) and Manipal universal learning, breaking all

barriers of time, space and facilities as a part of its efforts to bring education

to masses. Master/Bachelor degree programs as well as Diploma/P.G. diploma

programs in the fields of IT and management are being offered. The distance

education being provided through VSATs is proving to be very cost-effective

in imparting education.

 Yashwantrao Chavan Maharahtra Open University (YCMOU) has been

developing online programmes for its students since long. The school of

education offered online programs in teacher education catering to the need of

the local people. Diploma in electronics engineering is one of the programs

which is being offered completely online by the School of Science and

Technology using Virtual Learning Modules (VCMs) on CD ROMs and

streaming technology. The schools are well equipped with VLMs on CD and

video cassettes. The students at the university are making use of facilities such

as units of self-assessment, mentor support, synchronous chat and

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 asynchronous discussion forums. YCMOU has its own production facilities

for print and audio-visual materials such as television, radio, video as well as

science kits. YCMOU also makes use of discussions forms one of which is

meant for the instructor to provide support to students‘ course-based queries

and a student services forum which provides services such as program

calendar, study guide and course advice.

 DOEACC Society of the Department of Information Technology, Ministry of

Communication and Information Technology, Government of India is the

premier organization for human resource development in the areas of

information electronics and communication technology (IECT). It has more

than 900 centers spread across various locations mapping the whole of India.

DOEACC centers at Aurangabad and Kolkata have been conducting a

program ―Training of Trainers in e-learning with the objective to propagate

the knowledge on e-learning and its applications among teachers to integrate

e-learning methodology and approach with conventional teaching and learning

to improve educational pedagogies. A part of the focused ten month program

for capacity building of Human resource in e-learning ―Comprehensive

Program For Building E-Learning Institutions was conducted by Crystal –

GTZ, Germany, at DOEACC centre, Aurangabad.

 The examinations for computer literacy course (course in computer concepts)

are being conducted online assisted by National Informatics Centre (NIC).

Over 5,000 students undertake this examination yearly using computer aided

paperless examination software (CAPES).

 DOEACC centre, Imphal is offering a six months course in computer

applications online on MOODLE open source learning management system

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 (LMS). Open and Distance learning systems are already well established in

India, especially at the higher education level. Open Universities, schools and

distance education programs like the Indira Gandhi National Open University

and the National Institute of Open Schooling in India, were all historically set

up to promote mass education using traditional print, as well as video and

radio based teaching learning materials. Open and Distance Learning

institutions enrol a large number of students (National Institute of Open

Schooling India enrols over 1.5 million students at the secondary and higher

secondary level) and, with a focus on improving the quality of teaching and

learning through adequately leveraging Technology, have a tremendous

impact (Information and Communication Technology for Education in India

and South Asia, PWC, 2010).

 The National Knowledge Network (NKN) and Connected Digital was also

simultaneously launched to cover 1,000 institutions besides providing digital

campuses, video-conference classrooms, wireless hotspots, laptops/desktops to

all students of professional/ science courses, Wi-Fi connectivity in hostels. A

sustainable progress in this direction has been made, but much more needs to

be done.

 A significant event during the last couple of years has been the launch of

Aakash – the low cost Access-cum computing device by Hon‘ble HRM on 5th

October, 2011. An amount of Rs. 47.72 crore has been released to Indian

Institute of Technology, Rajasthan, for the projects pertaining to acquisition

and testing of low cost access cum computing devices under the scheme of

National Mission on Education through Information and Communication

Technology (NMEICT).
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  Using the A-View software developed under the NMEICT, several 14 day

duration teachers‘ empowerment programmes have been conducted for

batches of 1,000 teachers at a time by IIT Mumbai and now it is planned to

conduct a 2- week long teacher training programme for a batch of ten

thousand teachers at a time. This strategy, developed under NMEICT, could

become the bedrock for successful implementation of the proposed National

Mission on Teachers.

 Under the N-List programme of Information and Library Network

(INFLIBNET), being run under NMEICT, lakhs of e-books and thousands of

high quality paid e-journals have been made available to colleges with a view

to inculcating research culture in teachers and students. The model needs to be

scaled up for maximising the coverage and productive usage of the resources

so made available. Similarly, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) packages

have been developed under NMEICT and for their proper impact to be felt on

the academic administration of the colleges and universities, their roll out and

assistance to colleges and universities for implementing those packages is

being sought to be provided.

 Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) have initiated basic mobile

services for students spread across the country. IGNOU is using an SMS model for

exam alerts, which is available in five regional sectors in India and has a network of

30,000 to 50,000 students.

Thus, it can be inferred that, overall there has been a widespread growth in use of ICT

in formal and non-formal education, both by the government and the private sector.

According to the Eduletter, August 2011, of EY strategic consulting group in

education, the online space is at an early stage of development as a result of low

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internet penetration. However, with broadband access and PC penetration increasing,

the online medium could potentially provide opportunities to scale up. It is expected

that number of broadband connections will rise from 11.5 million currently to 150

million by 2020. On the device front, the adoption of improved mobile technologies

such as 3G and 4G is expected to improve the education experience provided on

mobile phones and tablets (Ernst and Young Eduletter, 2011).

5.2. E – Learning and International Knowledge Transfer

1) Access and equity- The promise that ICT provides opportunities for better

education to more people including those in developing countries in a more cost-

effective way is opposed by the warnings concerning the increase of the digital divide

(Gladieux & Swail, 1999). Internet access is extremely unevenly spread over

countries and regions (US over 50% of households against only 3% in the world at

large). And even as it is expected to reach 75% in all advanced countries in five years,

only then the real problem arises, because educational ability and cultural capital are

extremely unequally distributed and this inequality is amplified by the Internet

(Castells, 2001).

2) Higher education: a trade commodity or a public good - whereas some see

e-learning as the next great growth opportunity on the market (Drucker, 2000), others

consider higher education primarily as a public good and responsibility. Moreover,

many questions are raised with respect to how commercial courseware can be

developed and exploited in ways that are consistent with faculty ownership of the

curriculum and how universities could get into the mass market for courseware within

the constraints of their own values and structures (Trow,1997).

3) Unbundling the functions of the university- observations are made that three

basic types of universities are emerging: "brick universities,", "click universities", and
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"brick and click" universities, which are believed to become the most competitive and

attractive institutions. Related to this is the fear that the traditional functions of the

university, that is, teaching, research, and service could become unbundled, since

teaching is the only function that is usually thought of as profitable (Levine, 2000).

4) Quality and quality assurance- It seems inevitable that international virtual

provision will be of mixed quality (Twigg, 2001). Consequently, the question is asked

whether students should be protected from some potentially poor quality overseas

virtual provision, or relies on the market to solve the issue (CVCP, 2000). In addition,

it is often emphasized that governments should take their responsibility in quality

assurance, accreditation and in consumer protection, especially programs that are

delivered from non-accredited institutions from abroad (Collis & van der Wende,

1999). Heterick and Twigg (1997) state that although market forces should be

stimulated by deregulation of higher education, at the same time, accountability to the

public and to student consumers needs to be established.

5) Cultural and pedagogical issues- While geographical barriers to access are

alleviated by ICTs, other barriers to access may be created. International online

education should not be restricted to a range of narrowly commercially motivated

courses that are targeted to the global elite. And in order to be able to be attractive to

students anywhere in the world, there is a need to develop pedagogy that is able to

transcend geographical dispersal, cultural and linguistic barriers (Ziguras, 1999).

5.2.1. Benefits of Technology in education:

 Seamless access to learning resources: With mobile learning, you can

learn and study anywhere - from the classroom to your desktop or laptop

to your pocket. A true mobile learning system allows users to take a course

on any device.
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 Flexible, portable convenience: The ability to customize learning

schedules is a key advantage to m-Learning. Learners are not restricted to

a specific physical environment, a particular delivery channel, or a fixed

set of times for undertaking training and education. Using the latest

technology, students can update their knowledge base on a just-in-time

basis to prepare for meetings or presentations.

 Freedom, power, and choice: m-Learning students can choose where,

when, and how they will study. The new range of options includes online

synchronized, online self-paced, downloaded courseware, and computer-

based training. m-Learning offers new levels of freedom with the ability to

exercise control over learning patterns.

 Organized productivity: With only a cell phone, handheld device, PDA,

or hybrid unit, users can access administrative functions, download

courses, and review their learning history through a learning management

system. m-Learning offers an efficient way for learners to access key

information and maximize their time.

 Collaborative Learning: Both the capabilities of mobile devices and

their wide context of use contribute to their propensity to foster

collaboration. Mobile devices can easily communicate with other devices

of the same or similar type, enabling learners to share data, files and

messages. They can also be connected to a shared data network, further

enhancing possibilities for communication. These devices are also

typically used in a group setting, and so interactions and collaboration will

tend to take place not just through the devices but also at and around them

as well. Research into collaborative learning with mobile devices is

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 greatly informed by previous research on Computer-Supported

Collaborative Learning (CSCL). In reality, much current research into

mobile learning can be classed as mobile-CSCL or MCSCL, and there is a

specific focus on the use of mobile technologies to promote, facilitate and

enhance interactions and collaborations between students. CSCL draws on

many different learning theories. Situated learning theories emphasize the

role of social interactions in the process of learning.

5.3. Benefits of Collaborative learning

5.3.1. Academic Benefits of Collaborative learning:

• Promotes critical thinking skills:

Panitz (1997; 1999; 2001) suggests that collaborative learning develops higher level

thinking skills; stimulates critical thinking; helps students clarify ideas through

discussion and debate; enhances skill building and practice; develops oral

communication skills; fosters meta-cognition in students; and improves students‘

recall of text content through cooperative discussions;

• Involves students actively in the learning process:

It creates an environment of active, involved, exploratory learning; encourages

student responsibility for learning; involves students in developing curriculum and

class procedures; provides training in effective teaching strategies to the next

generation of teachers; helps students wean themselves away from considering

teachers the sole sources of knowledge and understanding; fits in well with the TQM

and CQI models of effective management; promotes a learning goal rather than a

performance goal; fits in well with the constructivist approach; and allows students to

exercise a sense of control on task; improves classroom results Panitz suggests that

collaborative learning promotes higher achievement and class attendance; promotes a

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positive attitude toward the subject matter; increases student retention; enhances self

management skills; increases students‘ persistence in the completion of assignments

and the likelihood of successful completion of assignments; helps students stay on

task more and be less disruptive; and promotes innovation in teaching and classroom

techniques.

• Models appropriate student problem-solving techniques:

Collaborative learning fosters modeling of problem solving techniques by students‘

peers; allows assignment of more challenging tasks without making the workload

unreasonable; can help weaker students improve their performance when grouped

with higher achieving students; provides stronger students with the deeper

understanding that comes only from teaching material (cognitive rehearsal); leads to

the generation of more and better questions in class; provides a safe environment for

alternate problem solutions; and addresses learning style differences among students.

Mobile devices must be used to develop learning situations that will encourage

students to adopt deep approaches to study, actively engage them in knowledge

discovery, and improve their perceptions of the learning context. By these means

students‘overall educational experience and outcomes will be improved. Herrington

and Herrington (2007) note the particular suitability of mobile technologies for active

learning, for example, ―as tools for complex and sustained tasks and problem

solving. They list a number of mobile applications which support authentic learning

activities, including student use of the multimedia capabilities of mobile devices for

developing digital narratives, the gathering and analysis of field data, concept

mapping, and student production of podcasts. Lai et. al., (2007) note the affordances

that mobile technologies provide for experiential learning by allowing rapid ―note

taking through photos, sound and video recording, and by supporting students through
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in field provision of learning materials and prompts to assist their development of

abstract concepts.

5.3.2. Social Benefits of Collaborative Learning:

• Develops a social support system for students:

For example, it promotes student-faculty interaction and familiarity; develops social

interaction skills; promotes positive societal responses to problems and fosters a

supportive environment within which to manage conflict resolution; creates a stronger

social support system; fosters and develops interpersonal relationships; and helps

students to develop responsibility for each other.

• Builds diversity understanding among students and staff:

Collaborative learning builds more positive heterogeneous relationships; encourages

diversity understanding; fosters a greater ability in students to view situations from

others‘ perspectives (development of empathy); and helps majority and minority

populations in a class learn to work with each other (different ethnic groups, men and

women, traditional and non-traditional students).

• Establishes a positive atmosphere for modeling and practicing cooperation:

Collaborative learning establishes an atmosphere of cooperation and helping; helps

students learn how to criticize ideas rather than people; helps to model desirable

social behaviors necessary for employment situations that utilize teams and groups;

helps students practice modeling societal and work related roles; fosters team building

and a team approach to problem solving while maintaining individual accountability;

creates environments where students can practice building leadership skills; increases

leadership skills of female students; develops learning communities; provides the

foundation for developing learning communities within institutions and in courses;

helps to promote social and academic relationships well beyond the classroom and
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individual course; and helps teachers change their roles from their being the focus of

the teaching process to becoming facilitators of the learning process (they move from

teacher-centered to student centered learning).

5.3.3. Psychological Benefits of Collaborative learning:

• Can increase students self esteem:

Group learning can help to reduce anxiety; enhance student satisfaction with the

learning experience; promote a mastery attribution pattern rather than helpless

attribution pattern; and encourage students to seek help and accept tutoring from their

peers.

• Develops positive attitudes towards teachers:

Such an environment can create a more positive attitude on the part of students

towards their instructors; and create a more positive attitude by instructors toward

their students; and set high expectations for students and teachers. Even if one

quibbles with some of the items in Panitz‘ list and notices a little duplication in

places, the benefits – academic, social, and psychological – are substantial. Other

benefits have also been noted by a large number of other researchers (Graham and

Misanchuk, 2003; Johnson and Johnson 1996). The benefits of collaborative learning

within a computer-supported environment can be at least as great as those within a

classroom or lecture hall. In an asynchronous environment, students do not need to

meet at a regular place at regular times, so missing a session assumes less importance.

Fruitful and constructive discussion and dialogue can take place at any time of the day

or night, whenever inspiration or enthusiasm strikes.

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 Chapter 6

Employability and Employability Skills

Employability can be defined as: ‘a set of achievements – skills, understandings and

personal attributes – that make graduates more likely to gain employment and be

successful in their chosen occupations, which benefits themselves, the workforce, the

community and the economy’ (Mantz Yorke (2004) 'Employability in Higher

Education: what it is - what it is not', Higher Education Academy/ESECT).

Employability is not the same as gaining a graduate job, rather it implies something

about the capacity of the graduate to function in a job and be able to move between

jobs, thus remaining employable throughout their life. The USEM model (Knight and

Yorke, 2004) outlines employability as four broad and inter-related components:

 Understanding

 Skilful practices (including deployment of skills)

 Efficacy beliefs (including students views of themselves)

 Meta-cognition (including self-awareness and a capacity to reflect on learning)

Employability refers to a person's capability for gaining and maintaining employment.

For individuals, employability depends on the knowledge, skills and abilities they

possess, in addition to the way they present those assets to employers. As such,

employability is affected by both supply-side and demand-side factors which are often

outside of an individual's control. Employability skills are the non-technical skills,

knowledge and understandings that are necessary to gain employment and participate

effectively in the workplace.

 Often referred to as soft skills, they include skills such as communication, self-

management, planning, decision making and problem solving. The ability to

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demonstrate these skills is an important requirement when an individual is looking for

work, as they are highly valued by employers and industry.

 Employability skills also contribute to work performance in combination with

technical or discipline specific skills, as well as language, literacy and numeracy

skills. Therefore, it’s important that every individual continues to develop these skills

throughout his/ her working life.

 Employability skills can be developed in lots of ways and in many areas of

one’s life, including at school, in the community, at work, and through hobbies and

sport. The motivation to develop a specific skill area is an important factor in an

individual’s ability to perform at a higher level.

 If one is just getting started in his/ her career, internships can help him / her to

develop the various skills and ultimately provide evidence of his/ her ability to

perform a skill in a workplace. An internship experience gives the individual the time

at a workplace to learn about an occupation or industry, and is generally unpaid. It is

an opportunity to develop skills and networks, learn about the world of work and to

decide what kinds of things he / she would like to do.

A range of factors can influence an individual’s ability to perform any one of the skill

areas reflecting his skill and support. The work contexts of the job roles a person will

have throughout his / her working life will be one of the most important influencing

factors on the individual’s employability skills. As an person moves into new roles, he

/ she might be forced to re-assess their own skill level, as their performance of a skill

isn’t automatically transferable. This is especially important in roles where the nature

of the tasks is more complex. For example, if an individual moves into a management

role, one might find the problem solving processes that he / she applied to his / her

work previously doesn’t work as well when dealing with problems at an organisation-
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wide level. Other influencing factors can include each individual’s self-belief and

resilience, degree of motivation, cultural and value-based factors, and level of

autonomy in his / her role.

Key characteristics of employability skills

There is a recognition that the employability skills are:

• interlocking and overlapping and used in combination to perform work tasks

so that aspects essential to one domain will support competence in another

• applied and performed at various levels depending on the task

• context dependent, but transferable from context to context

• developed over a lifetime in all aspects of life experience, including paid

and unpaid employment, self-employment, formal and informal education,

and community activities.

In the new global economy, workers need more than technical knowledge and skills,

which are often job-specific and not transferable. In addition to these skills, they must

also have soft skills—“employability skills”—if they want to continue contributing to

the growth and expansion of an industry or corporation. Employability skills are the

skills, knowledge, understanding and personal attributes that enable a person to obtain

employment, and to be successful and satisfied in their chosen career (Lorraine &

Sewell, 2007). Barnett (2006) explains that employability skills enable people to

obtain suitable employment and at the same time develop their careers during social

and technological change. Employability skills are necessary across all areas and

types of jobs. Alston, Cromartie, Wakefield, and English (2009) studied their

importance in the agricultural sector in the U.S, suggesting that interpersonal

communication skills, for example, are essential to the technical knowledge and

abilities of university graduates in the industry. In addition, these skills are important
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to employers and employees in developing a company. Technological developments

require manufacturers to meet consumers’ demands for cheaper and higher quality

goods. Therefore, to remain competitive, front-line workers need to know and apply

the technology to solve problems, communicate effectively, work in teams, and

assume responsibility for quality and productivity. Hence, tertiary education

institutions should provide a curriculum that emphasizes the development of soft

skills. Rabey (2008) found that there is room for improvement in the way that

secondary schools prepare their students for the workforce, and suggested placing

more emphasis on teaching organizational structure and interactions, money

management and market dominance, communication, teamwork, and goal setting.

These can be boiled down to three important areas: life skills, work skills, and

knowledge of the workplace. At the high school level, adolescents between the ages

of 16 and 17 years can assess and explore personal interests and needs, particularly in

relation to a future career. In psychology, this is the best time to give exposure to the

youth about the career world. Sharing knowledge about careers will indirectly

strengthen adolescents’ desire to continue their studies in technical and vocational

schools. Employability is a critical issue for both government and Higher Education

Institutions (HEIs). With the expansion in HE and recent economic downturn, there is

intense competition for jobs in the graduate employment market. The Summer

Graduate Recruitment Survey 2009 (Association of Graduate Recruiters, 2009)

indicated that on average there were 48 applications per graduate vacancy. One of the

key reasons why many students invest in university education is to improve their

employment prospects. However, whilst achievement of good academic qualifications

is highly valued, it no longer appears sufficient to secure employment (Yorke, 2006).

Additionally, employers expect students to have well developed employability skills,

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so that they can make an immediate contribution to the workplace when recruited

(e.g.Confederation of British Industry, 2008). Thus, whilst some employers screen job

applications on the basis of degree classification, such achievements are much less

important at the short-listing stage. Moreover, in some cases employers initially use

criteria other than the honours degree to assess applications; often requiring applicants

to undertake a series of skills activities and psychometric tests, and to produce a

personality profile (Graduate Prospects, 2009). Some employers adopt such practices

for purposes of ensuring equal opportunities, of widening access and of recognising a

more diverse group of potential employees. It is believed that graduates with good

employability skills may otherwise be missed because they have not attained good

academic qualifications (Denholm, 2004; Morley et al., 2006; Morley and Aynsley,

2007). Furthermore, it is increasingly recognised that the honours degree

classification system may not be reliable (Yorke, 2007) and there has been concern

about grade inflation (Baty, 2007). The different regulations and practices pertaining

to degree outcomes in different universities could undermine the fairness and

comparability of the classification system across different institutions.

For decades employers as well as educators frequently complain about a lack in soft

skills among graduates from tertiary education institutions. Predominantly missed are

communication skills, but additional knowledge in business or project management is

also ranking highly on the list of missing skills desirable for graduates entering the

business world. This problem is in no way restricted to developing nations like

Namibia; it is also well known to industrial countries around the world. A recent

outcry in this regard came from the British Association of Graduate Recruiters

(AGR), which recently reported that “Employers say many graduates lack ‘soft

skills’, such as team working” and “They go on to explain that candidates are
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normally academically proficient but lacking in soft skills such as communication as

well as verbal and numerical reasoning.” (AGR, 2007) Already more than 40 years

ago the German Engineering Association (VDI) recommended that 20% of courses of

the engineering curricula should be soft skills. Engineering graduates should bring

along knowledge of foreign languages, cultural awareness, should be team workers,

and should perhaps have attended a Rhetoric course (Ihsen, 2003). And indeed, the

situation seems to be particularly bad in science and engineering programmes.

Comparing the levels of soft skills between a fictitious graduate of Mechanical

Engineering and a graduate of History of Arts, both freshly coming from university,

the German Professor Dietrich Schwanitz rated the mechanical engineer at the level of

a caveman. Obvious reasons are that non-scientific academic programmes in general

put more emphasise onto soft skills, or they are themselves by nature very soft skill

related.

An alternative account of employability takes a more relative approach. Brown and

Hesketh define employability as ‘the relative chances of getting and maintaining

different kinds of employment’ (2004). While most people view employability in

absolute terms, focussing on the need for individuals to obtain credentials, knowledge

and social status, the concept of employability can also be seen as subjective and

dependent on contextual factors. ‘Employability not only depends on whether one is

able to fulfil the requirements of specific jobs, but also on how one stands relative to

others within a hierarchy of job seekers’ (Brown and Hesketh, 2004). Taking the

supply and demand of labour into account challenges the idea that credentials,

knowledge and social status alone will guarantee a good position in the labour market.

With the move to a more knowledge based economy, it is widely thought that there is

an increasing demand for high-calibre managerial talent. However, a focus on

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obtaining skills in order to gain good employment has led to an over-supply of

graduates and a larger number of contenders chasing the same top jobs. Brown and

Hesketh argue that there is a clear mismatch between individuals’ expectations of

employability and the realities posed by the labour market. Under these conditions,

students will use a number of tactics in the labour market to maintain competitive

advantage. Brown and Hesketh identify two ideal types of individuals entering the

labour market. Those who will do anything to get a top job are classed as ‘players’.

Players are not afraid to take on a different identity if they feel that is what the

employer is looking for. The second type, 'purists', are those who believe that job

market outcomes should reflect meritocratic achievement. For purists it is important

to maintain an authentic sense of self as this will ensure a good fit between individual

capabilities and occupational demands. Purists may be as competitive as Players but

feel that Players are cheating in order to get ahead. This view of employability

incorporates the dual aspects of supply and demand of labour to show that advancing

one’s position in the labour market by gaining credentials is partially dependent on

structural factors outside the individual’s control. The recent financial crisis

demonstrates that global economic factors can and do have a significant impact on the

likelihood of an individual securing a job regardless of their skills, credentials and

social status.

6.1. Soft Skills:

Soft skills is a considered as the person's "EQ" (Emotional Intelligence Quotient), i.e.

the collection of his/her personality traits, social skills, language, communication,

personal habits, people management, leadership qualities, etc. that characterize who

the person truly is. Soft skills have more to do with who we are than what we know.

As such, soft skills encompass the character traits that decide how well one interacts
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with others, and are usually a definite part of one's personality. Whereas hard skills

can be learned and perfected over time, soft skills are more difficult to acquire and

change. The soft skills required for a doctor, for example, would be empathy,

understanding, active listening and a good bedside manner. Alternatively, the hard

skills necessary for a doctor would include a vast comprehension of illnesses, the

ability to interpret test results and symptoms, and a thorough understanding of

anatomy and physiology. Soft Skills can be acquired through educational, work and

life experiences but takes a concerted effort on the part of the individual. For example,

a student is terrible at managing his/her time but finds himself/ herself enrolled in a

class that requires completion of umpteen numbers of projects. Inorder to succeed the

student requires improving his/ her time management skills in order to meet

deadlines.

Personality Traits:

Personality psychology has been attempting to understand and define what makes

people act the way they do for centuries now. Numerous theories and models have

been developed over the years to better understand aspects of human personality.

Many trait theory models were postulated inorder to accurately describe personality.

One of the most famous and accurately described model is the Big Five personality

traits model. In psychology, the 'Big Five' is a term used to describe the five broad

traits of human personality. In current practice, it is sometimes used interchangeably

with the term 'five-factor model.' Each of the traits, or factors, identified as the Big

Five are independent of each other and account for the infinite number of unique

aspects that comprise human personality. The Big Five personality traits are:

Openness: This refers to traits, such as how inclined someone is to conform to societal

or cultural norms, how concretely or abstractly someone thinks about things, and how
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open or resistant someone is to change. A person who is a creative thinker and always

looking for ways to do things better would likely score high on measures of openness.

Conscientiousness: It has to do with a person's degree of organization, level of

discipline, and how prone he or she is to taking risks. The college student who never

misses a class and has a 4.0 GPA would probably prove to have a high degree of

conscientiousness as measured on a personality assessment.

Extraversion: It is a personality characteristic that describes things like how social a

person is or how warm and loving they tend to be. Extraverts are people who would

typically prefer to go out to a party with lots of friends, as opposed to stay in and

watch a movie with one or two friends.

Agreeableness: It takes into account how kind, dependable, and cooperative a person

is. People who score high on scales of agreeableness are typically more interested in

doing things for the common good, as opposed to fulfilling their own self-interests.

Neuroticism: It is a personality characteristic that describes how nervous or anxious a

person tends to be, as well as the degree of self-confidence and self- contentment he

or she possesses.

Social Skills:

Social skill is any skill facilitating interaction and communication with others. Social

rules and relations are created, communicated, and changed in verbal and nonverbal

ways. The process of learning these skills is called socialization. Interpersonal skills

are sometimes also referred to as people skills or communication skills. Interpersonal

skills are the skills a person uses to communicate and interact with others. They

include persuasion, active listening, delegation, and leadership. The term

"interpersonal skills" is used often in business contexts to refer to the measure of a

person's ability to operate within business organizations through social

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communication and interactions. Interpersonal skills are how people relate to one

another. Social psychology is an academic discipline that does research related to

social skills or interpersonal skills. The discipline studies how skills are learned by an

individual through changes in attitude, thinking, and behavior.

Communication:

Communication is the exchange and flow of information and ideas from one person to

another; it involves a sender transmitting an idea via a channel in a manner that is

easily understandable to the receiver; and the receiver provides feedback positively or

negatively inorder to state if he has understood the message or not. Communication

could be via a verbal or non verbal mode. Verbal communication consists of

expression through the spoken or verbal word. Effective verbal or spoken

communication is dependent on a number of factors and cannot be fully isolated from

other important interpersonal skills such as non-verbal communication, listening skills

and clarification. Human language can be defined as a system of symbols (sometimes

known as lexemes) and the grammars (rules) by which the symbols are manipulated.

Language learning normally occurs most intensively during human childhood. Most

of the thousands of human languages use patterns of sound or gesture for symbols

which enable communication with others around them. Languages tend to share

certain properties, although there are exceptions. Alternatively; Nonverbal

communication describes the process of conveying meaning in the form of non-word

messages. Examples of nonverbal communication include gestures, body language,

facial expression, eye contact, and how one dresses. Speech also contains nonverbal

elements known as paralanguage, e.g. rhythm, intonation, tempo, and stress. Research

has shown that up to 55% of human communication may occur through non verbal

facial expressions, and a further 38% through paralanguage. Likewise, written texts
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include nonverbal elements such as handwriting style, spatial arrangement of words

and the use of emoticons to convey emotional expressions in pictorial form. Effective

communication occurs when a desired thought is the result of intentional or

unintentional information sharing, which is interpreted between multiple entities and

acted on in a desired way. This effect also ensures that messages are not distorted

during the communication process. Effective communication should generate the

desired effect and maintain the effect, with the potential to increase the effect of the

message. Therefore, effective communication serves the purpose for which it was

planned or designed. Possible purposes might be to elicit change, generate action,

create understanding, inform or communicate a certain idea or point of view. When

the desired effect is not achieved, factors such as barriers to communication are

explored, with the intention being to discover how the communication has been

ineffective.

Leadership:

Leadership can be simply defined as the act of making an impact on others in a

desired direction. Good leadership helps organisations through excellence, creativity,

vision, building culture, mentoring, and multiplying empowerment. Uday Pareek in

this book titled “Understand Organisational Behaviour” defines a leader as 1)

Internality: a leader takes charge of what happens. They make things happen as they

want them to happen. The leader’s internal locus of control is high. They believe that

they can influence most things around them. 2) Maverick Mindset: it characterizes

leaders who are vision driven and who develop competence, take moderate risks,

learn from various sources, and empower their people to experiment and take

responsibility. 3) Optimism: Optimism has been found to be key element in leadership

effectiveness in business, sports and politics. 4) Self – restraint: the ability to postpone
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gratification of one’s immediate needs for along – term goal is of vital importance

anywhere. 5) Value Orientation: ethical considerations, personal integrity, and a sense

of equity and justice are important values for leaders. 6) Social concern: leaders with

foresight are not only concerned about the success of their ventures and organisation

but are also alive to the needs of the community they live in. 7) Rootedness: while

effective leaders become globally oriented, their roots in their own cultures will

remain strong. 8) Empowering: the main role of leaders will be to create an enabling

culture and empower people at all levels in the organisation. Sharing information is

one way to empower employees.

Unlike hard skills, which comprise a person's technical skill set and ability to perform

certain functional tasks, soft skills are interpersonal and broadly applicable across job

titles and industries. Many soft skills are tied to individuals' personalities rather than

any formal training, and are thus considered more difficult to develop than hard skills.

Soft skills are often described in terms of personality traits, such as optimism,

integrity and a sense of humor. These skills are also defined by abilities that can be

practiced, such as leadership, empathy, communication and sociability. Soft skills are

often described in terms of personality traits, such as optimism, integrity and a sense

of humor. These skills are also defined by abilities that can be practiced, such as

leadership, empathy, communication and sociability. A person's soft skill EQ is an

important part of their individual contribution to the success of an organization.

Particularly those organizations dealing with customers face-to-face are generally

more successful, if they train their staff to use these skills. Screening or training for

personal habits or traits such as dependability and conscientiousness can yield

significant return on investment for an organization. For this reason, soft skills are

increasingly sought out by employers in addition to standard qualifications.

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6.2. Hard Skills:

Hard skills can be defined as specific and teachable abilities that can be defined and

measured. By contrast, soft skills are less tangible and harder to quantify. Examples of

hard skills include job skills like typing, writing, mathematics, reading and the ability

to use software programs; soft skills are personality-driven skills like etiquette, getting

along with others, listening and engaging in effective communication.

6.3. The Difference between Hard Skills and Soft Skills:

During the job application and interview process, employers look for applicants with

two skill sets: hard skills and soft skills. Hard skills are teachable abilities or skill sets

that are easy to quantify.

Examples of hard skills include:

 Proficiency in a foreign language

 A degree or certificate

 Typing speed

 Machine operation

 Computer programming

These hard skills are usually listed in the cover letter and the resume, and are easy for

the employer and recruiter to recognize. Soft skills, on the other hand, are subjective

skills that are much harder to quantify. Also known as "people skills" or

"interpersonal skills," soft skills relate to the way you relate to and interact with other

people. Examples of soft skills include:

 Teamwork

 Communication

 Flexibility

 Patience
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  Persuasion

 Time Management

 Motivation

While certain hard skills are necessary for any position, employers are looking

increasingly for job applicants with particular soft skills. This is because, while it is

easy for an employer to train a new employee in a particular hard skill (such as how to

use a certain computer program), it is much more difficult to train an employee in a

soft skill (such as patience). During the job application process, a person should

therefore be sure to emphasize both the hard and soft skills. This way, even if the

person lacks a particular hard skill required by the company, they must emphasize a

particular soft skill that is valuable in the position. For example, if the job involves

working on a number of group projects, a person should emphasize his/ her

experience and skill as a team player and his/ her ability to communicate with team

members.

Impact of E- Learning on Employability skill development:

Employability skills can be enlisted as the following:

1. Communication skills that add up to a dynamic and harmonious relationship

between employees and customers.

2. Team work skills that contribute to improving working relationships

between the different cadres in an organisation and therefore improving

outcomes.

3. Problem-solving skills that contribute to easy solutions in the shortest

timeframe which ultimately improves production and profits.

4. Initiative and enterprise skills that contribute to innovative outcomes.

5. Planning and organising skills that contribute to long-term and short-

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 term strategic planning.

6. Self-management skills that contribute to employee satisfaction and growth.

7. Learning skills that contribute to ongoing improvement and expansion

in employee and company operations and outcomes.

8. Technology skills that contribute to effective execution of tasks.

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 Chapter 7

Data Collection and Data Analysis

This chapter outlines the data collection, type and contents of the questionnaire,

processing of data and finally interpretation of the data. The study embraces both

qualitative and quantitative research approaches.

Data Collection

There were two sets of questionnaires that were used for collecting data from HR-

Executives and E-Learners. The questionnaire designed for the HR- Executives was to

identify the various details of employees working in their organisation. The questions

one to four and question seven were framed to analyse the demographic details of the

respondents. The questions five, six, eight and ten were designed to analyze the

employer’s details about the employees as this would help the objective of identifying

the employability factor. The questions nine, eleven, twelve and fourteen help the

researcher to fulfill the objective of understanding the key challenges ahead.

Similar questions were framed for the E- learners. The questions one to four were to

determine the demographics of the sample. The questions six to nine were to identify

the student’s choice of course. The questions five and ten to fifteen describe about the

students access towards online education, syllabi, and course materials. The questions

sixteen to twenty- two focus on the medium of the instructors, language of

communication, facilities provided by the institute and the accessibilities through

technical devices.

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Table 2: Level of Courses chosen for E- Learning

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

Graduate Level 2 1.3 1.3 1.3

Masters 6 3.9 3.9 5.2

Post- Graduate
39 25.5 25.5 30.7
Level
Valid
Professional 105 68.6 68.6 99.3

Undergraduate
1 .7 .7 100.0
Level

Total 153 100.0 100.0

The above mentioned table explains about the academic courses and their preferences

amongst the various sample used. From the calculations, the table could be interpreted

learners prefer E- learning courses when undertaking studies for Professional

Qualification.

Table 3: Type of course study method chosen among E- Learner’s

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

No Response 1 .7 .7 .7

Hybrid courses 93 60.8 60.8 61.4

None of the above 1 .7 .7 62.1

Online distance
Valid 57 37.3 37.3 99.3
learning

Traditional courses
with technology 1 .7 .7 100.0
element

Total 153 100.0 100.0

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The research analyses that that hybrid courses are the most sort after compared to

online distance courses or traditional learning courses.

Table 4: Weightage parameters for pursuing a course through

elearning.
N Mean Median Minimum Maximum

Valid Missing

Weightage while choosing to

pursue a course through e- 152 1 1.72 1.00 1 5
learning.- Location

Weightage while choosing to

pursue a course through e-
152 1 1.92 2.00 1 5
learning - Technology required to
undertake the course

Weightage while choosing to

pursue a course through e-
151 2 2.09 2.00 1 5
learning - Ease of availability of
course material

Weightage while choosing to

pursue a course through e-
152 1 2.08 2.00 1 5
learning – Institution that provides
the course

Weightage choosing to pursue a

course through e- learning - 149 4 1.99 2.00 1 5
Author/ Instructor of the course

Weightage while choosing to

pursue a course through e- 152 1 1.76 1.00 1 5
learning- Cost of the course

Weightage while choosing to

pursue a course through e- 152 1 1.28 1.00 1 4
learning- Flexibility of time

High weightage is given to: (Median=2)

Technology required to undertake the course

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Ease of availability of course material
Institution that provides the course
Author/ Instructor of the course
Low weightage is given to: (Median=1)
Location
Cost
Flexibility of time

Table 5: Weightage given to the Location

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

1 96 62.7 62.7 62.7

2 24 15.7 15.7 78.4

3 17 11.1 11.1 89.5

Valid
4 12 7.8 7.8 97.4

5 4 2.6 2.6 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

The above table signifies that major importance is given to Location while
choosing to pursue a course through e- learning.

Table 6: Weightage given to Technology

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

1 62 40.5 40.5 40.5

2 52 34.0 34.0 74.5

Valid 3 29 19.0 19.0 93.5

4 9 5.9 5.9 99.3

5 1 .7 .7 100.0

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The table explains the importance given to the technology required to
undertake the course while choosing to pursue a course through e- learning

Table 7: Weightage given to ease of availability of the course

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

1 53 34.6 34.6 34.6

2 59 38.6 38.6 73.2

3 23 15.0 15.0 88.2

Valid
4 11 7.2 7.2 95.4

5 7 4.6 4.6 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

The above table describes the high weightage allotted to ease of availability of
course material while choosing to pursue a course through e- learning

Table 8: Weightage given to the Institution

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

1 56 36.6 36.6 36.6

2 58 37.9 37.9 74.5

3 20 13.1 13.1 87.6

Valid
4 9 5.9 5.9 93.5

5 10 6.5 6.5 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

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The above table illustrates the weightage allocated to the Institution that
provides the course while choosing to pursue a course through e- learning with
majority rating it as first or second in weightage.

Table 9: Weightage given to Author/ Instructor of the course

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

1 66 43.1 43.1 43.1

2 43 28.1 28.1 71.2

3 29 19.0 19.0 90.2

Valid
4 10 6.5 6.5 96.7

5 5 3.3 3.3 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

The above table demonstrates that the author/ instructor of the course holds a
considerable position while choosing a course.

Table 10: Weightage given to cost

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

1 82 53.6 53.6 53.6

2 41 26.8 26.8 80.4

3 18 11.8 11.8 92.2

Valid
4 9 5.9 5.9 98.0

5 3 2.0 2.0 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrates that cost plays a very significant role in the process of choosing a
course.

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Table 11: Weightage given to flexibility of time

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

1 118 77.1 77.1 77.1

2 29 19.0 19.0 96.1

Valid 3 4 2.6 2.6 98.7

4 2 1.3 1.3 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table describes the weightage allotted to the flexibility of time while choosing
to pursue a course through e- learning and shows the high weightage for this
parameter.

HR Perspective
Table 12: Awareness level of the HRs

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

No 22 61.1 61.1 61.1

Valid Yes 14 38.9 38.9 100.0

Total 36 100.0 100.0

The above table shows that the HRs are aware about the employees pursuing E-
Learning courses.

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Table 13: Number of employees engaged in E- Learning Courses

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

21-50 9 25.0 25.0 25.0

51-200 3 8.3 8.3 33.3

Above
1 2.8 2.8 36.1
200

Valid
between
10 27.8 27.8 63.9
5-20

Less than
13 36.1 36.1 100.0
5

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Table illustrates that majority of the organizations have less than 5 employees
currently engaged in e-learning courses

Table 14: Age- wise analysis of employees engaged in E- Learning courses

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

25-30 years 12 33.3 33.3 33.3

31-40 years 22 61.1 61.1 94.4

41-50 years 1 2.8 2.8 97.2

Valid

Less than 25
1 2.8 2.8 100.0
years

Total 36 100.0 100.0

The above table shows that majority of employees who are pursuing e-learning
courses are within the age group of 31-40 years of age.

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Table 15: Course-wise analysis of employees pursuing E- learning courses

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

No Response 7 19.4 19.4 19.4

Engineering 5 13.9 13.9 33.3

Valid
Management 24 66.7 66.7 100.0

Total 36 100.0 100.0

The above table illustrates that majority prefer E- Learning for Management courses

Table 16: Analysis of E- Learner’s according to the level of Management at the

workplace

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative Percent

Percent

Valid No Response 1 2.8 2.8 2.8

Lower Level 14 38.9 38.9 41.7

Management

Mid Level 21 58.3 58.3 100.0

Management

Total 36 100.0 100.0

The above table shows that majority employees preferring E- Learning courses are

from within the Middle Level management.

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Table 17: HR preference during recruitment

Freque Percent Valid Cumulative

ncy Percent Percent

Valid Candidate holding a 35 97.2 97.2 97.2

degree obtained from
the traditional/
Classroom teaching
institutes

Candidate holding an 1 2.8 2.8 100.0

E- learning degree

Total 36 100.0 100.0

The above table indicated that HRs prefer recruits from the traditional classroom
setup as against those holding E- Learning degrees

Table 18: HR analysis on equivalency of courses

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid Agree 23 63.9 63.9 63.9

Disagree 5 13.9 13.9 77.8

Neutral 8 22.2 22.2 100.0

Total 36 100.0 100.0

The table shows that HRs consider e-learning courses and Traditional classroom
teaching to be equivalent to each other

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Table 19: Impact of E- Learning degrees during employee’s performance appraisal
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent

Valid Agree 26 72.2 72.2 72.2

Disagree 1 2.8 2.8 75.0

Neutral 8 22.2 22.2 97.2

Strongly 1 2.8 2.8 100.0

Agree

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Table illustrates that most organisations consider e-learning courses as value addition
during the employee’s performance appraisal

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 Chapter 8

Major Findings

The environment of higher education is evolving all over the world. Rising costs,

shrinking budgets and an increasing need for distance education has made educational

institutions reexamine the way that education has been delivered. In response to this

changing environment, e-learning is being implemented more and more frequently in

higher education, creating new and exciting opportunities for both educational

institutions and students. E-learning, or electronic learning, has been defined a

number of different ways in the literature. In general, e-learning is the expression

broadly used to describe “instructional content or learning experience delivered or

enabled by electronic technologies”. The broader definition, which will be used for

the purposes of this research, can include the use of the Internet, intranets/extranets,

audio- and videotape, satellite broadcast, interactive TV, and CD-ROM, not only for

content delivery, but also for interaction among participants. Considering the latest

technological trends, this definition can be further expanded to include mobile and

wireless learning applications. The e-learning models of higher education today find

their roots in conventional distance education. Distance learning was initially

introduced to allow individuals in remote and rural areas to gain access to higher

education; however it has evolved significantly over time. More recently, the advent

of the Internet has enabled tremendous innovation in the delivery of education at all

grades – kindergarten to professional courses. As time goes by, more and more people

are gaining access to the Internet, resulting in the cost of computer ownership

decreasing, and overall computer literacy increasing. These trends provide

educational institutions an ideal channel for the delivery of educational content. There

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are many reasons for the growth of the higher education e-learning industry, both

from the institutions’ and students’ perspectives. Globally, the demand for post

secondary education is increasing. For example, in the United States, college

enrollment among high school graduates increased from 56% in 1980 to 67% in 2003

(Morrison, 2003). In Canada, it is expected that over 70% of new jobs created will

require at least some post secondary education (Industry Canada, 2001). With the

limited capacity of existing classrooms at academic institutions and the prohibitive

cost of building new facilities, e-learning is an attractive alternative.

E- Learning in India

Majority of population in India reside in rural areas and introducing them to a new

concept like that of elearning is a major challenge. Lack of infrastructure in terms of

connectivity, availability of Internet, etc. is another issue. The government has begun

taking various measures to improve the communication systems and has introduced

new technologies like 3G and 4G internet facilities. In most rural areas atleast a basic

2G internet facility is available. The Social Implications of E-Learning is another

segment of study that is very important to be understood for the success of e-learning

in India. They may be categorized into the following types of issues: cultural,

lifestyle, geographical, gender, religious/spiritual, literacy, and disabilities. Cultural

issues include content, multimedia, writing styles, writing structures, Web design, and

participant roles. Some content, although crucial to the course, may either be

unacceptable or unfavorable with certain members of the class. For example, if there

is a sensitive component to a subject matter to be discussed during the class, it

becomes exceedingly important for the faculty to identify the best technique to lead

the class. This also becomes true in case the class consists of persons from various

cultures around the world. What may be acceptable in the West may not be accepted
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in India. Religious and spiritual considerations must be addressed and honored.

Perhaps it would be unwise for an instructor to require work be done on certain days,

given that these days may be religious days for some religions; suggest, perhaps, a

block of time when activities might be assigned. And even the technology issue of

Internet access needs to be considered. In some communities, dial-up access is the

only possible means of interconnect; there are no alternatives. And even the

technology issue of Internet access needs to be considered. In some communities,

dial-up access is the only possible means of interconnect; there are no alternatives.

Students are motivated to use e-learning to gain access to higher education. For some,

it may be a component of a traditional course; while for others the entire course may

be completely online. In case of the latter, e- learning may create access to higher

education that they would not have otherwise because of geographic or time

constraints. In contrast there are varied constraints to the E-learning pattern. E-

learning presents an entirely new learning environment for students, thus requiring a

different skill set to be successful. Critical thinking, research, and evaluation skills are

growing in importance as students have increasing volumes of information from a

variety of sources to sort through. Also, especially in courses that are entirely

electronic, students are much more independent than in the traditional classroom

setting. This requires that they be highly motivated and committed to learning with

less social interaction with peers or an instructor. Students in online courses tend to do

as well as those in classrooms, but there is higher incidence of withdrawal or

incomplete grades. Considering E- learning from the employability perspective, we

observe that there is often a tendency for employers to view online education only

from very reputable traditional institutions in a more positive light; however the

acceptance of online degrees in general is increasing. This is a positive trend for e-

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learning in general and for institutions providing purely online educational institutions

in particular. Employers are increasingly motivated to consider e-learning as a higher

education alternative. This could be due to the increasing awareness that denying the

value of e-learning will restrict their pool of potential hires. It will also limit the

availability of courses and professional development activities that their employees

may participate in. Since many students pursue higher education for the purpose of

beginning or advancing their careers, a lack of support for e-learning by employers

could deter employees from pursuing their coursework through electronic means,

thereby restricting their opportunities. One issue though those employers have with e-

learning is the decreased interpersonal interaction inherent in many of these courses.

Key Findings from the Learner’s Survey:

From the survey conducted on the E - learners, it has been found out that majority of

the sample allotted the highest preference to the ease of availability of the course. The

research also analyzed that the sample considered the author/ instructor of the course

to be very important. The other factors determined state that technology that is

required to undertake the course is also an important aspect for the learners. In the

order of the statistical determination, it has been observed that the institution

providing the course is also considered to be an important factor when selecting a

course. Location and cost of the course were also determined to be important factors.

However, the data analysis pointed out that the flexibility of the time for undertaking

the course was given the least preference by the sample. Also, there was negligible

difference of choices between the male and female persons in the sample.

With reference to the relevance of the course materials; both male and female persons

equated the same value to the factor. The sample also considered that the expectations

of the instructors had been clearly stated to them during the course of the study. There
180
was no marked difference been between the male and female persons in the sample

with reference to the testing and evaluation procedures. When considering the

workload against the credit hours allotted; both males and females stated the

experience to be similar and no difference was observed.

The following were the inferences obtained on analyzing the institution’s support with

regards to the facilities provided. They were analyzed on the basis of whether the

service was available on a mobile phone or not. With regards to accessing the library

resources; a greater part of the students stated that the service was available on a

mobile device. The research showed that a considerable amount of the students stated

that they were able to check their grades online on a mobile phone. A majority of the

students stated that they were able to register for their courses online through a mobile

phone while many stated that they were able to access financial aid information. With

regards to the LMS system; a clear majority of the students claimed that they were

able to easily access the system for study purposes. Most students stated that they

were able to order their transcripts online. A clear majority of the students stated that

they were able to access information about events and students activities from a

mobile device. Additionally, almost all the students affirmed that they were able to

schedule appointments through a mobile portal. In all of the factors, there was no

marked difference between the responses received from male and female students.

With regards to the institutional rating, both male and female rated the institution

positively. There was no marked difference between their ratings. Both male and

female counterparts stated that the institution had a good library resource. Similarly, a

clear majority acknowledged that they were able to easily register for courses as well

access their grades. Also, access to information with regards to financial aid and

ordering transcripts was effortlessly available to them. The e-learners also stated that
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the LMS used by the institute was of a remarkable quality. A clear majority stated that

they were able to obtain information about the various events of the institute as well

as get information about a range of student clubs and organisations quite easily during

the course of their study. Almost all students stated that they were able to schedule

appointments with regards to obtaining academic advice or counseling sessions could

be arranged with no trouble.

The data inferred that a striking majority felt that they were able to interact with their

instructors during the course discussions. A greater part of the sample also felt that on

the overall the instructors were effective. A similar majority felt they found the

instructors available for consultation during office hours or by appointment.

Key Findings from the HR perspective on E- learning courses:

Majority of the sample consisted of HR having a generalist profile and few from

cadres of Vice President and Director. The HR were also classified based on the

genders to analyze their views.

A majority of the HRs that were surveyed stated that they were not aware of the E-

Learning courses their employees are pursuing. Additionally, a majority stated that

less than 5 employees from their organisation are pursuing an e- learning course. A

bulk of the HR’s stated that 5-20 of their employees were pursuing e- learning

courses.

On analyzing the sample according to the age groups, it was found that majority of the

employees were in the age group of 31-40 years; there were also a significant number

of employees from within the age group of 25 – 30 years who were pursuing E-

Learning courses.

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The study also focused on analyzing which were the courses that were most preferred

and the research pointed out that the management degrees have been preferred more

than the other available graduate or post graduate level courses.

Additionally, majority of the sample undertaking e- learning courses belonged to the

mid level and lower level of management. Almost all HR’s that were interviewed

stated that they preferred to recruit persons with a classroom taught degree as against

a person from an e-learning course. However, majority stated that they consider e-

learning courses as a value addition during the performance appraisal of the

employees.

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 Chapter 9

Recommendations and Suggestions

1) It has been found out from the research that there is no differentiation in

gender in the preference of E- learning courses. However, it has been found

out that the male gender preferred the quality of the author and the technology

of the course. Therefore, these aspects must be highlighted when promoting

the course. This further gives insights on how the E- learning industry can

increase its market presence in India with targeting the male audience for the

courses.

2) It has been observed that the female gender gave more importance to the

location, time schedules and the availability of course material. Therefore the

flexibility in the timings of the course could be an advantage to tap the market

for female students.

3) The research survey undertaken among the HR’s proves that students gaining

degrees from traditional classroom teaching courses are more preferred to the

students pursuing the E- learning courses. There should be an awareness

created among the HR about the equivalence of e-learning courses.

4) The number of the students choosing to pursue E- learning courses is higher in

the age group of 30-40 followed by 20-30. The number of learner’s

undertaking E- learning courses in the age of 40 and above is low because of

the technological complexities involved. Inorder to tackle this issue,

institutions must make the LMS more student friendly and easy to use.

5) The secondary researches state that there are various challenges that are faced

by E- learners while undertaking the course. The respondents stated that they

184
 had no trust on the authenticity of the courses and the value addition that the

E- learning course will have on their career aspect. Additionally, another

challenge that was stated was the disparity in the technological advances with

the students being unable to meet the growing changes and up-gradations

required. These vital issues must be addressed in other to increase the ease of

undertaking the E- learning courses and thereby encouraging higher

pursuance.

3) The research pointed out that there is still a higher preference being given by

recruiters to persons with a traditional classroom learning degrees as against

those from E- learning courses. It is therefore suggested that more awareness

must be created about the equivalence of the E- learning courses.

4) The preferences of learner’s are also found to be higher in the middle

management and followed by the lower level management. So this research

helps the institutions understand that the middle management professionals

must be targeting while promoting e- learning courses.

185
 Chapter 10

Future Scope for Research

This research was conducted considering the whole country as a sample. Similar

researches could be conducted to focus on every state of the country and streamline

the most preferred courses. The research findings could also be compared with other

countries to determine the value of e- learning and the growing market shares. This

would help in obtaining the emphasis on various factors such as technology, the

course structures and availabilities, etc.

186
 Chapter 11

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191
 Chapter 12

Annexure

List of Courses chosen by the E- Learners

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

No Response 9 5.9 5.9 5.9

BCom 1 .7 .7 6.5

BMS 1 .7 .7 7.2

CERTIFICATE
COURSE IN
TRAINING AND 1 .7 .7 7.8
DEVELOPMENT
HR

CERTIFICATE
1 .7 .7 8.5
COURSE ON HRM

CERTIFICATE
1 .7 .7 9.2
COURSE ON LSCM
Valid
Certificate Program
1 .7 .7 9.8
In Import and Export

CERTIFICATE
PROGRAM IN 1 .7 .7 10.5
LEADERSHIP

CERTIFICATE
PROGRAM IN 1 .7 .7 11.1
NEGOATATIONS

DIPLOMA IN
2 1.3 1.3 12.4
LEADERSHIP

engineering 1 .7 .7 13.1

EXECUTIVE MBA 1 .7 .7 13.7

192
Executive Program
on Human
1 .7 .7 14.4
Resource
Management

HOTEL
1 .7 .7 15.0
MANAGEMENT

HR-TRAINING AND
1 .7 .7 15.7
DEVELOPMENT

HRM 6 3.9 3.9 19.6

IMPORT AND
1 .7 .7 20.3
EXPORT

IT 1 .7 .7 20.9

IT- NETWORKING 1 .7 .7 21.6

LEADERSHIP 4 2.6 2.6 24.2

LEADERSHIP AND
1 .7 .7 24.8
SUCCESSION

LEADERSHIP AND
1 .7 .7 25.5
TRAINING

LEADERSHIP
2 1.3 1.3 26.8
DEVELOPMENT

LEADERSHIP-HRM 3 2.0 2.0 28.8

LOGISTICS AND
1 .7 .7 29.4
SUPPLYCHAIN

LSCM 1 .7 .7 30.1

Master of science 1 .7 .7 30.7

MBA 73 47.7 47.7 78.4

MBA- Distance
1 .7 .7 79.1
Learning

193
MBA- FIN 1 .7 .7 79.7

MBA-FINANCE 9 5.9 5.9 85.6

MBA-HR 6 3.9 3.9 89.5

MBA-HRM 3 2.0 2.0 91.5

MBA-MARKETING 3 2.0 2.0 93.5

MPM 1 .7 .7 94.1

MS in counseling 1 .7 .7 94.8

MTech 1 .7 .7 95.4

PLANNING TO
IMPLEMENTATION 1 .7 .7 96.1
-INNOVATION

PROCUREMENT 1 .7 .7 96.7

Red Hat -
1 .7 .7 97.4
Networking

RED HAT-
1 .7 .7 98.0
CCNA,CCPA

SIXSIGMA 1 .7 .7 98.7

tourism mngt 1 .7 .7 99.3

TRAINING AND
DEVELOPMENT- 1 .7 .7 100.0
HRM

Total 153 100.0 100.0

194
Mean and Median for the type of Course

Type of course Weightag Weightage Weightage Weighta Weighta Weightag Weighta

enrolled for e while while while ge while ge e while ge while
choosing choosing to choosing to choosing choosing choosing choosing
to pursue pursue a pursue a to pursue to pursue to pursue to
a course course course a course a course a course pursue a
through e- through e- through e- through through through e- course
learning.- learning - learning - e- e- learning- through
Location Technology Ease of learning learning - Cost of e-
required to availability – Author/ the course learning-
undertake of course Institutio Instructor Flexibility
the course material n that of the of time
provides course
the
course

Mean 1.63 1.93 1.98 1.88 1.98 1.63 1.22

Median 1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 1.00

Online
Distance
Std.
Learning 1.089 .989 1.097 1.075 1.081 .863 .490
Deviation

N 60 60 60 60 60 60 60

Mean 1.77 1.91 2.15 2.20 1.99 1.84 1.32

Median 1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 1.00

Hybrid
Std.
1.114 .917 1.093 1.185 1.098 1.086 .628
Deviation

N 93 93 93 93 93 93 93

Mean 1.72 1.92 2.08 2.08 1.99 1.76 1.28

Median 1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 1.00

Total Std.
1.103 .943 1.094 1.150 1.088 1.007 .579
Deviation

N 153 153 153 153 153 153 153

195
 T- Test

Group Statistics

Type of course N Mean Std. Std.

enrolled for Deviation Error
Mean

Weightage while Online Distance

60 1.63 1.089 .141
choosing to pursue a Learning
course through e-
learning.- Location Hybrid 93 1.77 1.114 .116

Weightage while Online Distance

60 1.93 .989 .128
choosing to pursue a Learning
course through e-
learning - Technology
required to undertake the Hybrid 93 1.91 .917 .095
course

Weightage while Online Distance

60 1.98 1.097 .142
choosing to pursue a Learning
course through e-
learning - Ease of
availability of course Hybrid 93 2.15 1.093 .113
material

Weightage while Online Distance

60 1.88 1.075 .139
choosing to pursue a Learning
course through e-
learning – Institution that Hybrid 93 2.20 1.185 .123
provides the course

Weightage choosing to Online Distance

60 1.98 1.081 .140
pursue a course through Learning
e- learning - Author/
Instructor of the course Hybrid 93 1.99 1.098 .114

Weightage while Online Distance

60 1.63 .863 .111
choosing to pursue a Learning

196
course through e-
learning- Cost of the Hybrid 93 1.84 1.086 .113
course

Weightage while Online Distance

60 1.22 .490 .063
choosing to pursue a Learning
course through e-
learning- Flexibility of time Hybrid 93 1.32 .628 .065

Independent Samples Test for E- Learner’s survey w.r.t. weightage given to

various parameters while choosing a course.

t-test for Equality of Means

t df Sig. (2-tailed)

Weightage while choosing to pursue a

-.770 151 .442
course through e- learning.- Location

Weightage while choosing to pursue a

course through e- learning - Technology .124 151 .902
required to undertake the course

Weightage while choosing to pursue a

course through e- learning - Ease of -.923 151 .358
availability of course material

Weightage while choosing to pursue a

course through e- learning – Institution that -1.696 151 .092
provides the course

Weightage choosing to pursue a course

through e- learning - Author/ Instructor of -.033 151 .974
the course

Weightage while choosing to pursue a

course through e- learning- Cost of the -1.234 151 .219
course

Weightage while choosing to pursue a

course through e- learning- Flexibility of -1.166 145.506 .246
time

197
 Table illustrating the approachability of instructors for the course

differentiated according to the type of course.

Type of course Total

enrolled for

Online Hybrid
Distance
Learning

Count 6 5 11

Neutral
% within Type of
10.0% 5.4% 7.2%
course enrolled for

I was able to
Count 39 62 101
interact with the
instructors during Agree
% within Type of
the course 65.0% 66.7% 66.0%
course enrolled for
discussions

Count 15 26 41

Strongly Agree
% within Type of
25.0% 28.0% 26.8%
course enrolled for

Count 60 93 153

Total
% within Type of
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
course enrolled for

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 1.219a 2 .544

Likelihood Ratio 1.189 2 .552

Linear-by-Linear Association .691 1 .406

198
N of Valid Cases 153

a. 1 cells (16.7%) have expected count less than 5. The

minimum expected count is 4.31.

The Chi Square test of the data is analyzed from the above mentioned table.

Table illustrating the Effectiveness of the instructors differentiated

according to the type of course.

Type of course enrolled Total

for

Online Hybrid
Distance
Learning

Count 1 0 1

Disagree
% within Type of course
1.7% 0.0% 0.7%
enrolled for

Count 8 13 21

Neutral
% within Type of course
13.3% 14.0% 13.7%
Overall the enrolled for
instructors were
effective Count 27 48 75

Agree
% within Type of course
45.0% 51.6% 49.0%
enrolled for

Count 24 32 56
Strongly
Agree % within Type of course
40.0% 34.4% 36.6%
enrolled for

Count 60 93 153

Total
% within Type of course
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
enrolled for

199
 Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 2.198a 3 .532

Likelihood Ratio 2.521 3 .472

Linear-by-Linear Association .063 1 .801

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 2 cells (25.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected
count is .39.

Table illustrating the availability of the instructors during the

duration of the course – differentiated according to the type of
course.

Type of course enrolled Total

for

Online Hybrid
Distance
Learning

Count 1 0 1

The instructors Strongly Disagree % within Type of course

were available 1.7% 0.0% 0.7%
enrolled for
for
consultation Count 6 11 17
during office
Neutral
hours or by % within Type of course
10.0% 11.8% 11.1%
appointment enrolled for

Agree Count 31 41 72

200
 % within Type of course
51.7% 44.1% 47.1%
enrolled for

Count 22 41 63

Strongly Agree
% within Type of course
36.7% 44.1% 41.2%
enrolled for

Count 60 93 153

Total
% within Type of course
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
enrolled for

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 2.593a 3 .459

Likelihood Ratio 2.919 3 .404

Linear-by-Linear Association .809 1 .369

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 2 cells (25.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected
count is .39.

T-Test

Group Statistics

Gender N Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean

Male 95 21.17 2.056 .211

Q11 to Q15 Opinion
about Course
Female 58 21.48 1.719 .226

Q17 Rating of Male 95 22.07 4.684 .481

Institutional Online
Accessibilities Female 58 23.02 4.715 .619

201
 Independent Samples Test

t-test for Equality of Means

t df Sig. (2-tailed)

Q11 to Q15 Opinion about Course -.975 151 .331

Q17 Rating of Institutional Online Accessibilities -1.206 151 .230

T-Test

Group Statistics

Type of course N Mean Std. Std. Error

enrolled for Deviation Mean

Online Distance
60 21.28 2.148 .277
Q11 to Q15 Opinion Learning
about Course
Hybrid 93 21.29 1.797 .186

Online Distance
Q17 Rating of 60 23.13 4.890 .631
Learning
Institutional Online
Accessibilities
Hybrid 93 21.98 4.547 .471

Independent Samples Test

t-test for Equality of Means

t df Sig. (2-tailed)

Q11 to Q15 Opinion about Course -.022 151 .983

Q17 Rating of Institutional Online Accessibilities 1.489 151 .139

202
 ANOVA

Sum of df Mean Square F Sig.

Squares

Between Groups 8.254 2 4.127 1.103 .334

Q11 to Q15
Opinion about Within Groups 561.092 150 3.741
Course
Total 569.346 152

Between Groups 16.190 2 8.095 .363 .696

Q17 Rating of
Institutional Online Within Groups 3345.340 150 22.302
Accessibilities
Total 3361.529 152

Post Hoc Tests

Multiple Comparisons

Games-Howell

Dependent (I) Course Level/ (J) Course Level/ Mean Std. Error Sig.
Variable Academic Academic Program Difference
Program (I-J)

Post-
Under- -1.711* .414 .023
graduate/Masters
graduate/Graduat
e Level
Professional -1.629* .389 .034
Q11 to
Under-
Q15
graduate/Graduate 1.711* .414 .023
Opinion Post-
Level
about graduate/Masters
Course Professional .083 .317 .963

Under-
Professional graduate/Graduate 1.629* .389 .034
Level

203
 Post-
-.083 .317 .963
graduate/Masters

Post-
Under- 2.222 2.097 .610
graduate/Masters
graduate/Graduat
e Level
Professional 1.819 2.089 .701

Under-
Q17
graduate/Graduate -2.222 2.097 .610
Rating of Post-
Level
Institutiona graduate/Masters
l Online
Professional -.403 .733 .847
Accessibilit
ies Under-
graduate/Graduate -1.819 2.089 .701
Level
Professional
Post-
.403 .733 .847
graduate/Masters

*. The mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level.

Under-graduates have given a lower rating about the Course as compared to PG and
Professional (P<0.05).

Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s towards the

institution’s support for accessing the library resources.

Gender Total

Female Male

Count 46 73 119
Thinking about Service offered for
the past, rate mobile device % within
79.3% 76.8% 77.8%
your Gender
institution’s
support for - Count 9 10 19

Accessing Service not offered

for mobile device % within
library resource 15.5% 10.5% 12.4%
Gender

204
 Count 3 12 15
Haven’t used service
in the past year % within
5.2% 12.6% 9.8%
Gender

Count 58 95 153

Total
% within
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Gender

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 2.794a 2 .247

Likelihood Ratio 2.978 2 .226

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 0 cells (0.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is 5.69.

Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s towards the

institution’s support for checking of grades according to gender.

Gender Total

Female Male

Service Count 30 52 82
Thinking about offered for
the past, rate mobile % within
51.7% 54.7% 53.6%
your device Gender
institution’s
support for - Service not Count 19 33 52

Checking offered for

grades mobile % within

32.8% 34.7% 34.0%
device Gender

205
 Haven’t Count 9 10 19
used
service in
% within
the past 15.5% 10.5% 12.4%
Gender
year

Count 58 95 153

Total
% within
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Gender

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square .825a 2 .662

Likelihood Ratio .807 2 .668

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 0 cells (0.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is 7.20.

Table illustrating the rating given by E-

learner’s towards the institution’s support for
registering for courses according to Gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Count 43 73 116
Thinking about Service offered

the past, rate your for mobile % within

device 74.1% 76.8% 75.8%
institution’s Gender
support for -
Registering for Count 9 17 26
Service not

206
courses offered for % within
15.5% 17.9% 17.0%
mobile device Gender

Count 6 5 11
Haven’t used
service in the
% within
past year 10.3% 5.3% 7.2%
Gender

Count 58 95 153

Total
% within
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Gender

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 1.448a 2 .485

Likelihood Ratio 1.403 2 .496

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 1 cells (16.7%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is 4.17.

Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s towards the

institution’s support for accessing financial aid information

according to gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Count 36 55 91
Thinking about Service offered for

207
the past, rate mobile device % within
62.1% 57.9% 59.5%
your Gender
institution’s
support for - Count 17 29 46
Service not offered for
Accessing
mobile device % within
financial aid 29.3% 30.5% 30.1%
Gender
information

Count 5 11 16
Haven’t used service in
the past year % within
8.6% 11.6% 10.5%
Gender

Count 58 95 153

Total
% within
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Gender

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square .425a 2 .809

Likelihood Ratio .432 2 .806

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 0 cells (0.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is 6.07.

208
Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s towards the

institution’s support for ordering transcripts according to gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Count 44 80 124
Service
offered for
% within
mobile device 75.9% 84.2% 81.0%
Gender

Thinking about the Count 10 12 22

Service not
past, rate your
offered for
institution’s support for % within
mobile device 17.2% 12.6% 14.4%
- Ordering transcripts Gender

Count 4 3 7
Haven’t used
service in the
% within
past year 6.9% 3.2% 4.6%
Gender

Count 58 95 153

Total
% within
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Gender

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 1.942a 2 .379

Likelihood Ratio 1.892 2 .388

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 2 cells (33.3%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is 2.65.

209
Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s towards the

institution’s support for using the course or learning management

system differentiated according to gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Count 48 84 132
Service offered for
Thinking about the
mobile device % within
past, rate your 82.8% 88.4% 86.3%
Gender
institution’s support
for - Using the Count 6 10 16
course or learning Service not offered for
management<br>s mobile device % within
10.3% 10.5% 10.5%
ystem (e.g., Gender

Moodle,
Count 4 1 5
Blackboard, Sakai,
Haven’t used service
Desire2Learn, etc.)
in the past year % within
6.9% 1.1% 3.3%
Gender

Count 58 95 153

Total
% within
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Gender

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 3.898a 2 .142

Likelihood Ratio 3.845 2 .146

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 2 cells (33.3%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is 1.90.

210
Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s towards the

institution’s support for accessing information about events

according to gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Thinking about Service Count 51 82 133

the past, rate offered for
your institution’s mobile device % within Gender 87.9% 87.2% 87.5%

support for -
Accessing Service not Count 4 10 14

information offered for

about events, mobile device % within Gender 6.9% 10.6% 9.2%

student<br>activi
Haven’t used Count 3 2 5
ties,
clubs/organizatio service in the
past year % within Gender 5.2% 2.1% 3.3%
ns

Count 58 94 152
Total
% within Gender 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 1.558a 2 .459

Likelihood Ratio 1.543 2 .462

N of Valid Cases 152

a. 2 cells (33.3%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is 1.91.

211
Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s towards the

institution’s support for scheduling appointments according to

gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Thinking Count 51 81 132

Service offered for
about the
mobile device
past, rate % within Gender 89.5% 86.2% 87.4%

your
Count 4 9 13
institution’s Service not offered for
support for - mobile device
% within Gender 7.0% 9.6% 8.6%
Scheduling
appointments Count 2 4 6
(e.g.,
academic
advising, Haven’t used service
student in the past year
% within Gender 3.5% 4.3% 4.0%
health,
counseling,
etc.)

Count 57 94 151
Total
% within Gender 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square .364a 2 .834

Likelihood Ratio .372 2 .830

N of Valid Cases 151

212
a. 3 cells (50.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum
expected count is 2.26.

Reliability

Reliability Statistics

Cronbach's Alpha Cronbach's Alpha Based on N of Items

Standardized Items

.706 .703 5

Reliability Coefficient = 0.563.

Summary Item Statistics

Mean Minimum Maximum Range Maximu Variance N of Items

m/
Minimum

Inter-Item
.205 .106 .433 .327 4.083 .011 5
Correlations

Item-Total Statistics

Scale Mean if Scale Variance Corrected Squared Cronbach's

Item Deleted if Item Deleted Item-Total Multiple Alpha if Item
Correlation Correlation Deleted

The course materials

and assignments were 17.21 2.969 .244 .110 .552
relevant and useful

Overall, I have
valuable learning
17.02 2.743 .303 .137 .522
experiences from my
course (s)

213
Expectations were
clearly stated either
16.97 2.631 .313 .110 .518
verbally or in the
syllabus

The testing and

evaluation procedures 16.94 2.490 .404 .228 .463
were fair

The workload was

appropriate for the 17.01 2.454 .363 .201 .487
hours of credit

Reliability

Reliability Statistics

Value .435
Part 1
N of Items 3a

Cronbach's Alpha Value .603

Part 2
N of Items 2b

Total N of Items 5

Correlation Between Forms .289

Equal Length .449

Spearman-Brown Coefficient
Unequal Length .455

Guttman Split-Half Coefficient .447

a. The items are: The course materials and assignments were relevant
and useful, Overall, I have valuable learning experiences from my course
(s), Expectations were clearly stated either verbally or in the syllabus.

b. The items are: The testing and evaluation procedures were fair, The
workload was appropriate for the hours of credit.

214
Reliability

Reliability Statistics

Cronbach's Alpha Cronbach's Alpha Based on Standardized N of Items

Items

.760 .755 11

Summary Item Statistics

Mean Minimum Maximum Range Maximum / Variance N of Items

Minimum

Inter-Item
.219 -.059 .580 .639 -9.809 .020 11
Correlations

Item-Total Statistics

Scale Mean if Item Scale Corrected Squared Cronbach's

Deleted Variance if Item-Total Multiple Alpha if Item
Item Deleted Correlation Correlation Deleted

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your 22.444 36.327 .347 .251 .750
instructors used - E-
mail

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your 22.255 34.994 .459 .258 .736
instructors used -
Text messaging

215
Which forms of
communication do
you wish your
instructors used - 22.229 35.243 .414 .324 .741
Instant
messaging/online
chatting

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your 21.863 32.343 .561 .423 .720
instructors used -
Twitter

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your 22.170 34.484 .463 .464 .735
instructors used -
Facebook

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your
22.033 33.256 .578 .528 .720
instructors used -
Other social
networking sites

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your
instructors used -
22.007 32.691 .571 .474 .719
Social studying sites
(Cramster,
CourseHero,
GradeGuru, etc.)

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your
instructors used - 22.484 36.725 .335 .248 .751
Phone or phone-like
communication over
the Internet

216
Which forms of
communication do
you wish your
21.405 37.282 .214 .165 .769
instructors used -
Face-to-face (in-
person) interaction

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your
instructors used -
Audio/video 22.869 38.259 .309 .253 .753
interaction (virtual
face-to-face with
Skype “video,” G-
Talk “video,” etc.)

Which forms of
communication do
you wish your
instructors used -
Course or learning 22.948 38.892 .223 .194 .761
management system
(Blackboard, Moodle,
Sakai, Desire2Learn,
etc.)

Reliability

Reliability Statistics

Value .740
Part 1
N of Items 6a

Cronbach's Alpha Value .529

Part 2
N of Items 5b

Total N of Items 11

Correlation Between Forms .471

217
 Equal Length .640
Spearman-Brown Coefficient
Unequal Length .642

Guttman Split-Half Coefficient .609

a. The items are: Which forms of communication do you wish your

instructors used - E-mail, Which forms of communication do you wish
your instructors used - Text messaging, Which forms of communication
do you wish your instructors used - Instant messaging/online chatting,
Which forms of communication do you wish your instructors used -
Twitter, Which forms of communication do you wish your instructors used
- Facebook, Which forms of communication do you wish your instructors
used - Other social networking sites.

b. The items are: Which forms of communication do you wish your

instructors used - Social studying sites (Cramster, CourseHero,
GradeGuru, etc.), Which forms of communication do you wish your
instructors used - Phone or phone-like communication over the Internet,
Which forms of communication do you wish your instructors used - Face-
to-face (in-person) interaction, Which forms of communication do you
wish your instructors used - Audio/video interaction (virtual face-to-face
with Skype “video,” G-Talk “video,” etc.), Which forms of communication
do you wish your instructors used - Course or learning management
system (Blackboard, Moodle, Sakai, Desire2Learn, etc.).

This is revised result of Q10 Learners after substituting missing values by

median of the series so that the totals are 153.

N Mean Median

Weightage while choosing to pursue a course

153 1.72 1.00
through e- learning.- Location

Weightage while choosing to pursue a course

through e- learning - Technology required to 153 1.92 2.00
undertake the course

218
Weightage while choosing to pursue a course
through e- learning - Ease of availability of 153 2.08 2.00
course material

Weightage while choosing to pursue a course

through e- learning – Institution that provides 153 2.08 2.00
the course

Weightage choosing to pursue a course

through e- learning - Author/ Instructor of the 153 1.99 2.00
course

Weightage while choosing to pursue a course

153 1.76 1.00
through e- learning- Cost of the course

Weightage while choosing to pursue a course

153 1.28 1.00
through e- learning- Flexibility of time

Mean and Median for the weightage allotted to the various parameters
while choosing a course
Course Level/ Weighta Weightag Weighta Weightag Weighta Weighta Weightag
Academic Program ge while e while ge while e while ge ge while e while
choosing choosing choosing choosing choosing choosing choosing
to to pursue to pursue to pursue to pursue to pursue to pursue
pursue a a course a course a course a course a course a course
course through e- through through e- through through through e-
through learning - e- learning – e- e- learning-
e- Technolog learning - Institution learning - learning- Flexibility
learning. y required Ease of that Author/ Cost of of time
- to availabilit provides Instructor the
Location undertake y of the course of the course
the course course course
material

Mean 1.67 1.67 1.67 1.67 2.33 2.00 1.33

Under- Median 2.00 1.00 2.00 2.00 3.00 2.00 1.00

graduate/
Std.
Graduate .577 1.155 .577 .577 1.155 1.000 .577
Deviation
Level

N 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

219
 Mean 1.76 1.96 2.09 2.00 1.91 1.58 1.24

Median 1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 1.00

Post-
graduate/
Std.
Masters 1.209 .952 .973 1.168 1.145 .917 .609
Deviation

N 45 45 45 45 45 45 45

Mean 1.70 1.91 2.10 2.12 2.01 1.83 1.30

Median 1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.00

Professio
nal Std.
1.073 .942 1.156 1.158 1.070 1.042 .570
Deviation

N 105 105 105 105 105 105 105

Mean 1.72 1.92 2.08 2.08 1.99 1.76 1.28

Median 1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 1.00

Total
Std.
1.103 .943 1.094 1.150 1.088 1.007 .579
Deviation

N 153 153 153 153 153 153 153

Oneway Analysis of Variance

Descriptives

N Mean Std. Std. Error

Deviation

Under-
graduate/Graduate 3 1.67 .577 .333
Weightage while
Level
choosing to pursue
a course through Post-graduate/Masters 45 1.76 1.209 .180
e- learning.-
Location Professional 105 1.70 1.073 .105

Total 153 1.72 1.103 .089

220
Weightage while Under-
choosing to pursue graduate/Graduate 3 1.67 1.155 .667
a course through Level
e- learning -
Post-graduate/Masters 45 1.96 .952 .142
Technology
required to
Professional 105 1.91 .942 .092
undertake the
course Total 153 1.92 .943 .076

Under-
Weightage while graduate/Graduate 3 1.67 .577 .333
choosing to pursue Level
a course through
Post-graduate/Masters 45 2.09 .973 .145
e- learning - Ease
of availability of
Professional 105 2.10 1.156 .113
course material
Total 153 2.08 1.094 .088

Under-
Weightage while
graduate/Graduate 3 1.67 .577 .333
choosing to pursue
Level
a course through
e- learning – Post-graduate/Masters 45 2.00 1.168 .174
Institution that
provides the Professional 105 2.12 1.158 .113

course
Total 153 2.08 1.150 .093

Under-
Weightage graduate/Graduate 3 2.33 1.155 .667
choosing to pursue Level
a course through
Post-graduate/Masters 45 1.91 1.145 .171
e- learning -
Author/ Instructor
Professional 105 2.01 1.070 .104
of the course
Total 153 1.99 1.088 .088

Under-
Weightage while
graduate/Graduate 3 2.00 1.000 .577
choosing to pursue
Level
a course through
e- learning- Cost of Post-graduate/Masters 45 1.58 .917 .137
the course
Professional 105 1.83 1.042 .102

221
 Total 153 1.76 1.007 .081

Under-
graduate/Graduate 3 1.33 .577 .333
Weightage while
Level
choosing to pursue
a course through Post-graduate/Masters 45 1.24 .609 .091
e- learning-
Flexibility of time Professional 105 1.30 .570 .056

Total 153 1.28 .579 .047

ANOVA

Sum of df Mean F Sig.

Squares Square

Between
.090 2 .045 .036 .964
Weightage while Groups

choosing to pursue
Within
a course through e- 184.825 150 1.232
Groups
learning.- Location

Total 184.915 152

Weightage while Between

.252 2 .126 .140 .869
choosing to pursue Groups
a course through e-
Within
learning - 134.806 150 .899
Groups
Technology required
to undertake the
Total 135.059 152
course

Weightage while Between

.537 2 .268 .222 .801
choosing to pursue Groups

a course through e-
Within
learning - Ease of 181.359 150 1.209
Groups
availability of course
material Total 181.895 152

222
Weightage while Between
1.002 2 .501 .376 .688
choosing to pursue Groups

a course through e-
Within
learning – Institution 200.057 150 1.334
Groups
that provides the
course Total 201.059 152

Between
Weightage choosing .672 2 .336 .281 .755
Groups
to pursue a course
through e- learning - Within
179.302 150 1.195
Author/ Instructor of Groups
the course
Total 179.974 152

Between
Weightage while 2.160 2 1.080 1.067 .347
Groups
choosing to pursue
a course through e- Within
151.892 150 1.013
learning- Cost of the Groups
course
Total 154.052 152

Between
Weightage while .090 2 .045 .132 .876
Groups
choosing to pursue
a course through e- Within
50.825 150 .339
learning- Flexibility Groups
of time
Total 50.915 152

The last column in above table is P-value. If P<= 0.05 then there is a significant
difference in weightage given by participants at three levels.

223
Factors considered while choosing an e-learning course

Gender Location Technolo Ease Institution Author/ Cost of

gy of that Instructor the Flexibili
required availabi provides of the course ty of
to lity of the course course time
undertak course
e the materia
course l

Mean 1.72 1.88 2.16 2.36 1.95 1.81 1.33

Medi
1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.50 1.00
an
Female
Std.
Devia 1.136 .957 1.056 1.252 1.146 1.034 .604
tion

N 58 58 58 58 58 58 58

Mean 1.72 1.95 2.04 1.91 2.01 1.73 1.25

Medi
1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 1.00
an
Male Std.
Devia 1.088 .938 1.120 1.053 1.057 .994 .564
tion

N 95 95 95 95 95 95 95

Mean 1.72 1.92 2.08 2.08 1.99 1.76 1.28

Total
Medi
1.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 1.00 1.00
an

224
 Std.
Devia 1.103 .943 1.094 1.150 1.088 1.007 .579
tion

N 153 153 153 153 153 153 153

There seems to be no difference between males and females in the mean rating for
different factors for choice of e-learning course.

Yet we will test below statistically by applying t-test.

T-Test

Group Statistics

Gender N Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean

Male 95 1.72 1.088 .112

Location
Female 58 1.72 1.136 .149

Technolo Male 95 1.95 .938 .096

gy
required
to
undertak Female 58 1.88 .957 .126
e the
course

Ease of Male 95 2.04 1.120 .115

availabilit
y of
course Female 58 2.16 1.056 .139
material

Institutio Male 95 1.91 1.053 .108

n that
provides
the Female 58 2.36 1.252 .164
course

Author/ Male 95 2.01 1.057 .108

225
Instructor
of the Female 58 1.95 1.146 .150
course

Cost of Male 95 1.73 .994 .102

the
course Female 58 1.81 1.034 .136

Male 95 1.25 .564 .058

Flexibility
of time
Female 58 1.33 .604 .079

Independent Samples Test

t-test for Equality of Means

t df Sig. (2-tailed)

Location -.045 151 .964

Technology required to undertake the course .432 151 .666

Ease of availability of course material -.619 151 .537

Institution that provides the course -2.421 151 .017

Author/ Instructor of the course .342 151 .733

Cost of the course -.500 151 .618

Flexibility of time -.776 151 .439

In above table t-value, degrees of freedom (df) and P-values (Sig.) are given. The
difference between mean rating of the two groups viz. males and females will be
significant if P-value is <= 0.05. Since all P-values are > 0.05 except for “Institution
that provides the course”, the rating given by males and females for this factor is
statistically significant. In the first table of t-test the mean rating given by females
(2.36) is higher than males (1.91) we therefore can say that females give higher
preference for “Institution that provides the course” i.e. BRAND.

226
Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s for the instructors

during the course discussions – differentiated according to the

course level or academic program

Course Level/ Academic Total

Program

Under- Post- Professio

graduate graduat nal
/Graduat e/Maste
e Level rs

Count 0 2 9 11

Neutral
% within Course Level/
0.0% 4.4% 8.6% 7.2%
I was able to Academic Program

interact with
Count 3 29 69 101
the
instructors Agree
% within Course Level/
during the 100.0% 64.4% 65.7% 66.0%
Academic Program
course
discussions Count 0 14 27 41
Strongly
Agree % within Course Level/
0.0% 31.1% 25.7% 26.8%
Academic Program

Count 3 45 105 153

Total
% within Course Level/
100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Academic Program

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 2.672a 4 .614

Likelihood Ratio 3.663 4 .454

227
Linear-by-Linear Association .330 1 .566

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 4 cells (44.4%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected
count is .22.

There is no significant difference in interaction with Instructors as perceived by

participants at different course levels.

Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s to the

effectiveness of the instructors during the course – differentiated

according to the course level or academic program

Course Level/ Academic Program Total

Under- Post- Professio

graduate/Gradua graduate/M nal
te Level asters

Count 0 0 1 1

Disagree % within Course

Level/ Academic 0.0% 0.0% 1.0% 0.7%
Program
Over
all Count 1 1 19 21

the
Neutral % within Course
instru
Level/ Academic 33.3% 2.2% 18.1% 13.7%
ctors
Program
were
effect Count 1 27 47 75
ive

Agree % within Course

Level/ Academic 33.3% 60.0% 44.8% 49.0%
Program

Strongly Agree Count 1 17 38 56

228
 % within Course
Level/ Academic 33.3% 37.8% 36.2% 36.6%
Program

Count 3 45 105 153

Total % within Course

Level/ Academic 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Program

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 8.773a 6 .187

Likelihood Ratio 11.022 6 .088

Linear-by-Linear Association 1.286 1 .257

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 6 cells (50.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected
count is .02.

229
 Table illustrating the availability of instructors for consultation

during office hours or by appointment – differentiated according to

the course level or academic program

Course Level/ Academic Program Total

Under- Post- Professional

graduate/ graduate/M
Graduate asters
Level

Count 0 0 1 1

Strongly
% within Course
Disagree
Level/ Academic 0.0% 0.0% 1.0% 0.7%
Program

Count 1 4 12 17

Neutral % within Course

The instructors
Level/ Academic 33.3% 8.9% 11.4% 11.1%
were available
Program
for consultation
during office
Count 1 22 49 72
hours or by
appointment Agree % within Course
Level/ Academic 33.3% 48.9% 46.7% 47.1%
Program

Count 1 19 43 63

Strongly
% within Course
Agree
Level/ Academic 33.3% 42.2% 41.0% 41.2%
Program

Count 3 45 105 153

Total % within Course

Level/ Academic 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Program

230
 Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 2.214a 6 .899

Likelihood Ratio 2.071 6 .913

Linear-by-Linear Association .022 1 .882

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 6 cells (50.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected
count is .02.

Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s for the ease of

interacting with the instructors during the course – differentiated

according to the gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Count 3 8 11

Neutral
% within
5.2% 8.4% 7.2%
Gender

I was able to
Count 42 59 101
interact with the
instructors during Agree
% within
the course 72.4% 62.1% 66.0%
Gender
discussions

Count 13 28 41

Strongly Agree
% within
22.4% 29.5% 26.8%
Gender

231
 Count 58 95 153

Total
% within
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Gender

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 1.778a 2 .411

Likelihood Ratio 1.814 2 .404

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 1 cells (16.7%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is 4.17.

Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s for the

effectiveness of the instructors during the course – differentiated

according to the gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Count 0 1 1

Disagree
% within
0.0% 1.1% 0.7%
Gender
Overall the instructors
were effective
Count 5 16 21

Neutral
% within
8.6% 16.8% 13.7%
Gender

232
 Count 32 43 75

Agree
% within
55.2% 45.3% 49.0%
Gender

Count 21 35 56

Strongly Agree
% within
36.2% 36.8% 36.6%
Gender

Count 58 95 153

Total
% within
100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
Gender

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square 3.109a 3 .375

Likelihood Ratio 3.565 3 .312

N of Valid Cases 153

a. 2 cells (25.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum

expected count is .38.

233
 Table illustrating the rating given by E- learner’s towards the

availability of instructors for consultation during office hours –

differentiated according to the gender

Gender Total

Female Male

Count 0 1 1
Strongly Disagree
% within Gender 0.0% 1.1% 0.7%

Count 7 10 17
The instructors were Neutral
available for % within Gender 12.1% 10.5% 11.1%
consultation during
office hours or by Count 27 45 72

appointment Agree
% within Gender 46.6% 47.4% 47.1%

Count 24 39 63
Strongly Agree
% within Gender 41.4% 41.1% 41.2%

Count 58 95 153
Total
% within Gender 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-

sided)

Pearson Chi-Square .694a 3 .875

Likelihood Ratio 1.036 3 .793

N of Valid Cases 153

234
a. 2 cells (25.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum
expected count is .38.

Reliability
Reliability Statistics

Cronbach's Alpha Cronbach's Alpha Based on N of Items

Standardized Items

.839 .840 8

Summary Item Statistics

Mean Minimum Maximum Range Maximum / Varianc N of Items

Minimum e

Inter-Item
.397 .264 .721 .457 2.732 .011 8
Correlations

Item-Total Statistics

Scale Mean if Scale Variance if Item Corrected Squared Cronbach's

Item Deleted Deleted Item-Total Multiple Alpha if Item
Correlation Correlation Deleted

Please rate your

institution for - Accessing 19.89 17.849 .541 .377 .824
library resource

Please rate your

institution for - Checking 20.01 15.381 .674 .598 .806

grades

Please rate your

institution for - 19.52 17.554 .595 .423 .817

Registering for courses

Please rate your

institution for - Accessing 19.86 15.738 .623 .601 .815
financial aid information

235
Please rate your

institution for - Ordering 19.60 17.136 .637 .503 .812

transcripts

Please rate your

institution for - Using the

course or learning
management<br>system 19.44 18.235 .524 .396 .826
(e.g., Moodle,

Blackboard, Sakai,
Desire2Learn, etc.)

Please rate your

institution for - Accessing
information about events, 19.37 18.393 .473 .317 .832
student<br>activities,
clubs/organizations

Please rate your

institution for -
Scheduling appointments
19.31 18.283 .516 .369 .827
(e.g., academic advising,
student health,
counseling, etc.)

Reliability

Reliability Statistics

Value .789
Part 1
N of Items 4a

Cronbach's Alpha Value .734

Part 2
N of Items 4b

Total N of Items 8

Correlation Between Forms .612

Spearman-Brown Coefficient Equal Length .759

236
 Unequal Length .759

Guttman Split-Half Coefficient .745

a. The items are: Please rate your institution for - Accessing library resource, Please
rate your institution for - Checking grades, Please rate your institution for - Registering
for courses, Please rate your institution for - Accessing financial aid information.

b. The items are: Please rate your institution for - Ordering transcripts, Please rate your
institution for - Using the course or learning management<br>system (e.g., Moodle,
Blackboard, Sakai, Desire2Learn, etc.), Please rate your institution for - Accessing
information about events, student<br>activities, clubs/organizations, Please rate your
institution for - Scheduling appointments (e.g., academic advising, student health,
counseling, etc.).

Reliability

Reliability Statistics

Cronbach's Alpha Cronbach's Alpha Based on Standardized N of Items

Items

.638 .641 8

Summary Item Statistics

Mean Minimum Maximum Range Maximum / Variance N of Items

Minimum

Inter-Item
.183 -.013 .413 .426 -32.696 .013 8
Correlations

Item-Total Statistics

Scale Mean Scale Corrected Squared Cronbach's

if Item Variance if Item-Total Multiple Alpha if Item
Deleted Item Correlation Correlation Deleted
Deleted

237
How important are the
following resources/tools to
achieving your academic 23.61 7.133 .323 .258 .609
success - Academic
institution’s library website

How important are the

following resources/tools to
achieving your academic
success - Course or learning 23.25 6.941 .306 .199 .616
management system
(Blackboard, Moodle, Sakai,
Desire2Learn, etc.)

How important are the

following resources/tools to
achieving your academic
success - Web-based 23.05 6.860 .359 .162 .599
citation/bibliography tools
(EndNote, CiteULike, OttoBib,
etc.)

How important are the

following resources/tools to
achieving your academic 23.07 6.904 .361 .196 .599
success - College/university
website

How important are the

following resources/tools to
22.80 7.110 .334 .239 .606
achieving your academic
success - E-portfolios

How important are the

following resources/tools to
achieving your academic 22.71 7.298 .358 .213 .602
success - E-books or e-
textbooks

238
How important are the
following resources/tools to
achieving your academic
22.72 7.295 .339 .255 .606
success - Freely available
course content beyond your
campus

How important are the

following resources/tools to
achieving your academic 22.62 7.395 .285 .206 .619
success - Simulations or
educational games

Reliability

Reliability Statistics

Value .594
Part 1
N of Items 4a

Cronbach's Alpha Value .613

Part 2
N of Items 4b

Total N of Items 8

Correlation Between Forms .244

Equal Length .393

Spearman-Brown Coefficient
Unequal Length .393

Guttman Split-Half Coefficient .390

239
a. The items are: How important are the following resources/tools to
achieving your academic success - Academic institution’s library website,
How important are the following resources/tools to achieving your academic
success - Course or learning management system (Blackboard, Moodle,
Sakai, Desire2Learn, etc.), How important are the following resources/tools to
achieving your academic success - Web-based citation/bibliography tools
(EndNote, CiteULike, OttoBib, etc.), How important are the following
resources/tools to achieving your academic success - College/university
website.

b. The items are: How important are the following resources/tools to

achieving your academic success - E-portfolios, How important are the
following resources/tools to achieving your academic success - E-books or e-
textbooks, How important are the following resources/tools to achieving your
academic success - Freely available course content beyond your campus, How
important are the following resources/tools to achieving your academic
success - Simulations or educational games.

Missing values were replaced by ‘median’ of the series and then the frequencies taken
again.

Table demonstrating if the E- Learners felt that the course materials and assignments were

relevant and useful

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulati

Perce ve
nt Percent

Neutral 18 11.8 11.8 11.8

Agree 105 68.6 68.6 80.4

Valid
Strongly Agree 30 19.6 19.6 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

240
Table demonstrating if the E- Learners have had a valuable experience
from the course

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulati

Perce ve
nt Percent

Neutral 14 9.2 9.2 9.2

Agree 84 54.9 54.9 64.1

Valid
Strongly Agree 55 35.9 35.9 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table demonstrating if the E- Learners felt that the expectations were

clearly stated either verbally or in the syllabus

Frequency Percent Vali Cumula

d tive
Perc Percent
ent

Disagree 1 .7 .7 .7

Neutral 14 9.2 9.2 9.8

Agree 74 48.4 48.4 58.2

Valid

Strongly Agree 64 41.8 41.8 100.0

100.
Total 153 100.0
0

241
 Table demonstrating if the E- Learners felt that the testing and

evaluation procedures were fair

Frequency Percent Valid Cumul

Perce ative
nt Perce
nt

Neutral 15 9.8 9.8 9.8

Agree 70 45.8 45.8 55.6

Valid
Strongly Agree 68 44.4 44.4 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table demonstrating if the E- Learners felt that the workload was appropriate for the

hours of credit

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Disagree 2 1.3 1.3 1.3

Neutral 16 10.5 10.5 11.8

Valid Agree 72 47.1 47.1 58.8

Strongly Agree 63 41.2 41.2 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table demonstrating the rating by the E- Learners for institution

w.r.t. Accessing library resource

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulati

Percent ve
Percent

Valid Poor 14 9.2 9.2 9.2

242
 Fair 57 37.3 37.3 46.4

Good 67 43.8 43.8 90.2

Excellent 15 9.8 9.8 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table demonstrating the rating by the E- Learners for institution

w.r.t. Checking grades

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulativ

Perce e Percent
nt

Poor 43 28.1 28.1 28.1

Fair 27 17.6 17.6 45.8

Valid Good 59 38.6 38.6 84.3

Excellent 24 15.7 15.7 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table demonstrating the rating by the E- Learners for institution

w.r.t. Registering for courses

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Perc Percent
ent

Poor 7 4.6 4.6 4.6

Valid Fair 34 22.2 22.2 26.8

Good 78 51.0 51.0 77.8

243
 Excellent 34 22.2 22.2 100.0

100.
Total 153 100.0
0

Table demonstrating the rating by the E- Learners for

institution w.r.t. Accessing financial aid information

Frequency Percent Valid Cumul

Perce ative
nt Perce
nt

Poor 34 22.2 22.2 22.2

Fair 31 20.3 20.3 42.5

Valid Good 55 35.9 35.9 78.4

Excellent 33 21.6 21.6 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table demonstrating the rating by the E- Learners for institution

w.r.t. Ordering transcripts

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulativ

Perc e Percent
ent

Poor 5 3.3 3.3 3.3

Fair 51 33.3 33.3 36.6

Valid
Good 62 40.5 40.5 77.1

Excellent 35 22.9 22.9 100.0

244
 100.
Total 153 100.0
0

Table demonstrating the rating by the E- Learners for institution w.r.t. Using
the course or learning management system (e.g., Moodle, Blackboard, Sakai,
Desire2Learn, etc.)

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Poor 3 2.0 2.0 2.0

Fair 34 22.2 22.2 24.2

Valid Good 78 51.0 51.0 75.2

Excellent 38 24.8 24.8 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table demonstrating the rating by the E- Learners for institution w.r.t.

Accessing information about events, student activities, clubs/organizations

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Poor 5 3.3 3.3 3.3

Fair 26 17.0 17.0 20.3

Valid Good 77 50.3 50.3 70.6

Excellent 45 29.4 29.4 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

245
 Table demonstrating the rating by the E- Learners for institution w.r.t.
Scheduling appointments (e.g., academic advising, student health,
counseling, etc.)

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Poor 2 1.3 1.3 1.3

Fair 28 18.3 18.3 19.6

Valid Good 73 47.7 47.7 67.3

Excellent 50 32.7 32.7 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the ability of E- learners to interact with the instructors

during the course discussions

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Neutral 11 7.2 7.2 7.2

Agree 101 66.0 66.0 73.2

Valid
Strongly Agree 41 26.8 26.8 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the effectiveness of instructors

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Valid Disagree 1 .7 .7 .7

246
 Neutral 21 13.7 13.7 14.4

Agree 75 49.0 49.0 63.4

Strongly Agree 56 36.6 36.6 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating if the instructors were available for consultation during

office hours or by appointment

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Strongly
1 .7 .7 .7
Disagree

Neutral 17 11.1 11.1 11.8

Valid
Agree 72 47.1 47.1 58.8

Strongly Agree 63 41.2 41.2 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the

instructors used - E-mail

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 63 41.2 41.2 41.2

2 44 28.8 28.8 69.9

Valid 3 26 17.0 17.0 86.9

4 19 12.4 12.4 99.3

5 1 .7 .7 100.0

247
 Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the

instructors used - Text messaging

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 43 28.1 28.1 28.1

2 60 39.2 39.2 67.3

3 29 19.0 19.0 86.3

Valid
4 16 10.5 10.5 96.7

5 5 3.3 3.3 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the

instructors used - Instant messaging/online chatting

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 47 30.7 30.7 30.7

2 49 32.0 32.0 62.7

3 36 23.5 23.5 86.3

Valid
4 15 9.8 9.8 96.1

5 6 3.9 3.9 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

248
 Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the
instructors used - Twitter

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 36 23.5 23.5 23.5

2 39 25.5 25.5 49.0

3 42 27.5 27.5 76.5

Valid
4 21 13.7 13.7 90.2

5 15 9.8 9.8 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the

instructors used - Facebook

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 45 29.4 29.4 29.4

2 47 30.7 30.7 60.1

3 38 24.8 24.8 85.0

Valid
4 16 10.5 10.5 95.4

5 7 4.6 4.6 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

249
 Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the
instructors used - Other social networking sites

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 37 24.2 24.2 24.2

2 43 28.1 28.1 52.3

3 50 32.7 32.7 85.0

Valid
4 15 9.8 9.8 94.8

5 8 5.2 5.2 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the

instructors used - Social studying sites (Cramster, CourseHero, GradeGuru,
etc.)

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 40 26.1 26.1 26.1

2 43 28.1 28.1 54.2

3 38 24.8 24.8 79.1

Valid
4 23 15.0 15.0 94.1

5 9 5.9 5.9 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

250
 Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the
instructors used - Phone or phone-like communication over the Internet

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 61 39.9 39.9 39.9

2 51 33.3 33.3 73.2

3 25 16.3 16.3 89.5

Valid
4 14 9.2 9.2 98.7

5 2 1.3 1.3 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the

instructors used - Face-to-face (in-person) interaction

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 25 16.3 16.3 16.3

2 21 13.7 13.7 30.1

3 38 24.8 24.8 54.9

Valid
4 57 37.3 37.3 92.2

5 12 7.8 7.8 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

251
 Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the
instructors used -Audio/video interaction (virtual face-to-face with Skype
“video,” G-Talk “video,” etc.)

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 84 54.9 54.9 54.9

2 52 34.0 34.0 88.9

3 12 7.8 7.8 96.7

Valid
4 4 2.6 2.6 99.3

5 1 .7 .7 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating which forms of communication the E- learners wished the

instructors used - Course or learning management system (Blackboard,
Moodle, Sakai, Desire2Learn, etc.)

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 100 65.4 65.4 65.4

2 33 21.6 21.6 86.9

3 14 9.2 9.2 96.1

Valid
4 5 3.3 3.3 99.3

5 1 .7 .7 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

252
 Table illustrating the importance of the following resources for the E- Learners considering
Academic institution’s library website

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Not Very Important 2 1.3 1.3 1.3

Moderately Important 68 44.4 44.4 45.8

Valid Very Important 65 42.5 42.5 88.2

Extremely Important 18 11.8 11.8 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the importance of the following resources for the E- Learners considering
course or learning management system (Blackboard, Moodle, Sakai, Desire2Learn, etc.)

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Not Very Important 3 2.0 2.0 2.0

Moderately Important 38 24.8 24.8 26.8

Valid Very Important 67 43.8 43.8 70.6

Extremely Important 45 29.4 29.4 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

253
 Table illustrating the importance of the following resources for the E- Learners considering
web-based citation/bibliography tools (EndNote, CiteULike, OttoBib, etc.)

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Not Very Important 1 .7 .7 .7

Moderately Important 27 17.6 17.6 18.3

Valid Very Important 63 41.2 41.2 59.5

Extremely Important 62 40.5 40.5 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the importance of the following resources for the E- Learners considering the
college/university website

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Moderately Important 29 19.0 19.0 19.0

Very Important 65 42.5 42.5 61.4

Valid
Extremely Important 59 38.6 38.6 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the importance of the following resources for the E- Learners considering E-
portfolios

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid Moderately Important 18 11.8 11.8 11.8

254
 Very Important 46 30.1 30.1 41.8

Extremely Important 89 58.2 58.2 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the importance of the following resources for the E- Learners considering E-
books or e-textbooks

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Moderately Important 9 5.9 5.9 5.9

Very Important 51 33.3 33.3 39.2

Valid
Extremely Important 93 60.8 60.8 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the importance of the following resources for the E- Learners considering
freely available course content beyond your campus

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Moderately Important 11 7.2 7.2 7.2

Very Important 48 31.4 31.4 38.6

Valid
Extremely Important 94 61.4 61.4 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

255
 Table illustrating the importance of the following resources for the E- Learners considering
simulations or educational games

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Not Very Important 4 2.6 2.6 2.6

Moderately Important 3 2.0 2.0 4.6

Valid Very Important 37 24.2 24.2 28.8

Extremely Important 109 71.2 71.2 100.0

Total 153 100.0 100.0

HR Perspectives

Frequency Table

Table describing the designation of the HR sample

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Assistant-VP HR 1 2.8 2.8 2.8

Circle HR
1 2.8 2.8 5.6
Manager

HR 9 25.0 25.0 30.6

HR Director 1 2.8 2.8 33.3

Valid

HR Executive 9 25.0 25.0 58.3

HR Generalist 9 25.0 25.0 83.3

HR Manager 2 5.6 5.6 88.9

HR Manager4 1 2.8 2.8 91.7

256
 Manager - HR 1 2.8 2.8 94.4

Sr software
1 2.8 2.8 97.2
engineer

Talents 1 2.8 2.8 100.0

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Ignore last two columns in all the tables.

Table describing HR sample according to Gender

Frequen Percent Valid Cumulative

cy Percent Percent

Female 19 52.8 52.8 52.8

Valid Male 17 47.2 47.2 100.0

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the rank of courses among those employees who are
pursuing e-learning courses

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

No Response 29 80.6 80.6 80.6

Medical Courses 5 13.9 13.9 94.4

Pharma related 1 2.8 2.8 97.2

Valid

Subject Related
1 2.8 2.8 100.0
Courses

Total 36 100.0 100.0

257
 Table demonstrating the weightage given to educational degree

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulati

Perce ve
nt Percent

1 32 88.9 91.4 91.4

3 1 2.8 2.9 94.3

Valid 4 1 2.8 2.9 97.1

5 1 2.8 2.9 100.0

Total 35 97.2 100.0

Missing System 1 2.8

Total 36 100.0

Missing means Blank.

Table demonstrating the weightage given to educational work

experience

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

1 33 91.7 91.7 91.7

2 1 2.8 2.8 94.4

Valid
5 2 5.6 5.6 100.0

Total 36 100.0 100.0

258
Table demonstrating the weightage given to Attitude, Performance
and Soft Skills

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

1 32 88.9 88.9 88.9

2 2 5.6 5.6 94.4

Valid 3 1 2.8 2.8 97.2

4 1 2.8 2.8 100.0

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Table demonstrating the weightage given to Technical and Hard Skills

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

1 30 83.3 83.3 83.3

2 4 11.1 11.1 94.4

Valid 3 1 2.8 2.8 97.2

5 1 2.8 2.8 100.0

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the disagreement to the equivalency of E- Learning and

Traditional classroom teaching w.r.t. Lack of Classroom / Lab Activities

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

Valid 26 72.2 72.2 72.2

259
 Lack of
Classroom / Lab 10 27.8 27.8 100.0
Activities

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Agree are 23 but 26 not answered reason.

Table illustrating the disagreement to the equivalency of E- Learning and

Traditional classroom teaching w.r.t. Student Classroom interaction

Frequency Percen Valid Percent Cumulati

t ve
Percent

24 66.7 66.7 66.7

Lack of Faculty -
Valid Student Classroom 12 33.3 33.3 100.0
interaction

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the disagreement to the equivalency of E- Learning and

Traditional classroom teaching w.r.t. Lack of Face -to- Face Peer discussions

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

26 72.2 72.2 72.2

Lack of Face -to-

Valid Face Peer 10 27.8 27.8 100.0
discussions

Total 36 100.0 100.0

260
 Table illustrating the disagreement to the equivalency of E- Learning and
Traditional classroom teaching w.r.t. Lack of Professor- Student mentorship

Frequency Percent Valid Cumulative

Percent Percent

35 97.2 97.2 97.2

Lack of
Professor-
Valid 1 2.8 2.8 100.0
Student
mentorship

Total 36 100.0 100.0

Table illustrating the disagreement to the equivalency of E- Learning

and Traditional classroom teaching w.r.t. Inability of the

Faculty to identify behavioural changes in a student

Frequency Percent

Missing System 36 100.0

Table illustrating the disagreement to the

equivalency of E- Learning and Traditional
classroom teaching w.r.t. Other (please specify)

Frequency Percent

Missing System 36 100.0

261