Full Paper

Geoff Ring, Ameeta Jadav, Jeremy Pagram

g.ring@cowan.edu.au, a.jadav@cowan.edu.au, j.pagram@cowan.edu.au

Edith Cowan University

Increasingly, university teaching and learning experiences are being replicated independently of time and place via appropriate combinations of technology-based resources (the Internet, the Web, CD-ROM, etc) and conventional teaching and learning resources. As part of this world wide trend, the authors are currently involved in trialling the delivery of selected distance education units in Interactive Multimedia. The resources for these units are being delivered in multiple formats: Internet/Web, CD-ROM and paper. Like many other educational researchers and practitioners around the world, the authors are searching for ways to increase the educational gains possible from using the Internet while continuing to seek to optimise the integration of other learning media and resources.

Some research has been done concerning the application of learning theories to technology-mediated learning. Jonassen's constructivist model of learning with technology , for example, highlights such factors as articulation, negotiation and exploration which can be relatively easily supported by Web-based learning environments. The hypertextual nature of the Web leads to a consideration of Cognitive Flexibility Theory as being particularly applicable to Web-based instruction. In such a scenario, multiple unsimplified and interconnected representations of content that make up external Internet links generate the cognitive conflict that can promote the accommodation and assimilation of new knowledge. In terms of learning models, however, little has been done specifically for the Web although Reeves and Reeves (1997) have identified "learning dimensions" that should be considered when developing Web-based instruction.

Many claims are being made about the Web that go beyond its obvious ability to facilitate learning independently of time and space constraints and to provide up-to-date information. The ability of personal electronic communications to encourage more thoughtful and considered interactions between students and lecturers is seen as a virtue. Also, since the hypertextual nature of the Web is non-linear and operates through association rather than indexing, it is agreed by some that this is analogous to the way we think and therefore facilitative of human learning. However, the ad hoc nature and variable quality of much of the available Web learning material leads one to question the validity and efficacy of many of the claims made for it as a high quality learning resource and/or instructional medium. While there are some indications that the Web has potential for facilitating quality learning experiences , there is a great deal of low quality curriculum material which tends to use the Web only as a means of presenting information.

Despite such criticisms of some of the existing electronically delivered courses, particularly those using the Web, ECU decided to offer some of its Interactive Multimedia (IMM) units to off-campus students via electronic delivery. The authors perceived a need to evaluate the experience of delivering IMM content to off-campus students electronically and did so in a qualitative manner through the eyes of the developers, tutors and students. The evaluation was by no means a formal research project but was considered a pilot study for more formal evaluation studies to come.

The project looked at the process of development and implementation of two multimedia units, IMM 4102 Digital Resources and IMM 4103 Interface Design, for delivery to off-campus students. IMM 4102 was developed initially as a Web site supported by conventional paper-based resources (a CD-ROM was later produced when students were having problems downloading large files). IMM 4103 was initially developed as a "Web site on CD" with most of its software running "locally" under a Netscape browser, although software demonstrations, examples and utilities were also included on the CD-ROM (an actual Web-site was subsequently established).

The implementation of the units was examined from the perspective of the tutor and the students. Questionnaires and follow-up interviews were used to gather data from the developers and tutors while phone interviews were used to get the inputs from students. Four developers, two tutors and six students have shared their initial observations and experiences as part of the first stage of the project.

The developers commented on the use of on-campus material for off-campus delivery, design strategy, media use, legal issues, project management and composition of the development team. They responded to the questionnaire in the beginning of the semester. While the observations of the four developers were varied, they came from specific perspectives of their roles. For example, in one unit the developer did all the production herself, while in the other unit production was handled by a team which consisted of three persons with specific responsibilities: technical and graphics; overall design and project management; and writing and collation of materials. To a large extent, this variety in perspective has provided a comprehensive view of the development process and the issues encountered.

The tutors responded to a questionnaire eight weeks into the semester. They shared their observations about the use of Internet resources by the students, the difference in the quality of learning between on-campus and off-campus students, the materials used for simultaneous on-campus and off-campus units, the practical issues they faced, modifications they would like to make based on their experiences, and suggestions they would give to other tutors of similar off-campus units. Again, the two tutors had varying experiences. While students in both units failed to make significant use of electronic communications facilities, the unit which was primarily designed for Web based delivery had more active exchanges (primarily email) with the tutor. In both the units, several technical, practical and administrative issues seemed to take precedence over pedagogical issues.

Students were interviewed ten weeks into the semester. They commented on access to the information with the available resources, communication with other students and the tutor, comparison of on-campus and off-campus learning, format of information access (Internet, CD, print etc), need for additional support and issues of socialisation. The almost universal issue appeared to be access to a stable and reliable Internet connection and specialist multimedia software applications.

There are many issues which need to be explored in relation to learning without a physical classroom, ranging from technical to social matters. The age old concerns that technology will be used "because it is available" rather than because it can enhance pedagogical goals are as real as they have been in the past with television, video and earlier computer-based learning software. On the other hand, while it is important that university educators debate the educational merits of Web learning environments from a theoretical standpoint, practical issues such as accessibility and flexibility of learning experiences cannot be ignored since they have the potential to significantly impact on the effectiveness of student learning.

The face-to-face interaction experienced by the majority of today's on-campus students plays a key role in sharing ideas and experiences and generally adding a social dimension to the learning environment. While it has been argued that most students prefer face-to-face interaction (Simonsen, 1995), for many of them, the convenience of "on-demand" access from any location will often outweigh the limitations placed on personal interactions. It should not be forgotten that for the isolated student, the addition of an on-line component to a distance education course may not be the same as an on-campus class but it is likely to be substantially better than conventional distance education approaches alone.

It seems likely that a variety of approaches to personal interactions within learning environments will emerge over the next decade and that many will provide the best of both worlds as they attempt to balance virtual and direct interaction. In the long term all learning environments will have some of the attributes of technology-mediated learning and it will always be important to strike an appropriate balance between virtual interaction and face-to-face interaction.

In the prevailing climate of economic rationalism within which many of the world's educational institutions must survive, economic reasons are frequently given for using technology-mediated learning approaches, particularly the Web, for the delivery of instructional materials. It is important for educators to ensure Web delivery occurs in order to achieve sound educational goals, not simply because it may offer practical and economic advantages. While the authors believe that for this to be achieved we need to base design for the electronic delivery of curriculum on a sound theoretical base, searching for such a theoretical base is the subject of other papers (eg Ring and McMahon, 1997). Nevertheless, it is hoped that the documenting and reporting of qualitative data as is done in this paper will be of assistance to educational researchers in their pursuit of such a theoretical base, whether it be for the Web as a sole learning medium or whether it be for the use of the wide mix of technologies likely to be necessary for the provision of optimal learning experiences in the 21st Century.

(c) Geoff Ring, Ameeta Jadav, Jeremy Pagram

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