The Report of the E-Learning Advisory Group March 2002

Appendix 1

Appendix 1: E-Learning Developments in New Zealand Tertiary Education Institutions

Massey University

Massey’s vision for e-learning is to use the medium to develop learning communities among students and teachers. To support this vision, Massey is challenging every college to plan their development of e-learning in a phased way, to commit to providing e-learning support for all off-campus programmes within the next three years, and to use the medium to support campusbased study wherever appropriate. Massey has adopted a standard development platform (WebCT) and is providing a range of central infrastructure and support services. The central role in planning, developing and delivering e-learning programmes will continue to rest with colleges and academic teams.

A good example of this strategy in action is the Early Delivery Option (EDO) of the Bachelor of Teaching degree. First introduced four years ago, the EDO option is supported by a combination of print-based study materials, and web-based communications activities. These students, scattered throughout New Zealand, interact with each other in both structured and unstructured communication exercises several times each week. They only ever meet as a group when they graduate, but their sense of group commitment is as strong as if they were attending classes together each day. The programme does not transmit a lot of sophisticated multimedia material on-line, and the print medium is generally better suited for the one-way transmission of text material. Students and staff use the web where it counts, for establishing learning communities.

In 2001 some 300 courses at Massey were webdelivered or web-supported, and over 15,000 students were registered users of WebCT.

The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand

Just as print-based teaching is underpinned by an effective and efficient seamless infrastructure that can support a large volume of students who study at their own place and pace, the strategy adopted for e-learning development is also based on the same philosophy of supporting a customised mass market. It also recognises the importance of the development of the international market, to provide financial resources to sustain the domestic market, and to further build The Open Polytechnic’s credibility in open learning globally. To support this vision The Open Polytechnic:

• aims to progressively develop a range of e-learning support for all print-based courses;
• aims to progressively develop and deliver Bachelor of Business and Batchelor of Applied Science on-line – fully web-based courses;
• adopted a standard Blackboard platform in the delivery of fully web based courses;
• aims to provide an integrated seamless platform for all e-learning services;
• aims to integrate the development of people, competencies and culture to develop on-line courses and to support students on-line as part of an integrated human resource strategy;
• adopted a systemic approach to evaluating student and staff feedback for ongoing improvement.

and staff feedback for ongoing improvement. A good example of an activity is the progressive development and delivery of our Bachelor of Business and Applied Science on-line. Commenced in late 2000, to date there are around 19 courses on-line and available for domestic and international students. This development is managed as a strategic project to ensure resources are available, and to facilitate the establishment of organisational systems, policies and processes for on-line delivery as part of core business. Currently the Open Polytechnic has 226 courses, which are web supported. In total these courses attract 21,114 enrolments.

Universal College of Learning

UCOL currently have approximately 30 staff actively involved in e-learning across a range of programmes. It is planned that all major programmes will have e-learning support sites by the beginning of the 2002 academic year. UCOL is currently undertaking pilot programmes in Photography, Nursing, Information Systems, Adult Education and Veterinary Nursing to learn more about the production of re-usable learning objects, simulations and other e-learning approaches. All these courses are a blend of classroom and on-line activity.

The focus of UCOL’s e-learning strategy is to blend the best of classroom-led and technology-mediated delivery. To support this, UCOL established an e-Campus Initiative staffed by experienced staff drawn from a range of disciplines. With it’s TANZ partners, UCOL has adopted the Blackboard Learning Management System as its prime e-learning platform, whilst continuing to monitor this rapidly-developing marketplace. Reusability and sharing of e-learning resources is seen as a critical factor for success in e-learning development. UCOL is committed to the support of collaborative organisations such as TANZ and the APNZ.

One example of this new strategy in action is an Advanced Nursing course which uses the Blackboard system to provide a focal point for students and staff. Students based across the region now collaborate on group assignments and topic-centric discussions in preparation for their face-to-face sessions. In this way students are better prepared for their classes and this adds value to their time with the lecturers.

Waikato Institute of Technology

In 2001 the Waikato Institute of Technology opened its Centre for Learning Technologies (CLT) with staff and facilities to support a rapid expansion of the e-learning study mode. This move followed a successful 36-month strategy to develop the Institution’s technical and staff capability to support on-line learning and teaching. The Centre provides expert instructional design and technical support for staff working on the design and delivery of mixed-mode courses. A standard development platform (WebCT) is used. Project planning and quality assurance monitoring are also provided by the Centre’s staff, as is institutional research activity into e-learning effectiveness. Such research activity clusters together staff from Faculty and Corporate sections in pursuit of a common research agenda. Library services and learning support services work closely with the Centre to provide an integrated capability to support Faculty development and industry clients.

In 1999, the Waikato Institute of Technology introduced the Graduate Diploma of Information Technology in Education (GDITE). This programme provides the opportunity for teachers to improve their understanding of how information and communication technology can be integrated across the curriculum. GDITE students are scattered in many different parts of New Zealand and learn by a mixture of on-line and face-to-face options.

By October 2001, 100 courses at the Waikato Institute of Technology were web-delivered or web-supported, over 1700 students were registered as WebCT users and over 200 staff had been trained in the use of WebCT to course design and student support.

Whitireia Polytechnic

To support this vision, every school at the polytechnic has a strategic objective in e-learning that covers the continuum of on-line learning enhancements for classroom-based courses, through to fully interactive web-based programmes.

Whitireia has developed a multi-disciplinary team approach to e-learning design. With curriculum expertise from the school, the polytechnic provides a team of people with instructional design, graphics and technical skills to support each development. Three examples of activities that illustrate the diversity of Whitireia’s strategic approach are the Postgraduate Certificate in Forensic Psychiatric Care, the NZ Diploma in Business and the Information Literacy modules. The Postgraduate Certificate in Forensic Psychiatric Care is delivered completely by distance learning with on-line and print-based materials to support workplace training. This has been delivered for the past six years to students in supervised clinical settings across New Zealand. The on-line delivery ensures a cost-effective delivery of a quality programme in a highly-specialised area of work.

For the NZ Diploma in Business, on-line materials enhance students’ on-campus learning in core papers as part of a standard programme.

A specialist Information Literacy module developed by the Library staff in consultation with academic staff has been delivered in two schools and will be available to all Whitireia students via the intranet in 2002. In 2001, approximately 30 students enrolled in the two web-based e-learning programmes that are available fully on-line. Approximately 200 students accessed the growing range of web-based modules and a larger number again (300+) accessed on-line materials, via the intranet, to support their learning.

Twenty-five academic staff have been actively involved with e-learning course development and delivery activities and Whitireia has three centralised resource staff supporting the developments.

Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology

The polytechnic’s move into developing courses that will be delivered, all or in part, using Internet-based technology is driven by several factors. Among the most important of these factors is the change in the profile of students due to such things as:

• student loans and the need to work part-time to support their education
• changes in work practices preventing some people accessing traditional classroom-centred education – even on a part-time basis
• the needs of adult learners wishing to upgrade their skills and qualifications while still in employment and who would otherwise not undertake tertiary education
• people, outside the CPIT’s immediate catchment, needing access to tertiary qualifications and skills
• the ubiquity of Internet-based technology and the expectations it raises for anytime, anywhere access to information and knowledge. E-Learning is being developed in the following ways:
• CPIT has invested in Blackboard, a Course Management System and is using this as the prime delivery platform for fully or partly on-line courses and course materials and resources for onsite students
• e-learning and Web Support team established and resourced
• contestable financial resources allocated for on-line course development
• Strategic Development Funds earmarked for tutor relief to free tutors from normal workload to develop content and deliver courses
• staff training in on-line learning and use of Blackboard CMS
• 25 on-line projects currently in development
• goal of 40 full or partly on-line courses by 2003.

One example is the Graduate Diploma in Technical Communication (GDTC). This was developed several years ago in association with the University of Western Sydney. From the beginning it was envisaged as an online delivered course. This year, GDTC is being delivered using Blackboard and from a small student base in the first couple of years, this course has caught a wave of rapidly-increasing international demand and the student numbers have increased five-fold in the last year.

Te Whare Wa-nanga o Waikato

The University of Waikato approach emphasises the individual and is based on the development of a community of learners and teachers to distinguish it from content-based deliverers of e-education. Waikato has focused on developing cohesive curricula for teaching on-line so that students have a path to a complete qualification. The University is also bringing together research efforts relating to ICT and e-education so that they contribute to a coherent overall strategy. A teaching support plan has been developed which includes a mentoring programme, visitor and seminar programme and a web-based support resource. Support includes raising staff awareness of the particular needs of on-line students.

While the Waikato approach is organic and bottom-up, there is also a top-down focus. E-education is one of the five key strategies of the university and e-learning sections are required in all business plans. A multi-year investment programme has been run to develop e-education throughout the Schools of Study. This investment has included the establishment of the WICeD Team (Waikato Innovation Centre for e-Education). This group includes 15 staff committed to innovation, research and the development of e-education.

This long-term investment in support of e-education focused on research, pedagogy and support of the teacher rather than content and the technology of delivery has resulted in teaching staff accepting the imperatives of e-education and has resulted in a rapid scaling up of e-education programmes. It is creating a cultural change where e-education is seen as just one tool for teachers and is resulting in high completion rates and acceptance by students.

Auckland University of Technology

To assist with the management of the resources and to create a user-friendly environment for the students, AUT went on to develop its own learning platform called LearnOn-line.

AUT recently completed an evaluation of e-learning platforms to take the University into its next phase of development. The chosen platform is Prometheus, which is a new product developed by George Washington University.

Teaching staff at AUT are supported by a Learning Technology Centre and by ICT specialists within the larger faculties. The University is taking a strategic approach to the use of the Internet for teaching and learning, and is now ensuring that resources are made available to support new developments.

AUT is a member of the Global Universities Alliance. This alliance is made up of nine universities who are pursuing new markets with on-line programmes.