E-Learning

E-Learning
Post your response to each question in the **Response** column below. Include your name next to your post. Try to use a use a different color font for ease of reading various responses. As the list grows, feel free to expand upon other posts, without deleting any comments.

the **needs of adult learners?** || There are several advantages to e-learning in meeting the needs of adult learners. One of the fundamental advantages is the ability of e-learning to be customized to meet the needs of individual learners. Rather than learning at the pace of others, e-learning can provide timely and targeted training to the learner with multiple modes of presentation. In many cases, the training can be self-paced and the adult learner need not worry about navigating the social aspects of the learning environment. However, depending on one's mode of work, the physical isolation of e-learning can be a detriment. The greatest advantage noted by aduts in several studies (some presented below) is the flexibility of the e-learning model: to work on the PD opportunity when it is most convenient to one's busy schedule.
 * **Question** || **Responses** - Jason, Gabby, Carol and Shelley, Kerri, Julie  ||
 * How does the approach support

E-Learning allows for individuals to learn at their own pace at times that are convenient for the learner. E-Learning can be tailored to specific individuals or groups of individuals. It can also allow for progress monitoring. It can provide feedback not only to the learner, but also to those who create the professional development opportunities within in a school building or a school district.

eLearning allows adults to attend school and continue educational pursuits while raising a family, working or other responsibilities that would prevent one from attending a brick and mortar school. Extreme flexibility!

E-Learning provides adult learners with opportunities that they may not have had access to. Educators who live in remote areas with little resources in terms of professional development can have access to extensive learning opportunities. In addition to all of the benefits listed by others, e-Learning also provides access to just-in-time learning. The adult learner does not have to wait for a new semester of class to start. They can access the leaning they need when they need it.

eLearning encourages greater student participation in "class" because the instructor is not the only person doing the "talking". If the eLearning course is designed well, then it is hard for students to hide. Assignments that require participation and input require students who might otherwise be quiet to have an opinion and a voice. eLearning provides an environment where those who might not speak up and participate have a safe forum in which to reflect and share their learning. - Julie B. ||
 * How does the approach support **differentiated**
 * professional development to meet the unique needs**
 * of staff in your school?** || One possible differentiated approach that e-learning can provide would be in the development of online tutorials of various topics and technologies. Such tutorials could be used by teachers as "just in time" training. Another differentiation could be in multiple modes of delivery. Depening on one's prefferred learning style, they could read an article, watch a presentation, or even listen to a podcast to acquire new information. Virtual simulations can help learners acquire new skills. Finally, I belive the ability to work at one's own pace is a huge advantage to e-learning environments.

E-learning can be provided in multiple formats. E-learning could be an e-test in which students must find the answers via other electronic mediums, individual and group work within a computer lab, computer-based software or training tutorials that test for comprehension throughout the learning process, etc. E-learning can be tailored to any type of group and many types of learning styles. E-learning has the flexibility to be completed at home or at school and at a pace that is comfortable for the individual learner.

Just as in a face-to-face setting, good teachers differentiate for their students in online settings. One example in my district is that we offer an online professional development course called “Engaging 21st Century Learners.” In this course, participants can choose the modules they want to take from a list of about 15 sessions. To get PD credit, they must complete a certain number of modules. This flexibility allows teachers to learn about topics they are interested in instead of wasting time learning information they know they will not use (as happens more in face-to-face or poorly created online PD opportunities). -Shelley

In my district, even though we make the integration of technology a huge priority, we do very little with eLearning for professional development. Teachers are supported when they submit requests for reimbursements for online graduate programs, and they are encouraged to sign up for webinars and online training sessions with organizations such as those who offer training in the LoTi levels or Pennsylvania Dept. of Education’s SAS program. Our district has a huge __Tech Support Wiki__ that is a resource for just about anything teachers would want to learn about from how to hook up a projector to connections to be made for Skyping with an author to PBL documents and far beyond. Since this is a wiki, not only do teachers learn from it but they also contribute to it. - Carol

In my district, forma le-Learning is not used on a wide scale for professional development. There are a few classes that offered district-wide that are managed using Blackboard. We utilize modules for our mentor teachers to provide refreshers on our standards framework. We also utilize PD 360 for some of their online learning courses. This could be used much more extensively in order to differentiate professional development needs. Preparing modules that administrators could suggest to teachers based on the outcomes of observations would be a great addition to provide support to both teachers and administrators.

As eLearning is becoming a more accepted form of PD, it has been interesting to note how its reputation has become somewhat tainted in our district

due to the lack of differentiation. While the Instructional Technology and Library Services department has offered a course that allowed participants to craft their own learning path based on their personal areas of interest, other departments (HR, SPED, Assessment, and Legal) have used the online environment more as a tool to deliver information, especially repetitive information. Knowing that adults want to be able to make choices, to select areas of interest in order to grow professionally, it seems important to work with the other departments to build in more eLearning opportunities for choice. Without even small levels of differentiation we run the risk of perpetuating bad professional development practices in an online environment; that is not differentiated eLearning but electronic sit and get sessions.- Julie B. ||
 * What **elements** need to be in place so that the
 * professional development is of high quality and effectively**
 * improves instruction?** || Several elements are needed for this approach to to be successful. Fundamentally, teachers need access to the right technology tools and appropriate bandwith to access the elearning tools. Training and support may be necessary to assist teachers in learning how to use the tools and the learning environment and continuted technical support when needed. Not unique to e-learning, the traning must be directly applicable to teacher's needs in the classroom. Without this link, PD is of little value. Teachers should also have input into the design of the PD opportunities.

As I reflect on this question, I think about my district’s online IEPs and how the server crashes almost every quarter because teachers are updating progress on annual goals and our servers can’t support the usage. This is similar for e-learning. School districts have to build in the capacity for bandwidth usage as well as provide teachers with computers that are updated enough to provide a smooth educational experience. The more frustrated teachers are with the technology and the process, the less likely they will be to complete the activity. Technology supports must also be put in place in order to support the teachers using the hardware and software that provides the e-learning experience.

The most important elements of high quality online learning courses are a well designed course and an experienced, knowledgeable teacher.

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 * A well designed course: **
 * 1)  is well organized and easy to navigated through the course components (forums, resources, activities, rubrics, etc.)
 * 2) includes purposeful and differentiated assignments
 * 3) gives participants time for reflection as learners of the content through PURPOSEFUL discussion forums, assignments, etc. Too many times (especially forums) these components of an online learning course feel contrived and lacking meaning for students
 * 4) includes a variety of individual, small group and large group experiences
 * 5)  has a combination of synchronous and asynchronous activities
 * 6)  has appropriate learning objectives for participants (what people should know and be able to do by the end of the course)
 * 7)  includes rubrics for assignments
 * 8)  adheres to copyright laws
 * Experienced and knowledgeable teachers: **
 * 1) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">regularly interact with students in discussion forums, through email, phone. They facilitate high quality conversations by asking probing questions to help students reflect and learn as well as answer any questions that come up in terms of course assignments, readings, etc.
 * 2) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> set clear expectations each week about how students can communicate with the teacher (and each other) and the teacher’s response time to any questions that may arise.
 * 3) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> get feedback from students on how the course is going midway through. They don’t wait until the end of the course to get this information.
 * 4) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> facilitate conversations (creating a learner centered environment where participants guide the conversation in the direction THEY need it to go, not where the teacher WANTS it to go).

I agree that having appropriate infrastructure is key. There also need to be standards for designing e-Learning professional development, just as with any face to face PD. There needs to be a variety of elements such as collaboration, inquiry, meaningful dialogue, and reflection. I agree with Carol and Shelley that too often these experiences can feel contrived. Increasing student achievement needs to be at the center of all PD. Ultimately there needs to be quality content that aligns with state and district curriculum and state and national standards and flexibility so that teachers can target the information and support they need quickly and easily without sitting through information that they don't need.

In addition to looking at the technology side of eLearning those who are interested in using the tool must understand the structures that can make the eLearning experience positive or incredibly painful for students. An online environment does not negate the importance of looking at well designed professional learning opportunities; in many ways it raises the bar! Although time-consuming, eLearning courses should be carefully reviewed before being published. An outside reviewer should go through the course in order to be certain that it meets its stated objectives, that all electronic components are functioning, and that the content will translate into classroom practices that increase student engagement and learning. In the case of our district, it would help others to have outside reviewers serve as critical friends before any eLearning courses are released. - Julie B. ||
 * How does the approach support teacher evaluation? || E-learning allows automated tracking of student progress. Depending on the design of the course, it is possible to be certain that students are reaching certain benchmarks in their learning and apply those benchmarks to their professional development plans. E-learning platforms can also be designed as communications platforms to promote reflection on their personal practice.

E-learning can provide anonymous progress monitoring of teachers as learners or it can identify specific learners that appear to be having difficulty. It can also track which teachers are and are not actually logging into the e-learning opportunities. E-learning can also extend itself into developing online learning communities in which teachers within a school, within a district or across the globe can provide each other with varied information and experiences that will assist teachers learning new skills and abilities.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">eLearning can be a part of teacher evaluation as any professional development is. The effectiveness of teachers should improve as they mature and participate in professional development opportunities. Whether clinical supervision or traditional teacher evaluation teachers are expected to grow in their profession. Through dialog between teacher and administrator, professional development opportunities can be decided upon that meet the needs of the teacher at that time. eLearning may meet some teachers needs quite well while others may not take to the format as well.

e-Learning can be tied to teacher evaluation. Districts can identify or create e-learning modules that tie to the specific standards and indicators in their teacher evaluation system. If a teacher is struggling in a certain area the evaluator can advise or require that they take the module. The e-learning format means that the teachers can participate in these experiences as they are needed and hopefully the students will receive the benefits faster than with traditional PD. e-Learning also allows the evaluator to track teacher progress on the course and provide alternative suggestions for PD if they aren't seeing a difference in the classroom.

A highly differentiated eLearning course can be a useful tool for helping teachers receive targeted training opportunities. Rather than asking teachers to complete an entire course in order to address specific professional needs, an administrator could recommend the completion of select segments of a longer course. That level of differentiation would honor the teacher's time and could become a topic of reflective conversation later. In situations where time is limited and a teacher would benefit from learning from others, an administrator could help a teacher plug in to an eLearning community that would help the teacher understand specific classroom practices or instructional theories. Instead of only suggesting face-to-face professional development, eLearning provides attractive alternatives. - Julie B. || [|E-Learning for Adult Learners: A Case Study] [|The Use of E-Learning in Adult Learning]
 * Contribute at least one resource (e.g., web site or article) **that**
 * supports the approach. The resource might provide more general**
 * information about the approach or present specific research-based**
 * findings on a particular aspect of the approach.** || [|Learning Objects and E-Learning]

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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://www.pbs.org/teacherline/blog/2010/08/e-learning-study-shows-online-professional-development-aids-teachers-and-students/__] <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> - This article outlines extensive researching done specifically on the impact of online professional development on student achievement.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__http://www.edweek.org/tsb/articles/2009/10/01/01online.h03.html__] <span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> - This article focuses on the different types of web-based professional development and assists teachers and administrators in making good choices as they select online PD programs

@http://www.nsdc.org/news/authors/e-learning.pdf This resource can help districts analyze whether e-Learning is right for their situation and how to choose appropriate e-Learning vendors.

[|The Writers Gateway] This link is a good review tool; is the eLearning designed in ways that will help participants gain new ways of instructing and/or thinking about learning?

[|A Checklist for eLearning course design] Another quick tool to evaluate the design of en eLearning opportunity before releasing it to participants. - Julie B. ||