IGNOU

Influence of media on learning

Web Based Education:

 Introduction  

Web-based education, also known as online learning, or online education, is quickly changing the face of higher education because it attracts students of all ages.

Web based education refers to instruction in a learning environment where teacher and student are separated by time or space, or both, and the teacher provides course content through course management applications, multimedia resources, the Internet, videoconferencing, etc.  Students receive the content and communicate with the teacher via the same technologies.

Advantages of Web Based Education

The main advantage of web-based education is that it overcomes barriers of physical distance and time. This lowers institutional or organizational costs, increases student enrollment, offers flexibility by allowing access to course information at any time or place, promotes individualized learning, and reaches students who are unable to attend class because of time or distance constraints.

E-Learning

E-Learning can be defined as an approach to facilitate and enhance learning by means of personal computers, CD-ROMs, and the Internet. It may be as simple as that teachers may simply post their material on Internet, students can read it online or can download it for further access. Since student won’t be in a classroom with teacher and classmates, he will need to be capable of independent learning. Instructor will provide him with syllabus, course documents, and required readings. The interaction between the teacher  and the student will happen via e-mail, discussion board, forums etc. Since the class doesn’t meet in a physical space at a scheduled time, the student will have to learn independently. He will be responsible for keeping up with the assigned reading and completing assignments according to the timeline on the syllabus.

Important Features of e-learning:

§  E-learning is dynamic

§  E-learning operates in real time.  We get what we need, when we need it.

§  E-learning is collaborative.  Because people learn from one another, e-learning connects learners with experts, colleagues, and professional peers, both in and outside the organization

§  E-learning is individual.  Every e-learner selects activities from a personal menu of learning opportunities most relevant to his/her background, job, and career at that very moment.

§  E-learning is comprehensive.  E-learning provides learning events from many sources.

E-Tutoring:

E-tutoring can be defined as teaching, support, management and assessment of students on programmes of study that involve a significant use of online technologies.  The term online tutor includes any person undertaking a role to support and enable students to learn online effectively.

Roles of E – tutors and activities are slightly different from those required in a face-to-face class.

v  E-tutors teach, motivate and direct students while maintaining high interest and achievement.

v  They should be able to effectively interact with different populations of students at a variety of academic levels.

v  They guide students to improve their knowledge through media such as email, asynchronous discussion forums or chat rooms.

v  They coach, asses and provide subject-matter expertise: they’re experts but also motivators and even technical support people.

v  They bring the subject up to date with online digital resources and make it much more accessible. 

Computer – Assisted Instruction (CAI)

            Computers, with their large memory, ability to diagnose students’ level of mastery and capability of providing varied learning sequences, have considerable potential for individualization of instruction in terms of student’ different abilities and pre-existing knowledge.

Definitions of Computer – Assisted Instruction (CAI) :

            Use of a computer to assist in the presentation of instructional materials to a student, to monitor learning progress, or to select additional instructional material in accordance with the needs of individualized learners.

-          International Dictionary of Education ( 1985)

Instruction in which a computer is used to present substantial amount of learning material to the student; it often represents an auto, instructional technique enabling students to progress at their own individual rates.

                                                -The Concise Dictionary of Education (1982)

Thus, CAI refers to the situation where computers are used to guide the learner through a prescribed course of learning and testing.  It is commonly used to teach information skills through a series of lessons, or it is used for drill exercises.  When used for these purposes, it serves as a text or a workbook.  The CAI approach basically provides information, a response direction, an opportunity for the learner to respond, followed by either feedback or evaluation of the response.  CAI can be used as an independent instructional component or as component part of a unit. 

Computer Managed Learning  :

Computer managed learning (CML) systems are software packages with several

common features, including generating tests from banks of questions, marking the tests generated, analysing the results and keeping records of students’ marks and progress. Most systems are able to generate tests that use multiple-choice, true-false, short answer, matching, calculation and assignment questions. They usually have the ability to mark all except the assignment questions, although the short answer questions are often quite restrictive. CML systems have been used for many years predominantly for summative assessment.

CML may be used as part of a course delivered wholly or in part online, or it may be used in conjunction with distance learning materials in other media, or as an adjunct to face to face teaching, especially in self-paced classrooms and learning centres.

Teleconferencing:

            The word ‘tele’ means distance.  The word ‘conference’ means consultation or discussion.  Teleconference allows people in distant sites to interact with each other through phone, fax and e-mail.  The interactions occur in real time. In short, a teleconference is a telephone or video meeting between participants in two or more locations. Teleconferences are similar to telephone calls, but they can expand discussion to more than two people.

Uses of teleconference :

v  Teleconferencing reaches large or sparsely-populated areas

v  Teleconferencing provides access to  a broader range of ideas and points of view

v  Teleconferencing saves time and travel costs

v  Teleconferencing provides greater appeal, motivation and retention of information

v  Teleconferencing encourages the element of interactivity through dialogue.

v  Teleconferencing is used for networking among professionals

Teleconferences in education :

            The use of teleconferencing in education and training are to :

Ø  Impart information

Ø  Build attitudes

Ø  Upgrade skills

Ø  Share experiences

Ø  Facilitate problem solving

Ø  Offer counseling

Ø  Supervise/conduct/guide project work

Video Conferencing :

A videoconference or video conference  is a set of interactive telecommunication technologies which allow two or more locations to interact via two-way video and audio transmissions simultaneously. Videoconferencing differs from videophone calls in that it's designed to serve a conference rather than individuals

. 

Video Conferencing in education: 

Videoconferencing provides students with the opportunity to learn by participating in two-way communication forums. Furthermore, teachers and lecturers worldwide can be brought to remote or otherwise isolated educational facilities. Students from diverse communities and backgrounds can come together to learn about one another, although language barriers will continue to persist. Such students are able to explore, communicate, analyze and share information and ideas with one another. Through videoconferencing students can visit other parts of the world to speak with their peers, and visit museums and educational facilities. Such virtual field trips can provide enriched learning opportunities to students, especially those in geographically isolated locations, and to the economically disadvantaged. Small schools can use these technologies to pool resources and provide courses, such as in foreign languages, which could not otherwise be offered.

A few examples of benefits that videoconferencing can provide in campus environments include:

• faculty members keeping in touch with classes while attending conferences;
• guest lecturers brought int classes from other institutions;
• researchers collaborating with colleagues at other institutions on a regular basis without loss of time due to travel;
• schools with multiple campuses collaborating and sharing professors;^]
• faculty members participating in thesis defenses at other institutions;
• administrators on tight schedules collaborating on budget preparation from different parts of campus;
• faculty committee auditioning scholarship candidates;
• researchers answering questions about grant proposals from agencies or review committees;
• student interviews with an employers in other cities, and
• Teleseminars.

 Multimedia for learning by instinct

            The teacher uses multimedia to modify the contents of the material. It will help the teacher to represent in a more meaningful way, using different media elements. These media elements can be converted into digital form, modified and customized for the final presentation. By incorporating digital media elements into the project, the students are able to learn better since they use multiple sensory modalities, which would make them more motivated to pay more attention to the information presented and retain the information better.