Disability is not Inability

:: E-LEARNING EXPLAINED,

Revolutionises learning and reduces costs even for us living with disabilities. There are demands for learning options that enable persons with disabilities to access text books and other instruction materials in an accessible manner. E-learning may be the option to consider. Pauline Wangui gives us the options E-learning provides and its revolutionary dimensions in education....

ICT may be a luxury for the rich. But for the less developed economies like Kenya, it is vital and essential toool for fighting poverty and ensuring survival in the technology-savvy world.

Kenya is on the move and ICT supported education is high on the agenda, just like in many African governments. ICTs have become integrated into many national educational systems in order to reach the Millennium Goal of Education for All.

ICT is no longer a luxury but as a pre-condition for an accelerated education.

elearning, or electronic - based training, is a type of technology based learnung that enables one to learn anywhere and at any time, as long as there is a properly configured computer.

elearning can be CD-ROM based, Network-based, Intranet-based or Internet-based. This includes text, video, audio, animation and virtual environments. elarning offers a very rich learning experience that can even surpass the level of training you might experince in a crowded classroom. It is normally a self-paced and hands-on learning.

The quality of any electronic-based training, as in every from of training, is in its content and its delivery. eLearning suffer from many of the same pitfalls as classroom training, such as boring slides or monotonous speech. But as opposed to normal classroom learning, eLearning integrates media and interactivility. eLearning offers a wide-range of text, diagrams and images with video and sound, including virtual reality technology that continues to improve the effectiveness of the approach. Institutions that offer eLearning in Kenya include eCornell, African Virtual University and Learning Rescources Ltd, Amref, and KCCT.

Types of eLearning

There are four categories of eLearning ranging from the very basic to the very advanced. These are knowledge databases, online support, asynchronous training and synchronous training. Knowledge databases are the most basic form of eLearning. You have probably seen knowledge databases on some websites offering explanations and guidance for certain lessons, along with step-by-step instructions for performing specific tasks. These are moderately interactive.

Another category is online support. This os a form of eLearning that comes in form of forums, chat rooms, online bulletin boards, email, or even live instant messaging support. Slightly more interactive than knowledge databases, online support offers the opportunity for more specific questions and answers, as well as more immediate answers.

The third type is asynchronous training. This is however more traditional. It involves self-paced learning. This may include access to instructors through online bulletin boards, online discussion groups and e-mail. It also offers links to reference materials in place of a live instructor. The last category is the synchronous training. This is done in real-time with a live instructor facilitating the training. Everyone logs in at a set time and can communicate directly with the instructor and with each other. This is most interesting as the learner can raise their cyber whiteboard. It lasts for a set amount of time - from a single session to serveral weeks, months or even yaers. This type of training usually takes place via Internet Web sites, audio- or video conferencing, VOIP or even two-way live broadcasts to students in a classroom.

Benefits of eLearning

eLearning has definite benefits over traditional classroom training. It reduuces capital costs associated with traditional brick and mortar training facilities. It also reduces travel and ccommodation costs associated with training programs, as learners do not have to travel or spend excess time away from work. The cost is much lower than traditional training, is convenient and is available 24/7.

Most eLearning courses are self paced and can be taken when needed. eLearning courses progress up to 50 per cent faster than traditional courses. Thia is partly because the individualized approach allows laerners to skip material they already know and understand and move onto the issues they need training on.

It can work from any location and any time as elearners can go throug training sessions from anywhere, usually at anytime. This just-in-time benefit makes learning possible for possible for people who never would have been able to fit learning inti their schedules before. It is also easily manageable for large groups of students.

Online eLearning sessions are especially easy to keep up-to-date because the updated materials are simply uploaded to a server. CD-ROM-based programs may be slightly more expensive to update and distribute, but still cheaper than reprinting manuals and retraining instructors.

Because of interactivity, it helps attain increased retention and a stronger grasp on the subject. This is brought by a combination of video and audio elements. There is also the ability to revisit or replay sections of the training that might not have been clear the first time ariund. This cannot be done in a crowded classroom!

eLearning has some potential disadvantages, like high usage fees associated with using telephones lines and Internet. Sometimes the Internet bandwidith may not be robust enough to support the desired level of multimedia. Often, people working in eLearning field may be pioneers lacking experience. However, the benfits outweigh the disadvantages and adopting eLearning is a good strategy for cutting training costs.

eLearning courses range from professional to executive programmes like MBA including Human Resources, Genreal Management, Strategy and many others.

A world-class eLearning conference is coming to Nairobi from May 28-30th this year. The 'eLearning Africa' conference is organised by ICWE GmbH and Hoffmann & Reif that focuses on ICT for development, education and training in Africa.

The event will support the emerging Pan-Africa eLearning community and further foster the network of decision makes from goverments and administrations with universities, schools, governmental and private training providers, industry, and relevant partners in development cooperation.

The Author is a Telekom and ICT strategy Analyst Pauline Wangui
pauline@nordic.co.ke