Ellie's presentation

What do students want and expect from e-learning?

• The perception is that everyone uses computers routinely for purposes not connected with learning.
• So IT skills are not only required by future employers, but also to function efficiently in other areas of life.
• It is expected that the university will invest to make the most of technology to benefit students, in terms of allowing them to develop transferable IT skills, and in providing the optimum learning experience for their particular course.
• Students are not allowed to fail to acquire the skills and knowledge required for their course, so it is not acceptable for staff to lack the skills and knowledge to use this technology to teach the course, or for predictable mistakes to occur.
• Students do not want e-learning to replace other forms of learning – it is not a substitute for face-to-face contact with teaching staff.
• Students want the maximum result from the minimum effort – as far as possible the e-learning environment should be a one-stop-shop which functions consistently and works reliably.
• Students do not distinguish between areas of the service provided – problems (e.g. with individual blackboard sites, timetabling, IT failures in exams or coursework) will all be lumped together as problems the university has failed to avoid.
• Students very quickly learn not to trust a system if it lets them down frequently in minor ways, or occasionally in major ways.
• If a university is perceived to lack the history or prestige of other universities it is expected that it will make up for (or benefit from) this by providing modern cutting edge services that are reflexive and not hampered by tradition or bureaucracy.

Problems with Blackboard from the student perspective

• Lack of understanding among staff of the purpose of areas in Blackboard sites, leading to inconsistency (e.g. lecture notes variously posted in Course Documents Course Materials or Resources).
• Lack of systematic use of Blackboard, or organisation of folders/items within areas of Blackboard, affecting ease and efficiency of navigation.
• Staff’s general lack of basic IT skills and experience that they could use to make Bb easier to use (e.g. checking that links work and setting them up to open in a new window).
• Staff’s lack of specific skills in using Blackboard, especially more advanced features (e.g. wikis, discussion boards, blogs etc.) so they don’t notice when they have set them up wrong, or know how to fix it.

Issues for academic staff

• They are always pressed for time.
• They have to prioritise and don’t seem to be consistently allowed or encouraged to make e-learning a high priority.
• Some staff are scared of using Blackboard because they lack the necessary skills, but this does not reflect their value to students as lecturers/tutors.
• They need to be allowed the time and resources to develop IT skills in general, and Blackboard skills in particular.
• Some staff are suspicious of the purpose of Blackboard – they are worried it will remove the scope for individual teaching styles, and may be a “slippery slope” towards replacing face-to-face teaching.
• They need to be encouraged to use the basic areas of Blackboard sites consistently, but to develop their own ways of using Blackboard for their course and style of teaching.
• There is a need to negotiate a strategy for Blackboard use between the staff within a course/module, which fits within certain requirements but is acceptable to staff and appropriate to their course. The course leader should be encouraged to support and coordinate staff in this.