Title of the e-learning based Dissertation:

Use of the computer technology in E-learning

ABSTRACT

The study is aimed at understanding and deconstructing the various elements that are involved in the process of the e-learning with the help of the computers. This is also important from the point of view of making the comprehension of the subject a bit easier. There are multiple aspects that have to be catered in the process of e-learning. All the points have been included that include the process of the delivery and the bottlenecks. There are various names that are given to the process of the e-learning.. It is generally named as CBT (Computer based Teaching) or IBT) Internet Bases Teaching). This process involves the implementation of a number of layers that have to be in proper unison for the process to work. There are challenges that have to be faced in the implementation and the side. This includes the technical and the pedagogical challenges. All the issues have been discussed in detail with the relevant methodologies being kept under the proper consideration. This strategy for the management of the problems has also been addressed so that the proper delivery takes place. The other areas that have been touched as a part of the process include the computer aide assessment as well as the LMS (Learning Management System). Both of them are very integral parts of the e-learning mechanism. The internet enablement of the study would mean the availability of a greater number of resources. The LMS systems would ensure a better interface for the participation of the individuals. These are the aspects of the e-learning using the computers that have been looked into details in this academic work

RESEARCH AREA

Computers have permeated into all the fields of learning. They have changed the face of education by necessitating a lot of changes in the current educational infrastructure. They have enriched the class room in both the classrooms as well as the testing situations (Gronlund, 2002). There are a lot of interactive visuals that enable the visual experience to be extremely rich from all the aspects. It also make the process the assessments from the computers also improve the aspects of the learning process greatly when compared to9mnthe conventional set up that uses the paper and the other items. This also results in the process being a lot more graphical and interactive on the usage front. The testing procedure also inculcated a lot of the procedures that include the exclusive graphical user interfaces. The bridging of this gap means the opening up of a greater number of frontiers by making use of the necessary changes (Leacock, 2004). The lessening of the divide at the digital front would also ensure that enough services are available for everyone to make use of. Learning is of great importance in the current set up as it amplifies the learning process. There area lots of the factors those have to be taken into the consideration in the learning process. One of the crucial areas that has been generally ignored is the aspect of the participants. There are certain limitations of the conventional teaching methods which would alleviate al lot of the problems. It would also mean that the adequate resources have to be available for the services to take effect. There area number of individuals in the learning process who are specially gifted or challenged. This would hinder the percolation of the data to the participants of the process. This would lead to marked increase in the efficacy of the process. There are a number of limitations that make the process less than interactive (Gronlund, 2002). The drawback comes in the process of the interaction method of the composures with the human participants of the study. There may be differential methods that can be used for the reporting as well as the scoring process. There would also be a measurement of the reporting process. There are also certain grey areas that need to be addressed. There are issues that on the technological front also. The individual’s in charge of the delivery have to comprehend the process in complete details to enable the necessary assimilation process. This aspect is extremely important because of the individuals responsible for the teaching aspect. If there is the involvement of the multiple choice questions (Glaser, 2010). The interaction is thereby a major aspect that needs to be addressed to make the process easier. The ubiquitous nature of the e-learning process also spells trouble for the individuals. This would mean that the process is not tailor made and would have to compromise on many of the required qualities for the process to be successful. The embedded nature of the process would also mean that a lot of the process would have multiple implications. There are a lot of arguments over the efficiency of the process from the conventional theorists also. They could have the decentralized approach to the learning process that would make the process easier to follow (Bennet, 1993). There are other critics that argue that the current process over relies on the structure of the algorithms that are having the well set and the predefined patterns. This would mean that only the conventional methods would get any sort of weight age. This is in complete contradiction to the fact that the learning process is integrative rather than additive process.

The communication process in the e-learning process could be classified as either being a synchronous process or asynchronous process. The synchronous process consists of the use of the technologies that include the learning sources that are continuous in their nature and content. There is no scope for any discontinuation of the data in the particular process. There is also a constant stream of discussion tat takes place among the participants and the providers of the study (Glaser, 2010). This is one of the facts that have gone in the favour of these methods when compared with the more conventional means of the education that is performed. The delivery of the ideas and the information is almost instantaneous in nature. This is a fact that goes in the favour of the process. What is also uninteresting is the constant exchange of information that is evident here. This is also important to learn the things and the study aspects at their own pace rather than following the pace of the classroom. This is particularly important in making the process popular and successful among the practitioners.

The virtual classrooms are another space that is also of significance in the matter. There is a constant stream of information that gets transferred among the coordinates as a part of the process. Also, the bottle necks of the process are taken into the proper picture before making any sort of decision on any matter. There are certain sessions that are called as break out sessions which make the complete learning process very easy (Mislevy, 2006). In totality, there are also some issues hat are seen in cas3 of the transference of the knowledge. The problems seen can be either pedagogical or technical in nature. This would also ensure that the conduction of the task is a process that would require the best of the protocols. In the current study, all of these areas have be covered in detail with a view of giving the best idea about the problems and the available solutions.

RESEARCH BACKGROUND

E-learning has been the buzzword in the field learning that has captivated the imagination of the learning enthusiasts. This has resulted in the acceleration of the learning process as it enables the usage of a myriad number of tools that assist in the learning process (Leacock, 2004). Time is of essence in the learning process as it is imperative that the learning takes place at a quick pace. Understanding of the learning process also achieves importance during the process. Learning can be attained for a number of disciplines. Each of the disciplines have their own set of requirements that differentiate4 them from the rest. This is one factor that makes the study through the use of the computers to be very important as a process. This study aims to look at the various aspects of the e-learning process. It also throws some light on the total process of the delivery. The advantages and the tools that are to be used in this process. The complete learning cycle is of gargantuan importance that stresses on the needed for the employment of the immaculate training instruments. The elemental aspects of the computer aided training are also included as a part of the work. The other names that find popular parlance in this regard are CBT (Computer based training). IBT (Internet Based Training) and the aspect of the WBT (Web based training). Each of thee index is the representation of a synonymous thought process that looks at the delivery of the adequate knowledge as the ultimate aim for the process. The technical issues in the e-learning process have been looked at. The other issues that are of common occurrence in the e-learning process are the technology issues and the issue that find their manifestation in the technology aspects (pedagogical issue. All of the content cannot be transferred completely as a part of the process, as the data has certain restraints that have to be kept in the mind in the transferring process. There are also a lot other issues like the barriers in te teaching process that have to be take into the account during the teaching process If all of these factors are taken into unison, it makes the complete process very holistic in its approach and the content. It also does away with a lot of the common problems that are seen during the teaching process. The various strategies for the alleviation of the problem have been discussed to make the work a whole lot easier. The bottle necks in the delivery process are also given the due consideration in the comprehension process. It is ultimately the process; which has a vital role in decanting the success of the approach in question. The concept or the paradigm of the e-learning process should also posses some of the standards that make the complete process standardized in nature (Mislevy, 2006). This would ensure that the delivery of the process is constant and the adequate importance is given to all the aspects that deserve the requisite attention. A look at the study would also give us a idea of the constraints faced and the ways of moving around them. This would make the process a very easy one to follow and execute. This study also ensures that the elative disadvantages of the process are brought to the forefront.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

The aim of the current study is to understand the implication computers on the e-learning process. There is also an attempt to decipher the various bottle necks that are evident in the whole process. A thorough study of the strategies to fight the problems has also been discussed in detail. The objectives of the study are as follows-

•    The effect of the computers on the e-learning process.
•    The implications of the various parameters on the working and the efficacy of the process.
•    A study on the strategies used in the e-learning paradigm.
•    The study of the techniques in the networked learning process along with the lacunae that plague it.
•    The approaches in the CSCL (Computer Supported Collaborative learning).
•    The comprehension of the LMS (Learning Management System) and the LCMS (Learning Content Management Systems).
•    The various difficulties in the delivery of the process tat may include the functional and the pedagogical models.
•    The development of a usable model that can be replicated across the platforms,

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The research methodology is extremely important in ensuring tat the research stays in true spirit. It also makes the process of the study formation lucid in the content and the execution bit. This is one of parts of the study that makes the research informative. The study deals with the impact of the computers in the e-learning process (Embretson, 2002). There is also a distinct effort to realize the potential benefits of the process when compared to the other conventional processes in place and practice. There are two methods that are of particular importance in this case. One of the approaches is the inductive approach and the other one is the deductive approach. The inductive approach looks at the assimilation of the necessary resources for the proof any particular criticism. The other approach that is used for the proof any particular argument is the deductive process. This process looks at coming to the conclusion after referring to the already existent documents or journals. This is one of the factors that differentiator the inductive from the deductive approach. The author tries to use the inductive as well as the deductive approach (Benet, 1993). Thus, the author uses both the approaches to get the proper deduction out of the study in question. This ensures that all the data is used to get the proper deductive result. The researcher has to use all the available data for the purpose. Thereby, the usage of the primary and the secondary data has to be necessitated

The data that needs to be collected for the use in the research is divided into two types. One type of data is the primary data (Attali & Burstein, 2004). The primary data is important from the purpose of building up the original data for the research. The data is collected from the interviews, group interviews, questionnaires and the focus groups. The other type is the secondary data the secondary data consists of the already existent data. This could be in the form of journals and the existing research. This also takes into account the research that has been done in the auxiliary fields. All these would help in the building up of the research volume. The research question is the other area that is of importance in the process of the collection of the data. The research question should not very expansive in its scope. This would lead to the dilution of the research in totality. The research question serves as the guiding light from the complete study (Attali & Burstein, 2004). If the research question is tool limited or to expansive, it would lead to the dilution of the work. The methods of the collection of the primary data include the following techniques

Interviews- The interview is one of the basic methods. It is useful to get the proper information about a subject from the subjects. If the questions are asked in a proper manner; than the required data could be obtained in a remarkable way.

Questionnaires- The questionnaire is another important area that is of importance. The questionnaire is a very important methodology. The questions can either be open ended or close ended questions. If the questions are very open ended, then the proper results will not be got. The same thing applies to the closed ended questions also.

OUTCOMES

The outcomes of the process are basically as follows-

•    The understanding of the effect of the computers on the e-learning process.
•    The comprehension of the bottle necks in the process.
•    The understanding and the efficacy of the models that could make the adoption of the process and facilitate the better usage.
•    The pedagogical models and the other models that are used in the learning process have been understood in detail
•    The model for the repeated and the iterative use of the same has also been developed at the end of the process.