Evaluating e-learning: Guiding research and practice

by Rob Phillips, Carmel McNaught, Gregor Kennedy

Overview

How can novice e-learning researchers and postgraduate learners develop rigorous plans to study the effectiveness of technology-enhanced learning environments? How can practitioners gather and portray evidence of the impact of e-learning? How can the average educator who teaches online, without experience in evaluating emerging technologies, build on what is successful and modify what is not?

By unpacking the e-learning lifecycle and focusing on learning, not technology, Evaluating e-Learning attempts to resolve some of the complexity inherent in evaluating the effectiveness of e-learning. The book presents practical advice in the form of an evaluation framework and a scaffolded approach to an e-learning research study, using divide-and-conquer techniques to reduce complexity in both design and delivery. It adapts and builds on familiar research methodology to offer a robust and accessible approach that can ensure effective evaluation of a wide range of innovative initiatives, including those covered in other books in the Connecting with e-Learning series.

Readers will find this jargon-free guide is a must-have resource that provides the proper tools for evaluating e-learning practices with ease.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780415881944
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	08/10/2011
Series:	Connecting with E-learning Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Rob Phillips is Associate Professor in the Educational Development Centre at Murdoch University, Australia.

Carmel McNaught is the Director and Chair Professor in the Centre for Learning Enhancement And Research (CLEAR) at The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Gregor Kennedy is Associate Professor of Health Informatics and Virtual Environments at the University of Melbourne.

Table of Contents

Preface

I. Setting the Scene

1. E-learning, learning and evaluation

2. Evaluation as part of a teacher’s role

II. Theory

3. The Learning Environment, Learning Processes and Learning Outcomes (LEPO) Framework

4. What is meant by educational evaluation and research?

5. Research paradigms and methodologies

6. Evaluation-research approaches suitable for e-learning

7. The process of carrying out evaluation research

8. Evaluation research across the e-learning lifecycle

9. Conducting an Evaluation-research Study

10. Project-management Evaluation

11. Using evaluation-research results: An overview of impact issues beyond the confines of a single project

Editorial Reviews

"Education scholars Phillips, Carmel McNaught , and Gregor Kennedy offer a step-by-step guide to designing and conducting a study evaluating electronic learning, particularly addressing acknowledged weaknesses in the quality of research so far. They intend the book to be used by practitioners and researchers in formal and informal settings."—Reference and Research Book News

From the Publisher