Activity: Elearning Concepts and Themes

This really was quite hard, and I'm aware my ideas are somewhat different to the others posted so far. It will be interesting to see discussions on this.

I have also posted my initial thoughts on the questions below.

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I was surprised at how spaced out my grid looked as I had expected a heavy weighting towards informal and new. The only area seeming lacking was the informal, old section of the grid.

To what extent should we think of e-learning as a distinct discipline with a need for its own concepts and vocabulary?

E-learning is too similar to ’learning’ to need a distinct discipline in my opinion. Although the location may vary, the outcomes remain the same, whether learned in a classroom, office or institution or learned online in your lounge, on the train etc. So I would place e-learning as a sub category of the learning discipline integrating vocabulary and concepts already in place and adding to them as needed.

Do you think the formal–informal divide is more or less evident in e-learning than in more traditional forms of learning?

I feel the divide is less evident. With e-learning people have the opportunity to learn in a chosen environment and often at a self chosen pace. Formal learning requires time keeping and attendance at a specific location. With e-learning these demands are reduced, and in some cases eliminated.

Did you find any of the concepts difficult to place on the grid provided? If so, why was this?

I found the biggest issue of placing on the grid was trying to decide if things were formal or informal. Mobile learning for example can be used in a range of e-learning ways. A company can provide a structured reading plan for its workers to complete using their PDA’s which would be a formal activity. However, Mrs. Bloggs could decide she wanted to learn Spanish to take up time on her bus journey to see her mother each week, which would make the learning process informal.

Can you think of two different axes for such a grid that might also help categorise e-learning concepts?

Still thinking on this one, initially I wanted to use platforms and applications, but there is no middle ground for this. Will come back to it later after a think.