iLearning Forum 2008 iLearning Forum 2008

Transcription

iLearning Forum 2008
© Copyright by
European Institute for E-Learning (EIfEL)
1, rue Neuve
F-89210 Champlost, France
Tel: +33 3 8643 1343
Fax: +33 3 8643 1778
www.eife-l.org
Peer-reviewed publications
4-5 February 2008
Paris
ISBN: 2-9524576-4-6
2
Table of contents
I. Designing eStrategies for Learning Organisations
Rachel Panckhurst, Debra Marsh
Communities of Practice. Using the Open Web as a Collaborative Learning Platform .................... 8
Pierre Prevel, Luca Bisognin, Emmanuelle Villiot-Leclercq
Knowledge Management, e-Learning, Deux des Voies de La Competence.................................... 14
Dirk Schneckenberg
No Future Learning without Present Staff – The Role of Faculty in University Innovation .......... 17
Anissa Boualit
L'utilisation d'un Environnement Numerique de Travail Deploiement d’un Dispositif
Different Pour le Developpement de Competences ......................................................................... 19
Deborah Arnold, Bernard Lauch, Florence Ducreau, Thierry Garrot
Collaboration Européenne Au Soutien Des Stratégies D’enseignement Numérique....................... 29
Marinoni Clementina, Eugenio Capra
Tacit Knowledge, Learning Experiences, Scaffoldings and Wireless Connections:
How Work Contexts can Influence Workers’ Informal Learning and Suitable
Technologies can Enhance Learning Organisations ........................................................................ 33
II. Designing Learning Spaces with Advanced Learning
Technologies
Cristina Costa, Maria Potes Barbas
ePortfolio and Storytelling in the Context of Web 2.0..................................................................... 38
Eva de Lera, Magí Almirall, Mar Sanmartí
ENJOY: Guidelines for Designing Engaging Elearning Environments........................................... 43
Elena Barberá, Magí Almirall, José Mora, Ajo Monzó, Bel Llodrà
E-Portfolio: Learning by Competences. A Practical Application .................................................... 46
Alan Largey, Laura Stewart, Margaret Lucey
The Development of a Virtual Learning Environment and Resultant Pedagogy for
a Mutual Understanding, Good Relations and Respect for Diversity Curriculum........................... 48
Marc Van Coillie
Spécifications et Standards Pour la Gestion de Compétences / Using Human
Ressource and Elearning Standards for Competency Management................................................. 54
Giusy Cannella
Impact of ICT in School. The Modification of the School Activities and
the Learning Environment Using ICT to Overcome Distance and Isolation:
the Case of Marettimo ...................................................................................................................... 66
Dominique Saint Martin, David Rivron, Stéphane Crozat, Marcia Lopes
La Chaine Éditoriale Webradio: la Pédagogie Portée par le Son..................................................... 69
Élie Sloïm, Stéphane Crozat
Chaîne Éditoriale, Accessibilité, Mobilité ....................................................................................... 74
David Wortley
Smart Building Technologies for Innovative Learning Spaces........................................................ 79
Fabien Baillon, Franck Rouzé, Pascal Barbier
Opale 3: La Chaîne Éditoriale Comme Outil De Production Dans les Universités,
Écoles et Centres de Formation........................................................................................................ 81
Sebastian Pätzold, Sabine Rathmayer, Stephan Graf
Proposal for the Design and Implementation of a Modern System Architecture
and Integration Infrastructure in Context of e-Learning and Exchange of Relevant Data............... 83
Christelle Mariais
Etude de Cas: le Learning Game ou le Jeu au Service Dela Pédagogie........................................... 91
Ray Tolley
A Universal e-Portfolio? .................................................................................................................. 95
Maria Grazia Celentano, Salvatore Colazzo
Pedagogy and Technology for the Design of Innovative Learning Environments ........................ 105
Adelina Moura, Ana Amélia Carvalho
Generation Mobile: Environnement d'apprentissage Supporte par ees
Technologies Mobiles (EASTM) ................................................................................................... 108
Christophe Batier
Et 1 et 2 et 3.0…Mon Enseignement Évolue… ............................................................................. 111
Manuel Majada, Isabelle Cailleau, Valérie Moreau
Les Chaînes Éditoriales Dans les Administrations Publiques........................................................ 114
Jafar Asgari Arani
Medical Students’ EMP Learning Through Interactive SMS Platform ......................................... 116
Roger Larsen
The Collaborative Working Environment: Next Generation Learning Platform........................... 123
Gérard Delacour
Elearning: le Devenir de la Conception Pour le Formateur ........................................................... 126
Martin Rodriguez
Learning Project Management Skills in Business Education Using a Game Based
on a Real Sports Tournament ........................................................................................................ 137
III. Supporting Lifelong
Lifelong Learning and Employability
Robert John Harris
Enhancing University Support for Continuing Professional Development,
Through a Portal Driven Collaborative Learning Environment..................................................... 140
Marie-France Brundseaux, Sophie Philippart
Le Portail Learn-on-line: un outil d’information au service de la formation tout
au long de la vie .............................................................................................................................153
4
Adriana Gewerc Barujel, Esther Martínez Piñeiro, Eulogio Pernas Morado,
Lourdes Montero Maesa, Fernando Fraga Varela
The Paradoxes of the Digital Divide: the use of ICT as an Indicator
of Change in Universities............................................................................................................... 152
Françoise Jérôme, Marie-France Brundseaux, François Georges
Le Plan Mobilisateur des Technologies de L'information et de la Communication
des Modules en Ligne au Service de la Qualité D'apprentissage, de L'intégration
Sociale et de L'employabilité ......................................................................................................... 159
Yves Messier
E-Learning, Métiers de la Santé et Intégration Professionnelle..................................................... 164
Luís Barreto, Alexandre Vilaça, Cláudia Viana
NetStart – Achieving New Abilities with ICT ............................................................................... 166
Stéphanie Jullien, Patrice Roussel, Thierry Zunino, Philippe Rouger, Pascal Staccini,
Sophie Vessiere, Christophe Bordonado, Jean-François Quaranta, Jean-Jacques Cabaud
Un ePortfolio Structuré et Tutoré Pour la Gestion et le Suivi Personnalisé ?
de L’evaluation des Pratiques Professionnelles en Technologie
et Médecine Transfusionnelles....................................................................................................... 174
Kamakhaya Lal Kamal, Devika Paul
Personnel, Professionalism and Learning Environment................................................................. 179
Harald Hauge, Bodil Ask
Qualifying University Staff in Developing Countries for e-Learning............................................ 182
IV. Exploiting the Full Potential of Digital
Digital Identity
Stephan Graf, Sabine Rathmayer
Homo Discens – a New Scale of Lifelong Learning...................................................................... 188
Stephan Graf, Ivan Gergintchev, Sabine Rathmayer
Identity Management Solutions in Heterogeneous Learning Environments ............................... 1887
V. Improving Quality of Learning with Technologies
Yves Epelboin
Diffusion en Direct et en Différé de Vidéos de Cours:
L’expérience de l’Université P.M. Curie (Paris VI) ...................................................................... 206
Sean William John McMinn
Podcasting Possibilities: Increasing Time and Motivation
in the Language Learning Classroom............................................................................................. 212
Manfred Kaul
MicroCSCL – Combining CSCL with Microlearning ................................................................... 216
Elisabeth Unterfrauner, Cäcilia Weiermair-Märki
User Requirements for Adult Learners with Special Needs in
Accessible Lifelong Learning ........................................................................................................ 224
Valérie Moreau, Françoise Galland
Qualité Dans les Services Tice: Exemple de Mise en Oeuvre a L'université D'angers.................. 231
5
Martin Belton
Discover How the LMS Helps Realise Ambitions for Organisational Change ............................. 234
Federica Oradini, Gunter Saunders
The Use of Social Networking by Students and Staff in Higher Education ................................. 236
Petar Jandric, Morgane Artacho, Richard Hopkins, David Fergusson
Quality vs Quantity: Instructional Design for Distributed Computing .......................................... 243
Qualité et Quantité: Conception Pédagogique Pour L’informatique Répartie............................... 245
Federico Filira, Natalì Anghelidis, Marcello Dalpasso
Tele-Assessment of the Tele-Taught University Degree in Computer Science Engineering ........ 247
Nasreddine Bouhai
Expérimentation D'un Environnement D'apprentissage en Ligne................................................. 255
Elena Mosa
Digiscuola Project. Interactive Whiteboards and Digital Contents:
an Innovatove Recipe for School Re-Medi@Tion......................................................................... 260
Giovanna Avellis
Enhancing Quality of Learning Contents with Quality Function Deployment .............................. 265
Catherine Claus-Demangeon, Denis Garcia, Nathalie Vaglio
Vitra – le Premier Centre Virtuel Europeen de Formation Aux Arts
et Techniques du Verre .................................................................................................................. 272
6
I. Designing eStrategies for Learning
Organisations
7
COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE. USING THE OPEN WEB
AS A COLLABORATIVE LEARNING PLATFORM
Rachel Panckhurst (CNRS-Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3),
Debra Marsh (iConnect)
Abstract: The current interest and popularity in Web 2.0 applications has led literally to an explosion in
popularity of social networking sites such as Myspace and Facebook. A social network focuses on the
building and verifying of communities of people who share interests and activities, or who are interested in
exploring the interests and activities of others. Participants engage in a variety of forms of communication
and information sharing, which can include personal Web pages, blogs, and discussion groups.
Social networking places its focus on the learner and the interactions and provides a relatively informal space
that allows learners to exercise their own thoughts, reflections, make their own connections. These features in
particular have caused some educators, disillusioned with the highly structured virtual learning environments
currently deployed in education which focus on course and content delivery, to ask: How can the potential of
these networks be harnessed to promote and support learning.
Since May 2007 the authors of this paper have explored the use of social networks in three different
educational contexts and evaluated the relative merits and challenges of social networking within the context
of higher education professional development programmes (Montpellier 3 University in France and
University of Hull in Great Britain).
This paper compares and contrast the following three case studies and through this analysis will explore the
process of setting up the networks and the resulting online interaction.
Keywords: Social networks, international bilingual collaborative eLearning, higher and further education,
life-long learning.
1. Introduction: social networking in education
A social network is a collection of Web 2.0 technologies combined in such a way to help focus on the
building of communities of people who share interests and activities, or who are interested in
exploring the interests and activities of others. Participants in a social network usually engage in a
variety of forms of communication and information sharing, which can include personal Web pages,
blogs, and discussion groups. The current interest and popularity in Web 2.0 applications has led to the
phenomenal popularity of social networking sites, such as Myspace and Facebook.
A recent NSBA [2007] survey showed:
how important social networking is today for young adults and how potentially effective this could be
if there was a synergy, rather than a friction, between the online social interaction drivers of the new
generations and the goals that schools in general are trying to achieve.
Research carried out by the University of California in Los Angeles [HERI, 2007] found that over
94% of first-year students spent at least some time on social networking sites in a typical week.
Social networking places its focus on the learner and the interactions and provides a relatively
informal space that allows learners to exercise their own thoughts, reflections, make their own
connections. These features in particular have caused some educators, disillusioned with the highly
structured virtual learning environments (VLE) currently deployed in education which focus on course
and content delivery, to ask: How can the potential of these networks be harnessed to promote and
support learning?
Indeed, a recently commissioned British JISC Learner Experience Project concluded that universities
can no longer afford to ignore social networking in the Web 2.0 context, as:
[it has] the potential to bring distance-learning students closer together in what would be a virtual
campus.
8
Phipps, quoted by Hoare in the Education Guardian, suggests that:
The challenge for higher education is to learn how to integrate the social networking sites with
traditional academic practice and traditional ICT systems.
2. Research Background
Since May 2007 the authors of this paper have explored the use of social networks in three different
educational contexts and evaluated the relative merits and challenges of social networking within the
context of higher education professional development programmes (Université Paul-Valéry
Montpellier 3 in France, "Knowledge Management, Learning & eLearning": http://www.univmontp3.fr/metice/_masterprogaf and University of Hull in Great Britain, "Master’s of Education in
eLearning": http://www.hull.ac.uk/ces/courses/post-graduate/taught/medelearning/index.html).
This paper will compare and contrast the following three case studies and through this analysis will
discuss the benefits of social networking tools over institutional platforms to support collaborative
learning and the development of communities of practice. This analysis will also identify key
fundamental principles/criteria required to promote effective communities of practice through social
networks and focus in particular on opportunities presented by social networking tools for
multicultural and bilingual collaborative learning and the development of communities of practice
across different professional groups.
3. Case studies
Case Study 1
A pilot study was conducted by the authors in May 2007 to explore the opportunities provided by
online social networks. It involved French and British Master’s off-campus learners. The purpose of
including British learners was to explore potential for learning opportunities and exchange through
differing cultural/linguistic perspectives on key issues. A private community eLEN (eLearning
Exchange Network) was set up using Ning (www.ning.com), to provide virtual discussion space for
international exchanges in a social network environment. After providing initial frameworks for
learners to communicate within, they were encouraged to initiate and moderate discussion threads.
Case Study 2
A second pilot study took place over a two-week period in July 2007, with 15 adult mature learners
from a continuous education programme at the Montpellier 3 University in a monolingual (French) but
bicultural (France & North Africa) context. This group included mainly on-campus students (although
two students were entirely off-campus).
Case Study 3
A third pilot study started in October 2007 with second-year Masters' students at Montpellier 3
University who are solely off-campus learners. A year-long eLEN has been set up in parallel to the
existing online courses. This "backbone" social network aims to develop and support the independent
and collaborative learning processes through a long thin structure running in parallel to the shorter
structures of individual modules which make up the curriculum.
4. Case study analysis
Rather than following a mere pedagogical ‘trend’, the authors decided to initially adopt the social
networking tools in the French and British Master’s courses in response to previous research findings
[Marsh, Panckhurst, 2006], showing that students required more flexibility in their programmes, and
more support for collaborative learning. They needed a way in which to evolve and explore a more
experiential approach within their learning/teaching environment. Even though tools like Ning seemed
to provide this sort of space, several challenges became rapidly apparent: could we provide a space for
effective group collaboration and sense of community? Would the moving away from the institutional
VLE and towards yet another technological communication tool be appropriate for students and not
9
just perceived as tutors wanting to add another "gadget"? How would this initiative fit in with the
current curricula?
Students had already used a social network for private communication but using an eLEN was novel
for them in a pedagogical situation. The analysis of the first case study highlighted a number of
important findings (see below for details), ranging from ease of use/access, a sense of purpose,
belonging and freedom, to students taking responsibility for autonomous learning, and working
efficiently towards sharing knowledge in a creative collaborative group environment and thus
branching out and forming a community of practice, which they felt promoted pedagogical innovation.
"[…] the suggestion to start a discussion on our own: this shows lots of things. Our perception of what
is important in online learning, it also shows the way that we are "animating" our own forum (so we
act a bit like teachers and tutors) etc. […] maybe this form of learning will be the future of eLearning?
[…] not a lot of technical innovation, only pedagogical...The roles are variable, everyone takes turn in
being the teacher / mentor / guide in developing competencies...", Student B, 25/5/07.
The eLEN even continued after the official closure of the course and students set up another network
in order to exchange ideas concerning summer internships, etc., which of course was a positive point
for the tutors.
The second case study showed the importance of correctly inserting the eLEN into a specific
curriculum so that students could clearly perceive the aims. It also showed that if the learners
themselves do not perceive the need to come together online to form a community of practice then
such a tool is redundant. In this instance, the eLEN experiment was set up too hastily (in order to
respond to a request by those responsible for running the course) and too far into the course, without
enough explanation concerning the objectives. A high percentage (over 90%) of the students were oncampus and most students were familiar with online tools for personal communication, but they were
not used to (or at ease) with eLearning in a pedagogical situation: they were not aware of some of the
basic principles of eLearning and working online, nor were they used to self-directing or being placed
in learning situations requiring taking responsibility for their own learning.
The third case study will be completed in May 2008. In comparison with case studies 1 and 2, the
year-long ‘backbone’ situation is quite different in that it requires a slightly different structure to
eLENs that are set up for a shorter period. Motivation becomes crucial, and teachers/tutors need to
know how to ‘let go’ and ‘take the back seat’, yet intervene at key moments. Students also need to
learn to let go of a highly-structured ‘teacher-centred’ environment. One of the techniques used here is
to make sure students have a combination of compulsory and optional activities so that they become
familiar with the environment, gain a sense of ‘ownership’ and at the same time take the initiative to
convert/modify the eLEN to suit their own needs. As a result the learners experience a collective sense
of belonging and take an active role in the development and expansion of this community.
5. eLENs: key criteria
Through these three case studies, we have identified a number of benefits, key fundamental
principles/criteria and opportunities which appear through pedagogical usage of eLENs. The 4 points
appear below:
1. Opportunities presented by social networking tools for development of communities of practice
across different professional groups
ease of use
access to multicultural groups within same/similar professional context,
access to individuals/groups which is not possible if limited to face to face content.
The online medium itself offers immediate opportunities for cross and multi-cultural interaction and
knowledge sharing which only 20 years ago would not have been deemed possible. The possibilities
are potentially endless, the only barrier is language.
2. Benefits of Social Networking Tools (which use the Open Web) over institutional platforms
ease of use/setting up
autonomy for learners and tutors i.e. no need for specialist technical support
10
choice of features/design/look and feel left to learners/tutors
each network has individual/group feel
dynamic network built from scratch; nothing imposed from ‘outside’ the group.
In a recent JISC report, making easy non-institutional access to students was specified:
As tutors we need to design learning activities not limited by institutionally provided software. [JISC
2007, p. 2].
The usage of the open Web as a platform seems to be gaining terrain. It seems no longer important to
decide which platform is the most appropriate for educational institutions, in a context where freely
available tools on the Web can be substituted, or at least used in parallel. In the authors’ experience,
students only use institutional platforms when specifically asked to do so and, when asked, often state
a preference for tools which are less restrictive and less complex.
3. Identifying key fundamental principles/criteria required to promote effective communities
a sense of purpose,
group cohesion,
tutor guidance becomes learner self-group management,
learners provided with guidance to encourage/promote independence/autonomy
learners need sense of 'ownership',
teaching staff need to be prepared to 'let go' take a back seat',
if assessment required think appropriately: number of postings not appropriate;
reflection/diary/summary of activity relating to own professional context is appropriate
The greatest fear among teaching staff with regard to the use of such collaborative tools appears to be
the fear of losing control, or the guilt feeling that ‘letting go’ may be perceived by students and
colleagues as ‘doing nothing’. As a result many feel the need to be present and provide directive
guidance and intervention. This, from the authors’ experience, can only lead to learner reluctance to
interact openly and frankly. Indeed, with the latest case study, a number of their colleagues had to be
persuaded that the use of such a community represented a positive rather than a negative in the
learning context. The authors also spent time explaining to colleagues and student tutors, some of
whom were quite reticent about the experiment, exactly what they were trying to achieve through
usage of ‘backbone’ eLENs.
4. Opportunities presented by social networking tools for multicultural and bilingual collaborative
learning
ease of use/connection if sitting outside institutional technical constraints
The language aspect is crucial in a European higher-education context. The bilingual aspect was able
to be approached in case study 1, since members of both groups had either written or spoken
knowledge of the other language. The learners were allowed to choose their preferred form (language)
of expression. It was also important that members were able to use asynchronous interaction, as this
allows for easier bilingual interaction, i.e. time to compose/read/understand in foreign language.
5. Conclusion
The authors conclude from these three case studies that the Open Web can be used efficiently for
collaborative learning. Effective communities of practice can emerge in these circumstances as long as
tutors, and learners, accept certain changes in the pedagogical environment and perhaps more
importantly changes within the ‘traditional’ learner/tutor roles. In order to set up an eLEN that is both
effective and retains motivation and interest of its members, tutors/facilitators need to be prepared to
invest a certain amount of time/effort in the early stages of the network to support the community.
Planning and structuring the network in order for learners to take on the responsibility for their own
learning is crucial. Specific, focussed tasks then need to be set for each learner. The learning will
become ‘autonomous’ as long as tutors/facilitators ‘guide’ rather than ‘manage’ and change their roles
so that learners feel comfortable with taking the initiative.
11
References
1. Facebook: www.facebook.com
2. College Freshmen and Online Social Networking Sites. HERI (Higher Education Research
Institute), University of California, Los Angeles, September 2007. [Available at:
http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/heri/PDFs/pubs/briefs/brief-091107-SocialNetworking.pdf, accessed:
23.03.2008].
3. Hoare S. (2007). Students tell universities: Get out of MySpace. Education Guardian, Vol. 5,
No. 11. [Available at: http://education.guardian.co.uk/link/story/
0,,2202291,00.html, accessed: 12.02.2008].
4. Learner experience project (2008). JISC (Joint Information Systems Committee). [Available at:
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/elearning_pedagogy/elp_learnerexperience.aspx,
accessed: 12.02.2008].
5. Designing Courses and Activities for e-Learners (2007). JISC (Joint Information Systems
Committee). [Available at:
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/programmes/elearningpedagogy/guide3_designing_activ
ities.pdf, accessed: 01.02.2008].
6. Marsh D.; R. Panckhurst (2006). A French Master’s degree in eLearning: are the students’
needs met? Poster, Ascilite, Sydney, Australia, December 3-6, p. 985-986. [Available at:
http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/sydney06/proceeding/html_abstracts/25.html, p. 985-986,
accessed: 01.02.2008].
7. Marsh, D.; R. Panckhurst (2007). eLEN — eLearning Exchange Networks: reaching out to
effective bilingual and multicultural University collaboration. Proceedings EADTU Conference,
Lisbon, November 2007.
8. Panckhurst, R., D. Marsh (2008). Expériences avec REEL : un réseau d’échanges pour étudiants
en FOAD. Conférence Invitée, Journée d’étude FIED Organisée par le METICE, Les outils
collaboratifs et les réseaux sociaux, le 17 Janvier 2008, Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3.
9. Myspace: www.myspace.com
10. Ning : www.ning.com
11. Creating & Connecting: Research and Guidelines on Online Social - and Educational –
Networking. NSBA (National School Boards Association), USA, November 2007. [Available at:
http://www.masternewmedia.org/learning_educational_technologies/social-networking/socialnetworking-in-education-survey-on-new-generations-social-creative-and-interconnectedlifestyles-NSBA-20071109.htm, accessed: 12.01.2008].
Authors:
Dr Rachel Panckhurst
Praxiling UMR 5267 CNRS-Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3,
Computational Linguistics,
Route de Mende, 34199 Montpellier cedex 5
E-mail: [email protected]
Rachel Panckhurst is a maître de conférences (senior lecturer) in computational linguistics at the
University of Montpellier 3, France. She was director of the University METICE centre for open,
distance and virtual education (1999-2001). Her current research interests include computer-mediated
communication and evaluation for lifelong learning. She is co-author of an introductory book on
information and communication technologies which was published in 2000, and she is co-editor of
two books: one on autoevaluation and guided self-learning (2002) and the other on evaluation in
eLearning (2004).
12
Debra Marsh
e-learning consultant, iConnect,
95, rue Jules Renard, 34130 Mauguio
Debra Marsh was Head of eLearning at the University of Hull, UK until July 2002 and project
managed the development and implementation of Merlin, the University of Hull's own virtual learning
environment. She now works as a freelance eLearning consultant and is based near Montpellier,
France. She is currently working for the University of Cambridge, UK on a number of eLearning
initiatives. Her specific interest and expertise lies in the pedagogical issues raised when designing for
and implementing eLearning and she has recently co-authored a practical resource book for online
tutors.
13
KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT, E-LEARNING, DEUX DES VOIES
DE LA COMPETENCE
Pierre Prevel (Crédit Agricole SA - Formation Groupe – Ingénierie),
Luca Bisognin (Service R&D SYMETRIX/X-PERTeam),
Emmanuelle Villiot-Leclercq (Service R&D SYMETRIX/X-PERTeam)
Résumé: Actuellement, les problématiques du Knowledge Management et du e-learning tendent à converger.
Mais les points de rencontre de ces deux approches et leurs apports respectifs à l’entreprise sont encore mal
connus. Notre article vise à montrer que l’articulation de ces deux approches complémentaires dans une
approche globale des compétences de l’entreprise.
Mots Clés: Knowledge management, e-learning, compétences, communautés
Le e-learning
Le e-learning est une modalité d’apprentissage qui peut prendre différentes formes (synchrone,
asynchrone) et qui vise une acquisition de savoirs ou de savoir-faire dans un contexte individuel ou
collectif : savoirs et techniques métier (produits, méthodes …), savoirs liés à un domaine (droit,
comptabilité, réglementaire, …), découverte, pratique et maîtrise des outils de travail (logiciels,
progiciels, périphériques). Le parcours peut être libre, guidé ou personnalisé.
Le Knowledge Management
Le Knowledge Management (ou gestion de la Connaissance) désigne un ensemble d'objectifs et de
méthodes très divers, relatifs à:
la formalisation, au partage, à la conservation, à la transmission et la réutilisation des
connaissances et bonnes pratiques existantes dans l'entreprise;
la gestion des connaissances externes (documentation, intelligence économique);
la création de nouvelles connaissances (amélioration continue, R&D …).
Divergences et convergences
A partir de cette étude comparative, nous avons défini un ensemble de divergences et de
convergences. Nous montrerons que la convergence majeure est l'orientation vers la Connaissance, la
Compétence et la Performance individuelles et collectives. La mise en relation de ces concepts permet
d’identifier les compétences de l’entreprise selon l’opération suivante : "compétences individuelles +
compétences collectives" x "informel"/"formel" = compétences de l'entreprise
Cette formule se modélise via la matrice de Nonaka qui permet d’articuler les quatre types
d’approches des compétences. Les méthodes à utiliser sont différentes selon la nature des actions à
mener vis-à-vis de la Connaissance (partage, fixation dans des outils ou process …)
14
Figure 1. Représentation de la matrice de Nonaka
Lien avec les outils des réseaux sociaux
Ces compétences d’entreprise émergent, s’expriment et s’utilisent concrètement au sein de réseaux
sociaux d’entreprise. La deuxième partie de notre article visera donc à poser la question de leur
instrumentation. D’un côté, il existe en effet des outils transversaux permettant d’échanger des
connaissances que nous nommerons « outils sociaux horizontaux ». Chacun devenant alors producteur
de connaissances.
D’un autre côté, se développent actuellement des outils d’échange de connaissances dans des
contextes métiers et que nous nommerons « outils sociaux verticaux ». Ces outils marquent les
réseaux et les font fonctionner selon une certaine orientation: ils vont être dédiés au partage soit des
activités, soit des informations sur les personnes, soit des ressources.
Un modèle à trois piliers …
Or, il nous semble qu’il manque des outils permettant aux réseaux sociaux d’entreprise de développer
de façon dynamique et évolutive ce « capital compétences d’entreprise » nécessaire dans le contexte
de mutation du marché.
Dans cette perspective, nous proposons un modèle qui fait du réseau social un construit social basé sur
trois piliers: les activités, les ressources et les personnes.
Activit ˇ s
Ressources
Individus
Figure 2. Le modèle à trois piliers
Ce construit social constitue, dans un espace-temps donné, un contexte privilégié dans lequel les
compétences d’entreprise s’expriment, s’explicitent et peuvent se transférer de manière formelle ou
informelle.
15
Nous avons présenté à partir de ce modèle, le projet Konstellations développé par la société Symetrix
qui vise à:
Soutenir la création, l’existence et l’évolution de communautés de connaissances,
Favoriser la production, la capitalisation et l’exploitation des connaissances intra et inter
communautés,
Favoriser le développement et l’amélioration des compétences des membres de chaque
communauté,
Privilégier la circulation de l’information en favorisant des interactions basées sur la
confiance:
− entre les membres d’une communauté,
− oentre les membres de différentes communautés.
Auteurs:
Pierre Prével
Crédit Agricole SA - Formation Groupe - Ingénierie
91-93 Bvd Pasteur P 3.6.029
75710 Paris CEDEX 15
http://jardindestalents.blogspot.com/
Emmanuelle Villiot-Leclercq
Symetrix, consultante e-learning
34, av. de l’Europe,
Bat D. Le trident
38000 Grenoble
Luca Bisognin
Symetrix, consultant e-learning
34, av. de l’Europe,
Bat D. Le trident
38000 Grenoble
16
NO FUTURE LEARNING WITHOUT PRESENT STAFF
– THE ROLE OF FACULTY IN UNIVERSITY INNOVATION
Dirk Schneckenberg (ESC Rennes School of Business)
Abstract: Based on findings from a large-scale international survey on eCompetence measures, the key
assumption of this paper is that a successful development of eStrategies and management of technologydriven innovation in universities depends on their ability to actively involve faculty in the organisational
change process [Schneckenberg 2007]. The motivation of academic teachers to acquire eCompetence and to
use eLearning depends on a portfolio of institutional incentives and learning environments that universities
offer [Kerres et al. 2005, p. 6]. Two essential preconditions need to be met to attain the active faculty
involvement in eLearning innovation: first, faculty members need to become aware on the technology-driven
change and potential of eLearning in higher education - they need to develop eCompetence; and second, they
need to make persistent use of the potential of ICT in their personal work routines and teaching practice
[Euler & Seufert 2004, esp. p. 13-4; Johnson 2003, p. 10-11; Salmon 2004, p. 3-4].
Keywords: eCompetence, eStrategy, Faculty Development, Organisational Learning, University Innovation
Technology plays a central role within the fundamental changes in the European higher education
sector. Due to its pervasive nature, information and communication technologies (ICT) have the
potential to enhance the production and transmission of knowledge in universities. New technologies
can be applied to innovative educational concepts and teaching and learning scenarios. Amongst other
things, ICT can help to efficiently organise mass lectures through the storage and dissemination of
electronic learning material; ICT can enhance flexible learning by providing students with permanent
access to learning resources and by widening their learning options independent from place and time;
and ICT can help to raise quality standards and to create a culture of excellence in teaching and
learning by adding digital communication channels for increased interaction, collaboration and
dialogue to the course setting. [Bates 2000, p. 21; Nowotny et al 2001, p. 88 ff; Salmon 2006].
But in many universities this innovative potential of technology has not been fully recognised nor
systematically exploited on macro-level of their strategic options and on micro-level of their
educational work processes. Technology tends to outpace strategic thinking and pedagogical design.
Studies show that the diffusion of new technologies into educational scenarios is threatened to stall at
a margin that has been dubbed 'the 5% hurdle of eLearning integration into universities' [Barrios &
Carstensen 2004, p. 309 ff.]. Zemksy & Massy resume in an extensive US study that the use of
eLearning has slowed down to a thwarted innovation and does still not have a wider impact in the
daily business of universities [Zemksy; Massy 2004]. The sustainable integration of ICT into higher
education establishments remains a major challenge [ODL Paper 2004].
How can the potential of new technologies be adequately used in higher education? This contributions
proposes that universities need to substantially increase efforts to involve and engage their faculty,
which play a key role in education innovation. Academic teachers are the process owners or gate
keepers of the research and teaching activities within universities [Kerres et al. 2005; Schneckenberg
2007a]. The paper outlines the main flaws of traditional training [Saks 1997] and suggests a set of
innovative approaches, which focus on informal learning activities and aim to increase the
motivational involvement of staff for the use of ICT.
The discussion of a portfolio of faculty measures takes the important interrelation between individual
and organisational learning into account. This interrelation between the organisational capability of
universities to steer innovation and the impact of eCompetence measures on the ability of faculty to
use ICT can be theoretically grounded, but has not been investigated so far for eLearning innovation
in higher education [Erpenbeck, Heyse 1999, p. 214-215; North, Reinhard 2003, pp. 1375 ff.; Weinert
1999, p.11]. The institutional challenge of universities is to create and to manage this interrelation
between the individual and organisational level of competence development.
17
References
1. Barrios, B.; Carstensen D. (Eds.) (2004). Campus 2004 - Kommen die digitalen Medien an den
Hochschulen in die Jahre? Münster: Waxmann.
2. Bates, A. W. (2000). Managing Technological Change. Strategies for College and University
Teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
3. Erpenbeck, J.; Heyse V. (1999). Die Kompetenzbiographie – Strategien der
Kompetenzentwicklung durch selbstorganisiertes Lernen und multimediale Kommunikation.
Münster: Waxmann.
4. Euler, D.; Seufert S. (2004). Nachhaltigkeit von eLearning-Innovationen – Ergebnisse einer
Delphi-Studie (SCIL Report 2). St. Gallen: Swiss Centre for Innovations in Learning (SCIL).
5. Johnson, D. F. (2003). Toward a Philosophy of Online Education. In: D. G. Brown (Ed.),
Developing Faculty to Use Technology – Programs and Strategies to Enhance Teaching. Bolton:
Anker Publishing, pp. 9-12.
6. Kerres, M.; Euler D.; Seufert S.; Hasanbegovic J.; Voss B. (2005). Lehrkompetenz für
eLearning-Innovationen in der Hochschule (SCIL Report 6). St. Gallen: Swiss Centre for
Innovations in Learning (SCIL).
7. North, K.; Reinhardt K. (2003). Transparency and Transfer of Individual Competencies – A
Concept of Integrative Competence Management. Journal of Universal Computer Science Vol. 9
(12), pp. 1372-1381.
8. Nowotny, H., Scott, P., Gibbons, M. (2001). Re-Thinking Science: Knowledge and the Public in
an Age of Uncertainty. London: Polity Press.
9. ODL Liaison Committee (2004). Distance Learning and eLearning in European Policy and
Practice: The Vision and the Reality. Policy Paper of the European ODL Liaison Committee.
[Available at: http://www.odl-liaison.org/pages.php?PN=policy- paper_2004, accessed:
22.09.2006].
10. Saks, A. M. (1997). Transfer of Training and Self-efficacy: What is the Dilemma? Applied
Psychology, Vol. 46 (4), pp. 365-370.
11. Salmon, G. (2004). E-moderating: The Key to Teaching and Learning Online. London: Taylor &
Francis, 2nd ed.
12. Salmon, G. (2006b). 80:20 for eModerators. In: I. Mac Labhrainn, C. McDonald Legg, D.
Schneckenberg, J. Wildt (Eds.), The Challenge of eCompetence in Academic Staff Development,
Galway: NUI Galway, pp. 145-153.
13. Schneckenberg, D. (2007). eCompetence Development Measures for Faculty in Higher
Education - A Comparative International Investigation. PhD Dissertation, University of
Duisburg-Essen. Essen: DuePublico University Press.
14. Schneckenberg, D. (2007a). Competence Reconsidered - Conceptual Thoughts on eCompetence
and Assessment Models for Academic Staff. In: U. Bernath & A. Sangra (Eds.), ASF Series Vol.
13, pp. 17-34. Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
15. Zemsky, R.; Massy, W. F. (2004). Thwarted innovation: What happened to e-learning and why?
University of Pennsylvania: The Learning Alliance.
Author:
Schneckenberg, Dr. Dirk
ESC Rennes School of Business,
2, rue robert d'Arbrissel CS 76522
35065 Rennes
France
Phone +33 2 99 33 48 23
Fax +33 2 99 33 08 24
E-Mail: [email protected]
18
L'UTILISATION D'UN ENVIRONNEMENT NUMERIQUE DE TRAVAIL
DEPLOIEMENT D’UN DISPOSITIF DIFFERENT POUR LE
DEVELOPPEMENT DE COMPETENCES
Anissa Boualit (Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers du Nord-Pas-de-Calais)
Mots Clés: environnement numérique, groupe, collaboration, compétences
1. Introduction: Le CNAM NPdC, mise en place d’un nouveau dispositif
Il s’agit pour notre institution de développer l’offre CNAM Nord Pas de Calais sur l’ensemble de
notre territoire régional, de toucher de nouveaux auditeurs, d’augmenter les compétences des
enseignants et leur offrir de nouveaux débouchés.
Notre implication naît du besoin d’assurer l’efficience pédagogique d’un organisme comme le notre
par l’utilisation des TICE là où elle est rare ou inexistante et le développement de pratiques
d’enseignement/apprentissage différentes et adaptées à notre public (FOD, blended-learning), de
conduire le développement de notre institution et de conduire le changement mais surtout de
l’accompagner, d’augmenter notre zone de chalandise (l’offre du CNAM Nord Pas de Calais jusqu’en
2006 ne touchait que les publics proches de grandes zones urbaines du nord: Lille, Valenciennes,
Maubeuge) et de l’étendre à tous notre territoire et pourquoi pas à l’international (2007: Botswana,
Royaume Uni, Belgique, Djibouti, Algérie, Irlande, …), d’augmenter le nombre d’auditeurs ou du
moins de le stabiliser, d’assurer une rentabilité durable des activités (enseignants) en innovant et en
développant, enfin de garantir la pérennité du CNAM Nord Pas de Calais.
Et pour répondre efficacement à ces missions et à celles de la formation tout au long de la vie et de
promotion sociale, il nous a fallu et il nous faut encore offrir des pratiques de cours innovantes et des
outils, mettre à disposition ou du moins permettre la construction d’une communauté d’apprentissage
numérique, permettre à chacun de développer ses compétences (enseignant et apprenant par le biais
d’un environnement numérique de travail), et promouvoir l’activité du CNAM.
Pour la mise en place de tout ceci, trois conditions de réussite ont été décidées et adoptées,
pédagogique par la nécessité pour les intervenants d’être réactifs et la nécessité d’un tutorat différent
de ce qui existe ; organisationnelle par la nécessité pour les responsables de Chaire, enseignants,
équipe technique et ingénieur pédagogique multimédia de travailler ensemble, de collaborer à la mise
en place du dispositif et à son développement; technique par la nécessité de maintenir et améliorer
l’environnement et les contenus, de mettre en place une hotline.
2. La formation à Distance: ses enjeux, ses avantages, ses clés de compréhension.
Qu’entend-on par FOD ? La FOD sera ici défini comme un dispositif organisé, finalisé, reconnu
comme tel par les acteurs qui prend en compte la singularité des personnes et qui repose sur des
situations d’apprentissage complémentaires et plurielles en termes de lieu, temps, médiation
pédagogique et humaine et technique et ressources.
Nos enjeux sont multiples, nous souhaitons par la mise en place de telles formations rendre la
formation accessible à des personnes qui ne sont pas disponibles pour se rendre à des cours en
présence (distance géographique, contraintes familiales ou professionnelles) et qui hésitent à
« retourner sur les bancs de l’école ». Nous souhaitons repenser les modes de transmission des
savoirs dans et pour un développement de compétences et non une refonte; développer l’autoformation
et l’autonomie des apprenants ; aider à la prise en main et l’utilisation des outils informatiques;
économiser les locaux et temps de formation (un enseignant ne donnera plus le même cours et à Lille
19
et à Valenciennes mais un seul cours enregistré en studio de cours transmis en un lieu et retransmis en
tous lieux de connexion).
Les avantages sont multiples: les déplacements sont quasi-inexistants (salariés, mères de famille,
éloignement des grands centres: autant de critères qui amènent l’auditeur à se couper de la formation
si les modalités ne sont pas repensées selon ses besoins). Le cours est accessible en ligne 24h/24 et ce
à partir du domicile, du lieu de travail ou de l’étranger. Le rythme d’apprentissage est personnalisé, ce
qui facilite la gestion et la répartition du temps: l’auditeur travaille à son rythme en choisissant luimême ses périodes d’apprentissage, bien sûr en un temps donné (la semestrialisation) et grâce à l’aide
apportée en amont par l’enseignant qui doit pour chaque enseignement donné proposer un déroulé
d’apprentissage de son enseignement par séquence: cours/exercices/suivi. L’auditeur est amené à se
responsabiliser dans son apprentissage et face au groupe: il est maître de son apprentissage qu’il doit
régir selon ses besoins et ceux de l’enseignement (apprendre à apprendre pour l’autonomisation).
Enfin, la pression de l’enseignant et du cours est moindre puisque sa gestion est partagée par un
groupe non présent physiquement.
Dernier point important pour comprendre le système mis en place: les clés de compréhension et de
« réussite1». Il est nécessaire:
De construire une ressource (en plus d’être construite pédagogiquement parlant et de
répondre aux objectifs de cours) structurée, interactive, mêlant divers types de contenus
pour répondre aux besoins spécifiques d’une unité d’enseignement dispensées en FOD et
définis dans un cahier des charges (entre l’enseignant, le service informatique et l’ingénieur
en pédagogie multimédia);
de faire naître et d’attiser l’Interactivité avec le groupe de travail dont la clé est
l’implication de chacun;
De mettre en place des évaluations sommatives ET formatives: l’enseignant construit un
parcours complet pour garantir un maximum de suivi – ces évaluations lui sont nécessaires
pour jauger l’avancée/la compréhension individuelle face au groupe et pour recadrer,
réajuster, modifier, compléter son enseignement;
Que la formation délivrée en FOD soit reconnue au même titre que celle donnée en
présentiel jusqu’à lors;
Et que le contenu du cours FOD soit identique à celui du cours du soir et les examens de ces
deux modalités aient la même valeur: nécessité de travailler directement avec les
responsables de Chaire.
3. Les outils mis à disposition et leurs fonctionnalités
Le CNAM met à la disposition de chaque CNAM régional son environnement numérique de travail :
PLEIAD. PLEIAD est une plateforme qui permet la création et la mise en place selon les besoins des
utilisateurs de parcours de formation structurés, la mise à disposition des apprenants et des enseignants
des outils de communication synchrones et asynchrones, des ressources pédagogiques et
documentaires, des informations de scolarité, des informations générales, des communications
d’événements et des ressources pédagogiques interactives. PLEIAD est une LMS en évolution sur
laquelle travaillent informaticiens, ergonomes, pédagogues et enseignants pour permettre une
exploitation optimale et la réponse à des besoins spécifiques de centres.
Il est désormais également possible aux CNAM de s’équiper de Studio de Cours, ces derniers
permettent aux auditeurs de suivre à distance ou en direct via l’ordinateur les cours dispensés par les
intervenants, ces cours sont ensuite stockés et disponibles sur Pleiad pour une réécoute en différé par
les auditeurs, à tout moment.
Les studios de cours permettent aussi mais surtout aux enseignants de maîtriser l’enseignement qu’ils
dispensent par le biais d’un outil fonctionnel à sa disposition, outil qui lui permet quand bon lui
semble de s’enregistrer face à un tableau blanc interactif pour mettre à disposition le plus efficacement
possible des parties de cours qui nécessitent une visualisation de la part des auditeurs et qui participent
1
Réussite que je définirai comme le suivi de l’enseignement dans son ensemble, le non abandon de la formation: problème majeur dans les
dispositifs FOD du CNAM
20
à la construction de ressources modernisées et plus vivantes (que le simple contenu PDF: cf
questionnaire de satisfaction).
4. Le dispositif adopté et développé: l’avant - après, la FOAD et l’hybride2 (ou blended
formation)
L’entrée dans les TICE nous permet d’envisager de nouvelles possibilités de scénarii ainsi que le
déploiement de modalités autres que le présentiel comme la formation à distance ou formation hybride
(selon les besoins de la formation envisagée).
L’intérêt de cette nouvelle modalité pour le CNAM NPdC est de mettre en œuvre des formations
privilégiant les temps à distance pour être à même d’atteindre un nombre important de futurs
auditeurs. L’essentiel de la formation se fait en dehors de la présence de l’enseignant en mode
synchrone ou asynchrone selon des modalités pédagogiques bien définies. Nous souhaitons en fait
développer le travail en autonomie et la responsabilisation, les compétences nécessaires pour les
auditeurs au travail à distance et enfin, favoriser la dynamique de la pédagogie du Projet de Groupe.
La modalité d’enseignement / apprentissage FOD adoptée au CNAM Nord Pas de calais est l’union de
trois formules pour une proposition de dispositif e-learning. La première est la mise en ligne d’une
ressource complète et structurée en un parcours adapté au public concerné, tutorée par un enseignant
disponible sur le forum ou la messagerie, ressource à laquelle s’annexent des activités à distance,
activités partagées ou d’auto-apprentissage. La deuxième est la mise en place d’un tutorat synchrone
par le biais du CHAT et de ses échanges en direct chaque semaine entre enseignant et auditeurs. La
troisième est l’ajout de trois séminaires en présentiel (Regroupements) qui servent aux enseignants
d’atelier pédagogique (le samedi). Après analyse, il apparaît clairement que cette formule est la plus à
même de répondre efficacement aux demandes de notre public : elle économise ses déplacements, lui
offre un contenu tout en ligne disponible et largement accessible, mais surtout, elle lui offre les
garanties de suivi d’un enseignement en présentiel puisque nos enseignants sont disponibles, réactifs
et ouverts à tout questionnement, semaine après semaine, au gré de la mise à disposition des séquences
de cours tout au long du semestre. Pour une UE semestrielle (équivalent à 16 semaines de cours), nous
proposons un contenu découpé et agrémenté, seize séances de tutorat synchrone, trois regroupements
présentiel, des activités d’auto-apprentissage et à distance suivi par un tuteur de manière asynchrone.
L’abandon connu des auditeurs inscrits à un cours à distance traditionnel trouve majoritairement sa
cause dans le manque de suivi, le cours est délivré, les auditeurs sont invités à communiquer sur le
forum mais rien n’est mis en place, construit pour l’inciter à participer, pour le rendre actif et répondre
à ses besoins. Pour plus de lisibilité, nous nous baserons sur les chiffres du CNAM NPdC:
En termes d’inscriptions, en 2005-2006, la FOD représentait 0,8% du nombre d’inscrits au
CNAM de Lille (le reste: formations présentielles jour et HTT). En 2006-2007, création
d’un service FOD, étude, rédaction d’un cahier des charge, mise en œuvre et lancement en
octobre 2006: la FOD représente alors 13,07%. En 2007-2008 (en cours), après analyse,
reconstruction et réorientation, la FOD représente à mi parcours (janvier 2008) 23,97% du
nombre d’inscrits;
En termes de chiffre d’affaire, le CA FOD 2006-2007 a été multiplié par 15 en comparaison
avec celui de 2005, et celui de 2007-2008 (arrêté au premier semestre) a été multiplié par 3
en comparaison avec 2006 et par 40 en comparaison avec 2005.
5. La pédagogie adoptée. De la pédagogie du projet au le projet de groupe: l’approche
communicative et la structure libre (vers le socioconstructivisme) ou la nécessité de communiquer
Notre intérêt est de développer le travail en autonomie et la responsabilisation, les compétences
nécessaires au travail à distance et enfin, favoriser la dynamique de la pédagogie du Projet et du projet
de Groupe.
Il est important de développer des modalités différentes pour ne pas enfermer l’auditeur dans un
environnement purement informatisé. C’est donc pour pallier les manques du présentiel, d’un temps
où l’intérêt était d’amener les auditeurs en un même lieu physique, que nous avons repensé le triangle
2
Le degré de mise à distance de nos formations que nous décidons selon les besoins de l’UE
21
auditeurs/ressources/enseignant comme la possibilité d’étendre la notion de communauté de groupe à
ce nouvel environnement
Une piste sérieuse a donc été exploitée, celle de la pédagogie du projet puisque « la pédagogie du
projet cherche à transformer tout vécu de formation de la personne en un apprentissage social »
[Vassilef, 1995, pp. 88] et celle du Projet de Groupe.
Il s’agit donc dans un premier temps de mettre en œuvre des scénarii pédagogiques qui respectent la
pédagogie de projet et valorisent ou entretiennent les acquis des auditeurs (le recours au passé pour
l’action dans le présent et l’appropriation dans le futur par le déploiement de stratégies et compétences
différentes). Cette pédagogie inclut ici une double fonctionnalité: le développement des objectifs
explicites par l’objet réalisé donc l’appropriation de l’unité d’enseignement par le biais de la
plateforme; le développement des objectifs implicites par l’acquisition de compétences, la réalisation
des projets et cas pratiques définis et mis en place par l’enseignant sur la plateforme. Ce projet doit
alors donner sens aux pratiques des auditeurs, répondre à ses attentes et l’impliquer [Vassilef, 1995,
pp. 88]: réalisation d’un cas pratique proche de leur vécu professionnel, situation réelle avec des
objectifs pertinents [Perrenoud, 1999].
Le projet de groupe nous permet comme le souligne Meirieu [Meirieu, 1989] d’ouvrir à chacun de
nouveaux horizons, et l’engager vers de nouveaux savoirs, l’auditeur est donc laissé libre de choisir un
projet qui réponde à ses attentes et amené à travailler avec d’autres. Le groupe devient alors un outil
pédagogique et un obstacle à dépasser (j’apprends au contact des autres – interpsychique – je me
libère alors du groupe pour intérioriser le savoir – intrapsychique). Il est alors nécessaire de construire
et mettre à disposition de ces auditeurs un espace à géométrie variable, caractérisé par notre LMS et
ses fonctionnalités (utilisation principale du forum mais également de la messagerie et du chat ouvert
en continu pour permettre aux groupes de s’organiser en accord avec le groupe classe), et de varier les
situations (le projet comprend des tâches à réaliser différemment, individuel et collectif). La
participation de tous au projet, l’implication dans la régulation cognitive de chacun, la confrontation et
le partage amènent l’apprenant à reconsidérer son système cognitif, à déconstruire pour reconstruire ce
qu’il a appréhendé en interaction avec les autres et avec l’enseignant (qui régule le projet).
La mise en place de ces situations nécessite de gros efforts et une forte implication de la part de tous:
il faut préparer les enseignants mais aussi leur donner les moyens d’organiser leur
enseignement pour la mise en place de ses projets;
Il faut mettre en œuvre des scénarii qui respectent la pédagogie du projet et plus
particulièrement l’implication réelle de l’auditeur dans son apprentissage;
Il faut se servir de la plateforme comme d’un espace à géométrie variable, susciter de
nombreux modes d’apprentissage et la coopération afin de permettre à l’auditeur de
dépasser le groupe, se libérer de l’activité sociale pour s’autonomiser;
Il nous faut travailler en équipe, main dans la main, et accompagner, voire guider, le groupe
d’auditeurs sans l’enfermer ou le bloquer afin de permettre son autonomisation;
Il nous faut mettre en place des évaluatifs du dispositif et des UE en FOD, au 1/3 de la
formation pour aider l’auditeur à construire et adopter des repères plus claires dans une
situation qui est souvent nouvelle et pour aider enseignant et pédagogue multimédia à
réorienter l’action si besoin ; en fin de formation pour juger de la qualité de l’enseignement
reçu et faire un bilan pour aider à l’évolution du dispositif dans son entire;
Il faut à l’enseignant mettre en place des évaluations sommatives, ici importantes
puisqu’elles lui permettent de comprendre et de juger l’avancée du groupe et de l’individu à
distance, et formatives (examens de validation de l’UE).
Je reprendrai ici les résultats d’une étude qui a été soumise à un échantillon d’auditeurs à la fin du
semestre sur: « Pour qu’un projet soit mené à bien, quels sont les ingrédients nécessaires, selon moi?
Choix Multiple et Par ordre d’importance: »
22
13%
13%
L’analyse intra / inter / intra
La production utilitaire
7%
L’écoute et l’échange
13%
Des conseils
8%
La prise de décisions
Une certaine soumission aux autres
La prise de responsabilités
12%
12%
L’entraide
Une bonne gestion du temps
9%
3%
10%
La gestion des émotions ensemble
Il est important de constater que les auditeurs ont compris et assimilé le besoin de s’impliquer
réellement dans l’apprentissage, de travailler ensemble, de transmettre, partager, apprendre des autres
et se libérer pour assimiler (l’analyse inter-intra-inter; la gestion des émotions ensemble; une bonne
gestion du temps; l’entraide; être ouvert aux conseils).
Un outil leur a semblé indispensable pour la réalisation et le bon suivi et vécu de leur apprentissage: le
FORUM, un espace de communication asynchrone, visible de tous, ouvert à tous, et régulé par chacun
y compris par l’enseignant, qui vient lire une à deux fois par semaine les échanges des auditeurs et
proposer ses réponses ou susciter de nouvelles discussions afin d’en faire un espace vivant.
Les modalités, la mise en pratique: entre REGROUPEMENTS, FORUM et CHAT (outre le
support), notre choix des modalités et/ou des outils pour un choix pédagogique mesuré:
Les regroupements:
- Ils viennent « créer du lien entre les apprenants »: ils permettent une première
approche du groupe et de l’enseignant en visuel, ils viennent ensuite permettre de
développer un point de cours nécessitant une présence ou de travailler sur des cas
pratiques en groupe-classe.
62% des auditeurs choisissent d’être présents physiquement ou à distance lors des regroupements
(facultatifs).
le FORUM: il est un outil indispensable au bon déroulement de l’enseignement/ apprentissage
à distance, il vient aider l’auditeur à développer des compétences cognitives et métacognitives
(l’apprendre à apprendre – processus d’autonomisation).
− Il est un choix de l’enseignant, choix motivé et orienté autour de la notion d’activité3,
activité qui va permettre de faire travailler sur du contenu et des objectifs à atteindre mais
qui va également et surtout permettre une traçabilité, un suivi dans l’apprentissage4,
3
Mangenot F. (2002), Ecriture collective par forum sur le Web : un nouveau genre d'écrit universitaire?
http://archivesic.ccsd.cnrs.fr/documents/archives0/00/00/02/68/sic_00000268_00/sic_00000268.doc
4
Utiliser un forum dans le cadre de l'enseignement des langues: apports et limites Anissa Boualit, Martine Eisenbeis, (Département des
Etudiants Etrangers, Université de Lille 3), Sébastien Durietz, (IESEG Lille & Université de Lille III)
23
−
Il permet s’il est utilisé correctement et que l’enseignant s’y implique réellement: la
construction d’un groupe par la participation de chacun à l’essor de ce groupe de sa
naissance à son « apogée » par un partage qui dépasse l’enseignement.
52 auditeurs
71 auditeurs
19 pas accès ou n’utilisent pas
Le chat: il est un lieu d’échanges synchrones mis en place (après réflexion) pour dynamiser le
groupe et traiter les points de cours nécessitant une intervention directe.
- Les retours: Il est peu utilisé et quand il l’est ce sont par ceux que nous qualifieront
d’« accros » ou de « sur motivé »:
Retour de l’enseignante concernée sur ce cas : « toujours cet auditeur
Hyperactif qui arrive cinq minutes avant avec déjà sous la main une liste
incroyable de questions ». Lorsque l’on questionne alors l’auditeur sur ce
besoin, il répond vouloir « animer pour montrer à l’enseignant que son cours
est intéressant».
Le résultat ici est que le chat est très peu visité car les auditeurs se sentent
étouffés.
Il nous faut également faire très attention au changement de représentations:
l’exemple le plus flagrant ici est le tutoiement. Les auditeurs sur le chat
choisissent « naturellement » de tutoyer leurs enseignants, ce qu’ils ne font
pas (sans y être invités) en présentiel:” Quand nous traversons l’écran nous
reconstruisons nos identités de l’autre côté du miroir » Turkle 1997].
L’enseignante a ici freiné, sans le vouloir, la
dynamique d’échanges mise en place avec l’enseignant
qui tutorait la première partie de l’enseignement
(échanges chat importants).
Je pourrais enfin synthétiser nos attentes et nos choix en un schéma:
Communauté
Apprentissage « partagé »
Enseignant
Informatisée
Auditeur
Auditeur
Accent mis sur le groupe
Sous-entend la
collaboration
D’apprentissage
24
Par le biais des TIC
Ressources pertinentes
Articulation synchrone /
asynchrone
Voici les morceaux choisis d’un questionnaire de satisfaction anonyme envoyé à un échantillon de
120 auditeurs FOD qui résument bien tout ce qui a été abordé ci-dessus (principalement les points en
gras) en termes de pédagogie, de travaux de groupe, de régulation cognitive, d’implication,
d’échanges, de réactivité, d’interactivité, de suivi.
« Q 23.1 - Qu'est ce qui vous plait le plus dans votre enseignement en FOD? »
contenu des cours
--------------------pouvoir voir le prof en direct par visioconférence tous les jeudis et lui poser des questions en direct sur le chat et qu'il y
réponde
--------------------tout en général : prof, style de cours, les explications...
--------------------- l'approche du cours est à la fois théorique et basée sur des échanges d'expérience
- malgré les contraintes du Mardi et du Jeudi pour pouvoir échanger en direct, cela permet de travailler à son rythme,
notamment en fonction de contraintes professionnelles
--------------------La disponibilité de SC, les échanges chat, avoir à faire à un professionnel, avec une belle ouverture d'esprit (ah! ça change
vraiment de l'université ! MERCI!). Une ambiance très sympa, un bon contact (même virtuel, mais on sent que ça passe
aussi super bien avec les cours en présentiel).
Bref, l'extase totale!
--------------------Le chat, le forum, les études de cas, le cours en video complémentaire du cours écrit
--------------------Cet enseignement est adapté aux personnes
-ne pouvant pas se déplacer.
-qui ne sont pas disponibles aux horaires de cours...
Ce qui me plait c'est avant tout le mode de fonctionnement (cours FOD) solution adaptée à ma situation actuelle.
--------------------Le fait de pouvoir suivre pleinement les cours selon mon emploi du temps, de pouvoir revoir plusieurs fois les cours que je
juge essentiel. La vidéo par FOD est un outil extraordinaire. Pouvoir se former à la carte en fonction de nos contraintes
est formidable. Par ailleurs nous sommes amenés à travailler avec plusieurs auditeurs et sommes très régulièrement
informés de toute information mise en ligne. Le cours FPG 114 est formidablement bien organisé. La distance semble
presque disparaitre
--------------------complément cours + visio
--------------------Le contenu du cours et la manière dont il est présenté.
La solidarité entre auditeurs.
La disponibilité de l'enseignant.
--------------------le contenu du cours, la possibilité de travailler à son rythme, ce qui est compatible avec une vie de famille...
--------------------La richesse et le côté pratique des cours.
--------------------La flexibilité et la souplesse que permet ce type de formation, en termes de temps consacré, d'horaires et de mise à
disposition des informations : on accède et on travaille quand on le souhaite !
--------------------Le dynamisme sympathique de M. Jach
--------------------le fait que cette unité soit plus légère que les autres et nous mettent en lien avec des situations rencontrées dans la vie
personnelle (trac etc.) et le prof est vraiment très bien.
--------------------structurer les connaissances acquises par l'expérience
--------------------la disponibilité des acteurs, les échanges, la convivialité
--------------------la prof est sympa, le cours très structuré
--------------------Travailler à mon rythme et pouvoir discuter avec les autres lors du chat
--------------------les chats sont très utiles pour la fod car ils permettent d'éclaircir certains points.
--------------------Accès à un savoir normé
--------------------le découpage des séances - les couleurs mises pour se repérer dans l'avancement
--------------------25
l'accès au site 24h/24
--------------------L’interactivité et la réactivité
--------------------d'avoir la voix de mon enseignant dans les cours,
--------------------Les fichiers audio (cours enregistrés par l'enseignant)
--------------------Le relationnel que nous pouvons avoir entre prof et auditeur et l'aide que nous pouvons mutuellement nous apporter.
--------------------Les applications, le fait que ce cours présente beaucoup d'exemples et d'exercices pratiques.
--------------------interactivité avec les enseignants beaucoup plus qu'en présentiel
---------------------
« Q 23.3 - Comment les UE FOD peuvent-elles être améliorées ? »
Avec plus d'exercices
--------------------En aucune manière
--------------------davantage d'information
des fiches récapitulatives par la suite une fois qu'on l'a fait pour avoir une méthode.
--------------------plus de présentiel
--------------------??
--------------------Bonne question
--------------------- pour le support de cours et la problématique du fond noir pour l'impression, au lieu que chacun fasse la manip pour
transformer en Word au risque de modifier le contenu, ne serait-il pas possible de transformer le power-point en supprimant
le fond sombre avant de le transformer en PDF .... Le support du cours d'introduction était très bien.
--------------------Cette UE est bien équilibrée, dynamique, avec juste ce qu'il faut de théorie, de cas pratiques, de chat. On est dans l'équilibre
parfait, avec des pros qui peuvent échanger lors des chats, des novices qui découvrent les RH et des visioconférences où se
mélangent chat et visio... c'est vraiment trop fort!
Je suis ravie (si ça ne se lisait pas...c'est confirmé!)
--------------------déjà parfaite
--------------------Par des interventions plus régulières du professeur dans le forum de séance5.
--------------------aujourd'hui l'outil me convient.
--------------------RAS
--------------------En donnant plus d'exemples.
--------------------Plus d'exercices?
--------------------En allégeant le contenu ou en attribuant plus de temps à l'UE
--------------------On ne change pas une équipe qui gagne.
--------------------Des exercices plus petits pour la compréhension des différents dossiers
--------------------Une plus grande flexibilité dans la gestion du temps accordée pour la réalisation des exercices.
---------------------
6. Deux points importants: la fonction enseignante et les rôles de l’apprenant.
L’enseignant est amené à développer ses pratiques et à s’investir au-delà de ce qu’il a l’habitude de
faire pour ne pas perdre ce contrôle qu’il a de la situation en présentiel. Son rôle est décuplé, il devient
[Glikman 2002]:
5
Est à différencier du FORUM général de l’unité d’enseignement, le forum de séance est un plus adaptable à une séance particulière de
cours, son utilisation est laissée à la discrétion de l’enseignant
26
Une Aide à l’orientation: au sein de l’unité d’enseignement dans l’organisation du cours et
des activités, au-delà de l’unité dans la poursuite d’études ou pour la vie professionnelle;
Un Soutien didactique: une aide à la compréhension du contenu en ligne, A la question6
« Avez-vous des difficultés dans la compréhension du cours? », 86% des auditeurs ont
répondu Non pas du tout (27%) à Plutôt non;
Un Soutien psychologique et affectif offrant un appui moral et motivationnel
et favorisant une valorisation de l’image que les apprenants ont d’eux-mêmes: les
enseignants reçoivent chaque semaine les statistiques de connexions des auditeurs (en plus
des échanges), ce tout les aide à proposer un tutorat actif et personnalisé, à relancer
l’auditeur, à le remotiver en l’accompagnant dans la poursuite de ses objectifs. Il est aidé ici
par l’ingénieur en pédagogie multimédia, à la question: « Que pensez-vous de la
disponibilité de la responsable FOD? »: Très disponible pour 30% d’auditeurs, A l’écoute
pour 25%, Active et réactive pour 26%;
Une Aide personnelle et sociale: problèmes pédagogiques et personnels, à la question
« l’enseignant est-il ouvert aux questions pédagogiques? » 94% des auditeurs ont répondu
de D’accord à Tout à fait d’accord. A la question « l’enseignant est-il ouvert aux questions
personnelles? », 87% ont répondu de D’accord à Tout à fait d’accord;
Une Aide « structurelle » relative aux structures institutionnelles: liées aux plannings, à la
scolarité, à l’administratif;
Une Aide technique: aide à la navigation sous PLEIAD, aide à l’appropriation de logiciel
(exemple du choix d’un enseignant de ne travailler qu’en outils libres), aidé par le service
informatique à 67% Très disponible et Réactif;
Une Aide par l’organisation d’un travail collaboratif: l’enseignant reste présent, invite à
la participation et communique, agit, il sait doser ses interventions et sait surtout quand il
est opportun d’intervenir. A la question « Vous considérez votre enseignant comme étant
(qualificatif): », Très disponible à 31%, Actif à 27% et Réactif à 21%.
L’enseignant est ouvert à un ensemble de rôles et d’implications différentes qui étendent sa fonction et
par la même l’intérêt des auditeurs.
L’apprenant a lui aussi à s’ouvrir à de nouvelles fonctions, du moins, à élargir son champs d’activité et
de compétences, voici comment pourraient être définies ses nouvelles fonctions dans un
environnement numérique et dans les activités liées au projet:
Il régit son processus d’apprentissage (la plateforme est un environnement ouvert, libre
d’utilisation), le tuteur est là, tel un guide, pour l’accompagner, l’inviter à et le recadrer s’il
se perd;
Il est un navigateur dans le projet: Il apprend à faire le lien, il sait ce qui est important et ce
qui ne l’est pas, il connaît son rôle (apprenant, collaborateur et formateur), les fonctions
qui en découlent;
Il est un explorateur de ressources internes et externs;
Il est un auto-évaluateur (de ses besoins, progrès et manques), il a un regard réflexif sur son
apprentissage;
Il est un évaluateur des activités, du projet, de l’outil;
Il est une aide à l’apprentissage - il favorise le développement de savoirs et savoir-faire;
Il est un « chatteur », il discute, débat, échange, communique en direct;
Il est un « e-maileur », un transmetteur d’informations, un récepteur, il construit du sens, un
certain savoir en interaction.
7. Conclusion
Nous avons pu en 2006-2007 nous féliciter d’avoir accompagné jusqu’à l’examen 68,55% de nos
auditeurs en FOD interne, la moyenne des formations en présentiel est de 60%, la moyenne au niveau
nationale est inférieure à 50%. Ces résultats et le taux de satisfaction de nos auditeurs (le questionnaire
6
Toujours questionnaire envoyé à un échantillon de 120 auditeurs : réponse en moyenne de 116 à 119 auditeurs.
27
englobait les auditeurs s’étant et ne s’étant pas présentés) nous ont permis d’être reçu et subventionné
par notre région pour le développement du dispositif et de nos activités.
Nous donnons désormais accès aux auditeurs à une offre souple et diversifiée, à la portée d’un public
bien plus large et surtout demandeur. Nous proposons également un suivi efficace et différent. Le
travail d’ingénierie a été très important et il reste beaucoup à faire et à entreprendre tant au niveau
humain (équipe, coopération, coordination, suivi, déploiement) qu’au niveau technique (réalisation,
améliorations, normalisation). Le CNAM Nord-Pas-de-Calais peut et doit désormais exister en tant
qu’entité complète pour répondre au mieux à chacun de ses auditeurs présents ou futurs.
References
1. Barbot M.J., Camatarri G. (1999). Autonomie et Apprentissage, l’innovation dans la formation,
Presses Universitaires de France.
2. Barbot M. J. (1995). Evolution de la demande et mutations des dispositifs de formation, in
Educations, Paris, p. 45-48.
3. Barbot M. J., Debon C., Glickman V. (2006). Pédagogie et numérique. contradictions?
convergenaces? Education Permanente, Paris.
4. Bordallo I., Genestet J. P. (1993). Pour une Pédagogie du Projet, Hachette Education.
5. Glikman V. (2002). Des cours par correspondance au "e-learning".
Panorama des formations ouvertes et à distance. PUF, coll. Éducation et formation.
6. Glikman V., dir. (2005). Tutorat à distance et logiques industrielles. Distances et Savoirs, Vol. 3,
No 2.
7. Meirieu P. (1995). Apprendre oui … mais COMMENT ?, ESF.
8. Meirieu P. (1989). Itinéraire des pédagogies de groupe, Apprendre en groupe – 2. Chroniques
sociales, 3ème édition.
9. Perrenoud Ph. (1999). Dix nouvelles compétences pour enseigner. Invitation au voyage, ESF
Editeur.
10. Vassilef J. (1994). Histoires de vie et pédagogie du projet, Chronique Sociale, 2ème édition.
11. Vergnaud G. (2000). Lev VYGOTSKY: Pédagogue et Penseur de notre temps, Hachette
Education, Collection portraits d’éducateurs.
Author:
Anissa Boualit
Ingénieur en Pédagogie Multimédia et Responsable Formations à Distance,
CNAM, Nord Pas de Calais,
8, Boulevard Louis XIV, 59000 LILLE,
28
COLLABORATION EUROPÉENNE AU SOUTIEN DES STRATÉGIES
D’ENSEIGNEMENT NUMÉRIQUE
Deborah Arnold, Bernard Lauch, Florence Ducreau (Vidéoscop-Université Nancy 2, Florence),
Thierry Garrot (CRIFFP, Université de Nice Sophia Antipolis)
Mots Clés: e-Learning, pilotage, enseignement supérieur, tableau de bord, stratégie
Le projet eLene-EE (programme eLearning, Campus Virtuels 2005) réunit 8 universités dans 5 pays
européens autour de la thématique ‘aspects économiques du eLearning’. eLene-EE est le deuxième de
trois projets eLearning menés par le réseau eLene1, un groupement d’établissements d’enseignement
supérieur qui s’est constitué après avoir participé comme études de cas dans le cadre de l’étude «
Modèles virtuels d’universités européennes: l’e-Learning dans l’enseignement supérieur2»
commandité en 2002 par la Commission Européenne. La récente conférence eLene-EE à l’Université
Paris Sud, Sceaux les 13 et 14 décembre 2007 a été l’occasion pour les partenaires de présenter leurs
travaux et de proposer des applications pratiques du travail scientifique dans une optique de soutien
au stratégies d’enseignement numérique.
Les grands domaines traités par le projet eLene-EE, coordonné par l’Université d’Umeå en Suède,
sont:
L’analyse des coûts et bénéfices du eLearning;
L’impact des Technologies de l’Information et de la Communication sur la performance des
étudiants;
Les indicateurs du eLearning;
La fracture numérique.
Cette contribution propose donc de restituer les grandes lignes des travaux dans les différents
domaines et de présenter de manière plus détaillée l’un des outils provenant du projet, le tableau de
bord prospectif (Balanced Score Card) qui intéressera non seulement les décideurs au sein
d’établissements d’enseignement supérieur mais tout gestionnaire de dispositif d’enseignement
s’appuyant sur l’apprentissage numérique.
C’est donc dans le cadre du réseau eLene et du projet eLene-EE en particulier que se déroule le
travail sur le tableau de bord prospectif assuré par le « workpackage 3 » ou encore groupe de travail
n° 3 (WP3) du projet eLene-EE. Il s’agit de suivre les changements et le développement des activités
d'enseignement numérique dans les universités. Les trois partenaires impliqués dans le WP3, le Centre
METID de l’Université Polytechnique de Milan, l’Université Virtuelle Polonaise et le consortium
CANEGE se trouvent tous dans une phase, plus ou moins avancée, d’émergence et de structuration
de leur dispositif d’enseignement par Internet. Ils ont clairement besoin de montrer au niveau de leur
établissement, comment leurs activités d’enseignement numérique se développent. La décision fut
prise, avec l’ensemble des partenaires du groupe eLene-EE, de centrer l’étude sur les établissements
d’enseignement supérieur et d’adopter une approche résolument managériale. L’idée consiste à partir
d’un ensemble de données présidé et qui préside au développement de l’enseignement numérique.
Dans cette volonté européenne de soutenir le développement de l’enseignement numérique et de
donner des fondations suffisamment solides aux établissements d’enseignement supérieurs européens
pour qu’ils s’imposent sur le marché mondial de la connaissance et de la formation, notre propos se
situe sur la nécessité de penser et de conduire le développement des dispositifs d’enseignement
spécifiques. Avant d’illustrer par le cas français, comment des outils de pilotage pourront
1
France: CANEGE, Italie: Politecnico di Milano, Allemagne: Université de Brême, Pays Bass: Université d’Utrecht, Finlande: Université
Virtuelle Finlandaise, Espagne: Université Ouverte de Catalogne, Suède: Université d’Umeå, rejoints par l’Université Virtuelle Polonaise
2
[www.elearningeuropa.info (2004)] collectées au sein de chaque établissement universitaire de voir la dynamique qui a
29
accompagner le changement non seulement pour les établissements mais aussi pour leurs acteurs,
nous présenterons en détail l’état d’avancement du travail du WP3. Le premier point de cette
communication reprend les principaux éléments de la réflexion collégiale menée simultanément à
partir des contextes italiens, polonais et français sur la représentation du développement de
l’enseignement par Internet dans ces trois états. Il pourrait servir, à terme, de socle pour faciliter la
conception et la mise en place d’une stratégie concrète et en assurer le déploiement sur le plan
opérationnel notamment dans la déclinaison de la performance multidimensionnelle.
Il s’agit donc de suivre les changements et le développement des activités d'enseignement numérique
dans les universités. Les quatre partenaires dans ce projet, le Centre METID de l’Université
Polytechnique de Milan, l’Université Virtuelle Polonaise de Lublin, l’Université de Nice Sophia
Antipolis ainsi que l’Université de Nancy 2 se trouvent tous dans une phase, plus ou moins avancée,
d’émergence et de structuration de leur dispositif d’enseignement par Internet. Ils ont clairement
besoin de montrer au niveau de leur établissement, comment leurs activités d’enseignement numérique
se développent. L’idée consiste à partir d’un ensemble de données collectées au sein de chaque
établissement universitaire de voir la dynamique qui a présidé et qui préside au développement de ces
activités d’enseignement numérique.
Les indicateurs retenus sont regroupés en quatre perspectives:
Tableau 1. Tableau de bord prospectif sur le développement du e-Learning dans l’enseignement supérieur
Perspective financière
1.
Proportion des dépenses de l’établissement
consacrées au e-Learning (dépenses de
fonctionnement général, d’investissement et de
maintenance des investissements).
2.
Proportion des recettes générées par le eLearning par rapport aux recettes totales.
Perspective clients/ publics
1.
Proportion des étudiants inscrits en eLearning/formule mixte/ présentiel enrichi par
rapport à l’effectif total.
2.
Proportion des enseignants utilisant le eLearning/formule mixte/ présentiel enrichi
3.
Proportion de cours proposés en e-Learning/
formule mixte/ présentiel enrichi
4.
Nombre de services par Internet
complémentaires proposés (administration,
CROUS, bibliothèque, loisirs…)
Perspective processus internes
1.
Matrice pédagogique: Proportion de supports
numériques disponibles et taux d’évolution par
catégorie en termes de médiatisation du support
et de tutorat proposé.
2.
Infrastructure dédiée au e-Learning mesurée en
termes de capacité et de taux de charge pour les
serveurs, le réseau et le personnel.
Perspective apprentissage et développement
1.
Nombre de participations de l’université à une
manifestation à propos du e-Learning (tout type
de communication).
2.
Nombre de projets nationaux ou internationaux
sur le e-Learning organisés par l’université.
Nombre de nouveaux partenariats sur le e- Learning
avec des organisations publiques ou privées
30
3.
Formation: Proportion et nombre d’heures
moyen de formation suivis par les étudiant, les
personnels administratifs et les enseignants sur
les outils du e-Learning.
4.
Mesure globale de la satisfaction des utilisateurs
d’outils numériques pour le e-Learning.
Après une première phase de réflexion et de conception, la collecte de données dans les 4
établissements et portant sur une période de 3 années (2004 à 2006) a été réalisée. Le regroupement
et l’organisation des informations recueillies a permis d’aboutir à une représentation argumentée des
voies de développement du e-Learning dans ces établissements. Les résultats de ce travail ont ensuite
été présentés lors de la conférence finale d’eLene EE sous forme d’étude de cas par établissement.
Celles-ci montrent bien l’évolution des trajectoires d’un point de vue diachronique et synchronique
tout en soulignant les différences et particularismes liés à l’organisation même des établissements.
Ces études de cas mettent également en évidence les difficultés, freins et obstacles à recueillir des
données, à formaliser les résultats dans leur dimension heuristique mais aussi le potentiel de cet outil
d’un point de vue pragmatique.
Son implémentation au sein de l’Université requiert des adaptations organisationnelles substantielles
pour accompagner le changement. Pour l’instant le BSC se présente plutôt comme un outil de mesure
(dans un processus opérationnel et constructiviste) qu’un instrument de pilotage ou de management
(dans un processus stratégique et déterministe). L’objectif final est de développer un outil d’aide à la
prise de décision capable de mesurer la performance, de faire émerger de nouvelles stratégies et de
favoriser la vision collective. Avec le recul nécessaire, la cohérence de la construction et les limites de
cette proposition de BSC restent bien évidemment discutables. Les principales limites viennent
intrinsèquement de l’outil choisi. Il est fortement contingent aux choix de construction adoptés et aux
données collectées. Il sera certainement remis en question par l’épreuve des faits:
les différences dans l’organisation des établissements sont déjà apparues entre les pays
31
les pays participant à ce groupe de travail;
les stades de développement des dispositifs ne sont pas identiques et;
les stratégies d’établissement identifiées présentent un caractère hétérogène.
En conclusion, une attention toute particulière doit être accordée à la fois à un objectif de
différenciation pour répondre au mieux aux attentes des équipes dirigeantes des établissements et à un
objectif d’analyse comparative et de découverte de stratégies de développement des universités. Il ne
faudrait pas, cependant, limiter l’utilisation du BSC à la mesure de performance d’activités. Comme
l’affirment KAPLAN/NORTON, leurs inventeurs, "Balanced Scorecard is management not
measurement". Il est enraciné dans un concept global d'organisation focalisée sur des aspects
stratégiques et représente donc un instrument idéal pour déplacer l'organisation complexe "'Université"
vers l'accomplissement de visions collectives et des objectifs.
Auteurs:
Deborah Arnold
Videoscop, University of Nancy 2 France
E-mial: [email protected]
Bernard Lauch
Vidéoscop-Université Nancy 2,
Florence Ducreau
Vidéoscop-Université Nancy 2, Florence
Thierry Garrot
CRIFFP, Université de Nice Sophia Antipolis
Autres membres ayant collaboré au workpackage n°3 du projet eLene-EE:
Adam Chmielewski, Susanna Sancassani, Maria Psillaki, Sylvie Rochhia,
Alessandra Tomassini, Deborah Arnold, Grâce-Blanche Nganmini
http://www.elene-ee.net
32
TACIT KNOWLEDGE, LEARNING EXPERIENCES, SCAFFOLDINGS
AND WIRELESS CONNECTIONS:
HOW WORK CONTEXTS CAN INFLUENCE WORKERS’ INFORMAL
LEARNING AND SUITABLE TECHNOLOGIES CAN ENHANCE
LEARNING ORGANISATIONS
Marinoni Clementina (Fondazione Politecnico di Milano),
Eugenio Capra (Dipartimento di Elettronica e Informazione, Politecnico di Milano)
Abstract: The paper describes a project that aimed to develop a knowledge management system, which also
became a continuous learning experience supporting workers and organisation growth over time.
The project was developed within the Leonardo da Vinci Programme 1 and addressed a very particular
business context: work safety and occupational health within “shipyards”.
The project was based on the fact that the best available organisational resource in this context is good
practices of old and experienced workers and their way of carrying their tasks safely and healthy. In other
words, old and experienced workers have a lot of valuable tacit knowledge, e.g., how to avoid casualties in a
work place and/or how to manage daily work activities safely. The problem is that a vast amount of qualified
workers in the field retire every year. Accordingly, there is a danger that tacit knowledge and good working
practices disappear as well.
Both the subject, i.e. making knowledge explicit and usable, and the specific sector considered, i.e. a large
building yard, enlightened how technologies (Information and Communication Technologies – ICT) become
essential to support informal learning at the workplace, collaborative learning, and organisational learning,
especially within complex and unstable contexts.
By collecting and adopting those good practices to on-the-job-training modules it was possible to
considerably decrease work-related casualties and to improve work conditions and occupational health. Good
working practices could be fixed, stored and later used in training, through the help of modern information
technology.
Finally, the need for the development of safer work practices and occupational health has been acknowledged
by employee organisations (trade unions at the local level) and their European counterparts.
Keywords: tacit knowledge,
e-learning platforms
organisational
learning
environments,
informal
learning,
mobile
Objective
The aim of the project was to develop a method and a software tool in order to capitalize senior
workers’ knowledge 2 on safety in the workplace and to transfer it to juniors by means of non formalinformal and formal learning.
Motivation of workers, as well as their active participation to learning, were the two most important
issues to be addressed.
Methodology
First of all, the project studied ways of identifying, classifying, and formalizing senior workers’
knowledge and then making it really transparent and reachable.
The first issue was how to identify workers’ knowledge experiences on safety in the workplace,
because workers were not aware of their know-how. Hence, the first challenge was to make tacit
knowledge explicit 4. The main methods used at this stage were:
Video-clips and photos about work processes to be analysed together with workers in order
to identify the risk level of their daily work, and ways of improving as well;
Individual interviews with “wise” workers about how they learnt their job.
33
Different sets of questions about both “background” knowledge and daily work experiences were
prepared, as well as specific grids to fix and formalize data to be stored into a well structured
knowledge databank.
However, whereas those methods could be used to set the acquisition process of awareness and to
update knowledge in the medium-long term, nonetheless, “live” discussion and meetings could not
become a custom to fix experiences continuously and to learn on the job. In fact, the concept of
“workplace” in shipyards environments is a little special, as it may refer to twenty-thirty metres high
scaffoldings. The lay-out of building yards includes many stairs, gangways, long ways, and there are
deafening, ear-splitting noises all over. It is really little friendly for team work, learn shops, live
communication, interviews, counselling, etc., and for easy use of standard tools, such as paper or even
traditional PCs. Consequently, the second issue was to identify what methods and devices could be
ordinarily used to make know-how explicit and to create and maintain the required knowledge
management system.
In these cases, small ICT-devices and wireless are the most suitable means for really fostering
informal learning processes at the workplace and can become key applications for “e-learning
organisations”.
Technologies did play a very crucial role in this context because they could help workers fix their
views and actions in very quick and simple ways during the job. For example, they allowed workers to
record small notes, take photos or short movies by their Personal Digital Assistants, even on a thirty
metres high scaffolding. Similarly, workers could also quickly consult online databanks, and connect
to professional communities and experts for help, without being disturbed by sounds during their
communication; their platforms allowed to save suggestions and solutions, store and maintain them for
further consultations.
The project relied on a simple hardware infrastructure: a central server, wi-fi access points located all
over the shipyards to implement a LAN, and handheld Personal Digital Assistants given to each
workers. A special software was developed to support and manage the learning project. In particular,
the PDAs used an ad-hoc interface, specifically developed for use within a shipyard. Workers in a
shipyard usually wear gloves, and very often they have only one hand free, as they need to carry a tool
or to hold to a rail. Consequently, the interface had very large buttons, which could be tapped with a
finger, even with the thumb, and did not need the use of a stylus. Menus were very simple and
navigation made easy by defining several binary questions for the user instead than more complicated
commands (e.g, “Do you want to change this menu? Yes/ No”, “Which level do you want to go?
Upper/ Lower”). How to guide workers searching and storing information, and how to design and
build databanks, define search criteria, build search engines, provide check lists and questionnaires,
was crucial. Correct use and application of new web languages was critical as were the different levels
of interaction, i.e. how workers could interact with their tools, how far they could actively upload and
download information and connect altogether. In addition to that, the application used high contrast
colours to improve the vision in sunny environment, as a shipyard may be, even in Finland.
Initially, the system included bluetooth video cameras as well to be mounted on the helmets of
workers. These camera were to be connected to the PDAs and should register most of the actions
performed during the work. The idea was to assemble all these videos at then end of each day on the
server and to use them as base of discussion in learning workshops and similar initiatives. However,
video cameras were not included in the implemented systems because they were regarded as too
intrusive and because of privacy regulations. The actual system allowed the workers to take pictures
directly by means of the handhelds, but this process was performed in specific instants and driven by
the will of the worker, instead of being continuous and uncontrolled by the worker.
However, behind suitable technologies and learning resources made available, organisational and
individual cultures have to be managed as well and encouraged towards common aims; workers
involvement and participation in building these technology-based learning environments are also
crucial in order to achieve. In fact, a phase of the project was devoted to “sharing” with workers
models, concepts, ways of working and of exploiting technologies for learning and for exchanging
experiences .
34
Main outputs
The project developed a knowledge and learning management system that was implemented in one of
the shipyards involved and populated by workers during the job.
At that time, software technologies were not based on ontology-based development, which could
actually have been a real key success factor for further improvements. These improvements could also
involve other business sectors whose complexity and instability require advanced ICT to support
informal learning processes inside.
Conclusions and future works
From a broader point of view, informal learning and learning organisations can require e-books,
databanks, websites, but also community blogs, chats and even games; they can also require simple
hardware tools such as fixed PC or sophisticated mobile multimedia devices. It will depend on specific
learning objectives and on specific work contexts and also on how workers can learn according to the
reference objectives and contexts. In a word, technological choices should depend on individuals’
learning processes 3 that do depend on the environments where they work . Hence, existing
technologies should be mapped and then linked to the main learning process categories, e-learning
methods and learning targets (learners, environments-settings, objectives-outcomes), to provide
guidelines for creating learning organizations without forgetting that workers are the main actors, that
they play a crucial role and that culture, attitudes and motivations do determine success 5.
This project highlighted how some contexts would benefit from specific hardware: hardware should be
thought and developed ad-hoc around the user, and not the contrary. Although the project was
successful, thanks to the methodology adopted and to the deep involvement of workers, technology
actually was a problem. Workers had to use last-generation PDAs, with high resolution colour screens
and advanced tapping interfaces. These devices are perfect in the pocket of a business man in his
office, but not on the gangway of a sunny shipyard, while wearing gloves and carrying a drill in the
other hand. A stouter device, with a black and white high contrast screen and with ten large dust and
water proof traditional buttons instead of a sophisticated touch screen would have probably proved
much better than a PDA. Of course, designing and developing hardware is very expensive, especially
if the target user group is small and scale economies are not possible. However, a specific highly
usable software interface was affordable and could be developed, and this was one of the key enablers
for the success of the project.
To sum up, two were the critical success factors for the project: i) the highly usable interface, and ii)
the deep involvement of workers from the very beginning of the project. Both factors required a deep
understanding of work context and of relevant workers’ learning processes.
References
1. Leonardo da Vinci project, 2002-2004, On-the-Job-Training GENE Bank. OJT GENE BANK.
2. Authier, M.; Lévy P. (2000). Gli alberi delle Conoscenze. Italian Press, Feltrinelli.
3. Bruscaglioni M. (1992). La gestione dei processi nella formazione degli adulti. Italian Press,
Franco Angeli.
4. Nonaka, I.; Takeuchi H. (2001) The knowledge - creating company. Italian Press, Guerini e
Associati.
5. Senge, Peter (1999). The dance of change. Nicholas Brealey Publishing.
Authors:
Clementina Marinoni
Fondazione Politecnico di Milano
Via Garofalo, 39, 20133 Milano
Italy
35
Eugenio Capra
Dipartimento di Elettronica e Informazione,
Politecnico di Milano
Via Ponzio 34/5, 20133 Milano
Italy
36
II. Designing Learning Spaces with Advanced
Learning Technologies
37
EPORTFOLIO AND STORYTELLING IN THE CONTEXT OF WEB 2.0
Cristina Costa (New Opportunities Centre of the Secondary School of Pombal),
Maria Potes Barbas (High School of Education of Santarém)
Abstract: This paper deals with an evaluation research approach of adults’ use of an ePortfolio organizer that
fits Web 2.0 pedagogies e.g., the social networking site Eduspaces and You Tube as well as Google Pages for
the purpose of accreditation of prior learning but also to maintain learner motivation for Lifelong Learning.
The assessment includes the development of reflection, self-regulation, collaboration, motivation and ICT
skills. As the paper is a report on work in process, we describe the mechanisms of the reflexion on the “story
of learning” of our adults and the first results of our research are presented and evaluated.
Keywords: ePortfolio, validation des aquis, web 2.0
Background
In a knowledge-driven world Lifelong Learning has become a major challenge to education systems
and individuals. Internet and especially the emerging wave of Web 2.0 have expanded access to
information. In accordance to Tim Berners-Lee vision with “Read-Write-Web”, we are now able to
aggregate and remix data, to customize our learning. The new set of tools enables and encourages also
participation through open services where according to Wenger people with the same interests interact
and learn together.
These increasing sources of knowledge – non formal contexts - compete now with formal education
and concepts like the Personal Learning Environments (PLE) are going to mature. Individuals will be
able to manage both content and process of learning but this (r)evolution implies undertaking a
framework of key competences for Lifelong Learning to cope with the “technology-embedded”
[Carneiro, 2007] society and the uncertain future.
In what concerns Portugal “improvements are needed to narrow the significant human capital gap with
over OECD countries… Adults, especially the least educated, do not participate enough in Lifelong
Learning and training programs” [Guichard, Larre 2006, p. 2].
Most ongoing efforts of the Portuguese authorities are under the program Novas Oportunidades that
targets both school-age students and adults. One of the government aim is to have one million people
certified through adult education over the next five years and the development of the system of
recognition, validation and certification of non formal experience is one the main mechanisms.
The reflexive portfolio is the milestone of the system of recognition, validation and certification of
competences (RVCC) but in what concerns the use of ePortfolio, there’s no public initiative [Oliveira,
2006].
Research objectives
The main goal of this study is to examine the impact of the ePortfolio organizer [Ravet, 2007], in
particular, the online learning landscape Eduspaces and Web 2.0 tools such as You Tube for the digital
storytelling and Google Pages for the presentation of the ePortfolio in developing reflection, selfregulation, collaboration, motivation and ICT skills. It seeks to increase our understanding of the use
of social networking in enhancing individual access to learning and thereby “enhancing Portugal’s
human capital”.
Research questions
How can digital knowledge artifacts and Eduspaces tools help in competency management
and validation issues?
38
What is the added value of peer group interaction tools to the outcomes?
Which features of the ePortfolio organizer enhance engagement and motivation for
learning?
How does the ePortfolio organizer support the development of ICT competences?
Research method
The project has been designed around a blend qualitative and in a smaller scale quantitative research
technique. Sixteen non-selected case study individuals are being observed in detail since mid October
2007 over approximately an eight months period to examine the construction of their ePortfolio and
their evaluation of the strategies and tools.
Qualitative evaluation takes place at the various stages of the process. Mixed methods are used,
including document analysis, questionnaires, interviews and regular blog reflections.
Implementation of RVCC strategy
The theoretical frame of the project is based on constructivism and connectivism. In a blended
learning context supported by Eduspaces and a variable number of face-to-face sessions lasting
approximately two hours, the aim is to encourage and motivate two small group of eight adults to
identify and gather evidence of the competences they have acquired throughout their lives in different
contexts (family, social life, school, work training) and respond to their own learning needs.
In general terms our RVCC candidates, 11 male and 5 female, are experienced in a certain job but
don’t have any certificate. The average age is 40 years old. They have already attended secondary
school.
In an environment of reflection and collaboration they are asked to organize their evidences in
reference to key benchmark competences e.g., 88 competences /credits in three areas: 16 in CLC
(Culture, Language and Communication), 16 in STC (Society, Technology and Science), 14 in CE
(Citizenship and Employability).
The artifacts that can be found in the ePortfolio can consist of diplomas and certificates but it can also
be pictures of projects, testimonials from employers, description and reflection of lived experiences,
all in fluid and multimodal formats [Barbas, 2006].
Adults are central in the process and this has implications on the methodologies. The staff/team (one
professional for each group and two trainers for each area) has not only “to motivate and involve the
adults in the process of reflection, self analysis, self recognition and self assessment” [Cavaco 2007, p.
27] but also to stimulate the exploration of multimedia tools to organize the story of adult’s learning
story which has a past, a present and a future [Barrett, 2004]. The assessment is done on their
evidences and reflection [Tosh et al., 2005]. The timescale for this process in total is over an eight
month period from October 2007 until May 2007.
In schedule the procedure for the adults looks as follows:
Stage 1 – Welcoming
Clarification of the process, registration in the SIGO platform
Interview/ Collection of data on the adult
Stage 2 - Recognition of the adult’s competences
Collection of expectations
Presentation of key benchmark competences
Presentation/Exploration of Eduspaces
Outlining life experiences
Presentation/Exploration of Movie Maker and You Tube
Creation of a digital life story
Stage 3 - Validation of the adult’s competences
Comparison of evidences with the key benchmark competences
Self-assessment
Team assessment/accreditation
39
Definition/negociation of goals and strategies to get at least 44 credits over 88 of the key
benchmark.
Stage 4 - Complementary training to develop competences (if needed)
Solving problems
Stage 5 - Certification of competences (Formal session)
Presentation/Exploration of Google Pages
Presentation of the ePortfolio
Tools
As our project is motivated by the need to stimulate lifelong learning, adult’s ePortfolio is an open
system and follows the philosophy behind social networking [Tosh, Werdmuller, 2004] so each group
of RVCC candidates has its own community in Eduspaces that integrates various blended learning
tools including electronic archive, opportunities for feedback and support, peer, collaboration (blogs,
forum). This is “the landscape for the content management process with reflection on learning”
[Barrett 2004, p. 13].
For the construction of digital life story we chose Movie Maker as adults have it in their computer and
it’s easy to use and You Tube for the publication. The access restriction of You Tube and of Eduspaces
archives and blog posts are very important features because of individual privacy.
For the final presentation of the ePortfolio we have Google PagesCreator a free page builder on the
www, easy to create hyperlinked pages. But as the ePortfolio is adult-centered, the door is open to
negotiate with the team and choose another tool for the digital storytelling and the presentation of the
ePortfolio.
Summary of results
Impact on reflection and self-regulation
At the time of authoring this paper adults are in the third stage of the process e.g., the recognition of
their competences and they have all the same understanding of the project as an empowering strategy
of self analysis and self evaluation although they need more help to be more rigorous in their
reflection and self assessment.
Perhaps even more importantly, some adults demonstrate the ability to learn intentionally. One of
them says for instance that he has always written a lot but he never paid attention to the organisation
of his writing and now he has to do it and he is very proud of his progress and wants to go on. Another
one says: “At this stage, I feel more competent to learn”.
Impact on collaboration
In their blog reflections and artefacts adults say that they really appreciated the sessions when they
could share their opinions, their work and that they regularly read what the others write but we can see
that unfortunately, they rarely commented the team entries and never those of the fellow adults. Most
of them never introduced other topics than the reflective entries in their blog, just two of them did it.
Someone says “I didn’t take profit of all the tools”, another one says” People should collaborate more
with each other”.
The strength of the community belonging was evident with the imminent closure of Eduspaces. The
debate opened and one of the adults sent an email with a suggestion for a new solution: Google tools
and the team decided to integrate Google Pages in the process and he was asked to share his
knowledge with his colleagues in a group session.
Impact on motivation
The quantity and the quality of the content as well as the “look and feel” of the ePortfolios in general
suggest that they are motivated. A common comment is the lack of time to explore the new tools, do
better and respect timing.
“Begin by the end!” is one sign of enthusiasm of one of the adults. Another one says “I feel more and
more interested in developing my competences” and another “All the tasks are interesting”.
40
Impact on ICT skills
The impact on adults’ and team technology proficiency is assessed by a survey carried out using an
anonymous questionnaire in order to map and identifying existing practices. The same questionnaire
will be administered at the end of the process but from the work they have already done we can see
that adults have raised positive standards of achievement. Very soon adults edited their profile, created
their own blog, organized their archives, uploaded files and used Eduspaces message system, keeping
in touch with each other. For most of the adults and the trainers it was the first time the students
experienced something like that: an e-community. An adult says “Now it’s easier to upload documents
and to update my blog”, another one says “It’s an opportunity to use tools such as blogs that I’ve never
tried before”.
Conclusions
On the basis of the evidence developed in this research, we do believe that the construction of the
ePortfolio has already enabled adults to develop meaningful experiences and the importance of the
challenge is clearly perceived by all those involved in the process: Assessment for Learning [Stiggins,
2002], and new technologies, especially Web 2.0 tools can help to organize learning landscapes.
The only drawback, besides the problem of certain unfamiliarity with the technology in both trainers
and adults and the amount of time it takes to learn how to use the tools was the Eduspaces service
closure announcement that hopefully will not happen anymore and the sudden technical problems.
Adults are very tolerant but we wonder what impact this will have in their future learning journey and
on trainer’s willingness to take risk with social web.
More extensive systematic study of the impact of the project will be made at the end of the year. It’s a
very recent initiative and we certainly need to consolidate our methodology and instruments of
mediation.
References
1. Barbas, M.; Campiche J. (2006). e-Portfolio: instrumento pedagógico de empregabilidade (from
the 1st Meeting in Braga, July). Ludomédia, Contéudos Didácticos e Lúdicos/Universidade do
Minho. ISBN: 972-8914-32-6
2. Barrett H. (2004). Electronic Portfolios as Digital Stories of Deep Learning. [Available at:
http://electronicportfolios.org/digistory/epstory.html, accessed: 10.12.2007].
3. Carneiro, R. (2007). Interview with Prof. Roberto Carneiro, keynote speaker in the Online
Educa Berlin Plenary. In: Online Educa Berlin October, 5, 2007. [Available at:
http://www.icwe.net/oeb_special/news50.php, accessed: 24.11.2007].
4. Cavaco, C. (2007). Recognition, Validation and Certification of Competences: Complexity and
new professional activities, Sísifo. Educational Sciences Journal, Vol. 2, pp. 21-34 [Available
at: http://sisifo.fpce.ul.pt/pdfs/sisifo0202eng.pdf, accessed: 22.12.2007].
5. Guichard, S.; Larre B. (2006). Enhancing Portugal's Human Capital, OECD Economics
Department
Working Papers, No. 505, OECD Publishing. [Available at:
http://fiordiliji.sourceoecd.org/vl=16111061/cl=48/nw=1/rpsv/cgibin/wppdf?file=5l9lzs6tggq3.pdf, accessed: 02.09.2007].
6. Ravet, J. (2007). For an ePortfolio enabled architecture. [Available at: http://www.eifel.org/publications/eportfolio/documentation/positionpaper, accessed: 18.11.2007].
7. Oliveira, L. R. (2006). ePortfolio: the state of the art in Portugal (from the 1st Meeting in Braga,
July). [Available at:
https://repositorium.sdum.uminho.pt/bitstream/1822/6402/1/oxford_texto_06.pdf, accessed:
14.09.2007].
8. Stiggins R. J. (2002). Assessment Crisis: The absence of Assessment FOR Learning Phi Dels
Kappan. [Available at: http://www.pdkintl.org/kappan/k0206sti.htm, accessed: 12.12.2007].
41
9. Tosh, D.; Werdmuller B. (2004). Creation of a learning landscape: weblogging and social
networking in the context of e-portfolios. [Available at: http://cmuonet.org/support/files/1/24/Tosh--creation_of_a_learning_landscape.pdf, accessed: 24.09.2007]
10. Tosh, D.; Light, T. P.; Fleming, K.; Haywood, J. (2005). Engagement wilt electronic portfolios:
Challenges from the student perspective. Canadian Journal of Learning an Technology, Vol.
31(3). [Available at: http://www.cjlt.ca/content/vol31.3/tosh.html, accessed: 24.09.2007].
Authors:
Cristina, Costa
Centro Novas Oportunidades da Escola Secundária com 3º Ciclo do Ensino Básico de Pombal
Rua da Escola Técnica
3100-487 POMBAL
Maria, Barbas
Instituto Politécnico de Santarém - Escola Superior de Educação
Complexo Andaluz
2000 SANTARÉM
42
ENJOY:
GUIDELINES FOR DESIGNING ENGAGING
ELEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
Eva de Lera, Magí Almirall, Mar Sanmartí (Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Spain)
Abstract: This case study proposes a new methodology, a set of guidelines that are necessary to design
motivating and engaging e-learning environments. With the focus having been on the design of motivating
and engaging e-learning tasks and processes, very little has been done to understand the impact of the elearning environment, known as the virtual campus, in the students’ learning experience. This paper
illustrates how this methodology can help designers, faculty and learning designers and technologists ensure
that the users’ overall experience in a virtual learning environment is both engaging and motivating and
therefore contribute to the ultimate goal, to learn and be motivated to learn.
Keywords: user, interfaces, engagement, motivation, user centered design
Introduction
Students’ engagement and motivation is an area extensively researched in the learning technology and
overall educational sector. Both Susan E. Metros and John G. Hedberg [3] have greatly contributed to
the field with their studies on e-learning task and interface design to enhance engagement and
motivation. But most of the work done in the area focuses on the study tasks and very little on how the
overall online learning experience. In this paper, we present a methodology for designing elearning
environments that go beyond the study needs and into the students’ personal needs and feelings, with
the goal to improve their overall e-learning experience.
Just as the external environment beyond the classroom influences the student in a traditional learning
environment, the online environment is also a source of motivation and engagement for online
students. Elements such as the school’s campus and social activities, the sight of students studying
and the surroundings, are factors that also have a direct influence on the students’ life, engagement
and motivation to learn. Therefore, students’ interaction with their learning environment goes well
beyond their day to day learning tasks and interactions, and into their social and aspirational needs.
In his latest book, Henry Jenkins mentions the importance of understanding the subcultures of the
students if we wish to understand them, as these have a great influence in their educational experience
[2]. As we learn about their subcultures, we confirm that the learning experience is intertwined with
their lives, and that considering them as separate entities only frustrates and causes inconveniences to
the students. The approach we here present takes into account the students’ personal attitudes and
behaviours and incorporates these into the design process of the institution’s virtual campus.
This project presents a methodology to help design engaging and motivating online learning
environments for these e-learners.
Our Technique
We conducted a significant amount of user analysis which provided us with the key factors that
seemed to be affecting students learning experience and behaviour. In summary, e-learners are
between 24 and 50 years old on average, often hold a previous degree, have jobs, a family, are usually
tired, have little leisure time are concerned about their health, their personal lives and have a strong
need to feel as part of the educational community they have joined. These are just some of the key
aspects that are affecting our e-learners and which cannot be omitted when designing an online
learning experience.
43
In our study we were not concerned about designing engaging pedagogical learning tasks, a key aspect
in educational institutions which are currently focusing in the use of multimedia and games,
edutainment, for increasing the engagement of the learning process [5]. In our study we wanted to
focus on the other aspects of the learning environment: the homepage, the community tools, the
structure, design, functionalities and other elements of the virtual campus that could, if designed
properly, motivate and engage the student.
Focus groups and interviews were used to gather subjective qualitative data, and user evaluation tests
using Morae [4] where used to gather quantitative data that would help us ensure that the designs
where actually working for these users.
The ENJOY guidelines have been generated from the information gathered from the user analysis, and
the information gathered from stakeholders such as the institution. The key aspects identified during
the data gathering have been translated into design guidelines, in a way that those participating in the
design of a virtual campus would understand what the key element are not to be omitted. The ENJOY
guidelines are meant to be used in conjunction with the other user centered design (UCD)
methodologies carried out to design virtual campuses [1]. As UCD methodologies always ensure the
efficiency, efficacy and satisfaction at a very functional basic level, the ENJOY methodology aims at
supplying an emotional layer, to increase satisfaction.
The following are 12 easy-to-follow guidelines for designers, developers, learning technologists and
others participating in the e-learning design process:
ENJOY: Guidelines for designing engaging eLearning environments:
1. Personalization – the environment must make the student feel like a person and not like a user.
Use of communication strategies that are more personal, common language and options for this
person to participate in this environment.
2. Identity – utilizing real images to help the student identify him/herself with the values and the
community in a quicker and more efficient way.
3. Brand – ensuring that the brand and the brand values are reflected throughout the virtual
environment to reinforce the relationship between the student and the institution.
4. Community – offering options to communicate, relate and participate. Making them visible and
easily accessible.
5. Surprise – introducing positive surprise elements or special events in the initial entry pages or in
strategic locations to make the students feel that they are part of a creative and dynamic
community.
6. Innovation – integrating innovating elements in the virtual environment, those that they may
begin hearing or reading about in the media and other trend environments.
7. Zen – ensuring that there is not an overload of text in the screen, that white spaces are used, as
well as photographic or graphic elements. Need to avoid unnecessary noise.
8. Search – providing shortcuts to students that have little time, ensuring that they can find the
information they need by doing a simple search.
9. Clarity – utilizing lively and bright colors to facilitate interaction, reading and information
visualization.
10. Situation – ensuring that the student quickly recognizes the structure or map of the environment
in a glimpse, without needing to scroll.
11. Aesthetics – ensuring a consistent aesthetic throughout, to help guide the student through his or
her tasks and objectives.
12. Recognition – utilizing standard icons and symbols that can be easily and quickly understood
without requiring the alternative text or an extra click to understand it.
Results
The ENJOY guidelines where used in two different projects during their pilot phases. In both cases,
user centered design methodologies where used: information and requirements gathered during the
initial phase, and low fidelity prototypes developed. In both these projects, when the users participated
in the evaluation of the low fidelity prototypes, they agreed that the pilot reflected their needs but did
44
not feel as these were engaging. Users could express clearly the difference between an environment
that works and it’s OK and of one that is engaging and motivating. Applying these guidelines helped
improved the prototypes significantly.
In a second evaluation phase the prototypes where revised using the ENJOY guidelines. Five user
experience specialists independently evaluated the prototypes utilizing the guidelines, and the results
where then evaluated in conjunction. All specialists agreed that the guidelines allowed them to add
significant value to the original proposal.
A revised prototype was then brought to different groups of students and potential students to be
evaluated. All participants expressed a higher satisfaction than in the previous evaluation and related
the benefits to their lifestyle, aside from their specific learning objectives and tasks. That these second
round of prototypes were more engaging and motivating to the users than the previous ones.
Our results show that this easy-to-implement methodology can contribute to increasing the motivation
of the students and other users of an online learning environment.
The ENJOY guidelines are a work-in-progress, continue to be evaluated in other projects and are
expected to grow and be revised accordingly. We look forward to presenting the results in the very
near future.
References
1. Gabbard, J.L.; D. Hix; J.E.I. Swan (1999). Usercentered design and evaluation of virtual
environments. IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, Vol. 19 (6), pp. 51-59.
2. Jenkins, H. (2006). Convergence Culture: Where Old and Mew Media Collide. New York, NYU
Press.
3. Metros, S.; Hedberg, J. G. (2002). More than Just a Pretty (Inter) Face: The Role of the
Graphical User Interface in Engaging e-Learners. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, Vol.
3(3).
4. Morae: Usability Testing for Software and Websites. [Available at:
http://www.techsmith.com/morae.asp, accessed: 23.11.2007].
5. Perrone, C.; Clark, D.; Repenning, A. (1996). WebQuest: Substantiating education in
edutainment through inter-active learning games. Computer Networks and ISDN Systems, Vol.
28, pp. 1307-1319.
Authors:
Sanmarti, Marc
Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Spain
c/Navata nº26-34, baixos 2na, bloc A
08035 Barcelona
Spain
Secondary E-Mail (optional): [email protected]
Eva de Lera
Magí Almirall
45
E-PORTFOLIO: LEARNING BY COMPETENCES.
A PRACTICAL APPLICATION
Elena Barberá (UOC), Magí Almirall (UOC), José Mora (UOC),
Ajo Monzó (CBIDJ), Bel Llodrà (IBIT)
Abstract: This work describes a distance-learning course in Digital Citizenry offered by IBIT (the
Foundation Balearic for Technological Innovation), using the ePortfolio programme created by the UOC
(Open University of Catalonia). The programme was presented here last year, during iLearn Paris 2007. This
is a practical application of the platform, providing first hand experience of its use, and opinions from
students and teachers.
Keywords: ePortfolio, competence, evidences, rubric
In March of 2007, as part of the course "Youth Work and Digital Citizenry" organised by the
“Balearic Centre for Information and Documentation for Young People” (CBIDJ by its Spanish
initials). Two of a total of eight modules that make up the entire course were taught using the UOCePortfolio platform. These were the second module Identity Creation, developed by the IBIT
Foundation’s digital communication coordinator, Bel Llodrà; and the fourth module Information
Pedagogy, taught by Ajo Monzó, coordinator of the Balearic Islands Red Infojoven (Info-Youth
Network).
Both classes were part of a pilot test to provide research data for the UOC-ePortfolio project. The pilot
test was developed by the Info-Youth Network, part of the Government of the Balearic Island’s Youth
Tourism Consortium. They designed the course, adapting the study plan to the implementation of a
student e-Portfolio, based on competences and evidences, that was capable of generating an up to date
competence profile for each student.
Competences are understood to mean capacities related to specific achievement goals set for the
student. An evidence is a document, activity, interview or notes, in different formats (written, audio or
video) selected by the student based on criteria explicitly established by the teacher, in order to
demonstrate progress in their learning, or provide evidence that they have attained a competence.
If we may, we will briefly re-introduce the system we presented here last year. The UOC-ePortfolio
allows student’s progress to be evaluated as they learn. A folder is created containing evidences that
enable us to monitor and evaluate each student’s learning process in terms of specific competences.
The use of competences has been an EC premise since the treaty of Bologna [1], which gives us a
clear focus on the use of competences in the design of study plans [2].
The UOC ePortfolio is made up of three basic elements:
Competences: proposed by the teacher, these are the basic skills or levels of knowledge the
student should achieve, with specific aims;
Evidences: proposed by the student to demonstrate their grasp of the competences. These
evidences could be documents, interviews, notes, etc., presented in different formats (text,
audio, video) that allow the student to demonstrate progress in the learning process, or the
attainment of a given competence;
The rubric or notes: used by the teacher to monitor and evaluate learning.
The ePortfolio used for the study was structured in four parts: Home Page, which included a small
introduction to the tool; Competences, stating the various activities to be carried out; Monitoring of
access and submission of activities, to help the teacher; and finally, a Help section.
46
The system is based on an Open Source platform called ELGG1, which we have modified and adapted
to create the present system.
In our study we include opinions expressed by our students, as well as the improvements they
proposed to the system. We can summarise by saying that, in general, students’ experience of using
the ePortfolio has been positive. Above all, they praised the close relationship between the educational
and professional spheres that emerges through the use of the ePortfolio, a relationship that is anyway
becoming closer all the time. Concepts such as “life long learning” [3] are already realities in our
circles.
Other aspects highlighted by the students included the ease of recovering information and work done.
They also found the UOC-ePortfolio very simple to use, compared with other distance learning
courses and platforms. According to the students, the help system is clear, and the sections leave no
room for confusion. In terms of teacher evaluation, it was very clear to the students where the
evaluation (or rubric) of their work would be placed.
References
1. Bologna Declaration (1999). European Space for Higher Education. Join Declaration of
European Ministers of Education.
2. Lisbon Strategy, eEurope 2005, Action Plan, eLearning initiative.
3. Carol, Edwards (1993). Life long learning. Communications of the ACM, Vol. 36, Issue 5.
Authors:
José Mora
Av. Tibidabo 47
08041 Barcelone
Spain
Phone +34-3-2535700
Elena Barberá,
Magí Almirall
Open University of Catalonia),
Spain
Ajo Monzó, CBIDJ
Bel Llodrà, IBIT
1
Elgg.Net is an open source software for Internet user communities. It allows the electronic portfolio to be applied to a variety of subjects
according to the needs of the client: http://www.elgg.net/
47
THE DEVELOPMENT OF A VIRTUAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
AND RESULTANT PEDAGOGY FOR
A MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING, GOOD RELATIONS
AND RESPECT FOR DIVERSITY CURRICULUM
Alan Largey, Laura Stewart, Margaret Lucey (Co-operation Ireland)
Abstract: Co-operation Ireland, a recognised leader in the field of community relations and reconciliation has
been working with the people of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland for many years. The
organisation promotes and develops communication, collaboration and practical understanding between
disparate and discordant communities. The main theory underpinning Co-operation Ireland’s programmes is
Allport’s Contact Theory (1954), which in its simplest form maintains that a major means of reducing intergroup prejudice or bias is through contact between the groups under optimal conditions. The methodology
used in the majority of Co-operation Ireland’s programmes and projects, school programmes, youth and
community programmes and local authorities work, is a ‘hands on’, mediational, facilitatory, Face-to -Face
contact model. As the organisation’s work is based on the Contact Theory it is perfectly natural that contact
in this form is the main methodology.
This paper describes the reasons, processes and judgements behind this migration of curricula and content to
a virtual learning environment and its resultant pedagogy. The first step involves the creation of a model that
could be used throughout the organisation. Based on Allport’s ‘Contact Theory’ and the ‘Social
Constructivism’ of Vygotsky and Bruner the model contained a ‘Central Core’. This core was filled with
programme specific content and was obviously different for each programme or project. The core consisted
of programme relevant activities, learning tasks and evaluation techniques designed for different learning
approaches (visual, auditory and kinaesthetic). The model then saw the core as having ‘docking ports’ where
the content free social software plugged in and indeed plugged out when required. This was the
communication, collaborative and social software (e.g. Chat, discussion, Wikis and Virtual Worlds such as
Second Life).
The resultant pedagogy from this model consists of a pedagogical blend of teacher led classrooms,
experiential learning, online and offline group work, classroom discussion, online discussion, online group
work, online collaborative work and many more in which the included teacher and face-to-face exchanges
play very important roles.
Keywords: Social Networks, WEB2.0, knowledge Media, Social Space, eLearning
Introduction
Co-operation Ireland
In 1979, at the height of the Irish ‘Troubles’ an influential businessman Dr Brendan O’Regan founded
Co-operation Ireland (it was then known as Co-operation North). He, and a number of like-minded
people realised that for Ireland to succeed economically and socially there needed to be better relations
between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. In a typically proactive way Co-operation
Ireland continues to develop programmes which enable people from these communities to participate
in cross-border and cross community programmes. To achieve their aims Co-operation Ireland works
with:
Youth and Community Groups, Schools, Local Authorities, the Media, Economic Development
Agencies, Businesses and Training organisations, Statutory Organisations and Government. In 1998
the organisation changed its name to better reflect the view that Co-operation is a two way process.
48
Underpinning Theories
Social Contact Theory
The main theory underpinning Co-operation Ireland’s programmes is Allport’s Contact Theory
[1954], which maintains that a major means of reducing inter-group prejudice or bias is through
contact between the groups under optimal conditions. The optimal conditions include: (1) equal status
between the groups in the situation; (2) common goals; (3) no competition between the groups; and (4)
authority sanction for the contact. He states that:
“prejudice will decrease if two groups with equal status have contact. But
prejudice will increase or remain high if it occurs under conditions of status
inequality, in which one group is dominant and the other subordinate.”
Social Constructivism
Another theory underpinning Co-operations Ireland’s work is that of ‘Social Constructivism’ which
emphasises how meanings and understanding grow out of social encounters. The learner is actively
engaged in a joint enterprise with the constructing of the meaning. Context is necessary and the
learner actively makes the meanings outside of the head first and they are then internalised. Social
Constructivism was first laid down by Leon Vygotsky [1962[ in his theory of Zone of Proximal
Development. His work was later further developed by Bruner [1986].
Contact Theory and the Internet
Brown [2000] described the contact hypothesis as a very significant idea in the history of Psychology.
Strong empirical support has shown that contact, under the prescribed conditions, leads to a positive
change in attitude, which can be consistently achieved. Pettigrew and Tropp [2000] found that it was
not necessary for all 4 conditions to be met for prejudice to be reduced and mere contact can be
sufficient conditions for reduction of bias. However, it is agreed that the greater number of conditions
present, the greater the degree of prejudice reduction. It has been suggested that there are significant
barriers to the ‘Contact Theory’ which include: (1) practicality [Trew 1986], (2) anxiety
[Bodenhausen, 1990] and (3) generalisation [Hewstone and Brown 1986].
All of the above evidence has been collected during Face-to-Face (F-2-F) contact between groups.
Today contact between people has been revolutionised by the Internet, email, Voice over IP and the
latest and most exciting ‘Social Software”.
Amichai-Hamburger and McKenna (2006) argue that:
“The Internet has an enormous potential for providing tools to create
effective inter-group contact. Its unique characteristic provide an
excellent basis for such a contact, for example, by creating a secure
environment, reducing anxiety, cutting geographical distances,
significantly lowering costs, by creating equal status, intimate contact
and operation.”
They even suggest that the Internet could possibly provide opportunities for successful contact that are
superior to those provided in a traditional face-to-face meeting.
The Online Course
On the basis of this research Co-operation Ireland embarked upon migrating the curricula and content
of their programmes onto the Internet. They began by considering one of Co-operation Ireland’s
many programmes, a Civic Participation Programme, as a pilot. As an organisation they were acutely
aware of the early ‘gold rush’ of eLearning mistakes where curricula and content were, in many cases,
simply ‘shovelled’ up onto the Internet without planning. They were aware of the eLearning that
consisted of long sequences of ‘page-turner’ content and point and click quizzes. Singh [2003].
Not wishing to make similar mistakes and because there were no examples of an ‘online contact
theory based programme’ on the Internet they first developed a model which included (1) a learning
49
needs analysis, (2) design/creation of an online environment and online objects, (3) migration of the
content and (4) a resultant pedagogy. The four constituent parts developed simultaneously and not
sequentially.
The pilot programme has, as outcomes, attitudinal change and reduction of bias as well as outcomes
related to the Civic Participation Programme and both sets of outcomes had to be catered for. The
audience of such a course was also considered. The majority of the audience for this course have
access to the latest communication technologies and the emerging social software during their every
day activities and therefore any online programme must use such innovations and vehicles. The
audience in many cases are the “Digital Natives” coined by Prensky [2001].
Construction of the model
1. Learning needs analysis
The programme that was to be used as a pilot was already written and had been used successfully for
several years. An evaluation certified to its success, however in the list of suggested improvements
was more contact. The programme had a curriculum, outcomes, content and a pedagogy, a delivery
methodology.
In migrating the course to an online basis it was important that the curriculum, content and outcomes
were not altered. The biggest alteration was in the pedagogy and methodology. Learning tasks, which
worked in the traditional classroom setting, were changed to work in an online setting but it was
important that they achieved the same outcomes. In many cases this was straightforward and the
difference between F-2-F and online did not require much change. In some the change was more
complicated and had to be completely redesigned. In others it was considered not viable to migrate.
This process granulised most of the curriculum into the now famous ‘Learning Objects’. Running
parallel were the processes of constructing a pedagogy and designing evaluation and assessment.
At the same time the learning environment had other constrictions on it such as flexible, portable and
scaleable. These factors had to be catered for also. A model was constructed that could be used for all
of Co-operation Ireland’s programmes. On completion of the evaluation of this Pilot Programme each
programme will be compared against the model and where appropriate it will be mapped onto the
online framework and pedagogy.
2. & 3. Creation of an online environment and migration of content
The model had at its core the ‘content curriculum’ and around this core were a series of ‘bolt-ons’,
which could be slotted into and removed from the core at any time.
Figure 1. Online learning schema
50
The Core
The Core contains the ‘content’ of the programme, the skills and the underpinning knowledge that the
course requires its students to acquire. The Core also contains some content specific evaluation. It can
contain tracking methods and data collection tasks for evaluation. The core consists of the interactive
online environment that the student moves through when completing the course. It also contains
communication and collaborative tasks with the other group(s), which are content specific. These are
additional to the communication and collaborative tasks the student will be directed to use when
required. These are the non-content specific ‘Bolt-ons’. The Core is not just online material but the
Core blends in with tried and proven classroom methodologies such as group work, discussion and
brainstorming. Each student has a personal login and password and progress is tracked like any other
course. This is the backbone of the programme.
Figure 2. Examples of the Core Interfaces
When required the student can make use of a selection of Bolt-ons to enhance both the programme and
the inter-group contact. These include – email, chat, discussion groups, Wikis, video conferencing,
collaborative software (application sharing, document sharing, joint working) and programmes such as
‘Second Life’.
4. The Pedagogy
The pedagogy is a mixture of many F-2-F activities blended in with On-line Learning Tasks in an
innovative and creative programme environment which is a mixture of structured, semi-structured,
unstructured learning tasks and structured and semi-structured use of social software ‘bolt-ons’. E.g.
students could be: working on a series of tasks in the on-line environment where they have a definitive
output such as compiling a list, they could be talking generally to their partner group in ‘Second Life’
about another aspect of the programme, or they have been showing photographs and videos of their
own community to the other using social software.
Whilst this ‘blend’ concept which has been around for decades is a fairly new term in educational
lingo and consequently has a variety of definitions and models. Early definitions, Marsh (2001)
describes it as:
“Essentially, blended learning combines eLearning tools (everything from
video streaming over the web to email) with traditional classroom training
to ensure maximum effectiveness.”
51
Figure 3. The Pedagogy
With today's prevalence of high technology in many countries, blended learning often refers
specifically to the provision or use of resources which combine e-learning (electronic) or m-learning
(mobile) with other educational resources. The pedagogy includes: the delivery and guidance of assets,
cross functionality, independence, flexibility, people central, communication and redundancy. The
pedagogy developing is centred on this educational blend.
Conclusions
At present the migration is not complete and the model has not been fully formed or tested. As
envisaged difficulties and obstacles have indeed been encountered. We were aware that it may not be
possible to migrate everything across and it was found that each and every ‘learning object’ had to be
considered with respect to several parameters such as ease of migration and value of the migration.
The minimum requirement for migration of an ‘object’ was that its ability to provide a valued learning
experience was not lessened. If an ‘object’ was to be changed to facilitate migration then the amount
of change had to be weighed against the amount of work needed to achieve the migration and its
resultant learning effect.
The format of evaluation and assessment of the programme was decided before migration began.
To date approximately 50% of the content curriculum has been migrated the resultant pedagogy has
been created. Investigation of the ‘Bolt-ons’ continues and the creation of a ‘wish list’ is being
created.
A side effect of this programme model has been the consideration of using many of these additional
online features in the organisational and managerial structures of the company especially the social
software. This is evident with consideration being given to the creation of a Co-operation Ireland
Second Life ‘island’.
52
References
1. Allport, G. W. (1954). The nature of prejudice. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
2. Amichai-Hamburger, Y.; McKenna, K.Y.A. (2006). The Contact Hypothesis Reconsidered:
Interacting via the Internet. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 11, pp. 825–
843.
3. Bodenhausen, G.V. (1990). Stereotypes as judgemental heuristics: Evidence of circadian
variations in discrimination. Psychological Science, Vol. 1(5), pp. 309–322.
4. Brown, R. J. (200). Group processes. Dynamics within and between groups. (2nd ed.). Oxford:
Blackwell.
5. Bruner, J. (1960). The Process of Education. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
6. Hewstone, M.; Brown, R. J. (1986). Contact is not enough: An intergroup perspective on the
Contact Hypothesis. In: M. Hewstone; R. J. Brown (Eds.), Contact and conflict in intergroup
encounters, Oxford: Blackwell, pp. 1–44.
7. Marsh, J. (2001). How to Design Effective Blended Learning. Brandon-Hall.com
8. Pettigrew, T. F.; Tropp, L. R. (2000). Does intergroup contact reduce prejudice? Recent metaanalytic findings. In: S. Oskamp (Ed.), Reducing prejudice and discrimination: Social
psychological perspectives, Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, pp. 93–114.
9. Prensky, M. (2001). On the Horizon. NCB University Press, Vol. 9, No. 5, October 2001.
10. Singh, H. (2003). Building Effective Blended Learning Programs. December Issue of
Educational Technology, Vol 43, No. 6, pp. 51–54.
11. Trew, K. (1986). Catholic-Protestant contact in Northern Ireland. In: M. Hewstone; R. J. Brown
(Eds.), Contact and conflict in intergroup encounters, Oxford: Blackwell, pp. 93–106.
12. Vygotsky, L. S. (1962). Thought and language Cambridge [Mass]: M.I.T. Press.
13. Bruner, J. (1986). Actual Minds, Possible Worlds. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Authors:
Alan Largey, Dr
Glendinning House
6 Murray Street
Belfast BT1 6DN
Laura Stewart
Glendinning House
6 Murray Street
Belfast BT1 6DN
Margaret Lucey
Glendinning House
6 Murray Street
Belfast BT1 6DN
53
SPÉCIFICATIONS ET STANDARDS POUR LA GESTION
DE COMPÉTENCES/
USING HUMAN RESSOURCE AND ELEARNING STANDARDS
FOR COMPETENCY MANAGEMENT
Marc Van Coillie (EIfEL, France)
Résumé: Que ce soit dans le cadre de la validation des acquis de l'expérience (VAE) ou de la mise en œuvre
de la gestion des compétences, plusieurs projets européens apportent des éléments de réponse intéressants à la
question: Quelles sont les specifications techniques pertinentes pour lagestion des competences?
Cet article présente comment, sur la base du questionnaire sur les compétences clés développé dans le cadre
du projet européen Keypal, il est possible d’utiliser des spécifications techniques pour mettre en liaison les
preuves apportées par ce questionnaire avec d’autres compétences déjà présentes dans le cadre du CV
européen Europass. Cet exemple concret et simple permet de mettre en avant certaines nouvelles
spécifications et standards émergents qui facilitent les échanges d’informations entre systèmes eLearning,
eRH ou ePortfolio.
Abstract: In the field of ICT and especially interoperability for eLearning and HR, competency seems to be
the common currency. The main issue is that the use of competency in the main standards for each domaine
(Scorm, HR-XML) are not clear enough, especially when you try to link a learning transcript or an
assessment result with a Curriculum Vitae or an employee / learner profile. A new common standard for
competency description is emerging from IEEE, this article explains how it can be use with: (1) eLearning
systems (LMS) which use Scorm Learning content and coule export learner tracking information based on
CMI data model standardised by IEEE 1484.11.3; (2) assessment systems using HR-XML Assessment
standard to define assessment workflow and systems interactions; (3) HR systems like ePortfolio oriented HR
system using HR-XML Europass / Europortfolio CV profile. It was explained also how this approach could
be use for: (1) accrediation of prior learning and/or experience (VAE in French), (2) as well as informal
learning process.
Keywords: interoperability, competency management, hr-xml, scorm, learning content
Introduction
Laloi promulguée en janvier 2002 permet aux salariés de faire reconnaître leur expérience
professionnelle et de la transformer en diplôme par la Validation des Acquis de l’Expérience (VAE).
La gestion des compétences vise à optimiser la compétitivité d’une entreprise en recherchant la
meilleure adéquation possible entre les compétences nécessaires à l’entreprise et les compétences en
ressources humaines disponibles.
L'ePortfolio est une nouvelle approche pour la gestion de son parcours professionnelle et de on
identité personnelle par les technologies de l’information. Modulable, interactif, il permet de classer et
de mettre à jour toutes ses connaissances et compétences, et de prouver ses réalisations
professionnelles et sociales.
Ce chapitre présente un cas d’usage simple de certification des compétences clés reliée à un système
de gestion des ressources humaines avec l’utilisation d’un ePortfolio tout en utilisant différents
standards du domaine eLearning et e-RH.
54
Exemple d’échange d’informations pour l’évaluation des compétences clés dans le cadre du
projet européen Keypal
Dans le cadre du projet Keypal il est prévu de permettre aux personnes souhaitant évaluer leurs
compétences clés de le faire sous forme d’une certification.
Plusieurs services entrent en ligne de compte:
L’auto-évaluation de ses compétences permettant de se positionner selon un référentiel de
compétences (ici les compétences clés définies dans le cadre du projet Keypal);
La gestion de ses réalisations et de son parcours personnel de type ePortfolio permettant de
faciliter l’apport de preuve de compétences et de les positionner par rapport à son autoévaluation;
L’interaction d’un évaluateur avec l’évalué pour enrichir sa réflexion (ainsi que son autopositionnement) et en donnant les moyens de prendre la décision ou non de la validation de
ses compétences en délivrant un certificat;
L’enrichissement du CV existant (au format européen Europass) avec les résultats de cette
évaluation.
Voici un extrait du questionnaire d’auto-évaluation proposé dans le cadre du projet Keypal:
Dans le cadre de cet exemple et du cadre d’interopérabilité à mettre en œuvre dans la partie collecte et
gestion des preuves ainsi que dans celle liée à la réflexivité, nous présupposons que:
L’individu a les droits nécessaires dans le système pour faire cette demande et a déjà fourni
les informations relatives à l’identification de son CV pour l’enrichir;
Le service de gestion ePortfolio et celui de gestion du CV sont en liaison et le premier
dispose des droits d’accès pour faire les requêtes nécessaires.
Nous obtenons le workflow suivant:
La personne fait une demande au service de gestion ePortfolio pour une autoevaluation;
Ce service transfère la demande à un service spécifique pour l’évaluation et notifie
l’évaluateur;
55
Dès que le service d’évaluation le demande, la personne fournit les informations permettant
cette evaluation;
Le demandeur accède au questionnaire d’auto-évaluation;
Les résultats de cette auto-évaluation sont transférés au système de gestion ePortfolio avec
une notification par mail informant l’évaluateur que l’auto- évaluation est terminée;
L’évaluateur accède au gestionnaire ePortfolio pour étudier l’adéquation du eportfolio avec
l’auto-évaluation en vue de délivrer ou non le certificat;
Les informations liées à l’auto-évaluation des compétences clés sont mises en liaisons avec
les compétences telles qu’elles sont définies dans le cadre du model Europass. Dans le cas
d’une évaluation positive, un lien vers le;
Certificat (ou une copie de celui-ci) est ajouté également au CV de la personne qui reçoit
également par mail la confirmation du stockage de ces informations dans son CV ainsi que
du résultat de l’évaluation.
Voici une représentation graphique de ces étapes et des interactions:
56
Cadres d’interopérabilité pour la gestion des compétences, vers un cadre global (eLearning /
eRH)
Selon les besoins métiers et le secteur d’activité, comme illustré par l’exemple précédent, plusieurs
organismes apportent des réponses par le biais de specifications dédiées à la gestion des compétences.
Ainsi dans le domaine de la gestion des ressources humaines l’organisation la plus à même de faciliter
la mise en œuvre d’échanges d’informations entre systèmes d’information est le consortium HRXML1.
Dans le cadre eLearning les consortiums équivalents sont: IEEE2 (standard LOM et RDC), ADL3
(profil d’application Scorm pour l’interopérabilité des contenus). Chacun des cadres d’interopérabilité
ainsi définis possèdent ses propres forces et faiblesses. La proposition faite dans ce chapitre consiste à
utiliser ces spécifications conjointement afin d’améliorer l’interopérabilité entre applications dans ces
différents domains.
Cadre d’interopérabilité eRH pour la gestion des compétences
En utilisant des systèmes de gestion RH conformes à certaines spécifications HR- XML (ici les
spécifications HR-XML Assessment), les concepteurs et développeurs des services correspondants se
donnent les moyens de:
Définir les compétences: IEEE RDC permet d’utiliser la même définition de compétence
dans différents systèmes;
Rechercher les évaluations adaptées à l’apprenant avec la possibilité de spécifier les
compétences à évaluer: interface web-service HR-XML Assessment Catalog;
Définir la demande d’évaluation d’une compétence auprès d’un prestataire: interface webservice HR-XML Assessment;
Extraire les informations à intégrer dans le système de gestion du personnel (en entreprise)
ou de formation (université ou organisme de formation): interface web-service HR-XML
Assessment.
Figure 1. Cadre interopérabilité eRH
1
Consortium HR-XML: Consortium international proposant des spécifications basées sur le format XML pour faciliter l’échange entre
systèmes informatiques dans un contexte de gestion des ressources humaines. Il regroupe de nombreux acteurs du domaine des ressources
humaines (des éditeurs comme SAP, Oracle, QuestionMark, des services en lignes comme Adecco, Manpower, Monster, Vedior, et des
organismes gouvernementaux comme le ministère du travail et l’armé suédoise, le centre pour le travail et l’inclusion sociale néerlandais, le
centre pour le travail et la formation professionnelle en Belgiqu). Un chapitre européen existe au sein de ce consortium don le but est de se
concentrer sur les problématiques liées à l’utilisation des spécifications dans le contexte européen et le contexte des états membres de l’UE.
2
L’IEEE est l’organisme de normalisation aux Etats-Unis, il intègre un chapitre dédié aux problématiques de l’usage des technologies pour
l’enseignement (LTLC) très actif qui a déjà normalisé plusieurs éléments comme les méta-données pour l’enseignement (LOM sous les
références: 1484.12.1-2002 et 1484.12.3-2005) repris dans de nombreux autres pays sous forme de profil applicatif (comme la proposition de
LOM FR de l’Afnor) ainsi que certains éléments du standard Scorm pour en faire une véritable norme internationale (sous les références:
1484.11.1-2004, 1484.11.2-2003 et 1484.11.3-2005). Une autre proposition de norme est en cours de validation par ce consortium
concernant les définitions de compétences réutilisables (RDC, sous la référence: 1484.20.1).
3
ADL: Advanced Distributed Learning, organisme à l’origine des spécifications SCORM pour l’interopérabilité des contenus
d’apprentissage. Cet organisme et ces spécifications sont déjà cités à plusieurs reprises dans le cadre de cet ouvrage.
57
Point fort
L’ensemble des interfaces web-services interconnecte les systèmes de manière clairement définie avec
le workflow associé.
Point faible
La partie gestion de l’apprentissage d’une compétence tout comme celle liée à la recherche d’une
ressource ou d’un prestataire d’apprentissage ne sont pas gérées (excepté le catalogage d’évaluations
d’un prestataire/système par requête en web- service) car elles sont hors du cadre des spécifications
HR-XML, il est possible pour cela d’utiliser en complément des spécifications liées au domaine
eLearning (voir les deux points suivants).
Cadre d’interopérabilité eLearning
Une autre approche se basant sur les standards du eLearning est également possible et permet de:
Définir les compétences: IEEE RDC rend une définition de compétence utilisable dans
plusieurs systèmes;
Référencer les compétences afin d’améliorer l’indexation des ressources d’apprentissage:
LOM FR pourrait référencer les compétences en entrée et en sortie du parcours
pédagogique;
Gérer l’acquisition et la validation des compétences durant l’apprentissage: SCORM 2004
permet de gérer des objectifs de formation en relation avec des compétences à acquérir lors
de l’apprentissage;
Extraire les informations pour pouvoir les réintégrer dans le système de gestion du
personnel (en entreprise) ou le système de gestion de formation (université ou organisme de
formation): IEEE XML CMI (1484.11.3-2005) permet de modéliser le suivi Scorm d’un
apprenant sous un format XML facilement échangeable.
Figure 2. Cadre interopérabilité eLearning
Point fort
La partie gestion de l’apprentissage d’une compétence tout comme celle liée à la recherche d’un
apprentissage (de ressources ou de prestataires) permettant son apprentissage sont possible avec ces
spécifications.
58
Point faible
Il n’existe pas aujourd’hui parmi les spécifications eLearning (IMS, ADL, IEEE…), l’équivalent des
définitions de web-services permettant d’interconnecter les systèmes et de mettre en œuvre un
workflow de gestion de compétences entre un système d’apprentissage et un système de gestion du
personnel.
Cadre d’interopérabilité global
Cette approche permet d’améliorer l’interopérabilité entre les systèmes de gestion de compétences et
d’apprentissage. Les points suivants méritent d’être approfondis:
Gestion de la demande d’apprentissage auprès d’un prestataire depuis le système RH:
Définition de web-service HR-XML Assessment;
Extraction des informations relatives au profil de l’apprenant et son parcours
d’apprentissage pour les réintégrer dans le système de gestion du personne (en entreprise),
le système de gestion de formation (université ou organisme de formation) ou le système de
gestion personnel (ePortfolio):
14. Soit le plus directement et simplement possible en utilisant une interface web-service HRXML Assessment qui extrait les information de la base de données.
15.
Soit via l’exploitation d’un export IEEE XML CMI (standard XML pour modéliser le
suivi Scorm d’un apprenant et permettre son export) avec ensuite une transformation pour
avoir en interface de sortie une définition de web-services compatibles avec HR-XML
Assessment.
Figure 3. Cadre interopérabilité « global »
Adéquation de l’exemple Keypal avec le cadre d’interopérabilité pour la gestion des
compétences
Le workflow présenté dans l’exemple du projet Keypal est très proche de celui présentant le cadre
générique d’intervention des spécifications HR-XML Assessment:
59
Figure 4. Workflow pour la gestion des échanges entre un service de gestion RH et celui de gestion d’évaluation via HRXML Assessment (ã HR-XML
Si l’on met en parallèle l’exemple de l’auto-évaluation effectuée dans le projet Keypal permettant
d’enrichir un CV Europass avec le cadre d’interopérabilité eRH défini précédemment, cela donne le
schéma suivant:
Cas pratique: Compétences clés et CV Europass
(service
eRH)
Figure 5. Cadre d’interopérabilité eRH appliqué à l’évaluation de compétences clés dans le projet Keypal
Dans le cadre de ce cas d’usage le profil du demandeur est basé sur le CV européen (Europass) en a
proposition de profil applicatif HR-XML Europass/Europortfolio CV pour son montage XML afin de
faciliter les échanges.
Voici quelques éléments techniques relatifs à la mise en œuvre de ce cas d’usage.
Liens entre compétences clés et compétences Europass via IEEE RDC:
Exemple de définition de compétence au format IEEE RDC :
60
1. Compétence Europass ‘Compétences sociales’:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rdceo
xmlns="http://www.imsglobal.org/xsd/imsrdceo_rootv1p0"
xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchemainstance"
xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.imsglobal.org/xsd/imsrdceo_rootv1p0
http://www.imsglobal.org/xsd/imsrdceo_rootv1p0.
xsd http://www.w3.org/XML/1998/namespace http://www.w3.org/2001/xml.xsd">
<identifier>Europass-CV-Skills-Social</identifier>
<title>
<langstring xml:lang=’en’>Social skills and competences</langstring>
</title>
<description>
<langstring xml:lang=’en’>
Describe your social skills and competences,
e.g.: Team spirit;
Good ability to adapt to multicultural environments, gained though my work experience
abroad; Good communication skills gained through my experience as sales manager.
Specify in what context they were acquired (through training, work, seminars, voluntary or leisure activities, etc.).
What are we talking about?
Social skills and competences refer to living and working with other people, in positions where communication is important
and situations where teamwork is essential (for example culture and sports), in multicultural environments, etc.
</langstring>
</description>
</rdceo>
2. Compétence clé ‘Compétences sociales’:
<rdceo
<identifier>Key-Skills-Social</identifier>
<title>
<langstring xml:lang=’en’>Social key-skills and competences</langstring>
</title>
<description>
e.g.: Team spirit;
Specify in what context they were acquired (through training, work, seminars, voluntary or leisure activities, etc.).
What are we talking about?
</langstring>
</description>
</rdceo>
3. Pour réaliser le lien entre la compétence clé et la compétence Europass il est possible d’utiliser
certaines métadonnées optionnelles. La définition de la compétence représentant cette liaison (ici la
compétence clé) est alors la suivante:
<rdceo
<identifier>Key-Skills-Social</identifier>
<title>
<langstring xml:lang=’en’>Social key-skills and competences</langstring>
</title>
<description>
e.g.: Team spirit;
Specify in what context they were acquired (through training, work, seminars, voluntary or leisure activities,
etc.). What are we talking about?
61
</langstring>
</description>
<metadata>
<lom xmlns="http://ltsc.ieee.org/xsd/LOM">
<relation>
<kind>
<source>
<langstring xml:lang="x-none">LOMv1.0</langstring>
</source>
<value>
<langstring xml:lang="x-none">references</langstring>
</value>
</kind>
<resource>
<identifier>http://xml.eife-l.org/rdc/europass/cv/Europass-CV-Skills-Social.xml</identifier>
<catalogentry>
<catalog>Europass CV</catalog>
<entry>
<langstring xml:lang="x-none">Europass-CV-Skills-Social</langstring>
</entry>
</catalogentry>
</resource>
</relation>
</lom>
</metadata>
</rdceo>
Liens entre compétences et CV Europass via le profil applicatif HR- XML Europass /
Europortfolio CV:
Il est possible de faire référence à une compétence externe au format IEEE RDC au sein d’un CV au
format HR-XML en utilisant l’élément <Compétence>, en voici un exemple:
<Candidate xmlns="http://ns.hr-xml.org/2007-04-15"
xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
xsi:schemaLocation="http://ns.hr-xml.org/2007-04-15 http://ns.hr-xml.org/2_5/HR-XML-2_5/SEP/Candidate.xsd"
xml:lang="fr-FR">
…
<Competency description="List of Skills from Europass CV"
name="Europass-CV-SkillsList">
<TaxonomyId idOwner="Europass" description="Europass CV Skills"
id="http://profiles.eife-l.org/europass/Europass-Skills-main.xml"/>
<Competency name="social" description="comp soc">
<TaxonomyId
id="http://profiles.eife-l.org/europass/Europass-Skills-Social.xml"
description="Europass-CV-Skills" idOwner="Europass"/>
</Competency>
…
</Candidate>
Stockage des résultats de l’évaluation des compétences au sein du CV Europass via le profil
applicatif HR-XML Europass / Europortfolio CV:
Afin d’enregistrer les résultats d’une évaluation il est possible d’utiliser le sous- élément
<CompetencyEvidence> au sein d’un CV au format HR-XML, en voici un exemple:
<Candidate xmlns="http://ns.hr-xml.org/2007-04-15"
xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
xsi:schemaLocation="http://ns.hr-xml.org/2007-04-15 http://ns.hr-xml.org/2_5/HR-XML-2_5/SEP/Candidate.xsd"
xml:lang="fr-FR">
…
<Competency description="List of Skills from Europass CV"
name="Europass-CV-SkillsList">
<TaxonomyId idOwner="Europass" description="Europass CV Skills"
id="http://profiles.eife-l.org/europass/Europass-Skills-main.xml"/>
<Competency name="social" description="comp soc">
<TaxonomyId
62
id="http://profiles.eife-l.org/europass/Europass-Skills-Social.xml"
description="Europass-CV-Skills" idOwner="Europass"/>
<CompetencyEvidence typeId="assessment ">
<EvidenceId idOwner="Key-Skills"
description="Assessment based on key-skills"
id="http://profiles.eife-l.org/key-skills/social-key-skills.xml"/>
<StringValue description="Level: 0-5"
maxValue="0" minValue="5">3</StringValue>
</CompetencyEvidence>
</Competency>
…
</Candidate>
Evolution de cet exemple pour permettre une intégration avec des systèmes eLearning
conformes aux spécifications Scorm 2004 et LOM FR
Voici tout d’abord une extrapolation du cadre générique pour cet exemple
Figure 6. Cas pratique: Compétences clés et CV Europass (intégration services eLearning/eRH)
On y voit apparaître les nouveaux éléments que sont:
16. Le répertoire des ressources pédagogiques utilisant les métadonnées LOM (LOM FR dans
le cadre d’un déploiement en France);
17. L’API Scorm qui vient remplacer le formulaire web traditionnel afin de bénéficier des
possibilités du standard Scorm relatifs au suivi de l’apprentissage.
Ces deux éléments doivent s’intégrer dans un système existant et permettre de prendre en compte les
métadonnées de définition de compétences qui deviennent l’un des points du dialogue central entre
tous les services.
Liens entre compétences et objectifs dans un parcours Scorm 2004
Comme évoqué plus haut, il est possible d’utiliser les fonctionnalités prévues pour la gestion des
objectifs globaux (définition, suivi, séquencement dynamique) au sein d’un parcours Scorm pour y
faire référence à des compétences au format IEEE RDC. Pour cela la solution la plus simple est de
référencer dans le champ « description » de l’objectif l’URI pointant vers la définition IEEE RDC.
C’est une solution très basique afin de se conformer aux spécifications existantes sans nécessiter
d’extension. Elle a cependant la contrepartie d’être sémantiquement peu claire pour une plateforme de
eLearning puisque cette dernière devra analyser ce champ pour déceler si le format est une URL ou
63
bien une description textuelle classique, si elle veut pouvoir échanger des informations sur le suivi de
l’apprenant avec un autre système en se basant sur la gestion des compétences.
Comment utiliser les méta-données LOM pour stocker des informations relatives aux
compétences?
La gestion des compétences en tant que telle n’a pas été prise en compte dans le processus de création
des métadonnées LOM. Cependant plusieurs champs permettent d’envisager de référencer des
compétences requises et à obtenir relatives à un objectif pédagogique.
Nous utiliserons ici la même notion que précédemment relative aux identifiants de compétences
externes (URI vers des compétences au format IEEE RDC).
Solution
Utilisation de l’élément 9 « classification » avec comme « objectif » ‘prérequis’ (pour les compétences
en entrée) ou bien ‘compétence’ (pour celles en sortie) et utilisant les sous-élément Chemin
taxon/Taxon/Id et Chemin taxon/Taxon/Entrée pour faire référence aux définitions de compétences
externes.
Exemple
18. lom/classification/purpose = ‘prerequisite’ ou ‘competency’,
19. lom/classification/taxonpath/source = ‘Key-skills’,
20. lom/classification/taxonpath/taxon/id = ‘http://xml.eife-l.org/key-skills/IT-level-1.xml’,
21. lom/classification/taxonpath/taxon/entry = copie du titre de la compétence du fichier IEEE
RDC dans la langue du fichier LOM FR (sous-entendu donc en français).
Elément du LOM FR permettant d’étendre les possibilités
L’utilisation de l’une des extensions du LOM FR par rapport au LOM IEEE permet d’envisager
d’étendre les possibilités il s’agit du sous-élément 5.13 « Validation des acquis » au sein de l’élément
5 « Pédagogie » afin comme le spécifie la norme de gérer la « Quantité d’unités d’enseignement ou de
crédits obtenues après avoir atteint les objectifs pédagogiques ».
Conclusions
Les deux cas d’usages précédemment cités se complètent. Ce type de mise en œuvre est
envisageable dans le cadre par exemple d’une VAE ou pour la gestion des ressources humaines d’une
organisation.
La plus grande difficulté sera de définir une grille (taxonomie, ontologie…) des compétences
qui correspond aux besoins et de réussir la difficile opération de mise en correspondance éventuelle
entre différents référentiels de compétences. Les référentiels de compétences étant en général très
liés à l’activité d’une entreprise (et souvent propriétaires car vécus comme partie de la valeur ajoutée
d’une entreprise) il conviendra cependant, afin de faciliter la mobilité externe d’un salarié, de mettre
en relation le référentiel interne avec des référentiels de type socle commun générique (comme les
compétences Europass, les compétences clés, les compétences informatiques de base de type
PCIE) ainsi que des référentiels orientés métiers mais partagés par une communauté (comme le
référentiel des métiers/compétences informatiques du Cigref).
Il convient de noter par ailleurs que certains outils de création de contenus pédagogiques
prennent en charge les spécifications de Scorm 2004 (en particulier le séquencement simple) mais
qu’ils ne permettent pas la création dynamique des informations relatives aux compétences
dans les métadonnées LOM lors de la sauvegarde ou de l’export d’un parcours. Les plateformes de
gestion (eLearning ou eRH) n’intègrent pas non plus cette approche. La barrière n’est pas
technologique mais organisationnelle et conceptuelle. Pour être résolue, il est nécessaire d’intégrer une
réflexion sur la gestion des compétences dès la phase d’analyse et de scénarisation avant même
la conception de contenus et de limiter la notion d’objectif à celle de compétence simple.
64
Références
ePortfolio – VAE
Ravet, Serge (2007). Un portfolio régional au service du développement et de la valorisation des
personnes, des organisations et des territories. [Available at: http://www.eifel.org/publications/eportfolio/documentation/eportfolio-regional-vae.pdf, accessed: 23.11.2007].
SOFAD (2006). Le portfolio numérique, un atout pour le citoyen apprenant. [Availble at:
http://www.sofad.qc.ca/pdf/portfolio_numerique.pdf, accessed: 21.11.2007].
Ravet, Serge (2007). ePortfolio Position Paper. [Available at: http://www.eifel.org/publications/eportfolio/documentation/positionpaper; accessed: 23.11.2007].
Groupe de travail profil applicatif HR-XML Europass / Europortfolio. [Available at:
http://www.eife-l.org/publications/standards/interop/europasscv/, accessed: 20.11.2007].
Europass (CV Européen, supplément au diplôme et au certificat). [Available at:
http://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/, accessed: 23.11.2007].
Projet européen KeyPal. [Available at: http://www.eife-l.org/activities/projects/keypal/,
accessed: 23.11.2007].
Publications liées au groupe de travail compétence EIfEL. [Available at: http://www.eifel.org/publications/competencies, accessed: 20.11.2007].
ePortfolio / Europortfolio in Europe. [Available at: http://www.eportfolio.eu/,
http://www.europortfolio.org/].
Spécifications / standards
22. HR-XML Assessment: http://ns.hr-xml.org/2_5/HR-XML-2_5/Assessment/Assessments.html
23. HR-XML Candidate: http://ns.hr-xml.org/2_5/HR-XML2_5/SEP/StaffingExchangeProtocol.html
24. SCORM 2004: http://www.adlnet.gov/scorm/, http://www.ieeeltsc.org/standards/1484-11-12004, http://www.ieeeltsc.org/standards/1484-11-2-2003
25. LOM FR: http://www.educnet.education.fr/articles/lom-fr.htm
26. IEEE LOM: http://www.ieeeltsc.org/standards/1484-12-1-2002/
http://www.ieeeltsc.org/standards/1484-12-3-2005/
27. IEEE RDC: http://www.ieeeltsc.org/working-groups/wg20Comp
28. IEEE CMI XML Binding: http://www.ieeeltsc.org/standards/1484-11-3-2005/
29. Ostyn, Claude (2005). Competency Data for Training Automation
http://www.ostyn.com/standardswork/competency/CompetencyDataForTrainingAutomation.pdf
30. Ostyn, Claude. Competency Data Standards Resources homepage
http://www.ostyn.com/rescompetency.htm
Author:
Marc Van Coillie
EIfEL
Kervennou
29630 Saint Jean du Doigt
France
65
IMPACT OF ICT IN SCHOOL.
THE MODIFICATION OF THE SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
AND THE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT USING ICT
TO OVERCOME DISTANCE AND ISOLATION:
THE CASE OF MARETTIMO
Giusy Cannella (National Agency for the Support of School Autonomy, Italy)
Abstract: It is commonly perceived, that the use of ICT holds a great potential for supporting or even being
the transforming agent for the shifts towards a new learning paradigm. The deep public involvement in
promoting the integration of ICT in learning in the school environment means that it is a major goal and a
priority need among both central and local government politicians, school administrators, school
management, teachers, parents and pupils. There is a general awareness in that ICT potentially has an
important part to play in promoting social inclusion and equal opportunities. This is confirmed by Mrs
D’Antoni, representatives of the UNESCO, in the International Institute for Educational Planning newsletter
[1] where she states that “if one looks into the possibilities offered by technology, there may be new
approaches and new methods that will contribute to the building of an educated population.” Considerable
emphasis is therefore being placed on ICT in education as a key instrument in meeting the EU goals of being
at the forefront of the knowledge society of the future. Hence, ICT could be the initiator of a revolution
within the education system or could either support and preserve traditional methods, or else be a means of or
a support for changing the pedagogical methods and the organization of the learning situation.
Within this framework, The National Agency for the Support of School Autonomy, with the financial funding
of PON (Operative National Plan of the Department of International Relations of the Italian Ministry of
Education) has designed a pilot project for a lower Secondary School in Marettimo, a small island in the
Mediterranean sea networked with two schools, one based in Florence and the other in Sicily. The school in
Sicily is “attended” by a student, Niky Frascisco who lives on a boat sailing the Mediterranean sea due to a
respiratory illness, from which he follows his school lessons. Although traditional classroom-based education
remains the core of national education systems, it is becoming clear that it is not feasible to expand education
systems in the traditional pattern to meet all demands – it require too much time too many resources, “new
approaches and new models are needed if Education for All is to be achieved”.
Keywords: peer-to-peer, distance learning, ICT
The context of the pilot project
The ICT-enhanced social learning environment is composed by:
31. Three schools in Florence,
32. One class on the island of Marettimo,
33. One class in Capaci (Palermo),
34. Niky, a pupil who lives on a boat due to a respiratory illness.
The lower secondary school on Marettimo has only two students and Italian, Maths and English
teachers on their staff. It is evident that the students can neither experience the traditional social
aspects of the school nor reach the learning objectives through curricular subjects. Moreover, because
of this situation students’ parents are forced to move to the country with strong financial implications
on their family budget. The Agency, with the support of the Italian Ministry of Education (PON
funding), has designed a pilot project aiming at letting Marettimo’s students have the opportunity to
attend lessons and curricular activities as their schoolmates of the mainland.
66
35.
Figure 1. the Egadian island of Marettimo and the other schools connected with it
A network of selected schools all over Italy (namely between Florence and Sicily) will be in contact
with them for the everyday lessons using synchronous and asynchronous tools such as forum, chat,
mail and videoconferencing platform along with other ICT equipment such as interactive whiteboard
and any other digital content that can be useful to the students’ learning process. The three teachers on
Marettimo would be part of the schools network team of teachers to design curricular activities, to
check students’progress, integrating traditional face-to-face lessons with distance activities.
Marettimo’students will move from time to time to the classrooms in the school network to experience
traditional school life and meet their schoolmates. The student on the boat, Niky, is connected five
hours per day, via a videoconference system and the interactive whiteboard to the school in Capaci
and for certain kind of collaborative activity with the students in Marettimo, so that the teacher can let
students work in pairs and use problem based learning activities.
Figure 2. IWB-enhanced classroom.
Two classes in Florence are connected with the pupils in Marettimo through a videoconference system connected to
Interactive Whiteboards.
67
The setting up of the project requires:
36. A carefully selected suite of hardware and software,
37. Constructivist and peer-to-peer instructional practices,
38. Sustained, intensive professional development and on site visits.
Figure 3. Infrastructure system
Critical elements of the pilot project included:
39. Limited financial resources,
40. School setting,
41. Technological and financial sustainability.
The project is now in its second year piloting. Much has been done to improve technological
infrastructure, teachers’ professional development and students performance, but there are new
challenges such as finding strategies concerning curricula. In the current school year the team of
teachers is planned to break the curriculum into smaller modules, or making inter-subject
collaboration; finding the balance between obligatory knowledge and key competences using active
learning strategies.
This scenario has the purpose to experience the use of ICT in education as a key instrument, where
ICT is not exclusively regarded as a learning tool that is confined to educational settings, such as the
laboratory classroom, but as one that has broader ramifications even those of overcoming the isolation
and geographical distance, in order to promote equal opportunity for all students. In this respect, the
use of ICT holds great potential for supporting or even being the transforming agent for the shifts
towards a new learning paradigm beyond constructivism.The way the paradigm shift actually occurs
was found to be contextdependent.
References
• IIEP Vol. XXV, No. 2 April-June 2007.
Author
Cannella Giusy
ANSAS
via Buonarroti 10
50122 Florence
Italy
Phone +39552380556
68
LA CHAINE ÉDITORIALE WEBRADIO:
LA PÉDAGOGIE PORTÉE PAR LE SON
Dominique Saint Martin (Institut National de l'Audiovisuel INA, France),
David Rivron, Stéphane Crozat, Marcia Lopes (Université de Technologie de Compiègne, France)
Résumé: Conservez les avantages du premier et ajoutez y les possibilités du second, vous obtiendrez une
radio « augmentée » où la perception sensible guide la découverte accompagnée de nouvelles connaissances.
La puissance d’évocation de l’audio servant alors de médiateur, d’outil de navigation à l’intérieur - par
exemple - d’un corpus documentaire.
L’ambition de cette soumission est d’abord de reposer la question de l’usage du média audio dans le contexte
numérique, interactif et pédagogique. Il s’attachera ensuite à montrer que les progrès technologiques de la
gestion documentaire rendent aujourd’hui accessible la production de ce média, particulièrement en phase
avec les évolutions récentes des dispositifs mobiles d’accès à l’information.
Nous étudierons notamment les usages mis en oeuvre à l'Ina autour de la pédagogie musicale de création
sonore dans le cadre du projet "A vous les studios!" et évoquerons les autres perspectives envisagées du
concept et des outils.
Mots Clés: En cours de réalisation
Le dispositif Webradio
Toute interface hypermédia doit respecter les usages de lecture des médias accessibles à l’instant de
leur consultation. Chaque média (écrit, audio, visuel, interactif) implique des conditions, des temps de
lecture adaptés à sa complexité d’assimilation.
Le dispositif de lecture présenté ici favorise volontairement le flux audio. Sa segmentation, son
enrichissement sont autant d’outils proposés à l’internaute pour maîtriser et approfondir son écoute.
L’auteur a ainsi la potentialité de donner des clés de navigation et d’y agréger des documents
complémentaires. Il peut de la sorte scénariser un apport de connaissances en s’appuyant sur la
linéarité du flux audio.
L’utilisateur est libre de suivre ou non cet apport magistral puisqu’il peut rompre à tout moment cette
mise en scène pour accéder aux chapitres et compléments de son choix. Cette interaction entre la
volonté d’écriture de l’auteur et la liberté de parcours personnalisés de l’utilisateur est la clé de ce
dispositif.
Figure 1. Interface Player
Perception synthétique. Vision de la durée relative des segments et de la forme de l’émission. Visualisation du plan de
l'émission. Perception analytique. Accès asynchrone aux compléments.
69
Apport magistral et parcours personnalisés
La possibilité de naviguer dans l’audio fait apparaître de nouvelles conditions de lecture qui se situent
entre la situation de lecture dirigée séquentielle (telle qu’elle a été fixée par la réalisation du montage)
et le balayage qui permet de survoler un thème sans descendre dans le détail. Plusieurs stratégies
d’écoute peuvent se succéder: écoute interrompue, écoute fractionnée, réécoute d’un segment, écoute
distraite, écoute augmentée. Ces variations de navigation renvoient à des postures pédagogiques
différentes – et complémentaires – de la relation de transfert sachant-apprenant à la construction
personnelle des connaissances.
La ligne temporelle de navigation offre une représentation spatiale des temporalités relatives de
chaque segment et de leur organisation. On retrouve de manière implicite un début et une clôture du
discours qui s’oppose à l’infinité des parcours.
La structuration du montage audio permet ainsi de scénariser le contenu, de prendre appui sur une
base chronologique (d’abord…après…ensuite…finalement). Il favorise une démarche déductive, de la
problématique générale à l’exemple qui réactivera la mémoire immédiate de ce qui a été perçu
précédemment1. En parallèle, les compléments visuels synchrones ou asynchrones permettent de poser
spatialement l’information, de la situer et d’en avoir une vision globale – synthétique – favorisant une
démarche inductive de reconstruction d’un savoir.
Figure 2. Des complements synchrones au deroulement du flux
Figure 2. Des compléments synchrones au déroulement du flux
Figure 3. Ouverture d’un complément asyn
1
L’information auditive est traitée plus rapidement que l’information visuelle
70
Une notion d’audio-guidance
Une première idée est d'utiliser l'audio pour jouer un rôle de présentation générale du contenu, afin de
servir d'introduction – pour donner envie – et de parcours interprétatif type – pour donner à voir.
Ces « visites guidées auditives » d’un champ d’activités seraient particulièrement efficaces pour
donner à l’apprenant une première vue d’ensemble de la thématique qu’il pourra approfondir par la
suite. Le formateur pourrait présenter son point de vue sur le sujet, élaborer un panorama des enjeux
que devra parcourir l’apprenant. Cette première approche sensible fixerait le cadre général de
l’apprentissage2 et amènerait le récepteur de l’information à un niveau de pré-connaissances, de prérequis du domaine à explorer. Connaissances préliminaires, d'ensemble, qui peuvent jouer le rôle des
clés nécessaires à une navigation plus ouverte.
Il s’agirait donc d’offrir un sommaire audio, un panorama des possibles, un scénario, qui favoriserait
l’évocation des notions abordées et placerait l’apprenant en « appétence de savoirs »: se « mettre à
l’écoute » est déjà en substance une promesse d’acquisition de connaissances!
Ici, maintenant, la mobilité retrouvée…
Une publication basée sur l’audio peut être déployée sur tous les supports mobiles actuellement
disponibles sans effort d’adaptation. Cette universalité d’accès lui donne la liberté de mélanger, de
mixer le temps de l’écoute à de multiples situations de la vie quotidienne. Le dispositif propose trois
tailles de lecteurs qui peuvent s’adapter à des écrans de différentes tailles.
La succession de moments de lecture sur des canaux complémentaires (auditif, visuel, gestuel) et de
lieux d’usage variés répartit la charge cognitive de l’apprentissage. Le renouvellement de phases
d’évocation multimodales, allers retours entre perception et réflexion renforce donc la mémorisation.
Un exemple d’application: A vous les Studios!: la web radio collaborative
Le projet « A vous les studios ! » actuellement en cours de production se propose de créer un espace
de référence autour de la démarche concrète de création musicale et ses implications pédagogiques.
Le GRM proposera, tout d’abord, de revivre une série d'émissions radio axées sur "les pédagogies
musicales nouvelles", réalisées dans les années 1970’ et aujourd'hui republiées via le dispositif Web
Radio. Mais 30 ans ont passé. Le home-studio et Internet ont bouleversé les pratiques musicales.
Quelles références, quelles pédagogies devons-nous mettre en oeuvre pour explorer le nouveau
continent sonore qui s'annonce et aborder la création musicale d'aujourd'hui?
Ce projet aura une forte dimension collaborative. Il s'entourera d’acteurs issus du monde musical et
éducatif afin de mesurer le chemin parcouru, relier les pratiques musicales amateurs au patrimoine
musical et technologique du GRM et dégager de nouvelles perspectives, de nouveaux outils.
Ces participations peuvent se faire à plusieurs niveaux: soit sous forme de témoignages, analyses,
exemples, éclairages enrichissant les émissions présentées, soit par la création de nouvelles émissions
sur des thématiques encore non abordées. Les multiples contributions permettront de confronter les
discours et travaux de professionnels avec des pratiques musicales de terrain.
2
« Tout se passe comme si la compréhension d’un hypermédia impliquait l’élaboration d’une représentation mentale de la structure, c’est à
dire d’un schéma global des relations entre les différentes sous-parties d’un document » [Amadieu, Tricot, 2006]. Le pari que nous faisons
est que cette représentation mentale est facilitée ici par le flux audio.
71
Figure 4. Commentaire sur une partie d’une émission
La chaîne éditoriale Webradio encourage cette dimension collaborative. Chaque segment d’une
émission peut être considéré comme le billet d’un blog et recevoir les commentaires et
enrichissements de l’équipe de rédaction. L’ensemble des connaissances ainsi agrégées à un flux
structuré augmente la perception du sujet traité.
Des contacts sont en cours pour constituer l’équipe de rédaction notamment auprès des Centres de
Formation des Musiciens Intervenants (CFMI) qui ont perçu dans le dispositif les potentialités d’une
formation continue accessible et participative.
Figure 5.
Conclusion
L'engouement actuel pour les dispositifs numériques portables est l'occasion de remettre au goût du
jour le média audio, hier encore « vieillissant et délaissé », aujourd'hui nouvelle promesse. Au delà de
l'effet de mode, sur lequel il ne faut pas manquer de s'appuyer pour faire adhérer les acteurs, l'intérêt
de l'audio repose sur ses caractères intéressants en contexte pédagogique, sur une forte accessibilité
(qui ne demande pas l'attention de la lecture ou de la consultation audiovisuelle), sur sa facilité de
manipulation technique, sur une culture et une pratique de la parole et de l'écoute beaucoup plus
ancrée, même chez les profanes, que ne l'est celle de l'image.
72
Notre contribution avait pour objectif de faire partager notre expérience en matière de publication
Webradio, de faire état de nos avancées techniques permettant une production élargie pour ce type de
contenus et enfin de proposer à la communauté éducative de reconsidérer la place de l’audio dans des
dispositifs d’apprentissage notamment comme vecteur de cohérence et outil de mise en scène de
connaissances.
Bibliographie
Ecouter, approfondir: Perspectives d'usage d'une radio interactive.
Saint-Martin, D.; S. Crozat, paru dans. Nouveaux territoires de la connaissance, chemins et
perspectives. Revue Distances et Savoirs, Vol. 5, No. 2.
Exemple en ligne:
http://www.ina.fr/sites/ina.fr/medias/upload/grm/webradio/audio_hypermedia/index.html
Authors:
Dominique Saint Martin
Institut National de l'Audiovisiel
4 avenue de l'Europe
94366 Bry-sur-Marne
France
Phone 01 49 83 20 00
David Rivron, Stéphane Crozat, Marcia Lopes
Université de Technologie de Compiègne, France
73
CHAINE EDITORIALE, ACCESSIBILITE, MOBILITE
Élie Sloïm (Témésis), Stéphane Crozat (Université de Technologie de Compiègne)
Résumé: L'accessibilité est devenue une problématique indispensable de tous les fournisseurs de contenus
numériques: comment mettre à disposition une information qui puisse être exploitée pour tous, partout? Cette
problématique inclut les questions du handicap, des zones blanches, des terminaux mobiles, etc. Afin de
répondre à cette problématique il existe deux grandes classes de solution: (1) Produire dans un cadre
technique très contraignant, sorte de "plus petit dénominateur commun" des modalités de diffusion; (2)
Produire plusieurs fois le contenu en fonction des contraintes des supports cibles.
La première solution peut être trop restrictive - et donc frustrante - au regard des supports les plus riches
(multimédia, interactivité). La seconde est évidemment une source de travail supplémentaire, et - plus
fondamentalement problématique - de duplication de l'information. Il existe une autre possibilité, qui consiste
à définir des structures de contenus, puis à les mettre à disposition et en forme pour des contextes de diffusion
différents. C'est la voie choisie par certains CMS avancés ou par les chaînes éditoriales XML. Celles-ci
reposent sur le principe du multi-supports: Un contenu écrit une seule fois (en XML) pourra être transformé
plusieurs fois en plusieurs formats de diffusion différents, en prenant en compte les contraintes du contexte
cible. On peut ainsi produire: (1) Une version HTML légère pour les faibles debits; (2) Une version HTML
modeste pour les terminaux mobiles; (3) Une version très standard (HTML W3C strict) pour la diffusion Web
la plus large; (4) Une version adaptée pour les lecteurs spécialisés dans le support à un handicap; (5) Une
version PDF pour l'impression; (6) Une version HTML autement interactive spécifique pour un Intranet
(compatible avec un navigateur puissant comme Firefox); (7) Une version multimédia en Flash.
Cette solution permet de penser la spécificité de chaque support de diffusion afin de profiter au mieux de ses
capacités éditoriales. Elle permet de ne pas faire porter à chaque support les contraintes de tous les autres.
Elle allie donc puissance de publication des formats "modernes" dans des cadres contrôlés et accessibilité de
supports plus "standard" dans des cadres plus larges. Nous illustrerons ce propos à travers les travaux réalisés
dans le cadre de la chaîne éditoriale Scenari/Opale.
Mots Clés: En cours de realization
Les enjeux actuels de la publication de documents numériques
La publication de documents numériques est passée en quelques années d'une activité réservée à des
professionnels avertis à une activité pratiquée par presque tous les utilisateurs de services numériques.
Dans un premier temps, seuls les spécialistes de la création de documents avaient accès à ces
activités, notamment à travers l'utilisation de logiciels spécialisés ou de chaînes éditoriales. Avec la
diffusion des logiciels de traitement de texte, puis avec l'émergence et le développement du Web puis
la mise en place de système de gestion de contenus Web, et enfin l'ouverture de ces CMS aux
contributeurs externes, c'est maintenant un ensemble immense de contributeurs qui est amené à
publier des documents numériques.
La quantité d'information traitée numériquement augmente mécaniquement. Assez logiquement, des
aides technologiques sont progressivement mises en place pour faciliter la recherche et la navigation
dans tous ces documents numériques.
Il est toutefois possible que les principales difficultés ne soient pas encore apparues. Le monde de la
publication numérique va en effet devoir relever de nouveaux défis, particulièrement sensibles dans le
secteur de la formation. Le premier de celui-ci concerne l'accessibilité des contenus Web à tous et leur
utilisation en contexte de mobilité, le deuxième concerne l'industrialisation des processus de
publication. Le troisième enfin concerne la diffusion de nouvelles pratiques et de nouveaux outils à
tous les producteurs d'information, du spécialiste au grand public en passant par les professionnels
dans leur pratique quotidienne.
Dans cette intervention, nous traiterons tout d'abord de l'accessibilité des contenus numériques et des
avantages de cette approche dans des contextes de formation et de mobilité. Nous montrerons ensuite
différentes solutions permettant de produire des contenus numériques. Nous poursuivrons par un
74
focus sur les chaînes éditoriales, et en conclusion, nous verrons les perspectives et les limites des
chantiers qui restent à traiter dans le domaine.
Qu'est ce que l'accessibilité?
Avant de se pencher plus avant sur les problématiques de production de contenus numériques, il
importe d'expliquer en quoi consiste leur accessibilité, à qui et à quoi ce sujet profite, et en quoi les
critères d'accessibilité permettent d'améliorer la production de documents numériques.
Pour le W3C, à travers la voix de son directeur Tim Berners Lee, l'accessibilité consiste à « mettre le
Web et ses contenus à la disposition de tous les individus, quelque soit leur matériel ou logiciel, leur
langue maternelle, leur culture, leurs infrastructures réseau ou leurs aptitudes physiques ou mentales
».
Le principe qui sous-tend l'accessibilité des contenus Web a fait l'objet de directives internationales,
produites en 1999, les Web content Accessibility Guidelines, qui définissent la façon dont doit être
conçu, structuré et proposé un contenu pour être accessible à tous.
L'accessibilité n'est pas une affaire de sites, mais de contenus. L'accessibilité est bien l'affaire de tous
et pas seulement des personnes handicapées.
Pour bien faire comprendre de quoi il s'agit, nous citerons rapidement trois exemples qui montrent
comment un document peut être rendu accessible.
42. Exemple 1: Les images contenant du texte sous forme de représentations graphiques ne
peuvent pas être comprises ou décryptées par des machines, des moteurs de recherche, des
lecteurs d'écran. Pour éviter une perte d'information, les producteurs de contenus Web devront
s'efforcer d'associer à ces documents graphiques des contenus alternatifs sous forme textuelle,
permettant à des machines d'extraire du document le sens ou le contenu textuel des images.
43. Exemple 2: Pour une personne déficiente visuelle, voire pour certaines personnes déficientes
mentales, et finalement d'une certaine manière pour tout usagers des services Web, il peut être
essentiel d'accéder et de comprendre la structure d'un document. Pour ceci, il importe
d'affecter des éléments d'ordre sémantique à la structure du document. De cette façon, une
machine ou un être humain pourra extraire en cas de besoin la structure d'un document.
44. Exemple 3: Des contenus proposés sous forme d'acronymes ou de sigles ne pourront être
compris par tous les usagers que si ces acronymes sont explicités. Ici encore, les sigles et
acronymes seront explicités et deviendront dès lors accessibles à des personnes handicapées,
ou encore à des machines.
En rendant les contenus accessibles, les créateurs de contenus améliorent leur structure, facilitent leur
interprétation par des machines, et notamment les robots de moteurs de recherche. En ce sens,
l'accessibilité est un moteur du référencement. En anticipant le traitement des contenus par toutes les
machines, l'accessibilité permet de traiter une grande partie des problématiques de la mobilité.
Produire des contenus numériques
Le domaine de la production de contenus numériques est un secteur industriel. L'objectif est de
pouvoir produire des documents structurés et accessibles en grand volume et à grande vitesse. La
production doit également être pérenne, c'est à dire qu'elle nécessite d'avoir des garanties sur la
capacité de lire et de récupérer les contenus produits non seulement aujourd'hui, mais également dans
l'avenir. Le choix des formats ouverts et de l'interopérabilité maximum devient alors décisif. Pour
finir, contrairement à ce qu'il se passait il y a quelques années, un contenu Web devra s'afficher dans
de multiples configurations, le nombre de facteurs variant dans chaque contexte étant considérable
(système d'exploitation, couleurs, écran, résolution, polices, plug-ins, logiciels, navigateurs
connexion).
Plusieurs réponses ont été proposées pour résoudre cette problématique de la production de contenus
numériques à grande échelle.
Le traitement de texte est bien évidemment une solution fort intéressante pour produire des contenus.
Elle a fait ses preuves sur un certain nombre de points, mais elle a tout de même deux défauts majeurs.
Premièrement, seul un petit nombre d'utilisateurs de traitement de texte savent élaborer une structure
75
documentaire correcte. Très peu d'utilisateurs savent réellement séparer le contenu de la présentation
en utilisant les styles. Ensuite, le traitement de texte intègremal la navigation en mode hypertexte. La
production de pages Web en mode WYSIWYG1 est une version Web de nos logiciels de traitement de
texte. Malheureusement, au moins dans leurs premières versions il s'agissait surtout de produire des
pages individuelles, ce qui posait de nombreux problèmes de cohérences entre pages et de
maintenance. De plus la plupart de ces logiciels ne permettaient par de séparer de manière
véritablement complète le contenu et la présentation. Les Content Management System (CMS), nés du
développement des sites dynamiques, présentent de nombreux avantages. Il permettent d'extraire le
travail technique de la publication électronique pour ne laisser le travail d'écriture et uniquement le
travail d'écriture aux contributeurs. Plus besoin de connaître les arcanes du Web pour publier sur le
Web. Ils offrent ainsi un premier niveau de 1 What You See Is What You Get séparation entre le contenu
et la présentation. En revanche, il est encore extrêmement difficile de leur faire produire des contenus
intégralement structurés et accessibles, en particulier car la structure de rédaction reste fortement liée à
une structure de présentation préalable : on écrit pour un support, ici et maintenant.
Les chaînes éditoriales partent du principe assez simple qu'un document est avant tout une structure
sémantique. Il s'agit dès lors de délimiter avec précision la structure du document, pour pouvoir
plaquer ensuite sur cette structure une couche de présentation. Ce mode de travail possède plusieurs
avantages. Tout d'abord, le document est structuré nativement. Ensuite, la présentation est totalement
séparée du contenu, ce qui permet de proposer plusieurs vues de publication pour un même contenu.
Le rôle du rédacteur n'est pas de présenter, mais bien de rédiger des contenus. Le rôle du système
informatique devient d'interpréter cette rédaction pour la présenter sur plusieurs supports, pour
plusieurs contextes : ici et maintenant, mais aussi là-bas et plus tard.
Focus sur les chaînes éditoriales
Les chaînes éditoriales sont nées en même temps que les traitements de texte à la fin des années 70,
avec les technologies TeX/LaTeX et GML qui deviendra la norme SGML en 1986. En 1998 le
standard XML actualise la technologie en la rendant beaucoup plus accessible, ce qui permet
l'extension des chaînes éditorles, là où elles étaient confinées à des contextes de pointes
(documentation technique des industries de l'armement ou de l'aéronautique, publication scientifique
par exemple).
La chaîne éditoriale repose fondamentalement sur deux principes:
45. Il est possible grâce à l'ordinateur de séparer le contenu de sa présentation, puisqu'un
algorithme peut appliquer une mise en forme a posteriori à un contenu;
46. Il est possible d'abstraire et de décrire la structure d'un document, afin de la représenter
formellement (interprétation par une machine) et non plus en terme de mise en forme
(interprétation par l'humain seulement).
Par exemple je peux écrire : « XML est fondé sur un langage de balise ». Le lecteur aura interprété
que le mot balise était important dans ce texte.
Mais – disposant d'un ordinateur – je peux écrire à la place dans la machine: « XML est fondé sur un
langage de <important>balise</important> »; et par ailleurs utiliser un algorithme qui dit « Si un mot
est entre <important> et </important>, alors l'afficher en italique ». Le résultat graphique sera la
même pour le lecteur final, mais par contre l'information stockée en machine sera plus riche dans ce
second cas. En effet je sais que le mot « balise » est important, donc je peux décider de le mettre en
italique pour une publication papier noir et blanc, mais également en gras et en rouge pour une
publication Web en couleur, de le donner en priorité à un moteur d'indexation, etc. Il suffit
d'appliquer des algorithmes différents à la même information.
C'est à dire que l'on devient capable d'adapter la présentation d'une information à un contexte de
diffusion. L'extension de cet exemple simple ne portant que sur un seul mot à l'ensemble des
structures du document (parties, titres, blocs de texte, images, glossaire, etc.) permet de reconfigurer
globalement un document pour un usage.
Les bénéfices des chaînes éditoriales sont nombreux et ne seront pas tous repris ici. Mentionnons par
exemple le polymorphisme et la réditorialisation (on écrit une seule fois, mais l'on exploite plusieurs
76
fois) et d'une façon générale les gains de productivité liée à la production documentaire (passage du
stade artisanal au stade industriel).
Mais du point de vue de l'accessibilité – au sens global préalablement défini – la chaîne éditoriale
permet de repenser totalement la question: Tandis que l'approche « classique » consiste à produire une
information de telle façon que sa forme soit la plus accessible possible, l'on va pouvoir dans le cas des
chaînes éditoriales, en vertu de la séparation entre contenu et présentation, d'une part produire une
information et d'autre part penser sa ou ses formes accessibles.
Cela implique en partie qu'il n'y a une seule forme « génériquement » accessible, mais bien plusieurs
formes pour plusieurs accessibilités: Une forme pour tel handicap, une autre pour des contraintes de
débit, une troisième pour des contraintes d'écran, etc. Mais inutile que les contraintes des unes pèsent
sur les autres. L'accessibilité et la mobilité peuvent alors être repensées en terme de multisupports –
plusieurs supports pour plusieurs usages et plusieurs contraintes – et non plus en terme de support
universel (utopique à obtenir).
Cela permet ensuite de penser l'accessibilité dans le temps: les contenus produits avec une chaîne
éditoriale pourront respecter les normes d'accessibilité de demain! Tandis qu'il n'est pas possible
d'intégrer à une information écrite dans un langage technique (comme HTML) des contraintes qui
n'existent pas encore, il sera possible d'appliquer plus tard aux contenus XML structurés
sémantiquement des algorithmes qui intégreront ces contraintes lorsqu'elles existeront, sans
reprendre les contenus.
Nous illustrerons ces concepts avec la chaîne éditoriale Opale, réalisée avec Scenari1.
Perspectives
La publication numérique n'en est sans doute qu'à des débuts. Dans le domaine de la formation, les
contenus devront être accessibles, interopérables, publiés très rapidement, modifiables
indépendamment sur la forme et sur le fond, et bien entendu, rendus et maintenus accessibles.
Autant dire que le choix de formats, de techniques, de processus et de méthodes compatibles avec ces
exigences va s'avérer fondamental. Le concept de chaînes éditoriales intègrent le processus de façon
intrinsèque. Les autres outils peuvent s'adapter pour répondre aux mêmes exigences, en réintégrant les
concepts de modèles documentaires et de processus de production:
47. Ainsi, un CMS peut proposer des modèles documentaires et permettre aux utilisateurs
d'assembler un ensemble de briques structurées. C'est par exemple le cas du CMS Ezpublish,
qui pose par ailleurs d'autres problèmes du point de vue de la conservation des données;
48. Des logiciels de traitement de texte ou des logiciels de production de pages Web peuvent
également à travers des fonctions avancées permettre la production de contenus structurés. Ces
solutions restent encore toutefois complexes à mettre en oeuvre, et, plus fondamentalement,
elles remettent en cause la philosophie même du traitement de texte, qui se construit sur le
paradigme de la page blanche, a priori peu compatible avec l'écriture structuré d'une part (on ne
part plus de rien) et le Web d'autre part (le concept de page propre à l'imprimé disparaît).
Sur le plan des formats, ce sont les langages de description sémantique qui sont et qui seront de plus
en plus la référence. Rien ne dit qu'une innovation technologique ne remettra pas en cause XML en
tant que formalisme dans les années à venir. Mais dans son principe XML assure la pérennité (nous
avons l'assurance de pouvoir interpréter des contenus XML indépendamment des évolutions
technologiques futures, puisque le format est interprétable par l'humain et pas seulement pas la
machine) ainsi que la calculabilité (puisque le format est interprétable, nous sommes également
certains de pouvoir le transformer en autre chose si cet autre chose émerge). Ceci représente un
changement de paradigme important pour la constitution des fonds documentaires, puisque ceux-ci
s'inscrivent alors dans une perspective de très long terme (plusieurs dizaines d'années), rendant le
contenu indépendant des évolutions des formats techniques de publication (que celles-ci proviennent
d'évolution technique des possibilités informatiques, de nouveaux terminaux de restitution ou de
nouvelles exigences d'accessibilité).
1
http://scenari-platform.org
77
Du point de vue de l'accessibilité, les chantiers à venir concerneront au moins autant l'accessibilité des
contenus produits (interfaces de diffusion) que l'accessibilité des interfaces de production (Authoring
Tools Accessibility Guidelines2). Seule les solutions qui sauront combiner efficacement ces deux
aspects pourront prétendre à devenir à terme des solutions industrielles de publication numérique
réellement accessibles, dans un contexte où la production contributive se généralise et atténue les
frontières entres auteurs et lecteurs.
L'accessibilité totale reste néanmoins une utopie, car il existe des limites, inhérentes aux compétences
des contributeurs. Le fait d'ouvrir le monde de la publication numérique au grand public a un revers,
car il n'est pas possible que toute personne amenée à publier des contenus sur le Web ait une
compétence et une culture de l'accessibilité.
Dans une logique éditoriale classique, l'auteur professionnel peut être formé à cette culture et le
contexte éditorial peut lui imposer les contraintes requises. Dans une logique contributive « ouverte »
ou chacun est appelé à écrire, cela n'est plus possible. Dès lors, l'outil devient essentiel, pour aider,
corriger, accompagner le créateur de contenus numériques à produire des contenus accessibles.
L'émergence d'outils faciles d'usage pour la publication Web (Wiki, CMS, blogues, etc.) a permis une
réelle généralisation de la pratique de publication électronique. Maintenant que cet objectif qualitatif
est atteint, ou en passe de l'être, un des enjeux majeurs à l'avenir est selon nous de redonner à
l'éditorial ses lettres de noblesses, dans ce qu'il apporte de qualitatif au document. L'éditeur - dont la
fonction disparaît avec le contributif ou l'auto-production – n'est pas seulement celui qui sait publier, il
est aussi celui qui sait comment bien publier. Il est celui qui assure, par la mise en place de règles
éditoriales, que le lecteur saura accéder au contenu publié.
Paradoxalement le risque de la généralisation d'outils de production « pour tous » est que les
productions soient de moins en moins lisibles, au sens documentaire. Tout le monde pourra publier ce
qu'il a à dire, mais peu pourront en réalité y accéder, au sens de trouver la bonne information, (celle
dont j'ai besoin), et d'être capable de la comprendre, de la remettre dans son contexte (de la critiquer).
Des outils reprenant à leur compte les principes de publication automatisée – à l'instar de ceux
instrumentés dans les chaînes éditoriales – pourront mobiliser des algorithmes rigoureux, intégrant les
savoir-faire des métiers éditoriaux et permettant ainsi la combinaison du quantitatif et du qualitatif, de
l'accessible à tous en écriture, mais aussi en lecture!
Auteurs:
Elie Sloim
Temesis
18, rue Lucien Granet
33150 Cenon
France
Phone 05 56 401 402
Stéphane Crozat
Université de Technologie de Compiègne, France
2
voir « Directives 2.0 sur l'accessibilité des outils d'éditions », ébauche candidate W3C,
http://www.culture.gouv.fr/cri/accessibilite/ATAG2_0-fr.html
78
SMART BUILDING TECHNOLOGIES FOR
INNOVATIVE LEARNING SPACES
David Wortley (Serious Games Institute, Coventry University)
Abstract: This paper is a review of the strategies behind the Serious Games Institute at Coventry University
and the use of a range of "smart building" technologies to create innovative learning spaces and experiences.
These include: (1) Digital signage; (2) Location based mobile learning; (3) On-demand Virtual Classroom
and Meeting Spaces; (4) Virtual world learning spaces in Second Life and Forterra; (5) Mixed reality and
hybrid seminars; (6) Intronetworks knowledge networking.
Keywords: Serious Games, Virtual, Immersive, Building
Introduction and Background
The Serious Games Institute is a £7M investment by Advantage West Midlands and Coventry
University Enterprises Ltd to establish an international centre of excellence for serious games and
virtual worlds. Since it first opened its doors in September 2007, it has been building key partnerships
with technology providers to pioneer and exploit the potential of smart building technologies to
support the objectives of building stakeholders. This concept looks at physical learning environments
in a new and explores how buildings and their technology infrastructure can add value to the user
experience.
A key component of this strategy is to identify appropriate advanced learning technologies and serious
games and examine how they can best be deployed to create a genuine "learning building" which
provides tools for teachers and learners in personalised learning experience. Over time, it is hoped that
these technologies can be developed so that the building itself is capable of "learning" about its
stakeholders and providing even richer and more personalised learning experiences.
About the Technologies
There are a range of technologies which are being deployed in the project as key components of the
Smart Building concept.
Digital Signage
Smart buildings use display technologies to deliver content to the building stakeholders and users. The
SGI is working with Venue Solutions of Pinewood to implement a network of plasma screens and
projectors which can deliver content both on demand and to a pre-determined schedule. Currently, we
can control a mixture of live and streamed video, RSS Feeds, Text Messages, animations and web
pages through a web browser.
The ultimate goal will be to control the content through location based device tracking so that each
display can identify and respond to the nearest person to display personalised and relevant
information.
Location Based Mobile Learning
The SGI’s wireless network uses Cisco’s location server to track mobile devices within the building
and in a partnership with Giunti Labs and Ambient Performance, the SGI is working to demonstrate
location based mobile learning where content can be pushed to the learner appropriate to their location
in the building.
79
On-Demand Virtual Classroom and Virtual Meeting Place
The seminar and boardroom facilities of the SGI are being developed to make on-demand virtual
classrooms and virtual meetings a reality through appropriate embedded technologies.
These will use Adobe Connect Professional and Datmedia technologies to stream live events over the
web and also automatically create a web archive where appropriate.
Virtual World Learning Spaces in Second Life and Forterra
The SGI has developed virtual models of its facilities in Second Life and Forterra and its exploring the
potential of these learning spaces.
Mixed Reality and Hybrid Events
The SGI has been pioneering run learning events which combine physical and virtual delegates and
subject matter experts. This paper will share the experience and make predictions for the future.
Knowledge Networking
The SGI is implementing the Intronetworks tool for building an effective knowledge network and
facilitate strong communities of practice based on common interests.
Author:
David Wortley, Director
Serious Games Institute
Coventry University
Mobile: +447974984351
Email [email protected]
80
OPALE 3: LA CHAINE EDITORIALE COMME OUTIL
DE PRODUCTION DANS LES UNIVERSITES,
ECOLES ET CENTRES DE FORMATION
Fabien Baillon (École des Mines d'Albi-Carmaux)
Franck Rouzé (Université de Lille 1), Pascal Barbier (Ecole Nationale des Sciences. Géographiques)
Résumé: La chaîne éditoriale Opale instrumentée par l'environnement logiciel Scenari permet de créer un
fonds documentaire académique scénarisé, structuré en XML, réutilisable et indépendant du format de
publication. Opale permet de générer trois supports de publication (web, papier et diaporama) adaptés à de
multiples contextes d'usage.
Mots Clés: En cours de réalisation
La dématérialisation des documents, la nécessité de mise en place de systèmes d'échange de contenus
entre organisations et le développement de la formation à distance ont entraîné une réflexion
approfondie autour des outils de production de contenus permettant de répondre à ces besoins. Les
observations faites en milieu universitaire montrent par ailleurs que l'uniformité dans la manière de
développer des environnements pédagogiques en ligne renforce la visibilité de l'offre de formation,
facilite la gestion documentaire de l'organisation et fournit aux étudiants des environnements propices
à l'apprentissage.
Qu'en est-il alors des moyens à disposition des enseignants ou des cellules "TICE" pour produire ces
supports nouveaux?
Les outils disponibles à l'heure actuelle sur le marché sont de manière générale destinés à une
publication monosupport, pour la plupart d'entre eux, la publication web. L'enseignant est alors
confronté au problème de la démultiplication des sources de contenu par support produit, ce qui
entraîne une charge de travail considérable en termes de maintenance. Nombreux sont les outils
exigeant des compétences techniques pointues au niveau de la prise en main. Aussi, les résultats sont
souvent insatisfaisants en ce qui concerne l'adaptation graphique et ergonomique du contenu de
formation aux besoins de l'organisation.
Dans ce contexte, la chaîne éditoriale Opale peut apporter quelques réponses à ces problématiques.
Elle permet en effet de:
49. Editer un polycopié de cours, sa version web et diaporama;
50. Adapter ce cours selon les besoins des apprenants par simple recombinaison des contenus et
tout en évitant leur duplication;
51. Faciliter la maintenance de l'information grâce à une logique de publication multisupport
(une source unique de contenus, plusieurs supports de publication produits);
52. Enrichir les contenus produits avec des ressources multimédia: vidéos, animations Flash,
son, images et schémas explicatifs;
53. Enrichir les cours avec des activités pédagogiques gérées automatiquement par Opale:
question à choix unique, question à choix multiple, glisser-déposer, question fermée ou
ouverte, texte à trous;
54. Créer des contenus de formation compatibles avec la norme SCORM 1.2 et 2004 et les
diffuser via une plateforme (LMS) sous forme d'un ou plusieurs SCO selon le scénario
pédagogique choisi;
55. Créer des contenus stockés dans un format pérenne XML indépendant du format de
publication;
56. Apporter à tous les supports de formation une structure de présentation et une interface
graphique / ergonomique homogènes;
81
57. Promouvoir la formation à distance dans votre organisation;
58. Echanger les contenus produits avec d'autres organisations.
Opale propose deux niveaux d'utilisation:
59. Opale "Starter", destinée aux enseignants souhaitant produire de manière autonome, sans
formation préalable, leurs modules de formation;
60. Opale "Advanced", destinée aux enseignants exprimant des besoins avancés de production,
gestion documentaire, réutilisation, publication et indexation des contenus. Cette chaîne
s'adresse également aux cellules "TICE" des écoles et universités ayant besoin de solutions
pour gérer la production et la publication de contenus académiques élaborés.
Nous exposerons dans le cadre de cette présentation différents cas concrets d'utilisation de la chaîne
éditoriale Opale dans le cadre de trois établissements d'enseignement supérieur français.
Exemple d’utilisation d’Opale à Lille 1
L'université de Lille1, grosse université scientifique avec plus de 20000 étudiants, s'est rapidement
dotée des moyens de production de contenu pédagogique par la création en 1998 d'une cellule TICE,
le SEMM (SErvice MultiMédia). Le SEMM a été confronté dès sa création à la conception, la gestion
et la maintenance de projets de productions pédagogiques nationaux. En particulier l'UEL (Université
En Ligne), dont il a été producteur à hauteur de 40% et est responsable national, représente
l'équivalent de 1200 h d'enseignement. Confronté à une problématique de gestion de masse nous nous
sommes rapprochés en 2005 de l'UTC pour rationnaliser notre production à l'aide de la chaine
éditoriale Acad-SUP ancêtre de la chaine Opale. Nous avons produit des contenus pédagogiques à
l'aide des chaines Acad-SUP puis Opale. Le SEMM a fait la promotion de l'outil Scenari à la fois
localement et internationalement, puisque nous avons participé et formé nos partenaires belges et
bulgares dans le projet Européen OLMS (OnLine Math and Sciences) nécessitant la rédaction de
contenu en français, Anglais et Bulgare. Le SEMM a par ailleurs pour mission de pérenniser le
contenu d'UEL sous forme XML et a opté pour la technologie Scenari. Afin de coller au mieux à
l'esprit d'UEL nous avons réalisé notre propre chaine éditoriale voisine d'Opale. Afin de répondre aux
besoins spécifiques liés à la production de contenus scientifiques, nous avons contribué à
l'amélioration de la plateforme Scenari. L'amélioration concerne l'édition, le stockage et la publication
des équations mathématiques et l'élargissement des possibilités d'intégration de ressources multimédia
complexes (applet et/ou Flash multi-fichiers avec paramètres). Ces briques fonctionnelles sont
disponibles pour la communauté Scenari. En particulier la gestion des mathématiques sous Opale
dérive de la participation du SEMM au projet. Enfin depuis fin 2007 Le SEMM travaille en partenariat
avec la cellule TICE de l'université du Mans sur un projet Unisciel de production de ressources de
contenu pédagogiques (cours + banque d'exercices) en Physique. Ce projet nous amène à effectuer une
déclinaison graphique et fonctionnelle de la chaine Opale. L'objectif est de donner une identité au
produit et d'ajouter des éléments sémantiques propres au projet.
Authors:
Fabien Baillon
École des Mines d'Albi-Carmaux
Campus Jarlard Route de Teillet
81013 Albi, France
Franck Rouzé
Université de Lille 1
Pascal Barbier
Ecole Nationale des Sciences. Géographiques
82
PROPOSAL FOR THE DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION
OF A MODERN SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE AND INTEGRATION
INFRASTRUCTURE IN CONTEXT OF E-LEARNING
AND EXCHANGE OF RELEVANT DATA
Sebastian Pätzold, Sabine Rathmayer, Stephan Graf (Universität München)
Abstract: This paper discusses approaches for system integration in the context of eLearning applications,
Learning Management Systems, and Campus Management Systems. Three current projects (elecTUM,
CampusSource Engine Integration Platform, and e-Framework) are discussed. Finally a Service Oriented
Architecture (SOA) for these integration tasks and an abstraction layer of Campus Management Systems
is outlined.
Keywords: integration, eLearning, service, SOA, ESB
Introduction
The usage of eLearning methods and tools is getting more and more important at universities. This is
because of the rapidly changing situation there today. Students demand a higher quality and efficiency
in teaching. One example is the centralized storage of documents and resources for courses, another
one is the demand for continuous self-assessments to control the personal learning progress.
Furthermore the usage of collaboration and communication tools like forums or chats is an important
factor. Another major driver of this development is the establishment of the Bologna Process in the
European Union. The restructuring of existing programs of study to Bachelor and Master degrees have
often caused a dramatic raise in exams per semester. To solve this problem more and more eTests are
used as these reduce the workload of examiner significantly.
The points mentioned above provide very good arguments to integrate eLearning supported by a
Learning Management System (LMS) in academic everyday life. However this is a major project with
various pitfalls. We have extensive knowledge with these current eLearning topics, as a major part of
our work in the last years in the elecTUM project concerned the establishment of the central
commercial LMS CLIX from the vendor imc AG at the Technische Universität München, one of the
largest technical universities in Germany. In the course of this still ongoing project it has become more
and more obvious that commercial as well as open-source LMS are lacking next-generation features
(e.g. adaptability and customization by users). We are designing and pioneering new approaches to
solve these shortcomings. One major concern is the design of a system-architecture to allow for an
easier integration in existing campus systems and applications.
For the success of an LMS it is vitally important that it is integrated with other campus applications. In
our experience the use of a central LMS is only tolerable for lecturers if data which was previously
entered in other systems is also available in the LMS automatically. Furthermore actions initiated in
one system have to affect others as well. Everything else is not understandable and acceptable from a
user’s point of view and hinders the introduction of eLearning at a university. Especially the exchange
of data between an LMS and Campus Management Systems is important. These days Campus
Management Systems are providing a large number of functionalities regarding activities and data
administration within Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). This includes managing the complete
student life cycle with accompanying data. As eLearning is becoming an integral part it is obvious that
it uses nearly the same basic data as other applications with little domain-specific variations and
extensions. This includes among others:
61. personal information about students, lecturers and employees course data,
62. exam data,
63. information concerning the curriculum and program of study student grades.
83
Not only the basic data is nearly identical, but also a set of actions is shared among an LMS and
Campus Management System. Examples include the initiation of course booking or adding a grade to
a student’s record after an exam. Considering this still incomplete listing of both data and actions it is
evident that a broad overlapping between a Campus Management System and a common LMS exists.
In order to give learners as well as lecturers a better user experience, and to avoid the necessity to reenter the same data in a variety of systems or inconsistencies in data sets because of actions which are
carried out on one system but not the other, it is obvious that a strong demand for integration and
exchange of information between applications exists.
This paper gives an overview about the current state of integration between LMSs and Campus
Management Systems. For that three different approaches and projects are discussed. Afterwards
problems are highlighted and discussed. The last section presents a modern system-architecture and
integration infrastructure based on a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) using an Enterprise Service
Bus (ESB) which can help creating more flexible integration and system coupling solutions.
Existing approaches, projects, and initiatives
As system integration and coupling between eLearning systems and Campus Management Systems
are a very prominent topic, naturally, various projects exist which address the identified problems.
These are presented in this section.
Application-To-Application integration
Most projects today focused on the integration via interfaces of one LMS with a specific Campus
Management System. This approach is often described as Application-to-Application integration
(A2A). Most of the time these projects are quite focused, e.g. the feature set is reduced to the
transmission of course data from a course management tool. In order to achieve a communication
between the mentioned systems, appropriate interfaces have to exist in both systems. Common
interface or communication technologies used in this context include web services (e.g. SOAP, XMLRPC or REST) and message exchange via a Message Oriented Middleware (MOM, e.g. Java
Messaging Service (JMS), CORBA, BizTalk).
In the course of the project elecTUM conducted at the Technische Universität München, we designed
an extension to the JMS based ERP interface included in the LMS CLIX cooperatively with the
software vendor imc AG. This interface is usable in CLIX 7.0 and later. The features include the
synchronization of courses, course types, booking data, as well as grades as a result of eTests and
regular exams. See figure 1 for an overview of synchronized data and communication directions:
Figure 1. Overview of synchronized data
In order to avoid inconsistencies in the data set in the involved applications the Campus Management
System is treated as the master system. As an example course data is only editable in the
course management component of the Campus Management System. Upon saving the changes,
CLIX is notified via a message and the data set is updated. Additional editing of the data in CLIX is
restricted to parameters which are only relevant in the context of eLearning not included in the general
lecture data. For most communication types listed in Figure 1 the Campus Management System is the
initiating the communication. However, sometimes also the exact opposite is true. This is the
case when a student books as well as finishes a course using CLIX, or receives a grade in an
eTest. In these scenarios the LMS has the role of providing this data to the Campus Management
84
System which in return checks the submitted data and triggers the relevant logic, e.g. the check if a
student fulfills all prerequisites required to book a certain course.
At the time of the design of this interface it was thought that the course management system LSF
from HIS GmbH would be introduced at the Technische Universität München to complete the
already productive exam and student management components POS respectively SOS from the same
vendor. However, after careful review of this system an introduction was deferred. Recently the
Technische Universität München decided to commission all existing applications and replace them
with a unified system from another vendor. Furthermore in order to use the interface designed, a
correspondence in the Campus Management Systems is needed. LSF, POS, and SOS offer
some web services and command line batch utilities for searching, reading, and updating data.
However, those were not useable with the implemented CLIX interface based on JMS. Adaptation
was needed which proved difficult to achieve as these components had to be designed and
implemented as an individual customization. Also long-term support for those custom
implementations seems doubtful.
In order to use the CLIX ERP interface nevertheless, a connector was implemented to make use of
the data stored in the Course Management System UnivIS. This system is used at the
Technische Universität München for administering and presenting course, department, and person
data via a web interface without further features like booking of courses etc. UnivIS offers only little
means to access the data other than using the described web interface. The only other method
available is an XML export which can be triggered via the web interface or calling a shell script. In
case of the connector to CLIX the latter method is used. The extracted XML data is converted to
CLIX XML messages using XSL transformations which are then submitted to CLIX using the ERP
interface and JMS. Currently, the curriculum and courses for one semester are transmitted to
CLIX. This is done once at the beginning of each semester. Continuous synchronizations of
changed data in UnivIS are not possible at the moment.
e-Framework
The e-Framework project is an initiative initiated by UK’s Joint Information Systems Committee
(JISC) and Australia’s Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST). It aims at providing
technical interoperability in the research and education application domain [1]. This is done through
initiating a planning process for a service oriented approach in a community of experts.
Another problem addressed is the establishment of a shared vocabulary to ease collaboration among
partners. The most important terms in this context are:
64. Services,
65. Service usage models (SUMs).
Tasks relevant in an interoperable environment are abstracted into services. This is beneficial
if identical tasks are used in different applications or an integration of systems can be achieved by
their usage. Services are identified by developing SUMs. These SUMs describe the relationship of
services and their interactions with each other in a specific domain. As a main resource for developers
these help to plan and implement interoperable applications by designing the software according to
these specifications.
Summarized, this project aims at providing a knowledge base as a strategic resource to foster
interoperability in an academic context and as a foundation for integration projects. It is not a product
useable out of the box.
Campus Source Engine Integration Platform (CSE)
The CampusSource Engine Integration Platform is a project by the Campus Source Initiative NRW
currently in development. The project aims at developing a custom middleware for the integration of
various LMSs with Campus Management Systems. The project has integrated several LMSs so far,
namely CLIX, ILIAS, and EWS II.
The integration platform currently focuses on connecting these LMSs with the course management
component LSF of the Campus Management System suite from the software vendor HIS GmbH.
According to [2] the following data objects are transferred:
85
66. Course data,
67. Data concerning booking and cancellation of courses.
LSF istreated in this scenario as the master system. This essentially means that all data which is
generated in the LMS and relevant to the Campus Management System needs approval.
In future developments the integration with other systems should be implemented [3]. For example
synchronization with the component for the management of exams, grades and programs of study
POS-GX of the HIS GmbH is currently planned. Other systems which will be integrated are
Moodle and OpenUSS.
As a technical infrastructure the JBoss Application Server is used [3] which offers management
interfaces, good scalability, and several other services out-of-the-box. Connectors to the various
systems mentioned above are implemented using technologies like web services and Java Message
Services. These standards are used intentionally to build a future-proof system. The project team has
released the source code under the GNU General Public License recently.
Discussion of existing approaches, projects, and initiatives
In this section we would like to highlight positive aspects and drawbacks of the presented solutions.
First of all the pattern of Application-To-Application integration was discussed. This approach is
straightforward and may very well be a fast solution if all communication partners are known and
rarely changed. Furthermore the number of applications in the scenario has to be small. However, this
is often not the case, as the deployed systems change eventually and new applications are introduced
in the integration scenario. A severe drawback of the application-to-application approach is the rapidly
increasing number of needed interfaces in case of the rising number of interconnected applications.
Each application needs to have a specially designed or adopted interface to communicate with a target
system which itself needs such a point of access. In case of n interconnected systems n²− n interfaces
are needed. Of course this increases the cost for maintenance, as each change in one application’s
interface has to be accounted for in all other interconnected interfaces. Additionally, interfaces may
very well be not realizable because of economic considerations, lack of support of software vendors in
case of commercial products, or missing skills of employees responsible for an application.
Next UK’s Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) and Australia’s Department of Education,
Science and Training (DEST) initiative e-Framework was presented. The effort is very promising as it
aims at providing insights on how to provide interoperability in an academic context. The project
outcome is a knowledge base and community of experts which is a rich and highly valuable resource
providing insights in planning and implementing an interoperable IT infrastructure at education
institutions. However, the e-Framework is not a product which can be readily used to interconnect
applications and systems.
Last but not least as a product the CampusSource Engine Integration Platform (CSE) was highlighted.
This projects aims at creating an adoptable integration solution for academic needs. However,
currently it is focused only on supporting Campus Management Systems of the German vendor HIS
GmbH. In the past the development was focused on concrete integration projects with some German
universities. The source code was only recently open sourced under GNU General Public License
(GPL). In the author’s opinion it is crucial that CSE gains attention from other developers which help
to further develop the platform and help broaden the portfolio of integrated applications. It has yet to
be shown that the used concepts are generic enough and barriers acceptable for this to happen.
A modern system architecture for integration
In order to solve the shortcomings which we as a project team experienced in the past it is apparent
that a new approach is needed. As there are certain aspects which were outlined especially in the
Application-To-Application integration section (e.g. the expected - yet unrealized - usage of LSF as a
Campus Management Systems), this approach has to be designed concerning following requirements:
68. The new approach needs to be highly generic and provide a maximum of abstraction so that
a changing system environment can be dealt with efficiently and avoid maintainability
issues;
86
69. The integration of systems without the requirement to design special interfaces is needed as
such a customization is expensive and maintainability is an issue. A prerequisite for this to
happen is the usage of all kind of interfaces offered by existing applications, e.g. existing
web services; file import/export interfaces; database interfaces etc.;
70. Interfaces to applications should be specified according to functional aspects. Technical or
system specifics should be hidden to increase the durability and usability in an evolving
system environment.
71. Implemented integration services should be reusable by all potential users according to
defined policies as it is obvious that many other, yet unforeseen, use case for these exist.
Furthermore advantages of other projects like e-Framework and CSE should be considered. These are:
72. The abstraction of tasks into interoperable and commonly shared services (e-Framework) as
a way to enhance reusability and abstraction of a system environment.
73. The usage of a dedicated middleware (CSE) to allow an easy integration of applications
without adapted interfaces, to increase maintainability, to introduce central management
interfaces, and to build a highly scalable solution.
According to these principles a specific architecture is presented in the following section.
Service Oriented Architecture
Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is a buzzword these days. In the context of an integration
scenario which is discussed here, it can prove most useful.
According to [4] a SOA is defined in the following way:
“Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is a computer systems architectural style for creating and
using business processes, packaged as services, throughout their lifecycle. SOA also defines and
provisions the IT infrastructure to allow different applications to exchange data and participate in
business processes.”
An overview of a possible layout of a SOA is presented in Figure 2.
Business Processes
Business Services
Implementation Services
Systems and Applications
Figure 2. Overview of a SOA
Most of the different layers seen in the figure are presented in the following sections. To illustrate the
concept of SOA in the context of eLearning and universities a common example is used. The
exchange and synchronization of lecture data of a provider (e.g. the Campus Management Systems)
with other systems or applications (e.g. an LMS, faculty portals) is such an example. Here the
situation at the Technische Universität München as described previously is used to illustrate this
example.Business Processes.
87
One of the most important terms in the context of SOA is the business process. A business process is a
sequence of tasks which are needed to achieve a certain business goal. Essentially these processes run
the business and create value. Business processes can be combined from various sub-processes.
In an academic context a valid business process is the exchange of lecture data with all relevant
systems. This satisfies the business goal to have accurate, identical, and possibly quality assured
lecture data available in all systems ready to use by students and employees.
Business Services
As mentioned above business processes are a mere sequence of interconnected tasks. These are often
called business service (though sometimes the term is also used to describe a technical front-end used
to trigger a business process). Business services thus are vital for business processes to actually do
something.
Business service interfaces have to be designed according to functional aspects. This is necessary to
create durable interface, increase usability as well as reusability. That is why often standard data
formats can be utilized here with great effect. Usable standards can be defined by examining which
data is needed in a certain application domain. In a second step business objects are derived from this
work. As an example the project elecTUM defined valid business objects for eLearning which were
later used for the implementation of the CLIX ERP interface.
In the section above the exchange and synchronization of lecture data was introduced as a business
process. However, as it is also an action it is a valid business service as well. This “course
announcement service” is tasked with accepting lecture data via a well-defined interface and forwards
it to other systems which use this data to create a new course or do an update on existing entries. A
possible interface might be designed according to the Course Description Metadata (CDM) format
which specifies an XML based exchange format for lectures. It is used worldwide, thus can be
considered as a pseudo-standard.
In Figure 3 an overview of this business service and its communications paths is given. The figure
depicts the situation at the Technische Universität München with its applications and systems as
mentioned previously.
Figure 3. Business service “Course announcement”
Implementation Services
Implementation services close the gap between business service and a concrete service provider
(application, system). This type of service converts such a component to a usable unit in the context of
SOA. Of course this is a rather complex task in the case of so-called “legacy applications” which
simply were not designed to work with other systems in the way needed. Most of the time these
systems offer interfaces which are however not readily useable in an SOA environment.
88
As an example UnivIS at the Technand has to be converted to CDM to be usable as input for the
course announcement service described above. For this to happen the UnivIS export script is triggered
periodically and the output files are stored at a known location. A so-called file gateway observed this
location for new data, reads the files, and forwards them to the UnivIS implementation service. As a
first processing step, the data has to be split in several messages containing only one lecture each as
UnivIS aggregates all courses in a single file. In a second step, the lectures are converted to CDM
using an XSL transformation. These transformed messages are then forwarded to the course
announcement service.
Figure 4. Implementation service for UnivIS
Of course several other services are needed to connect to the target systems interested in lecture data.
These are not depicted here, but these are implemented in a similar fashion.
Enterprise Service Bus
The Enterprise Service Bus (ESB, see also [5]) is a middleware pattern often used in the context of
SOA. It is a type of Message Oriented Middleware (MOM) used as integration network in a
heterogeneous and highly distributed environment. The ESB picks up the role of a mediator between
applications with the need to communicate.
There is no common definition of an ESB. That is why it is often interpreted as a set of capabilities,
though there is great variance in different ESB implementations. Common capabilities include:
74. Message processing for the secure delivery of messages to consumers. This is the inherited
classic middleware functionality;
75. Data transformation including enhancement of messages with additional data and
transformation of messages in other formats;
76. Protocol transformation for enabling communication between service provider and
consumers using different protocols (e.g. JMS, HTTP, IIOP);
77. Routing of messages according to policies, evaluation of rules or content;
78. Transaction management to aggregate different work steps to an atomic action which is
completely executed successfully or not at all;
79. Mechanism for ensuring security including establishing identities of providers and
consumers, guarantee message confidentiality as well as integrity;
80. Management utilities to control the status of the ESB and the message processing as well as
triggering certain actions manually;
81. Process choreography and service orchestration respectively for aggregating business
processes and services to a greater whole in a coordinated fashion.
These functionalities are themselves abstracted into services which may be recombined to adapt to
specific scenarios. For this to happen it is necessary that a common input and output format is defined.
89
That is why an ESB works with a normalized internal message format often resembling an email with
metadata in a header and a payload in a body as well as various attachments.
In the example mentioned an ESB can be used very well. Business as well as implementation services
can be implemented in that way. In particular the UnivIS implementation service uses numerous
functionalities. First of all a protocol transformation is applied (file system to internal message
format). The splitter is implemented as a special application of a generic routing service, while the
translation of the UnivIS data in CDM is implemented by a translation service.
Conclusion
Currently system integration in an academic context is still an issue. All existing projects have made
progress so far, but a breakthrough due to several shortcomings is still missing. The proposed
architecture might be another brick to build a solid basis for the much needed integration at Higher
Education Institutions.
However, much work has still to be done. As a first step all data objects have to be identified which
need to be made available to other systems and applications. From this foundation a service catalogue
can be extracted which then can be implemented step-by-step. Especially the e-Framework is an
interesting resource in this case. The goal is a portable abstraction layer of the Campus Management.
Once this has been achieved, lean and efficient applications can be built; data as well as functional
redundancy can be reduced. For example a new generation of eLearning tools could become possible,
optimized for eLearning tasks and stripped of currently necessary, but redundant, functions, like
student management, grade books etc.
References
e-Framework Contributors (2006). The e-Framework for Education and Research. A Briefing
Paper. [Available at:
http://www.e-framework.org/portals/9/docs/papers/briefing060802.pdf, accessed: 23.12.2007].
Hüvelmeyer, Josef; Christof Pohl; Manfred Postel (2007). Konzeption des Integrierten
Informationsmanagements von His-Lsf/Pos und Weiteren It-Systemen mit der Campussource
Engine. [Available at:
http://www.mz.uni-dortmund.de/aktuelles/publikationen/cse_broschuere.pdf, accessed:
23.12.2007].
Pohl, Christof (2007). Funktionen und Struktur der Campussource Engine. Komponenten,
Entwicklungs-Roadmap, Gpl-Veröffentlichung. [Available at:
http://www.campussource.de/events/e0712unidortmund/docs/cse_funktionen_pohl.pdf,
accessed: 02.12.2007].
Wikipedia Contributors (2008). Service-Oriented Architecture. [Available at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=service-oriented_architecture&oldid=190903634,
accessed: 20.01.2008].
Chappell, Dave (2004). Enterprise Service Bus. O’Reilly.
Authors:
Sebastian Pätzold / Dr. rer. nat. Sabine Rathmayer / Stephan Graf
Fakultät für Informatik, I10
(LRR) Technische Universität
München
85747 Garching bei München, Germany
E-mails:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
90
ETUDE DE CAS: LE LEARNING GAME OU LE JEU
AU SERVICE DELA PÉDAGOGIE
Christelle Mariais (Symetrix)
Résumé: Le marché du e-learning a aujourd’hui atteint une certaine maturité et les utilisateurs se lassent
parfois de la répétition des applications proposées. C’est dans ce contexte que des demandes nouvelles sont
exprimées de la part de nos clients: ils s’intéressent à des modules de formation plus attrayants et ludiques
sans négliger les aspects pédagogiques.
Mots clés: e-learning, Learning Game, Serious Game, motivation, scenario
Contexte de l’étude
Symetrix est une société spécialisée en ingénierie pédagogique multimédia. Notre principale activité
est la conception de modules e-learning et l’accompagnement de projets de formations répondant aux
besoins des entreprises, grands comptes pour la plupart.
Aujourd’hui, nous sommes amenés à constater que le marché du e-learning a atteint une certaine
maturité, les utilisateurs se lassant parfois de la répétition des applications proposées. C’est dans ce
contexte que des demandes nouvelles sont exprimées de la part de nos clients: ils s’intéressent à des
modules de formation plus attrayants et ludiques sans négliger les aspects pédagogiques. L’un des
objectifs sous-jacents est ici de faciliter l’entrée dans l’apprentissage en suscitant la motivation.
Dans une société où les jeux vidéo ont une place de plus en plus importante, les nombreux travaux
autour de la pertinence pédagogique du jeu [Sauvé et al., 2005] et de ses effets bénéfiques sur la
motivation des apprenants [Crawford, 1984] orientent vers l’utilisation des Serious Games comme
outils de formation. Certaines caractéristiques des jeux vidéo sont en effet propres à susciter la
motivation [Malone, 1980], notamment:
82. la présence d’un challenge avec une quête à accomplir,
83. la curiosité suscitée par l’éveil de l’intérêt de l’utilisateur,
84. l’imaginaire dans lequel l’environnement créé plonge le joueur.
Un joueur immergé dans un environnement attirant éprouve des émotions positives qui, dans le cadre
d’une utilisation à des fins de formation, ont des conséquences bénéfiques sur la motivation et par
conséquent sur l’apprentissage [Asgari, Kaufman 2004].
En s’appuyant sur ces différents travaux, et dans le contexte particulier qui est le nôtre, caractérisé par
des contraintes techniques, budgétaires et pédagogiques précises, la solution mise en œuvre pour
répondre aux besoins de nos clients prend la forme du Learning Game.
Le Learning Game: définition
Le Learning Game a pour point de départ le e-learning, cœur de notre métier, auquel nous intégrons
des éléments pertinents issus des jeux vidéo afin de créer des environnements d’apprentissage
attrayants et motivants.
91
Figure 1. Le Learning Game: définition
Le Learning Game se distingue des Serious Games dans leur acception classique par ce qu’il n’utilise
pas ou très peu les technologies évoluées du jeu vidéo. Par contre, une structure narrative scénarisée
vient créer un univers immersif et proposer un cadre structurant. L’idée directrice étant de concevoirles
Learning Games comme des environnements motivants, les scénarios imaginés visent à mettre en
place un challenge, susciter la curiosité et faire appel à l’imaginaire des apprenants.
Le scénario: élément central
Une étape importante de la conception est la construction d’un schéma scénaristico-pédagogique
permettant d’articuler avec pertinence les contenus pédagogiques et le scénario fictionnel dont
l’apprenant est le héros. Nous illustrons tout ceci avec un exemple de déroulement scénaristique d’un
Learning Game:
1. Choix d’un avatar
Au début du module, l’apprenant choisit
un avatar pour accroître l’appropriation
du scénario et favoriser l’immersion: il
devient ainsi le héros de la quête.
2. Introduction: début de l’aventure
Une animation présente la situation
générale au héros, personnage principal
du scénario.
3. Lancement de la 1re micro-quête
4. Acquisition des connaissances pour résoudre
la 1re micro-quête
5. Résolution de la 1ère micro-quête et lancement de la 2e
La résolution peut se faire par des tests
de connaissances sous forme de quiz,
cas pratiques avec dialogues etc.
92
Figure 2. Choix d’un avatar
6. Et ainsi de suite…
7. …jusqu’à la résolution de la quête générale …
8. et la glorification finale « The End »
L’intérêt d’un tel parcours est que l’apprenant part à la rencontre du savoir en étant au centre d’une
histoire. L’immersion, la quête, l’univers graphique, le côté ludique en font un outil attrayant qui
donne envie de s’y plonger.
Le scénario est l’élément central et fédérateur d’où l’importance de son choix. Les projets menés
jusqu’à maintenant en réponse aux demandes spécifiques de nos clients, nous ont permis d’identifier
deux grands types de scénarios: d’un côté des scénarios reliés intrinsèquement aux contenus
pédagogiques traités, de l’autre des scénarios sans rapport direct avec le contenu traité et constituant
davantage une métaphore de la situation.
Dans le premier cas, nous prenons l’exemple d’un référentiel de connaissances sur les bases juridiques
bancaires des entreprises. Pour le traiter, la quête proposée met au défi le héros-apprenant de mener à
bien son projet de création d’entreprise. L’histoire mise en place rend ici nécessaire l’acquisition des
connaissances du référentiel et l’atteinte des objectifs pédagogiques définis.
Pour illustrer le second type de scénario nous évoquons la manière dont a été traité un référentiel de
connaissances portant sur des aspects réglementaires du domaine bancaire. Dans ce projet, l’apprenant
incarne un sportif qui doit se préparer à relever un challenge en suivant un entraînement spécifique. Le
scénario est ici une métaphore: les étapes de l’entraînement constituent les phases d’acquisition des
connaissances ciblées et l’épreuve finale symbolise le but général de la formation.
Outre le choix d’un avatar, le Learning Game
met en œuvre divers éléments pour favoriser
l’immersion de l’apprenant. En effet, les
fonctionnalités classiques d’un module elearning y sont présentées de manière à être
intégrées de façon cohérente dans l’univers
créé: les espaces pédagogiques de transmission
du savoir sont contextualisés, par exemple,
l’utilisateur consultera des informations
présentées dans un écran prenant la forme d’un
livre s’il a cliqué sur le livre présent dans le
décor; les outils (glossaire, fiches techniques,
sommaire) sont regroupés dans l’ordinateur de
poche du héros-apprenant etc.
Figure 3. Ordinateur de poche
Les scénarios tels qu’ils sont utilisés dans le Learning
Game offrent une grande souplesse pour le
concepteur: ils permettent d’adapter l’offre
pédagogique au contexte de formation (public,
objectifs, référentiel à traiter, modalités pédagogiques
etc.) et de jouer sur les degrés d’immersion, de
réalisme pour répondre au mieux aux objectifs
pédagogiques visés.
Figure 4. Contextualisation des écrans
93
Perspectives
Pour aller plus loin dans la démarche visant à concevoir des modules d’apprentissage attrayants et
ludiques, de nombreuses pistes de recherche s’offrent à nous.
On peut notamment s’intéresser à la définition de modèles de scénarios alliant ludique et pédagogie
afin de proposer un outil d’aide à la conception de Learning Games.
Par ailleurs, pour continuer à susciter la motivation et aller plus loin dans la notion de jeu, le Learning
Game devra proposer des scénarios dans lesquels le joueur-apprenant sera plus libre.
Enfin, toujours dans l’idée d’accroître la motivation, un autre axe de travail porte sur l’apprentissage
collaboratif et vise à trouver des solutions pour mettre en œuvre une co-construction des
connaissances dans un environnement d'apprentissage multimédia ludique.
Références
Asgari, M.; Kaufman, D. (2004). Intrinsic Motivation and Game Design. Paper presented at the
35th Annual Conference of the International Simulation and Gaming Association (ISAGA) and
Conjoint Conference of SAGSAGA, 6-10 september 2004, Munich, Germany.
Barthélémy-Ruiz, C. (1999). Le jeu et les supports ludiques en formation d’adultes, Paris: Éd.
d'organisation.
Crawford, C. (1996). The Art of Computer Game Design, Chapter two: Why do people play
games? [Available at: http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/peabody/game-book/Chapter2.html,
accessed: 23.10.2007].
Hourst, B.; Thiagarajan, S. (2000). Les Jeux-cadres de Thiagi: techniques d'animation à l'usage
du formateur. Paris: Éd. D'organisation.
Koster, R. (2004). Theory of Fun for Game Design. Phoenix AZ: Paraglyph Press.
Malone, Th. W. (1980). What makes things fun to learn? A study of intrinsically motivating
computer games. Mémoire de doctorat, Stanford University.
Malone, T. W.; Lepper, M. (1987). Making learning fun: A Taxonomy of Intrinsic Motivation for
Learning. In: Snow; Farr (Eds.), Aptitude learning,and instruction. London: Lawrence Erlbaum,
Associates Publishers.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital game-based learning, McGraw-Hill.
Sauvé, L.; Renaud, L.; Kaufman, D.; Kaszap, M.; IsaBelle, C.; Gauvin, M.; Dumais, C.; Bujold,
P.; Samson, D. (2005). Revue systématique des écrits (1998-2005) sur les impacts du jeu, de la
simulation et du jeu de simulation sur l’apprentissage, Québec: SAGE et SAVIE.
Szilas, N.; Réty, J-H. (2006). Création de récits pour les fictions interactives, simulation et
realisation. Lavoisier.
Auteur:
Christelle Mariais
Consultante e-learning
Symetrix - Grenoble
94
A UNIVERSAL E-PORTFOLIO?
Ray Tolley (Maximise ICT)
Keywords: ePortfolio, schools, Lifelong Learning, personalisation
The present scenario
It was Humpty Dumpty who said, “When I use a word, it means just
what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less.” And in reply to
Alice, “The question is: which is to be master - that's all.”[1] – In
other words ‘He who shouts loudest and longest, wins!’ This, I
believe, is where we are at with e-Portfolios – many different opinions
and for different purposes.
Although JISC [2] in the UK may have published good clear outlines
of what an e-Portfolio should be, the practice in the universities is
very different [3]. Almost every example I have seen is no more than
a very specific Learning Environment for a particular course of study
[4]. Having recently studied the various VLEs available to schools a
number of them offer some form of e-Portfolio and there is at least
one ‘free-standing’ e-Portfolio – and all very different to each other.
Some schools are still using a PowerPoint shell as their e-Portfolio
and others a collection of web-pages presented on a CD or DVD. In
other schools and colleges, particularly in the USA, things are done
19th Century thinking for
21st Century technology?
very differently. Some in Australia claim that the e-Portfolio is the
school’s formal learning platform and that the PLE is the
‘personalised bit’. Here in the UK the QCA presently view the e-Portfolio as the mechanism for eassessment, whilst in Europe Serge Ravet suggests that the e-Portfolio could be used as a
political/state tool: “ePortfolios are now major tools in the hands of policy makers at local and national
level” and points to Wales as a ‘Learning Country’.
In the UK, for several years now, schools have been converting their previous Learning Platforms or
Intranets into VLEs and in many cases the commercial VLE suppliers have claimed to provide some
sort of e-Portfolio – all very different and with little chance of interoperability within the foreseeable
future. Predictions by some, for any real solution to the problems of ‘interoperability’, are suggested at
between five and ten years!
Quaintly enough, the bottom line of all these various versions is that these so-called e-Portfolios are
NOT ‘portable’ – ie from one institution to another. Again, desired aspects of an e-Portfolio such as
‘ownership’, privacy, reflection and collaboration are not addressed as one might expect.
Finally, the dramatic emergence of MySpace, FlickR, YouTube and thousands of different blogs and
fora, the popularity of MSN, texting, iPhones and the rest raises questions about why we need an ePortfolio at all?
An analysis of influential voices
There are a variety of strong voices all having opinions about what is the definitive format and
function of the e-Portfolio. However, it would appear that
of the very different groups illustrated, few appear to be
talking to each other and the chance of coming to some
consensus on interoperability looks bleak:
Writers and Researchers
95
Over a year ago I became fascinated by the depth of research and creative writing of several wellknown authorities on e-portfolios. Their analyses came to different conclusions and it soon became
obvious to me that somewhere between all the various views lay ‘the truth’. Researchers, particularly
in the UK have made brief forays into this jungle. The authors of several research papers admit little
previous knowledge of the subject, demonstrate even less knowledge of present educational thinking
and little if any acknowledgement of the forthcoming impact of emergent technologies on Teaching &
Learning.
Universities and Industry
Where universities offer an e-Portfolio within their learning environment
it is either a content laden structure with an optional PDP element or a
mandatory element of ICT training for students. Few students apparently
see any real benefit in using an e-Portfolio or any reason to continue its
use beyond their present course of study. An examination of the leading
university arguments for e-Portfolios would suggest that their offerings
are little more that a structured Learning Platform for a specific course of
study as typified by ePet from Newcastle University. Where a PDP
element exists it would appear to be little more than a tool to help
students in their job-search. None of the e-Portfolio offerings appear
designed for continued independent use after entering into the real world
of employment, being completely institutionally based. However, the idea
has been suggested that students could maintain their e-Portfolio accounts
as alumni and counsellors for undergraduates.
The Problem of e-Portfolios and industry is quite simple. Many industries
may not have a generally available learning platform for all of their workers
particularly at a time when issues like PDP and worker re-location need
urgent attention. Where workers do have access to their company’s network
it is probably a purpose-designed system with limited usability for anything
other than work purposes. It is therefore a natural solution to establish a
separate subject-specific e-Portfolio as a common learning platform (with
all the links to content that one would expect of an LP) available to
everyone. Specific to their company's needs and tailored to provide
primarily what may be considered good for their workers, an ‘institutional
e-portfolio’ of this type can be a logical and well designed product.
Commercial Training, Assessment Bodies and Lifelong Learning
Here, there are very finely structured courses of study and
assessment all designed for specific purposes and of very
differing formats. In the UK there is a strongly held view by
the AQA (The Assessment and Qualifications Authority) that
the e-Portfolio should be the tool for assessment exclusively
and does not appear to recognise any of the other functions of
an e-Portfolio as defined by the classic authors. Again when I
contacted training institutions which have the mandate for
lifelong learning I was repeatedly and firmly informed that
they “do not use e-Portfolios” in their delivery – full stop.
Little attention appears to have been given as to how any ePortfolio can be adopted as having Lifelong ownership.
Local Community Groups and Nationalistic Initiatives
There are worthy desires in some quarters which hope that e-Portfolios will enable the hard-to-reach
and the travelling communities to access study skills and community projects through the somewhat
undefined e-Portfolio. Who will fund the upkeep of such resources has not been quantified, nor has the
training provision been defined. There are strong reasons for suggesting that e-Portfolios can help
96
individuals and communities particularly in the more geographically remote areas. But if this is to
happen my concern is that the e-Portfolio must be sufficiently simple and robust for any user to
become quickly and comfortably acquainted. Certainly I look forward to the e-Portfolio as being the
next stage in inter-school and inter-personal relations – and much cheaper and more convenient than
video-conferencing.
There are also national initiatives, particularly in Europe where e-Portfolios are
viewed as a potential tool to identify state-wide inequalities of learning or skills
shortages. At face-value this might be a good idea. However, it has been
suggested that a state-wide e-Portfolio system would allow for socio-political
engineering, identifying skills-shortages and providing targeted training and
support for workers and potentially new industrial programmes. As good as all
this may seem, I am not sure if the e-Portfolio is the appropriate medium for the
state access of personal data. The MOSEP Summary Report [5] is a well written research document
but again focuses on a narrow section of society. How real ‘ownership’, personalisation and portability
can occur does not appear to be addressed.
Vendors, Schools and Local Education Authorities
An analysis of the products of the main vendors of schools’ VLEs in the UK indicates a variety of ePortfolio solutions, again everyone different, some with a few good features, several quite weak in
terms of meeting the whole range of potential functionalities, and generally completely institutionally
based. The biggest obstacle, that of interoperability, will take ages to resolve. Despite authors like
Helen Barrett who laid the ground-rules in 1994, the take-up in schools, at this stage, is significantly
poor.
Some effort has been made to establish the e-Portfolio
concept, by the recently introduced Diploma in Digital
Applications (DiDA), building upon the need for
students to present a portfolio of evidence of
coursework. This, however, has been left to individual
institutions to decide how that body of evidence is
presented, sometimes via a PowerPoint presentation or
a set of web pages. The forthcoming 14-19 initiatives,
starting Sept 2008, to encourage more students into
skills training will require an e-Portfolio of some sort
but has not been defined at this point in time.
e-Portfolios: a failure to understand that
But what of the teachers, pupils and parents?
At the present time very few teachers, pupils or parents have any idea about the potential of an ePortfolio to enhance teaching and learning. The real danger is that the few teachers who have
experienced any form of e-Portfolio are those newly qualified teachers (NQTs) who probably had a
poor introduction to the e-Portfolio concept through their university education. It is very doubtful,
therefore, that the vision of a fully developed e-Portfolio system would be promoted by their
experiences, despite the fact that these young teachers are the very ones who would have the energy
and initiative to develop meaningful e-Portfolio activities for children, their teachers and other
permitted viewers.
The primary target of the e-Portfolio, our children, will be totally failed if this present mish-mash of
theories, introspection, technical squabbling and lack of understanding by the e-Portfolio designers is
allowed to continue.
The bottom line is simple, the influential voices as identified above appear to be crowding out any
realistic understanding of the e-Portfolio as a universal tool for lifelong learning, starting in our
primary schools and extending throughout all bands of the spectrum of Teaching and Learning.
97
Before proposing an illustrative solution, and stepping away from all the hype and arguments about
practicability, a consideration of the design criteria for an e-Portfolio must be defined:
An identification of the Prime Directives for any e-Portfolio
1. It is Portable: It cannot be located in any one institution or embedded within a proprietary VLE.
The fundamental purpose of having an e-Portfolio is that the owner can ‘take it from place to place’,
using the metaphor of an old ‘paper’ portfolio. In terms of ‘portability’ we should really be talking of
access from any location such as a new school, as a replacement for the UCAS forms or for a job
interview for instance.
We can therefore consider portability as being ‘horizontal’ as when a pupil whilst within a Key Stage
changes school or where, in the 14-19 curriculum, a student needs to share the portfolio across the
curricula of two or more institutions at the same time.
Secondly, the e-Portfolio must be considered as moving ‘vertically’ eg from Primary school to
Secondary, and on to FE/HE, job-seeking, employments and retirement. This raises another issue, that
of progression or maturity. Obviously the interface for a 5yr-old needs to be very different to that of an
adult – see section entitled ‘lifelong’ below.
2. It is Personal: It is ‘owned’ by the user and is customisable to the user’s age, stage and style.
It is essential that the e-Portfolio is seen as ‘owned’ by the owner and not just viewed as a compulsory
or academic exercise as a substitute for a UCAS application or a short-term ‘Burgundy File’. Ideally,
if established at KS1/2 ownership can more easily be established as a place of proud celebration of a
child’s work. By KS3 the pupils will have learnt to personalise it using colours and templates which
reflect the projected image of the young student. The young student is able to select their own group of
contacts for e-safe blogging and links to external repositories can be established.
2. It is Generic: It is not modelled on any particular curriculum delivery system nor content.
Most of the e-Portfolios established by universities, employers, adult learning institutions or workplacement agencies are structured for a single purpose or a limited number of related purposes. Some
of the best are designed as a curriculum delivery scaffold with guidance notes and even structured CV
outlines and CPD formats. Not so for a generic system. Teachers do not all expect the same layouts or
styles of presentation. Different subjects produce different output formats and any group of students
could produce myriad combinations of subjects. Not all students learn in the same way nor choose to
present their artefacts in similar formats. It is essential, therefore, that the e-Portfolio is flexible
enough to meet all these differing forms of presentation.
3. It is Web2.0: It should be compliant with all generic formats within the application.
Perhaps an over-simplification of terms. Suffice it to say that the e-Portfolio should be capable of
using any Web2.0 tools and content and, furthermore, be readily accommodating of the ‘Symphonic’
or Web3.0 intuitive tools. Already we are seeing examples such as ‘Autology’ which are creating a
whole new dimension to study skills. By ensuring that the e-Portfolio is Web2.0 compliant we should
at least be ready for the new generation of intuitive software. Another aspect of Web2.0 is the
increasing use of open source and freeware recognising standard file formats. This, of course, is
essential if we are to encourage the potential for multiple home users (siblings) accessing VLE files
from the school’s network, notes on their own e-Portfolio and using ‘freeware’ on the new range of
sub-£200 laptops whilst at home.
4. It is MIS-free: It is not ‘hard-wired’ to any institution’s MIS infrastructure.
The successful take-up of VLEs in schools is probably due to the requirements of LAs to both collect
and disseminate pupil data from and to schools. The topology for the effective transmission of such
data has therefore been in place, now, for some years and administrators are well used to the
technology which has been steadily improving during that time. Similarly, on-line UCAS applications
processing has been accepted for almost as many years.
98
On to this existing infrastructure, many schools and LAs appear to have ‘bolted on’ their school’s
VLE and, naturally enough, portions of the whole data-set have therefore been readily available for
linkage to a VLE’s internal e-Portfolio system. There are obvious advantages to such a symbiotic
arrangement, principally the concept of ‘write once, read many’ or WORM. And such a setup is the
essential basis for a well constructed school’s Personal Learning Environment or PLE. However, the
functionality of a close-coupled arrangement of an institution-based e-Portfolio can immediately break
down when a child moves from one school to another unless very sophisticated interoperability
connections have been developed within both platforms.
If the e-Portfolio is to be truly ‘owned’ by the pupil, the setup or layout of the e-Portfolio will vary
from child to child, no two e-portfolios having the same format, page structure or content. The
connectivity of data, therefore, with potentially multiple ‘null’ pages, would be impossible to
configure by any technician for every separate individual in a school. The choice appears to be simple,
either a sterile and formally structured system as seen in many university configurations or a childfriendly ‘private space’ where the pupil feels in charge of the whole presentational format.
5. It is ‘light’: It is not a permanent repository of all of a user’s files, rather a ‘transit camp’.
The e-Portfolio has several purposes: to celebrate, to inform, to share and reflect etc. However, it
should not be used as the total storage space for all of one’s artefacts. The great mass of a pupil’s
schoolwork will, inevitably, be held on the school’s server and, according to how good the school’s
archiving system is and how well students are taught about ‘good housekeeping’, half-finished essays
or spelling tests may remain on the system for many years. Other more valuable artefacts may be
stored on a PC at home, on DVDs, flash-drives or USB sticks. Yet other storage facilities might
include YouTube or Flickr etc.
Obviously, as the whole of society is becoming more digitally aware, vast amounts of material,
academic, social, familial and sentimental are being generated and people need to educate themselves
in regard to storage principles. Independent repositories may come and go, YouTube might be made
unavailable, even blogging servers may be closed down if (at the present time) the Italian government
has its way. And, of course, we are well aware that certain governments maintain rigid controls over
what people may say or think. The e-Portfolio, therefore, should not be the prime centre for data
storage but, like a shop window, should be changed or updated regularly from products available in
the stock-room. Old stock, past its sell-by date should be removed, new features to be displayed may
need a totally new background or layout – all of which can be easily updated within the e-Portfolio.
6. It is Lifelong: Ownership must be maintainable as a continuity, ‘5-95’.
Although written about by some for many years (cf Helen Barrett) it seems strange that few ePortfolio developers have understood the principle that the e-Portfolio is intended to last the owner for
their lifetime. Far too many products available at the moment are restricted to the institution providing
the service. Even in schools it is not appreciated how much mobility actually takes place. (I, myself,
attended 6 different schools in the first 5 years of my education.) Certainly, as the child moves upward
through the various Key Stages and on to FE/VET/HE or apprenticeship schemes, the e-Portfolio
needs to move with the student.
We are also repeatedly warned that ‘a job for life’ will become increasingly less common and that
workers will have to understand the need for re-training or updating skills on a regular basis.
Governments are well aware of the need to educate a national underclass of the ‘sub-literate’.
Employers, too, are more and more recognising their responsibilities to provide CPD and even
preparation for redeployment. The breaking down of national barriers, the opening up of Europe and
increased access to transport have all created a fluidity in the employment marketplace. And lastly, but
not less significantly, there is a steadily growing body of post full-time workers or those enjoying the
freedoms of retirement who still have many years of active leisure time before them. At every stage
the e-Portfolio can assist the owner to display differing images or share with different groups or
communities.
In all of the above scenarios, the one common factor, in this digital age, is the ability of an e-Portfolio
to enhance the presentation of one’s self to others. Instead of owning multiple e-Portfolios for
different purposes, in different configurations and at different times, the obvious solution is to
maintain one portfolio throughout life, ‘5-95’.
99
7. It is Lifewide: It is capable of being used by all ages and abilities through a wide range of
assistive templates.
In the UK at the moment, the e-Portfolio concept is firmly driven by the needs and extensive research
of the university community. This totality, if all were using e-Portfolios, still only numbers 5% of the
population for only 5% of their lifetimes. So, what of the vast majority of people of school age, not in
higher education and those beyond the age of 18? Should the academic community really be the main
drivers for the use of e-Portfolios?
I am well aware of the significant body of students and adults who have a whole range of special
needs and who need a communication system that allows the socially disadvantaged, the lonely or
even those who choose home-schooling to represent themselves through the medium of an e-Portfolio.
This may be for social collaboration, school activities, in order to assist self-esteem, for training
programs or job applications etc.
The e-Portfolio can be accessed using the simplest of templates providing enhanced readability and
simple language in order to meet the needs of many, both youngsters, people in work and the elderly
who cannot manage the maintenance of their own website or blogs.
8. It is Accessible: It must recognise common standards of accessibility in terms of both outputs and
inputs.
As noted above, appropriate fonts and colour schemes are essential and need to be adjusted to an
individual’s requirements. Where special needs clients already use a computer there are probably in
place the peripherals to negotiate, view and listen to simple web pages.
9. It is Credible: Evidence of any Summative Assessment must be linked to a secure repository ie the
awarding body or a central MIAP/Minerva archive.
One of the primary functions of the e-Portfolio has always been that of presenting one’s CV or
academic credentials on-line. However, the real potential for forgery must not be ignored. Even a
bright 10-yr old could scan in an impressive certificate and change the name or grades. It is therefore
necessary to provide a secure system of credible evidences.
Since the Bolgna Process was established in 1999 there has been only moderate progress in
establishing levels of digital security which requires compliance with Europass decision
2241/2004/EC which indicates the need for Diploma Supplements to be issued electronically and in a
manner that is capable of being authenticated, and also compliance with EU Digital Signature
Directive governing electronically signed documents.
In the UK the MIAP/Minerva archive has been held up as a central register of all awarding bodies and
is presently involved in providing such for the emerging 14-19 diplomas. However, an alternative
scheme which enables the awarding body to provide a digitally secure certificate is provided by the
Dublin-based company, Digitary. Whether this system would adapt to every GCSE or C&G certificate
is another matter beyond the immediate scope of e-Portfolios.
Why use an e-Portfolio in Teaching and Learning?
Even a cursory review of Helen Barrett’s list of Metaphors [6] reflects a very different working
atmosphere to that of a conventional school environment. In the UK, where the pressure is to install
VLEs in all schools by the spring of 2008, mechanisms to deliver teaching and learning are well
underway. However, the VLE environment for the pupil is invariably formal and certainly not easily
configurable to be ‘owned’ by the user. The Personal Learning Environment or PLE, as provided by
the school’s VLE, does not reflect the flexibility and style of ownership that the ‘Prime Directives’
above would require. The following list is not exhaustive but illustrates some of the features of an ePortfolio not easily developed within a VLE.
The Joy of e-Learning
100
Eva de Lera, in a recent paper [7], identified the most
significant aspect of any e-learning environment as that
of the willingness of the user to actually log on and
participate. In her presentation she spoke passionately
about the need to provide students with an interface
appropriate not only to their academic needs but, more
importantly, appropriate to their situation and emotional
state. This is where the e-Portfolio can so easily
compensate for the otherwise formal and possibly sterile
interface of the official VLE. Not only should the
working environment match the age, aptitude, ability and
accessibility of each student, it should also meet their
style and language preferences. Here is where the
e-Portfolio immediately identifies with the needs for ‘ownership’ by each individual and can
supplement the functionality of the VLE.
A Personal Home-School Notebook
It seems clear, therefore, that an obviously different tool should be used to provide the personal and
confidential things that any learner might want to share beyond the confines of the school or
workplace. In the UK most schools provide their children with a relatively expensive annual ‘Planner’
or ‘Home-School Notebook’ – most functions of which could easily be served more efficiently by an
on-line version, ie the e-Portfolio. Thus many of the home-school functions such as a personal diary,
special information about sports kit, uniform, school meals or medical arrangements etc could be
recorded in one place far more simply and securely than parents and teachers bombarding each other
with disconnected e-mails.
A Place for Planning
Far too often the place for reflection or planning in the classroom situation is a rushed and unsettling
experience – certainly not the environment in which I would want to work. At one time we were
taught to always keep a ‘Rough Book’ for such activities – but sadly not so in today’s classrooms!
Students need to develop the art of remodelling their thoughts or planning future events, using diaries,
Gantt charts, flow diagrams or concept maps. Again the e-Portfolio is that perfect place to jot down,
reflect upon and re-model those scraps of inspiration that can be worked upon at a later date – as I call
it, ‘My Constant Companion’.
Collaboration
Following on from the rough jottings as above, the art of sharing ideas with a group of fellow workers
or peers is not new to school children. However, the ability to evaluate or contribute to each other’s
often incomplete ideas can be so dramatically and synergistically accelerated through the ability to
share within the confines of an e-safe collaborative environment. Perhaps one of the strengths of the
dreaded MSN, that teachers must understand, is its synchronicity. Whether synchronous or
asynchronous, conversations that have instant or near-instant feedback are far more satisfying than
waiting for a week or two before getting a response. Where teachers are able to set scenarios which
encourage groups to work together and produce compiled answers to a set task more learning takes
place and students feel that they have ownership of the eventual result of their endeavour.
Mentoring
Something not well-developed in the UK is that sense of guardianship of a child’s learning. It is a sad
reflection of our society that many parents are far too busy to take a serious interest in their children’s
academic progress. Is it something that we have lost – or did we ever really have it in the first place?
Yes, mentoring in schools does take place – to a very limited degree – perhaps once a month a tutor
might find time to counsel a child but even then with very little real understanding or rapport.
However, the e-Portfolio can support the personal mentor who volunteers as an ‘academic godparent’, particularly where the help is welcomed, willing to take the responsibility of the regular
101
interest and oversight of a child’s progress. This would include testimony as to the established
relationship and the ability to maintain the mutual dialogue of the two parties.
Feedback
VLEs or PLEs may be good at providing summative assessments of acquired knowledge and,
particularly with short-term tests, this may be of some help. But, as we all know, far too often the
marks and even constructive comments on coursework come back far too late to be of any real value –
particularly when the student is then involved with the next assignment! However, the privacy of the
e-Portfolio makes it an ideal medium for the informal comment or constructive feed back from tutors
or peers. The ability to receive feedback on ‘work in progress’ gives a sense of support and
reassurance to the student. Added to this are the added benefits of immediacy and convenience which
allows the tutor to respond constructively before the student goes completely ‘off-track’. Students
have commented that there is an increased sense that the tutors care about the students’ efforts – no
longer is a student just a string of numbers in a private marks book – the student ‘owns’ an e-Portfolio
record of ‘conversations’ and comments upon which to reflect.
Mapping a new Learning Environment
Given the potential for students to develop their own
scholarship based not only on personal feedback as
identified above but also on an e-Portfolio
environment that supports individual learning styles,
teachers will need to reformat their own
organisational skills. No longer will a linear control
of the imposition of knowledge be possible. On-line
resources will increasingly allow students to
investigate their own interests far beyond the bounds
of an ordinary textbook or a teacher’s knowledge and
experience. Children, from an early age will need to
adjust to being aware not only of a particular lesson’s
learning outcomes but of a whole landscape or
Where shall we go today?
‘treasure map’ of learning. Optional experiential
approaches will need to be outlined and the mapping of curriculum areas visited will form part of a
multi-directional route-map of learning.
e-Folio – a possible solution?
Understanding such a list of criteria as above is not that impossible even if a bit of a challenge at first
sight. Quite simply it should be user-friendly and appropriate whatever the age of the student, it should
be adaptable to their needs and independent of any institution or VLE supplier.
However, the challenge was to find a well-tried user-base
102
and a software house that was willing to listen to my demanding list of modifications. To find that
meeting of minds and also a people who were already thinking through the necessary modifications to
meet the needs of both younger and senior groups of users was almost a miracle.
Having researched the existing options and such research and documentation as was available it was a
pleasant surprise to find that the people at Minnesota State University were willing and possibly
intrigued by my repeated questions and suggestions.
Perhaps the most fundamental aspect of a
good e-Portfolio is the ability to change
templates and skins as and when the student
feels the need to express a different image
for showcasing or the need to add other
menu items or control or add new
permissions for viewing.
However, this example is not just a tool for
children, as a plaything. Apart from meeting
the needs of all spectra of education, it is
also a fully functional e-Portfolio capable of
delivering all the exacting high-end
requirements of professionals in all walks of
life, particularly those who don’t want to
run their own web-sites or blogs. It is equally appropriate for those who may be seeking redeployment or the ‘silver-brigade’ with their time to collate a thousand memories. – As I used to say,
‘If it works for my mother-in-law, it can work for you.’ – It works for all, ‘5 to 95’.
In Reprise
At a time when VLEs and PLEs in schools are making good progress, the
e-Portfolio can find its own unique and personalised place in the toolkit of
every student, whatever their age. Added to this, the emergence of good
quality ‘free’ software such as ‘Open Office’ and the arrival of the ‘sub£200’ PC will at last make access to home computing for all a reality. The
arrival of ubiquitous computing is here. A good low-cost and simply
portable e-Portfolio solution is the perfect tool to
enrich that experience. Just think of some of the
metaphors: A Showcase, a Mirror, a Dashboard, a
Constant Companion, a Confessional, a Window,
the place for Fireside Stories, a Celebration of
Learning Across the Lifespan, a Gatekeeper, a
Festival, and more. Perhaps I should add, ‘No
student – or rather nobody – should be without one’.
The e-Portfolio should be nothing but ‘Universal’.
References
Carroll, Lewis (1871). Through The Looking Glass.
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/publications/publications/eportfoliooverviewv2.aspx
Strivens, J (2007). A survey of e-pdp and e-portfolio practice in UK Higher Education, Higher
Education Academy. [Available at: http://www.recordingachievement.org/downloads].
http://www.eportfolios.ac.uk/ePET
http://www.mosep.org/study/mosep_study.pdf
http://electronicportfolios.org/metaphors.html
103
7. http://www.maximise-ict.co.uk/The_Joy_of_e-Learning.pdf
Author:
Raymond J. Tolley, Mr.
Maximise ICT (freelance consultant)
Blaydon on Tyne, UK
104
PEDAGOGY AND TECHNOLOGY FOR THE DESIGN OF
INNOVATIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
Maria Grazia Celentano, Salvatore Colazzo
(Department of Pedagogical, Psychological and Educational Sciences, University of Salento, Italy)
Abstract: The paper describes how only the use of a synergic pedagogic and technical approach will lead to
the design of innovative user-centred learning spaces.
Keywords: e-learning 2.0, web 2.0, PLE, e-portfolio, e-learning mediators
Introduction
Collaboration and cooperation, social networking, student centered learning, resource sharing, have
characterized the recent years and particularly the way of doing education and its tools. Having
education to cope with the complexity of the social and variety of the human, with flexibility,
competitiveness and efficiency characterizing the actual study and working environments, it has found
in the new technological tools a suitable allied to support these new learning processes.
The traditional online learning environments with the logic of the Learning Object, of virtual classes
peopled by teachers, tutors and students, with their roles and functions has proved ineffective to satisfy
the needs of the new generation of "native digitals", who desire to be really interactivity in the net.
They cannot live without the Web and find in it a huge number of services and tools, usable also by
not experts, to organize their activities, to seek documents, to build materials cooperating,
communicating, cataloging and storing documents and files. They are hyper-comunicatives, who use
Internet to socialize. From the time of Web 2.0 they are parts of communities where they share various
resources, converse and realize more deliberate learning experiences.
For this digital generation there is e-learning 2.0 which shows to be the real distance education. This is
a new learning space able to set the student in the learning process center. The possibility to
collaborate, to create, to enter or to modify in any moment and with any device has favored the
demolition of the limits which have until today limited the traditional e-learning platforms, thought of
as closed containers of a unidirectional learning process (from the teachers to the students).
Today PLE instruments are planned and actively built by consumers, thanks to the support of the Web
2.0 technologies, starting from the educative experiences developed in different contexts and
following different formalities. These are flexible, versatile systems, able to adapt themselves to
different situations and to integrate every existing tool, to combine formal and informal learning,
transmission methodologies with collaborative methodologies, traditional learning with distance
learning. Environments capable not only to act as repository of theoretical and practical knowledge but
also to give it in the most suitable shapes and times, like e.g. the e-Portfolios.
Virtual communities, socialization spaces, user-friendly web applications are all examples of the
philosophy of this new Web and of the technological progress in programming languages, authoring
environments, components' integration. Ajax is the best example of how it has been possible to
integrate technologies and existing standards in the 1990ies to develop a number of services and
applications. The combined and innovative use of all these technologies (XHTML and CSS, DOM,
Javascript, XML) has led to excellent tools like Wiki, blog, instant messaging, RSS feed, social
bookmarking.
From an educational point of view, to be efficient these technologies and the relative applications
should be used to realize infrastructures able to favor the creation of a shared system of pedagogic
resources, organized and filtered by the consumers themselves; to allow the growth of search,
comparison, reflection and exploitation of the wealth of resources. The integration of new media,
105
knowledge, blogs, wikis, podcasts increases interest, motivation, discovers unexpected abilities, favors
and improves group-work.
Also the educational area, as e.g. the technological one, has had a deep innovation in the last decades.
Pedagogy and particularly the educational professionals have been redefined. It is not requested to
these new professionals to know all the technological solutions to design an e-learning 2.0 logic
environment, or to the technology experts to become pedagogists. To realize these learning spaces a
strategic approach favoring the meeting of different professionals is necessary in the planning. They
come from computer engineering, communication, psychology and pedagogy, in the attempt to design
a user-friendly environment that overcomes pedagogic and didactic problems. New professionals will
have to be prepared to be to able to harmonize relational and technological aspects, to understand and
to emphasize the IT-potentialities and 'to tune in' on the learners’ needs. What is needed are e-tutors
and e-learning mediators.
It is nevertheless necessary to remember that technology has never to be the aim but only a tool to
build learner centered environments.
State-of-the-art
In the latest years education has clashed with the complexity of the social and the variety of human
values, with the instances of flexibility, competitiveness and efficiency that have characterized the
present environments of study and work.
Today, tools and technologies used to support cooperative web learning (Wiki, Blog, Podcasts, Instant
Messaging), or mobile learning, as well as the tools used for sharing videos (You Tube), images and
photos (Flickr) or slides (SlideShare) have imposed themselves, thanks to their facility of use and
cheapness. Although from a technological point-of-view numerous tools labelled Web 2.0 (such as
Blog or Wiki) are not particularly innovative (they use technology to share applications and publish
information which have been available for several years), their potential lies in having greatly
simplified the activity of creation, editing and publishing on the Web, allowing all users to become
themselves creators of the network and of its contents.
The new digital generation cannot live without the web: it contains a rich set of services and tools to
organize activities, to find/catalogue/store documents and files, to create new contents in a cooperative
way, to communicate and interact. They are hyper-communicative subjects; they use the Internet to
learn and socialize. They do not use traditional e-learning platforms willingly, since they see them as
closed containers of a unidirectional learning process (from the teachers to the students).
A new approach to the design of innovative learning environments
In the depicted panorama, we propose the use of an integrated and interdisciplinary approach to give
an answer to the following questions:
85. How to promote the use of an effective user-centred approach to develop collaborative
learning spaces?
86. Which new tools are required in order to improve and encourage a more adequate and
effective social creation of knowledge?
87. How to use the media to facilitate learning?
Starting from the previous questions, at the ULPIA Centre of the Department of Pedagogic,
Psychological and Educational Science of the University of Salento, an interdisciplinary research
group working in synergy in designing and developing new learning environments has been
undertaken. Its characteristic elements are:
88. Use of Multimedia: effective use of multimedia and advanced forms of time and space
synchronisation of multimedia learning objects in order to provide complete and effective
representations of learning experiences;
89. Knowledge Management: making implied knowledge explicit and manage it through social
communication processes;
90. Integration: integrated use of tools to collaborate, create and share contents, publish,
classify and index multimedia contents, at any time and with any device;
106
91. Multichannel: publication and access to information and personalised services through
various channels, from the Web to mobile devices (PDAs, mobile phones, etc. ) to
interactive TV;
92. Networking: creating social networks within which to allow the development and sharing of
knowledge, ensuring continuity to education beyond the individual structured event, at the
same time.
At present, the research about learning technologies, about new learning environments and about
educational skills necessary to start and manage these educational projects consciously, has led the
working group to highlight the need to train new professionals able to harmonise relational and
technological aspects, to understand as well as to stress the potential of IT and multimedia tools and to
“tune in” it on the user’s learning requirements. The group is involved in two important research
projects: the first provides the theoretical study and the design of an evolved knowledge management
system (so-called Sud-Est), which exploits the potential of the Web 2.0, to carryout an
interactive/multimedia/multi-channel system able to encourage the sharing of knowledge and
experience between students and universities and to guide users to the choice of a post-secondary
education school. Among the main results there is the creation of a telecommunication network system
between students and post-secondary education institutions. This is a user-centred web application
which encourages the creation of a community of actively involved users, facilitates the creation and
the sharing of a distributed knowledge base, bringing out the resources of the territory and the
educational offer. At the same time it is easily adjustable, effective, usable and accessible. In two
years time, the project has concerned 60,000 students, 1,000 teachers, 200 schools and 72 different
Universities’ degrees. The second project involves the development of a modern e-learning system: an
Ajax-compliant, multimedia-centred, multi-channel and user-friendly system created in order to
overcome pedagogical, educational and technological problems.
Authors:
Maria Grazia Celentano
Department of Pedagogical, Psychological and Educational Science - University of Salento
Via Stampacchia, 45
73100 Lecce
Italy
Phone +393406525700
107
GENERATION MOBILE: ENVIRONNEMENT D'APPRENTISSAGE
SUPPORTE PAR DES TECHNOLOGIES MOBILES (EASTM)
Adelina Moura, Ana Amélia Carvalho (Universidade do Minho)
Résumé: L'objectif principal de ce projet est d'étudier les implications des technologies mobiles (téléphone
mobile et ordinateur portable) dans le processus d'enseignement et d’apprentissage. Le projet focalise l'impact
des technologies mobiles dans l'apprentissage individuel et collaboratif. En outre, nous avons l'intention
d'analyser si les technologies mobiles contribueront à modifier les attitudes les élèves à l'égard de l'école et
vers l'apprentissage. Ces défis nous ont conduit à la construction d’un Environnement d'Apprentissage
Supporté par des Technologies Mobiles (EASTM), capable de supporter le développement d'activités
curriculaires de littérature portugaise, dans une école secondaire.
Mots Clés: Apprentissage mobile, téléphone mobile, apprentissage individuel et collaboratif
1. Introduction
L'apprentissage par des technologies mobiles est un paradigme incontournable dans la scène éducative
actuelle. Les premières définitions d’apprentissage mobile (m-learning) apparaissent centrées
essentiellement dans la notion de mobilité de la technologie, “mobile learning as elearning through
mobile computational devices: Palms, Windows CE machines, even your digital cell phone" [Quinn,
2000]. Néanmoins, les plus récentes définitions de m-learning sont en train de transférer le centre
d'intérêt de la mobilité des technologies à la mobilité des apprenants. Ce changement dans la
focalisation de la mobilité est important, à l'égard de l'élargissement des multiples dimensions de la
mobilité et de l'apprentissage en interaction. Ceci, mène à une perspective plus élargie dans la
complexe notion de mobilité dans l'apprentissage, pour permettre d’embrasser, la mobilité dans des
espaces physiques et sociaux et la mobilité de la technologie [Sharples et al., 2007].
Ces défis nous ont conduit à construire un Environnement d'Apprentissage Supporté par des
Technologies Mobiles (EASTM), (téléphone portable et ordinateur portable), avec l'objectif d'étudier
les implications que les technologies mobiles ont dans l'apprentissage individuel et collaboratif et dans
l'attitude des élèves à l’égard de l'école. Il s’agit d’une étude de recherche de doctorat dans le domaine
des technologies mobiles appliquées dans le processus d’enseignement et apprentissage dans la salle
de classe. Ce projet vient d’être développé dans les cours de littérature portugaise, avec une classe
d’enseignement professionnel d’une école secondaire publique. Cet environnement1, représenté dans
l’image 1, peut être accédé sur différents types d’écran.
Image 1. Page Principale du EASTM
108
2. Étude
Pour atteindre les objectifs proposés deux questions de recherche ont été définies:
93. Quels seront les implications des technologies mobiles dans l'apprentissage individuel et
collaboratif?
94. Les technologies mobiles seront en mesure de contribuer à changer l'attitude des étudiants
face à l’enseignement en général et à l'école en particulier?
2.1 Méthodologie
Il s’agit d’une étude quasi-expérimentale avec deux groupes, un groupe expérimental et un groupe de
contrôle. Cette étude aura lieu au cours de deux périodes scolaires dans l'école secondaire Carlos
Amarante – Braga (Portugal). Les deux groupes (expérimental et contrôle) seront comparés
relativement à la litéracie informatique (digital literacy), aux attitudes à l'égard de l'école et de
l'apprentissage et aux connaissances (pré-test). Ensuite, les deux groupes reçoivent leur traitement. Le
groupe expérimental utilisera les technologies mobiles pour apprendre, pour écrire et pour travailler en
collaboration. Le groupe de contrôle suivra des classes traditionnelles, avec papier et stylo. À la fin de
la période scolaire, ils feront le post-test et les résultats obtenus seront comparés, ainsi que leurs
attitudes envers l'école et l'apprentissage. Au cours de cette deuxième période, les deux groupes
recevront le même traitement avec des technologies mobiles. À la fin de ce temps-là ils feront un test
de connaissance et rempliront un questionnaire d'attitudes.
3. Contexte: description de l’environnement
Deux des composantes fondamentales de cet environnement, destiné au blended-learning, est
l’apprentissage collaboratif et le travail autonome. En ce qui concerne les unités d’enseignement et
d'apprentissage, elles ont été dessinées de manière à permettre leur accès par différents dispositifs
mobiles. Pour programmer les différentes activités nous avons donné attention aux contenus
curriculaires, aux objectifs à atteindre, au profil des élèves, aux outils à utiliser et à la complexité
éducative.
Ainsi, pour la collaboration nous avons créé un réseau social avec le service Ning, bien qu’un Forum
de discussion. Pour développer l’apprentissage autonome nous avons crée des activités bimensuelles,
pour être réalisées dehors la salle de classe avec de différents services des dispositifs mobiles (vidéo,
audio, photo, SMS, Internet, courriel électronique, GPS, MSN), pour le développement des
compétences comme chercher/sélectionner de l’information (litéracie informationnelle), l’expression
écrite, la réflexion et la créativité. Ces activités permettront aux élèves d'acquérir des connaissances et
de développer des compétences d’utilisation de différents outils basés sur le concept du Web 2.0
(Blogs, Wiki, Création de Sites Web, Podcasts).
Pour l’utilisation du téléphone portable comme un vrai outil éducationnel nous avons réunis un
ensemble varié d’applications et services, qui nous ont permis de délivrer plusieurs types d’activités
orientées vers le concept d’apprentissage mobile, comme par exemple: Hot Lava Software, Mobile
Flickr, Moblog, Winksite, Google Mobile, Animoto, etc.
Pour prévenir les limitations de l’écran du téléphone portable, nous avons privilégié les fichiers
audioet vidéo. Alors, nous avons introduit le podcasting, une façon facile de diffusion de fichiers
audio et vidéo. En conséquence, et comme complément des cours nous avons enregistré en fichiers
audio
(Podcasts) les contenus des œuvres littéraires à étudier en classe, pour être écoutés, en ligne et hors de
ligne dans différents dispositifs mobiles (lecteurs MP3/MP4, téléphone portable, ordinateur portable).
En profitant de l’immense quantité de vidéos présents sur internet nous avons crée un ensemble
d’activités innovatrices pour aider à améliorer les compétences linguistiques en Langue Portugaise.
En ce qui concerne la culture générale nous avons conçu des défis hebdomadaires pour être résolus à
travers des messages texte SMS (Short Message Service). Pour la création d'habitudes de lecture sur
support numérique, nous avons créé un plan de lecture avec un ensemble d’œuvres intégrales en ligne
pour être lues soit en ligne, soit hors de ligne et des audio livres.
109
3.1 Aspects techniques de la construction de l’environnement
Comme il s’agit d'un des premiers environnements d'apprentissage de ce type au Portugal, cela a
comporté le coût de la nouveauté. Ainsi, en n'y ayant pas de modèles à suivre, il nous a fallu plonger
dans un intense processus de recherche, notamment dans de différentes études réalisées dans d'autres
pays avec des technologies mobiles [Kukulska et al., 2005, Berque et al., 2006].
De cette manière, et en prenant attention aux limitations des dispositifs mobiles de petit écran que
nous voulons aussi utiliser, nous avons adapté les contenus textuels à la taille de l’écran et nous avons
donné préférence à la création de matériaux multimédia. À l'égard de l'accessibilité nous nous sommes
concentrées dans certaines recommandations du consortium W3C et des normes mondiales de
développement pour l'Internet, comme la WAI (Web Accessibility Initiative), pour faciliter la
navigation sur la page en utilisant des dispositifs mobiles.
La technologie choisie pour créer l’EASTM a été Google Pages Creator, parce que chaque site a aussi
une édition mobile pour téléphone portable. Cette solution nous a semblé la plus appropriée, entre
autres, dû au fait de permettre l’accessibilité aux contenus par des dispositifs mobiles de différents
écrans. De manière à fournir une réelle adéquation de l’EASTM aux objectifs à atteindre nous avons
utilisé un ensemble d'outils basés sur le Web 2.0 (Ning, Podomatic, YouTube, Animoto, Gmail,
Google Talk, Docs & Spreadsheets, Blogger, Bravenet, Mogulus, etc.).
4. Conclusion et recommandations
Comprendre les compétences qui doivent être développées dans l'école du siècle XXI est un défi pour
tous les acteurs du système éducatif. Dans une société de la connaissance, les plans d'étude arrêteront
de prescrire ce que les enseignants doivent enseigner et indiqueront plutôt ce que les élèves doivent
apprendre. Alors, l’adoption de ce nouveau paradigme, les technologies mobiles, dans la salle de
classe, contribuera à repenser l'éducation et à faire face aux demandes de la société de nos jours. Car,
les technologies mobiles donnent aux individus la possibilité de choisir quand et où ils veulent
apprendre, de façon à répondre aux besoins de mobilité des travailleurs et apprenants. Ainsi, cette
étude constitue une importante contribution à la rénovation de l'éducation dans une société de
l’information et de la connaissance, soit dans le pays, soit ailleurs.
Malgré la phase initiale de développement dans laquelle le projet se trouve, les résultats obtenus seront
publiés dans un futur proche.
Références
Berque, D. A.; Prey, J. C.; Reed, R. H. (2006). The Impact of Tablet PCs and Pen-Based
Technology on Education: Vignettes, Evaluations, and Future Directions. West Lafayette, In:
Purdue University Press.
Kukulska-Hulme, A.; Traxler, J. (Eds.) (2005). Mobile Learning: A Handbook for Educators
And Trainers. London: Routledge.
Quinn, C. (2000). Mlearning: Mobile, Wireless, In Your Pocket Learning. Linezine. [Accessible
Le 12 Decembre 2007, http://www.linezine.com/2.1/features/cqmmwiyp.htm].
Sharples, M.; Arnedillo Sánchez I.; Milrad M.; Vavoula G. (2007). Mobile Learning: Small
Devices, Big Issues In Technology Enhanced Learning: Principles And Products (In Press).
[Accessible Le 20 Novembre 2007, http://telearn.noe-kaleidoscope.org/openarchive/browse?browse=collection/30/publication&index=0&filter=all&param=30].
Auteur:
Adelina Moura
Université de Minho
Rua Poente, nº 54, 2º Dto
4715-043 Braga Portugal
110
ET 1 ET 2 ET 3.0…MON ENSEIGNEMENT ÉVOLUE…
Christophe Batier (Université de Lyon, Université Lyon1 Service PRACTICE)
Mots Clés: TICE, enseignement supérieur, wiki, serious games, évolution des pratiques
Cette étude de cas propose de mettre en évidence le rôle joué par les technologies de l’information et
de l’enseignement dans les mutations observées au niveau des pratiques pédagogiques des enseignants
de l’université Lyon1.
L’université Lyon1 regroupe 34 000 étudiants et un peu plus de 2 000 enseignants dans le domaine
médical, scientifique et sportif.
L’université Claude Bernard a mis à la disposition de ses enseignants chercheurs une plate forme
d’Elearning. La plate forme Spiral est développée par l’équipe TICE de l’université : Practice.
Depuis janvier 2003, 5 développeurs travaillent au quotidien avec les enseignants pour faire évoluer
l’outil en fonction de leurs demandes et en suivant les évolutions technologiques. Très rapidement une
majorité d’enseignants s’est approprié cet outil [1]. Cela nous a permis d’observer l’évolution des
pratiques de nos enseignants sur Spiral.
Figure 1. Spiral organigramme fonctionnel
Voici par exemple les fréquences de connexions sur le mois d’octobre 2007, sur les 946 enseignants
différents qui se sont connectés à Spiral, 366 sont venus moins de 4 fois, soit moins d’une fois par
semaine et à l’opposé de ce graphique 27 se sont connectés en moyenne plus de 5 fois par jour.
Figure 2. Fréquence de connexions des enseignants de l’université
Lyon1 en Octobre 2007
Ce premier paramètre met en évidence les différences d’utilisation de Spiral. Une personne déposant
des fichiers en début de mois n’a pas les mêmes usages qu’un enseignant se connectant plusieurs fois
par jour pour réagir sur des forums, corriger des wikis…
Chaque enseignant est libre de choisir les outils mis à sa disposition et de choisir la pédagogie qu’il
souhaite utiliser. Les observations faites sur les usages des enseignants de notre université nous ont
111
permis de faire une classification quelques peu grossière mais permettant de proposer une typologie
des stratégies et des usages à Lyon1.
95. 1.0 (He) L’enseignant est au centre du dispositif et il diffuse son cours sous forme de
powerpoint, pdf ou fichier word. Le contenu créé par l’enseignant est le contenu principal.
Mais il l rajoute éventuellement un forum pour que les étudiants lui posent des questions. Et
un Quizz pour s'entrainer au QCM en mode autoformation. Les interactions sont dans ce cas
souvent limitées à de la communication essentiellement organisationnelle: Horaire des
cours, changement de sale. Le modèle pédagogique est donc majoritairement transmissif,
l’enseignant est auteur et les étudiants ont une posture de spectateurs.
96. 2.0 (We) l'enseignant utilise aussi ces outils mais en plus des outils plus liées aux
technologies du web2.0. Il va impliquer et faire participer les étudiant à la création de
contenue pédagogique sous forme de cours [2], de video [3]. Ces enseignants utilisent des
blogs pour guider les étudiants dans leur progression et certains commencent à utiliser des
wikis pour que les étudiants rédigent ensembles le contenu du cours fait par exemple à
partir des notes prises en amphi par une partie des étudiants [2]. Avec le groupe étudiants
plus enseignants tous ensemble, nous (We) sommes tous acteurs de la formation.
L’enseignant gère les activités qu’il propose aux étudiants et valide les contenus produits
par les étudiants.
97. 3.0 (Me) Le dispositif est cette fois ci centré sur centré sur moi (Me) étudiant. Je suis au
cœur d’un réseau social qui me remonte des informations personnalisée en fonction de mon
niveau d’étude, de ma motivation, de mon implication…Je peux consulter les cours
participer aux activités via des interfaces immersives m’approprier des objets 3D via mon
avatar participer aux serious games scénarisés par mes enseignants.Pour anticiper cette
évolution, nous avons interfacé Spiral avec Facebook, pour permettre à nos étudiants de
construire et de gérer leur réseau social personnel [4]. Nous avons développé un système
d’annotation des podcasts qui lui permet d’écrire directement lui-même sur les podcasts de
ces cours. via les bubbles. Et nous sommes en train de finaliser la mise en place d’un
dispositif type dailymotion pour lui permettre de se construire sa chaine de cours. Et nous
utilisons quelques serious games sur un millier d’étudiants en médecine et sciences.
Exemple de serious Games développé: Climatus un générateur de galaxie en ligne.
Figure 3. Climatus serious games d’astrophysique
Cette expérience assez unique en Europe nous permet d’étudier les évolutions et les pratiques
pédagogique innovante au sein de notre université.
References
Colloque TICE 2006 Toulouse - 25 au 27 octobre 2006. De la décision stratégique à la mise en
pratique d'une politique favorisant le développement des TICE dans une université de masse"
par Martine Heyde, Jérôme Randon, Christophe Batier et Domitien Debouzie.
Exemple de cours web2.0: http://spiral.univlyon1.fr/entree.asp?id=170&id2=80&id3=294&objet=article
Exemple de contenu vidéo créé par les étudiants:
http://spiral.univ-lyon1.fr/entree.asp?id=170&id2=80&id3=274&objet=article
Réseau sociaux sur Internet: l'université Claude-Bernard (Lyon-I) s'interface avec Facebook
Dépêche AEF n°85336 Paris, Jeudi 18 octobre 2007, 18:24:20 Cyril Duchamp.
112
Créer un système planétaire est un jeu d'étudiants:
http://www.atelier.fr/recherche/10/06122007/espace-jeu-etudiants-climatus-lyon35664;35665.html
Auteur:
Christophe Batier
Université Claude Bernard Lyon1
Service Practice Quai 43
43 Bd du 11 Novembre 1918
69622 Villeurbanne
France Phone 0472431644
113
LES CHAÎNES ÉDITORIALES DANS
LES ADMINISTRATIONS PUBLIQUES
Manuel Majada, Isabelle Cailleau (Université de Technologie de Compiègne),
Valérie Moreau
Résumé: La problématique de gestion documentaire de masse est sans doute un des enjeux majeurs auquel
sont actuellement confrontées les administrations publiques françaises. La production d’un volume
conséquent de contenus pédagogiques ainsi que le traitement d’une masse importante de documents métier
poussent à la recherche d’outils professionnels performants capables de répondre à cette demande. Cohérence
graphique, publication multisupport, rationalisation, gain de productivité, capitalisation: ce sont les mots
d’ordre qui régissent la mise en place d’une véritable organisation autour de la production documentaire.
Dans ce contexte, les chaînes éditoriales peuvent sans doute apporter des réponses et des outils pour
instrumenter la mise en place d’une gestion documentaire cohérente. Deux acteurs majeurs nous expliqueront
pourquoi ils ont choisi l’approche chaîne éditoriale et l’implémentation de la solution Scenari: L'Institut de la
gestion publique et du développement économique (IGPDE) et le Centre de documentation pédagogique
(CDP) de la Gendarmerie Nationale.
Mots Clés: administrations publiques, chaînes éditoriales
Introduction
Confrontées de manière récurrente aux problématiques de production documentaire de masse, les
administrations publiques sont à l’affût de systèmes permettant une gestion cohérente des
connaissances et des contenus produits. Préparation de concours régionaux et nationaux, formation de
masse, spatialisation des formé. Voici quelques raisons qui ont depuis toujours menées à des choix de
production documentaire axés sur la structuration et l’autonomie des contenus, leur pérennisation et
leur capacité d’adaptation à des contextes d’utilisation divers.
Un savoir-faire formalisée et évolutif
Contrairement à d’autres secteurs d’activité, les administrations publiques présentent depuis
longtemps une culture et un savoir faire indéniables en termes de production documentaire dans le
cadre de la formation. L’exercice de l’écriture structurée et modulable est en effet un préalable
essentiel pour la mise en place de moyens complexes de formation à distance, en présentiel ou mixte.
Ce secteur est par ailleurs particulièrement concerné par les nouvelles pratiques autour de la formation
à distance. Le e-learning et la transposition sur écran de contenus initialement destinés à une
publication papier sont au cœur des principales problématiques auxquelles sont actuellement
confrontées ces administrations. Les contenus de formation très denses doivent être repensés,
restructurés et adaptés à une logique multimédia. Comment transposer ces contenus sans pour autant
les dénaturer? Comment multiplier les supports de publication sans toutefois multiplier la charge de
travail en termes de maintenance et de mise à jour de ces contenus?
Les chaînes éditoriales: une réponse possible
Les chaînes éditoriales peuvent apporter quelques réponses à ces problématiques:
98. le multisupport: un contenu écrit une seule fois peut-être publié selon des mises en forme
différentes;
99. la modularité des contenus produits, pouvant potentiellement être recombinés et réutilisés
dans des contextes de formation très variés (FOAD, formation continue);
100. l'écriture structurée, pour un meilleur contrôle et une homogénéité de la rédaction et de la
publication;
114
101. la publication avancée, pour la création de documents multimédias, comme les supports de
cours interactifs, impossibles à réaliser avec des outils bureautiques classiques;
102. la pérennisation et la préservation des données dans un format XML ouvert.
Pourquoi ont-ils choisi Scenari? (titre à valider)
Dans ce contexte, plusieurs administrations publiques ont choisi la chaîne éditoriale Scenari pour
produire et gérer leurs documents pédagogiques:
L’IGPDE : Les préparations aux concours informatique constituent un volume documentaire
important. Ces documents concentrent tout le savoir-faire accumulé en termes de rédaction structurée
pour un usage autonome. L’éclatement géographique de la population à former et l’incontournable
usage du numérique amènent l’IGPDE à diffuser ses contenus sous une forme multimédias.
L’utilisation de la chaîne éditoriale Scenari leur permet de remplir leur mission de promotion sociale
tout en préservant leur savoir-faire en termes d’écriture structurée et en assurant la gestion et la
pérennité de leur contenu.
La gendarmerie: Le CDP, Centre de Documentation Pédagogique, a vu s’ajouter à la liste de ses
missions la mise en place du e-learning. Son enjeu est d’offrir au personnel de la gendarmerie
nationale une nouvelle voix de formation moderne, attrayante et efficace tout en étant les garants de la
pérennité des contenus existant actuellement au format papier et de la conservation du savoir-faire
rédactionnel. Grâce à l’usage d’une chaîne éditoriale, le CDP peut allier la modernité du multimédias
et la qualité du contenu, tout en optimisant la gestion de la masse documentaire existante.
L’ENT: L’Ecole Nationale du Trésor public cherche avant tout à optimiser son processus de
production des documents pédagogiques au format papier par la mise en place d’un outil performant.
Les possibilités qu’offre la chaîne éditoriale Scenari en termes de multi-supports lui permettent de se
projeter sereinement dans l’avenir avec un passage progressif vers des modalités de type FOAD.
Auteurs:
Isabelle Cailleau
Université de Technologie de Compiègne
Rue du Docteur Schweitzer
60200 Compiègne
France
Valérie Moreau, E-mail: [email protected]
Manuel Majada
115
MEDICAL STUDENTS’ EMP LEARNING THROUGH
INTERACTIVE SMS PLATFORM
Jafar Asgari Arani (Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Department of English)
Abstract:
Introduction & Background: Virtual learning communities are radically redefining the traditional language
learning classroom, where computer-assisted language learning (CALL) is being replaced by mobile-assisted
language learning (MALL), with increased use being made of wireless networked mobile computers to
facilitate internet based language learning. Meanwhile, cell phones are becoming ubiquitous, with students
presuming their right to personal use during class, frustrating teachers who regard this as disruptive. MLearning is defined as the teaching and learning processes through the use of mobile and handheld devices
such as cell phones, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), laptops, and tablet PCs. M-Learning is the ability to
receive learning anytime, anywhere, and on any device.
Objective: This paper aims to describe the development of a mobile-based interactive learning environment
(MOBILE) in classroom as well as to understand the impacts that mobile applications such as short -messageservices (SMS) can have on students’ EMP (English for Medical Purposes) learning experience.
Method & Material: A brief description of the system as well as the trial that took place is presented. Based
on the literature described on mobile technologies and ICT in the classroom and pedagogy, two new
classroom dynamics were designed, applied and evaluated i.e. SMS Feedback and SMS-quiz. Subsequently a
discussion of the survey results, obtained from 40 students of medicine studying the EMP course, is
presented.
Findings & Conclusion: The findings indicate that students and instructors can benefit from the additional
channel of communication in the classroom. The lecturer perceived a gain of quality and quantity of feedback
from the students. The research implies that students are of the opinion that the system was useful - making
classes more interesting and interactive (over 90%). The post-project feedback on a Likert scale gives strong
evidence that “SMS Feedback” was found to be an especially useful, efficient and preferred method of
communication (94%).Overall, the main inhibitors for adoption of SMS in the classroom, among other
challenges, were time constraints (20%) and the cost of text messages (52%), rather than a perception of the
systems value.
Keywords: M-Learning, Special English, Cell Phone, SMS, MALL
Introduction
According to Chabra and Figueiredo [2002], “M-Learning is the ability to receive learning anytime,
anywhere, and on any device.” While electronic learning (E-Learning) extends study beyond physical
classroom, M-Learning promises continued extension towards the “anywhere, anytime” learning
process. Learning through SMS residing in “m-learning” can be considered part (see Fig.1) of the
world of “e-learning”, which refers to the use of technology for learning in a broad sense and
encompasses educational processes carried out in compliance with different theoretical models,
pursued using different educational methods and is, normally, based on activities that “take places via
any electronic medium” [Anohina 2005].
116
SMS
Figure 1. Schematic Design: from distance-learning to SMS
SMS and language Learning
An important application to cell phone usage in the English as a second language classroom is
capturing SMS (Short Message Service) into a database that is displayed on a message board. Text
messaging is an example of a student centered, personal approach to communication – where
connection and communication is viewed from a student’s point of view.
As a consequence, the language is informal and the messages are mostly peer to peer [Horstmanshof,
Power 2004]. Thorton and Houser [2002, 2003, 2005] developed several innovative projects using
mobile phones to teach English at a Japanese university. One focused on providing English vocabulary
instruction by SMS. Three times a day, they emailed short mini-lessons to students, sent in discrete
chunks so as to be easily readable on the tiny screens. Lessons defined five words per week, recycled
previous vocabulary, and used the words in various contexts, including episodic stories. Students were
tested biweekly and compared to groups that received identical lessons via the Web and on paper. The
authors then explored usability and learning issues. The results indicated that the SMS students
learned over twice the number of vocabulary words as the Web students, and that SMS students
improved their scores by nearly twice as much as students who had received their lessons on paper.
Students' attitudes were also measured. The vast majority preferred the SMS instruction, wished to
continue such lessons, and believed it to be a valuable teaching method. The authors theorized that
their lessons had been effective due to their having been delivered as push media, which promote
frequent rehearsal and spaced study, and utilized recycled vocabulary.
Levy and Kennedy [2005] created a similar program for Italian learners in Australia, sending English
vocabulary words and idioms, definitions, and example sentences via SMS in a spaced and scheduled
pattern of delivery, and requesting feedback in the form of quizzes and follow up questions.
While the applications of cell phones have typically been pedagogic in nature, they have also been
used for practical or administrative matters, such as simplified and flexible student-teacher
communications (e.g., course updates and reminders) and referrals to related websites and other up-todate instructional resources [Dias 2002; Levy, Kennedy 2005].
Language classroom interactivity has a number of significant benefits: it promotes an active learning
environment, provides greater feedback for lecturers, increases student motivation, and enables a
learning community [Mazur 1998; Hake 1998; McConnell et al 2006; Bishop et al 2003; Angelo
1993]. During the past six years the rapid proliferation of mobile devices, particularly cellular phones,
117
in the student demographic has changed the levels of student access to information and
communications technology (ICT) in the classroom - presenting an extraordinary opportunity to
develop interactive classroom systems and to enhance students’ learning experience [Schwabe 2005;
Scornavacca 2006]. The present challenge for researchers is to go beyond anecdotal perceptions and
obtain English empirical evidence about the impact of these technologies in the English for medical
purposes (EMP) classroom. This paper aims to describe the development of a classroom interaction
system as well as to understand the impact that mobile applications such as SMS can have on students’
learning experience.
Using interactive classroom pedagogies it is possible to promote a more active learning environment,
increase the motivation of students, inform the work of teachers and generally enable a genuine
learning community in the classroom [McConnell, 2006]. Classroom Feedback Systems (CFS)
provide one possible technological affordance that can efficiently enable interaction in large classes.
Known by a vast array of names and produced commercially by a range of vendors, CFS technologies
have been used since the sixties [Judson, Sawada 2002; Penuel et al, 2005] allowing students to
respond to questions and have the results processed and displayed for use by the lecturer and the class
as a whole. Modern systems provide the ability to answer a range of question t ypes from simple
yes/no through to detailed responses, free-form questions and roleplaying [Bollen, 2004]. Other media
such as images are now also being used in particular contexts [Seppälä, Alamäki 2003].
A variety of positive outcomes from the use of CFS technologies have been reported including
improved understanding of important concepts [Penuel et al, 2005] increased student engagement and
participation [Freeman, Blayney 2005], improved quality of discussion in the classroom and a better
teacher awareness of student difficulties [Penuel et al, 2005].
In one of the few examples of classroom use of mobile phones, Markett [2006] describes the use of
SMS to collect text in the form of a semi-structured discussion during class that can then be continued
in a more traditional web-based discussion afterwards. Sadly however, the problems caused by
disruptive mobile phone use have more often led to the banning of mobile phones in classrooms and
the use of jamming equipment. This can lead to unusual solutions such as that of Bollen [2004] who
reported the development of an SMS-like system on PDAs in order to avoid restrictions on using
mobile phones in class.
Interactive SMS Platform Project
Materials & Method
The development of the project is based on the assumption that nowadays most students at Kashan
University of Medical Sciences, in Iran have SMS enabled mobile phones and that they bring it to the
classroom. Therefore most of the necessary ICT infrastructure for a classroom interactive system is
already in place. In order to take advantage of this opportunity in classroom it was necessary to enable
the instructor to receive messages from students while lecturing.
The system comprises of a mobile phone connected to the instructor’s laptop and the installation of a
SMS management tool (SMS Studio). An alternative to this set-up would be using an SMS-gateway
instead of the phone. The SMS software enables the instructor to easily read incoming SMS messages
on the computer screen as well as automatically analyze the results of polls. In addition, it also allows
the instructor to send messages to any mobile phone. Therefore two new classroom interactive
activities were designed:
SMS Quiz: at the end of each class, the instructor presented slides containing few multiple-choice
questions related to the topic. Students were able to use their mobile phones SMS to answers and were
able to see on the projector screen real-time graphics showing the results to trigger class discussions
(Mazur 1998). SMS Feedback: it allows students to send questions on the sentence structure,
terminology and translation or comments to the instructor’s laptop via SMS without interrupting the
class. The instructor was able to read the messages on the laptop screen and decide whether or when
would be appropriate to comment on the message received.
118
SMS PROJECT IN EMP CLASS
SMS Feedback
Ask you questions regarding the
lecture through SMS to
09133611740
SMS QUIZ
Which choice can best……..
A)…………….
B)……………
C)………….....
D)…………….
Send your answer to
09133611740
Figure 2. SMS Project in EMP Classroom
Discussion
English for Medical Purposes (EMP) also called English for Special Purposes (ESP) is a mandatory
course for all students of medicine, which is introduced to them by the English department. One hour
and half lectures were delivered two times a week to a group of 40 students. At the beginning of the
semester, students were introduced to the project and actively encouraged to use their mobile phones
in class. During the trial, using the system was voluntary and students paid for their own messages.
At the end of the semester, the students were asked to answer a survey containing 22 questions
measuring mobile phone usage, user acceptance of the system, and perceived impact on students’
learning experience. The questionnaire was developed in conjunction with Education Development
Center (EDC) of the university and it received face and content validation. Majority of the students
(89.1%) owned a phone that they often carried in classes. During the trial, 51% of the students used
the SMS Feedback to send a question or comment in classes. However, over 90% of them perceived
that the ability to send the instructor SMS’s during class was in one way or other useful . Students
indicated their reasons for not using the SMS feedback. Most (41.5%) responded that they had nothing
to say,33.6% gave cost as the main inhibiting factor.
Most of the students used the SMS Quiz (81%) since the instructor noticed that this activity provided
several benefits for the classroom environment (e .g. instantaneous feedback on concept tests or using
results to stimulate class discussion). It was also noticed that students seemed to be very interested in
the result of polls that reflected their collective opinion on a given issue. In the case of the SMS Quiz,
student participation was mainly inhibited by cost (31%) and lack of interest (5%). The survey
questions have examined largely descriptive aspects of students’ mobile phone usage as well as
drivers and inhibitors for using the project. The remaining questions examine the impact of this
application on respondents’ learning experience. Table 1 summarizes the results.
119
Table 1. Ten Ranked Students’ Ideas on the Project
STUDENTS’ IDEAS
MEAN
RANK
Using SMS increased the levels of linguistic interaction in EMP class.
4.04
1
Using the project during class made the English classes more interesting.
4.03
2
Using SMS in the English classroom is a good idea.
3.99
3
I found this instructional method effective.
3.71
4
In general, I liked using SMS as part of this course.
3.69
5
The use of SMS during EMP class enhanced my study.
3.54
6
The project during class increased my interest in the subject.
3.49
7
For these questions, respondents were asked to answer questions using a Likert scale from 1 (strongly
disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Reliability analysis was carried out to investigate the internal
consistency of the scale used in this part of the questionnaire (Crombach’s alpha =0.92). In particular
the increased engagement and interactivity, improved classroom discussions and the ability of lecturer
to react to the student’s feedback effectively [Draper, Brown 2004]. The expectation was that English
as-second-language (ESL) students would find the system more useful than native English speaking
students. This assumption was based on the idea that most of the ESL students would be more
comfortable interacting via the SMS channel as it would give them more opportunities to express
themselves clearly [ Elgort, Marshall, Mitchell 2003].
Students were also asked to indicate their preferred of method of communication if they would like to
ask the lecturer a question (traditional vs. SMS). For this question, respondents were asked to answer
on a Likert scale from 1 (Raise my Hand) to 5 (Send an SMS). SMS appeared to be the strongly
preferred method of communication for asking questions. Figure 3 summarizes the results.
Conclusions
The rapid proliferation of mobile phones among the student population is generating a novel platform
for the development of classroom interaction systems. This research described the development of a
classroom interaction system and explored the impact that mobile applications such as SMS have had
on students' learning experience .The findings indicate that students and instructors can benefit from
the additional channel of communication in the classroom. The lecturer perceived a gain of quality and
quantity of feedback from the students. Students indicated that the system was useful - making classes
more interesting and interactive .The “SMS Feedback” was found to be an especially useful , efficient
and preferred method of communication , in comparison to the traditional “raising hands” method of
asking questions. While students perceived only a moderately positive impact of the system in terms
of increasing their interest in the subject and enhancing their study, they indicated that they would
nevertheless like to see more use of this technology in the classroom. Overall, the main inhibitor for
adoption of SMS in the classroom was the cost of text messages, rather than a perception of the
systems value.
120
References
Angelo T. A.; K. P. Cross (1993). Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College
Teachers, 2nd ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.
Anohina, A. (2005). Analysis of the terminology used in the field of virtual learning.
Educational Technology & Society, Vol. 8 (3), pp. 91-102.
Bishop A. L.; R. K. Dinkins; J. L. Dominick (2003). Programming Handheld Devices to
Enhance Learning. EDUCAUSE Quarterly, Vol. 26, pp. 50-53.
Bollen L.; S. Eimler; H. U. Hoppe (2004). SMS-Based Discussions - Technology Enhanced
Collaboration for a Literature Course. Proceedings of the 2nd IEEE International Workshop on
Wireless and Mobile Technologies in Education (WMTE?'04).
Chabra, T.; Figueiredo, J. (2002). How to Design and Deploy Handheld Learning. [Available at:
http://www.empoweringtechnologies.net/, accesse: 08.12.2002].
eLearning/eLearning_expov5_files/frame.htm
Dias, J. (2002). Cell phones in the classroom: Boon or bane? [Part 2]. C@lling Japan: The
Newsletter of the JALT-CALL Special Interest Group, Vol. 10 (3), pp. 8-13.
Draper S. W.; M. I. Brown (2004). Increasing Interactivity in Lectures Using an Electronic
Voting System. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, Vol. 20, pp. 81-94.
Elgort I.; S.Marshall; G. Mitchell (2003). NESB Student Perceptions and Attitudes to a New
Online Learning Environment.
Freeman M.; P. Blayney (2005). Promoting interactive in-class learning environments: A
comparison of an electronic response system with a traditional alternative. Proceedings of the
11th Australasian Teaching Economics Conference.
Judson E.; D. Sawada (2002). Learning from past and present: Electronic response systems in
college lecture halls. Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching, Vol. 21, pp.
167-181.
Hake R. (1998). Interactive-engagement vs. traditional methods: A six-thousand-student survey
of mechanics test data for introductory physics courses. American Journal of Physics, Vol. 66,
pp. 64-74.
Horstmanshof, L.; Power, M. (2004). How SMS makes a difference to communication. Paper
presentedat the ANZCA (Australian & New Zealand Communication Association) Conference Making a Difference, University of Sydney, 7-9 July. [abstract only, 18 Oct 2004]
http://conferences.arts.usyd.edu.au/viewabstract.php?id=53&cf=3
Levy, M.; Kennedy, C. (2005). Learning Italian via mobile SMS. In: A. Kukulska-Hulme; J.
Traxler (Eds.), Mobile Learning: A Handbook for Educators and Trainers. London: Taylor and
Francis.
Markett, C.; I. A. Sanchez; S. Weber; B. Tangney (2006). Using Short Message Service to
Encourage Interactivity in the Classroom. Computers and Education, Vol. 46, pp. 280-293.
Mazur J. E. (1998). Learning and Behavior, 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall.
McConnell D. A.; D. N. Steer; K. D. Owens; J. R. Knott; S. Van Horn; W. Borowski; J. Dick; A.
Foos; M. Malone; H. McGrew; L. Greer; P. J. Heaney (2006). Using Conceptests to Assess and
Improve Student Conceptual Understanding in Introductory Geoscience Courses. Journal of
Geoscience Education, Vol. 54, pp. 61-68.
Penuel W. R.; J. Roschelle; L. Abrahamson (2005). Research on Classroom Networks for
Whole-Class Activities. IEEE International Workshop on Wireless and Mobile Teachnologies in
Education (WMTE'05), pp. 222-229.
Schwabe G.; C. Göth; D. Frohberg (2005). Does Team Size Matter in Mobile Learning? In:
Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Mobile Business. Sydney, Australia:
IEEE Computer Society, pp. 227-234.
121
Scornavacca, E.; S. J. Barnes; S. Huff (2006). Mobile business research published in 2000-2004:
Emergence, current status, and future opportunities. Communications of the Association for
Information Systems, Vol. 17, pp. 635-646.
Seppälä P.; H. Alamäki (2003). Mobile learning in teacher training. Journal of Computer
Assisted Learning, Vol. 19, pp. 330-335.
Thorton, P.; Houser, C. (2002). M-learning in transit. In: P. Lewis (Ed.), The changing face of
CALL. Lisse, The Netherlands: Swets and Zeitlinger, pp. 229-243.
Thorton, P.; Houser, C. (2003). Using mobile web and video phones in English language
teaching: Projects with Japanese college students. In: B. Morrison; C. Green; Motteram G.
(Eds.), Directions in CALL: Experience, experiments and evaluation Hong Kong: English
Language Centre, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, pp. 207-224.
Thorton, P.; Houser, C. (2005). Using mobile phones in English Education in Japan. Journal of
Computer Assisted Learning, Vol. 21, pp. 217-228.
Author:
Jafar Asgari Arani, Prof.
University, Iran (Islamic Republic of)
Kashan Iran
87159-8814 kashan
Iran (Islamic Republic of)
Phone 00989133611740
Fax 00983615551112
122
THE COLLABORATIVE WORKING ENVIRONMENT:
NEXT GENERATION LEARNING PLATFORM
Roger Larsen (Fronter)
Abstract: In this session we will present Fronter’s vision of the Collaborative Working Environment as the
next generation online learning space.
A direct interaction between the student-controlled Personal Learning Environment (PLE), with their lifelong
eportfolio, and the traditional institution-controlled and “closed” learning platform (LMS/VLE), all integrated
with web 2.0 services and advanced web applications as desktop-application alternatives.
Keywords: personal learning environment
Lifelong eportfolio – the Personal Learning Environment
Students pass through a series of learning institutions during their academic career; primary school,
lower and upper secondary school, various course providers and maybe several universities. Today,
most of these learning institutions have a “closed” institution-controlled learning platform (LMS)
where they keep record of the student’s portfolio and evidences of learning which were created during
the (short) while the student went to the institution.
How can the student create a lifelong eportfolio?
Fronter’s vision of a Personal Learning Environment (PLE) is to create a digital backpack where the
student carries with them their own learning history and lifelong eportfolio. Via various prototypes,
Fronter will demonstrate how the student-controlled PLE can directly interact with traditional learning
platforms, making this lifelong learning vison a reality.
Web 2.0: Here is my blog – assess me, please…
One of the most important tasks a university has is to assess students and issue “certificates” of
knowledge. Holding a PhD’s or Master degree from a leading university is both prestigious and
important, and the universities which issue the “certificate” are well aware of the quality stamp which
their “brand name” represents. Most universities are therefore very cautious about how they assess
students and verify their level of knowledge.
123
A major condition is that the university can authenticate the student, their work and thereby the
knowledge required in order to deserve a certain degree. With an increasingly amount of the students
history being created and stored at various internet sites and applications on the web, for example on
blogs, social network sites, etc, how can the university continue verify the material? How can the
university be sure it is really created by the student? How and where is it stored? Will it be available
tomorrow, and in ten years, so that the university can provide evidence to back up its certificate if
questioned?
Although web 2.0 applications represent unique opportunities for the learner, there are still a number
of fundamental needs that the university must maintain, for example authentication and longitivity.
Fronter will present how web 2.0 applications and services, which are spread across the web, can be
integrated into the learning environment, consisting of both a personal learning environment and a
traditional learning platform, in such a way that the universities interests are maintained, and at the
same time let the learning process use the full potential of web 2.0 applications.
From Personal Learning Environment to Collaborative Working Environment
During the last 10 years, traditional learning platforms has invaded Europe, and for many become an
indispensable concept or tool. Despite only being around for a short amount of time, Learning
Platforms has undergone many phases, which might be referred to as “generations”. With the birth of
the web back in 1993, came the first generation of “home grown” systems. The second generation
appeared around 1997 as out of the box Learning Management Systems. Today learning platforms are
mostly referred to as Virtual Learning Environments or Managed Learning Environments, which I
look upon as third generation systems.
Now, following the rapid development and high uptake of the ePortfolio concept and the integration of
web 2.0 applications, the Learning Platform is now moving into the fourth generation: Personal
Learning Environments. A PLE is where the user is in the centre and “owns” his/her own data and
process. The ePortfolio reflects all activities and tracks progress made by the user throughout the
learning process. The ePortfolio carries evidence of work and activity in the work portfolio, and has
selected evidences of learning in the presentation portfolios, independent of where the evidence were
actually created, for example on the students blog outside the learning platform. The learning process
is centred on the learner, with individual learning plans and development plans, providing flexible
learning situations as well encouraging the learner to reflect and share.
At Online Educa 2006 Fronter presented its vision of a Collaborative Working Environment. The
assumption were that as the web technology is becoming increasingly more advanced and bandwidth
to the user improving, new and exciting web applications will be able to deliver the same level of
functionality as traditional desktop applications, and all these will be integrated both with the
124
traditional learning platform and the personal learning environment. One year later we see an
increasingly number applications suites and collaborative working environments starting to appear, for
example eyeOS or Google with “Docs”. Fronter will demonstrate how these applications seamlessly
integrate into the learning platform.
Author:
Roger Larsen
Fronter
Rådhusgt 1-3
0103 Oslo
Norway
Phone 004790835383
125
ELEARNING: LE DEVENIR
DE LA CONCEPTION POUR LE FORMATEUR
Gérard Delacour (Recherche en Pédagogie des Adultes, Didactique Professionnelle, CNAM)
Resume: Nous partons de la question : « comment s'organise l'activité du formateur qui utilise les artefacts
qui lui sont prescrits pour mener à bien la conception, en équipe multimédia et pluridisciplinaire, de
programmes de formation eLearning?» Nous y lisons l’interrogation sur le devenir du formateur dans le
nouveau contexte des TICE. Qu’annoncent l’instrument et le dispositif, que devient le formateur dans un
ensemble complexe, instrumenté par l’informatique, normalisé et hautement technicisé ? Ces questions, déjà
« anciennes » (elles sont apparues, en ce qui nous concerne, dès 1982) sont restées vives dans le contexte
actuel de normalisation des TICE. Notre recherche porte sur deux formateurs à qui il a été demandé de partir
de leur position fonctionnelle classique pour réaliser un projet de formation eLearning.
Mots clés: activité du formateur, artefact, instrument, dispositif, pédagogie d'enseignement, pédagogie de
conception, genèse instrumentale, structuration, modélisation, dimension collective
Introduction
«Comment s’organise l’activité du formateur qui utilise l’artefact qui lui est prescrit pour mener à bien
la conception, en équipe multimédia et pluridisciplinaire, de programmes de formation eLearning ? »
Rappelons que l’introduction des TICE dans l’ingénierie de formation est à prendre comme une
donnée indépendante de tout jugement de valeur. Nous ne voulons pas évaluer ici un événement
historique des Sciences et Techniques, ni aucune de ses conséquences sociales et idéologiques. Cela
représente un fait dont nous prenons acte: les TICE sont la toile de fond de la nouvelle ingénierie de
formation, et ne sont plus simplement conjoncturelles. Elles sont une des caractéristiques structurelles
de la situation de formation présente et à venir.
Anne-Marie Husson écrivait récemment1: « Le eL a beaucoup gagné en maturité depuis son stade
initial et artisanal. Il touche aujourd’hui l’ensemble des secteurs de la formation et de l’éducation,
depuis la formation initiale (primaire, secondaire et supérieure), la formation professionnelle continue
et la formation tout au long de la vie (loi mai 2004). Tous les acteurs de la filière formation et
éducation sont aujourd’hui concernés.»
Avant de parler d’une quelconque organisation de l’activité du formateur, le premier problème posé
est celui du devenir de la fonction de formateur. Que devient le formateur dans un ensemble
complexe, instrumenté par l’informatique et hautement technicisé ? Rappelons que le management de
projet de formation eLearning requiert non seulement des compétences d’ingénierie mais aussi une
compréhension de la pluridisciplinarité à l’œuvre dans l’interdisciplinarité des équipes. L’instrument
annonce ses intentions de substituer à l’enseignement classique une autoformation, c’est-à-dire la
volonté de faire en majeure partie l’économie du formateur d’antan. Cette question peut avoir pour
réponse la disparition pure et simple du formateur2.
Schéma 1
Les formateurs dont nous parlons ici sont appelés concepteurs pour les distinguer de l'inventeur dont
les artefacts leur ont été prescrits pour la réalisation des programmes de formation3. Le concepteur a
pour mission de concevoir et de réaliser -et/ou faire réaliser- un programme de formation sur
ordinateur pour un utilisateur final, qui utilise seul ou en groupe, à distance ou en présentiel, le
programme multimédia de formation. L’utilisateur final est nommé l'apprenant. Le concepteur est en
1
http://www.cafel.fr/spip.php?article10
De nombreux programmes eLearning ont été réalisés entièrement par des équipes composées de spécialistes de la communication
« corporate », d’informaticiens, ou de vidéastes, sans programmation pédagogique et sans consultation d’un formateur ni d’aucun
pédagogue.
3
Les deux artefacts sont ProDid©, méthode de production de programme de formation eL, et NaviCub©, interface dynamique de navigation
dans le programme.
2
126
relation amont avec l’inventeur de l’artefact. Il est invité à utiliser un ensemble instrumenté par
l’informatique, qui doit être mis en œuvre grâce à une équipe pluridisciplinaire dont il est l’animateur
en tant que chef de projet. C’est ce groupe projet qui a la mission de fabriquer le dispositif de
formation dont fait partie le programme de formation.
La Didactique Professionnelle
Nous nous situons ici du point de vue de l’ingénierie de la formation de formateurs. Nous convoquons
les concepts de la Didactique Professionnelle car nous nous trouvons au cœur de l’ingénierie de
formation. De plus, le terme de didactique indique qu’il s’agit de l’étude des processus de
transmission et d’appropriation des connaissances, par rapport aux contenus à apprendre.
Schéma 2
Nous sommes en présence d’un processus d’ingénierie de eLearning utilisé par des concepteurs. Mais
eux-mêmes mettent en œuvre une ingénierie de formation pour concevoir et réaliser un dispositif de
formation que des maîtres d’ouvrage ont commandé. Cette commande correspond à des besoins
identifiés pour des adultes au travail. Le programme eLearning à produire doit être utilisé pour
augmenter les « compétences » des stagiaires: permettre la compréhension et l’utilisation des
connaissances acquises, dans leur univers professionnel concret.
Convoquer la Didactique Professionnelle signifie que l’on souhaite utiliser une discipline qui
« cherche à articuler de façon très forte deux dimensions qui ne vont pas forcément ensemble : la
dimension théorique et la dimension opératoire.» [8]
La dimension opératoire est présente comme d’habitude puisque l’ingénierie de formation croit
pouvoir généralement s’en satisfaire. «L’ordre des méthodes » en représente la structure première.
Mais l’ingénierie de formation devrait savoir qu’elle ne peut s’en contenter et qu’il faut qu’un « ordre
des raisons » vienne « fonder et justifier » l’ordre des méthodes [idem]. La difficulté est de bien
analyser cette articulation qui suppose la compréhension de deux postures différentes.
Appliquer une posture empirique nous procurerait certes une liste détaillée et méthodique d’opérations
prescrites et d’opérations effectuées mais nous ne pourrions en pointer ni les fondements ni les limites.
Le cadre méthodologique et théorique dont nous avons besoin, est celui de l’action et de la
connaissance issue de l’action, issu des travaux de Piaget et Vergnaud.
Or nous ne nous trouvons pas dans des situations connues: dans le eLearning, chaque situation peut
être nouvelle et ne renvoie pas à des situations semblables antérieures. En revanche, la situation
particulière – et peut-être singulière – de tel concepteur pourra être comparée à celle d’un autre
concepteur, ne serait-ce qu’en raison de la prescription commune du même artefact instrumental.
Les deux concepteurs auxquels nous pensons ici, ne sont pas au départ des spécialistes compétents
pour mener à bien la mission qui leur est confiée. Ils ont à concevoir leur travail et ses objets. C’est
une partie importante de leur mission, qui ne consiste pas seulement à produire le dispositif de
formation eLearning.
Révolution copernicienne
Le concepteur n’a pas seulement à être chef de projet avec une équipe pluridisciplinaire. Il a en
permanence à l’esprit l’utilisateur final qu’est l’apprenant. Et cet élément de la situation nous semble
rendre compte d’un point de vue primordial pour l’ingénierie, et donc pour la réussite du projet. Pour
la clarté ultérieure de cette analyse, annonçons d’emblée qu’une des hypothèses de l’inventeur de
l’artefact était que le formateur, pour concevoir le programme eLearning, doit prendre la place,
c’est-à-dire prendre le point de vue de l’apprenant.
L’apprenant est en situation d’indépendance autoformative. Il a accès quand il veut et où il veut aux
contenus de sa formation. Il est un acteur solitaire de sa propre formation, puisque les temps de
présentiel avec le formateur, individuellement ou en groupe, sont réduits ou totalement supprimés.
La fonction du formateur est profondément modifiée. Elle est déplacée vers un niveau où il a besoin
d’un double point de vue: de loin et de haut, pour voir au mieux son projet, et dedans, comme
127
embarqué dans le processus, comme dans un avion qu’il pilote, à la place de l’apprenant dans le
programme.
Cette position peut être dite « métapédagogique », c'est-à-dire très en amont de la distribution de la
formation elle-même. Il ne s’agit plus d’une pédagogie d’enseignement mais d’une pédagogie de
conception.
Le formateur est devenu un formateur-concepteur. Il doit s’assurer de la réussite de la modélisation
du programme eLearning, grâce à un outil d’organisation adéquat qui en assure la production, grâce à
la production méthodique de livrables dont la fabrication est confiée à différents métiers.
L’imposition des TICE dans les programmes à construire a pour conséquence une révolution
« copernicienne », c'est-à-dire que ce sont les points d’appui et les points de vue qui s’en trouvent
totalement bouleversés: le formateur tel que nous l’avons connu, disparaît. D’ailleurs le vocable
n’apparaît plus. On parle maintenant de chef de projet multimédia, d’expert, de pédagogue, de conseil
pédagogique, et de « tuteur », dont les définitions sont difficiles à unifier. Le rôle de tuteur, c'est-à-dire
d’accompagnement plus ou moins synchrone, par courriel et/ou par téléphone, est confié à des acteurs
dont la compétence pédagogique d’accompagnement est parfois en fort décalage avec les besoins de
l’apprenant.
Si la technologie est incontournable, cela ne signifie pas pour autant qu’elle offre de facto un espace
de médiation. Si l’existence du téléphone est une des conditions nécessaires d’une conversation
téléphonique, ce n’est pas la technologie qui est créatrice des informations échangées mais les êtres
humains qui se parlent. Or, ce que certains informaticiens ont avancé, notamment dans la période de
développement d’une « intelligence artificielle - IA », était qu’il était possible qu’un programme
informatique puisse « créer » des contenus adaptés aux apprenants. C'est-à-dire qu’au lieu de
permettre aux apprenants d’aller chercher (progiciels de « pull ») les contenus de savoirs qu’ils
souhaitent, les technologies de « push » étaient proposées par des experts techniques qui ne se posaient
aucune question didactique. Nous ne portons ici aucun jugement sur le fait technologique et nos
questions portent sur l’utilisation de l’informatique, dans les limites des réalités vérifiables et non des
effets d’annonce. Ces questions sont d’autant plus vives qu’elles mettent en cause la formation
classique et les formateurs, par le biais d’une technologie qualifiée d’« intelligente » par ses experts.
Notre hypothèse d’un formateur-concepteur qui prend le point de vue de l’apprenant, tient compte de
l’imposition des conditions qui amènent ce formateur à s’y soumettre ou à disparaître en tant que
formateur.
Le formateur qui veut garder une place dans les programmes de formation eLearning se trouve devant
deux grands choix : ou bien être animateur du projet de conception-production, en se formant et donc
en faisant évoluer ses compétences en conséquence, ou bien il doit fournir aux informaticiens les
référentiels de contenus que ces derniers mettent en forme dans leurs plateformes eLearning.
Ce deuxième choix signifie que c’est la forme technologique qui devient le signifiant, c'est-à-dire le
porteur d’une analogie entre les pages du livre et les pages d’écran du PC, entre les exercices proposés
par un enseignant en chair et en os, et les questions d’exercices fondés sur l’unique typologie des
QCM, c'est-à-dire sur la seule logique disponible en informatique, la logique du calcul binaire.
L’autre choix, celui qui a été celui des deux concepteurs dont nous parlons ici, renvoie à la création
d’une ingénierie pédagogique qui fait du formateur classique un concepteur de programme eLearning,
en plaçant au centre de son ingénierie la position d’autoformation de l’apprenant.
L’équipe de conception-réalisation-production, y compris les informaticiens, constitue un ensemble de
ressources et de moyens au service du projet de conception eLearning, dans lequel le point de vue
adopté et construit, est celui de l’apprenant.
En recevant la mission de chef de projet eLearning, le formateur ne disparaît pas. Sa fonction est
appelée à évoluer fondamentalement en se déplaçant vers l’amont de la formation elle-même. En
devenant concepteur, il devient un métaformateur (voir notre article sur ProDid© et NaviCub©) au
sens qu’il travaille à la mise en place des enseignements dans le cadre imposé, en amont de la
formation, en tenant compte des règles de guidage dans le programme et d’indépendance de
l’apprenant, qu’il intègre à sa pédagogie. Le préfixe grec « méta » prend tout son sens, rapporté à
Aristote qui a placé son texte « la Métaphysique », après la Physique, pour l’éclairer. De même, le
128
formateur, devenu métaformateur, se projette dans l’après production du programme, c’est-à-dire dans
le monde de l’apprenant, pour s’en servir en amont, lors de la conception.
Le concepteur est dans un couplage de transmission, au sens mécanique, entre chacun des
experts et spécialistes engagés dans la fabrication et lui-même en tant qu’il représente le point de
vue de l’apprenant.
Cela pose la question d’une ingénierie de formation qui, à propos de la livraison d’un programme
eLearning, renouvelle les conditions de son approche didactique.
Quels sont les concepts de l’activité de conception?
Le programme a pour but central l’atteinte d’une compétence ou l’amélioration de la compétence du
sujet apprenant. C’est l’objet du programme de formation.
Comment le formateur-concepteur organise-t-il et structure-t-il son approche ? Quels sont les concepts
organisateurs de son activité de conception?
Schéma 3
Le schéma 3 illustre une situation de formation dans laquelle le formateur, sujet qui possède les
savoirs, les fait passer quantitativement vers ses élèves qui s’en remplissent. Dans une telle
conception, le formateur est centré sur l’objet à transmettre, avec des possibilités d’ajustement portées
par une médiation sous forme des retours (feed-back) entre les élèves, le dispositif et lui. Le point de
départ est le Savoir qui est en lui. Le point d’aboutissement est dans l’élève, sous l’analogie d’un
« remplissage » de savoirs.
La nouvelle situation de formation avec pour but central la compétence de l’apprenant peut être
schématisée ainsi:
Schéma 4
L’élève est devenu apprenant, et cela affirme la dynamique de sa participation active demandée par le
système. L’enseignant ou le formateur n’a plus d’élève et n’a pas de relation directe avec l’apprenant.
C’est pourquoi nous disions qu’il disparaît en tant que tel. On le voit réapparaître éventuellement du
côté de l’ingénierie pédagogique (en couleur jaune sur le schéma), si elle existe dans le dispositif
eLearning. Dans ce cas, qui est celui de notre étude, il existe un « retour » du dispositif (en gris sur le
schéma) vers l’apprenant, via les TICE et la notion de compétence accrue grâce à la formation
dispensée. Cela indique la place du formateur dans la conception de ces programmes, et dans la
coordination des équipes de production (en orange).
Mais d’où et de quoi peut partir cette conception ? Car l’élaboration des programmes de formation,
dans la nouvelle situation du eLearning de la présente recherche, ne fait pas appel à des référentiels.
Est-il possible d’envisager d’aider les formateurs autrement que par des référentiels?
Les concepteurs mènent des observations et des entretiens sur l’activité d’apprenants fournis selon un
échantillon significatif. Cette extraction de récits d’expériences va devoir être structurée par le
formateur.
Le concept de schème ou comment le formateur devient concepteur
La Didactique Professionnelle nous dit que ce n’est pas le « verbe » qui est premier, ni « la théorie »
mais « c’est par l’action que commence la pensée » [13, page 275]. Et nos concepteurs sont confrontés
au terrain d’une nouvelle réalité, munis de leurs schèmes précédents. Il va leur falloir comprendre ces
situations où sont livrés des concepts à découvrir et à organiser. Quels sont les indices dont ils se
servent pour comprendre et ordonner le réel ? Tels le porcher donné en exemple par Gérard Vergnaud
[13, page 278], qui construit sa représentation de la situation à partir de catégories ordonnées qui
permettent de prendre des décisions dans l’action. Il en est de même pour le sportif, sauteur à la
perche : « Il y a donc calcul en pensée au cours du déroulement même du saut : un schéme comporte
des inférences. » [13, page 279] On parle de « connaissance opératoire » pour définir le schéme. C’est
« raisonner et agir en fonction de certaines conditions. C’est justement cela que fait un schéme,
129
puisqu’un schéme n’est nullement un stéréotype mais une manière de régler son action en fonction des
caractéristiques particulières de la situation à laquelle on s’adresse, ici et maintenant. » [13, page
281]. Il est question d’adaptabilité et de plasticité, c'est-à-dire de la capacité de nos formateurs de
comprendre dans l’action et d’agir dans la compréhension des situations auxquelles ils sont confrontés
dans leur activité de conception de programme.
Ils doivent adapter leurs anciens schèmes, puisque c’est ainsi que l’être humain avance en
compréhension et augmente ses compétences: les formateurs devenus concepteurs de programmes de
eLearning sont sans cesse sollicités pour adapter leur pensée, dans le but de produire le « meilleur »
programme possible. Il leur faut organiser leur conduite pour ces nouvelles classes de situations, et ils
ne peuvent le faire qu’à partir de leurs conduites antérieures, adaptées au présent.
Si l’être humain ne possédait pas cette faculté de construire une organisation invariante de son action,
il devrait fabriquer en permanence la compréhension du monde dont il a besoin pour y vivre. Mais si
le schème était un stéréotype figé, il ne pourrait pas « générer des conduites différentes en fonction des
situations singulières auxquelles il est amené à s’adresser. » [13, page 284] et « on ne comprend pas la
pensée si l’on n’en voit pas le double caractère: systématique et opportuniste. » [13, page 286] c'est-àdire avant tout capable de raccrocher le connu au nouveau, et la nouveauté sortante de l’aménagement
des schèmes précédents. « Le schème est ce qui permet d’articuler de façon forte la dimension
invariante de l’activité et sa dimension d’adaptabilité aux situations. » [7, page 2]
Car la diachronie du projet à laquelle est soumis le concepteur de programme de formation eLearning
est la suivante: plus le projet avance, plus la connaissance de l’organisation de l’activité se
perfectionne, c’est-à-dire que s’opèrent des conceptualisations nouvelles grâce à la compréhensioncréation de la tâche par le concepteur, et en même temps qu’il devient plus compétent, le concepteur
ne doit pas être contraint, voire bloqué, par ses nouvelles connaissances, mais les mettre au service de
la dynamique de conception elle-même génératrice de situations nouvelles.
Et notre recherche a montré que lorsque le concepteur se trouve plus ou moins bloqué car confronté à
l’inconnu ou au mal connu, il infère, dans l’action, des ajustements, c’est-à-dire qu’il génère un
schème adapté à la nouvelle situation tout en conservant l’organisation comme invariance nécessaire à
la cohérence de son action.
« Ce type d'apprentissage comporte une double référence: d'une part référence à une activité en
situation, puisqu'il y a une situation-problème qui sollicite de la part du sujet une activité de
transformation du milieu, correspondant à la résolution du problème. D'autre part, référence à un ou
des savoir(s), qui correspondent aux ressources utilisées pour résoudre le problème. » [8]
Le concept de schéme est pragmatique: c’est un maillon de la chaîne de reproduction et de continuité
de l’action dans son évolution.
Ainsi le concept de schème rend compte superbement d’une faculté pérenne et dynamique,
incompréhensible autrement: l’être humain vit sa permanence sur fond de schèmes embarqués dans
une continuité, dont les éléments et les buts changent. L’être humain est doué de la capacité
conscientielle d’adapter, sans rupture ontologique, le passé de sa pensée au présent, dans l’action ellemême.
La genèse instrumentale ou comment le formateur s’approprie la technique
Les concepteurs ont reçu un cadre pour structurer leur pensée. L’artefact joue un rôle essentiel en tant
qu’instrument dans l’activité des concepteurs qui ont la nécessité de le comprendre et de l’utiliser pour
atteindre le but.
Ce processus actif est une « genèse instrumentale »: « L’approche instrumentale repose sur la
distinction entre artefact et instrument: selon cette approche, un objet créé par l’homme demeure un
artefact tant qu’il n’a pas été assimilé par l’acteur qui va s’en servir. Il devient alors un instrument,
au sens où il est incorporé à l’organisation de l’action du sujet. La transformation d’un artefact en
instrument se fait par un processus de genèse instrumentale. » [7, p. 1]
L’artefact n’a pas été donné tout construit aux formateurs. Placés dans la situation décrite, ils ont du
faire face à de très nombreuses nouveautés, notamment en matière d’ingénierie, c'est-à-dire
d’organisation de contenus et de procédures. Il leur a fallu accommoder ce qu’ils avaient assimilé au
130
préalable dans leur expérience de formateurs. Confrontés à des situations si nouvelles qu’il leur a fallu
déconstruire leurs schèmes, et les réorganiser en fonction de la nouvelle situation.
NaviCub©, un exemple d’artefact structuré et structurant pour la navigation, et ProDid©, un exemple
de méthode de structuration de production de programme de eL
Comment ces deux artefacts –que nous ne détaillons pas ici- ont-ils fonctionné dans l’activité des
concepteurs ? L’artefact, devenu instrument du concepteur-formateur est tout à la fois un organisateur
de cette activité, tout à fait structuré dans ce but, et c’est aussi un organisateur structurant, une forme
structurante, qui accompagne l’activité du formateur dans sa conception.
Schéma 5 (ProDid©)
Schéma 6 (NaviCub©)
L’artefact a été conçu pour s’adapter à des situations très diverses, puisqu’il offre un cadre structurant
formel non contraignant. Pas plus contraignant qu’une toile blanche pour le peintre. Et le peintre peut
choisir, par exemple, de mettre en page son œuvre dans le sens du portrait ou à l’italienne, avec la
même toile. Il peut surtout choisir ce qu’il y peindra!
Un outil structurant n’est pas un outil qui enferme, il ne représente pas une injonction taylorienne
d’exécution de tâche. Il est un méta-outil qui correspond à la méta-pédagogie du formateur dans sa
nouvelle fonction de concepteur.
L’artefact est devenu un outil organisateur de l’activité, il est structurant pour l’activité. En tant que
schème, il est modifiable et donc modifié. Il s’adapte en fonction des classes de situations, dans le
travail de conception4. Il s’applique à différents domaines, que ce soit la conduite de camions, la taille
des rosiers ou la sécurité alimentaire.
Nos concepteurs apprennent la conception dans l’action, dans la confrontation avec des situations
nouvelles, grâce au modèle opératif que se constitue chaque concepteur, modèle qui se dégage de
l’analyse de leur activité.
Concepts organisateurs
Mais comment les concepteurs se sont-ils emparés de l’artefact? Cela leur est parfois dénié par les
autres spécialistes impliqués dans la fabrication du dispositif de formation. Les concepteurs ont
expérimenté l’outil fourni, et ont réalisé la conception demandée.
Nos formateurs ne sont pas des spécialistes du domaine, ni du eLearning. Ils utilisent un artefact qui
leur permet de comprendre et de s’adapter à la situation, c'est-à-dire de se former. L’outil est mobilisé
pour organiser un diagnostic le meilleur possible qui doit déboucher sur un travail de collationnement
entre les extractions de récits d’expériences et les contenus de savoirs experts. Construire une table des
matières est un exercice qui ne met pas en jeu une simple liste de chapitres, en fonction de référentiels,
mais le réordonnancement, la réorganisation de la formation en fonction du changement de point de
vue adopté, c'est-à-dire celui de l’apprenant.
Nous pensons qu’un des concepts organisateurs de la situation a été un concept qui unifie en une
référence unique, un ensemble compliqué, c'est-à-dire des milliers de pages de témoignages et
exemples, de récits, d’entretiens professionnels, de photos de situations de travail, etc. Ce concept
appartient au champ didactique.
Nous entendons par là le fait de changer de point d’appui pour l’ingénierie : il s’agit de savoir
comment s’intéresse et ce qui intéresse l’apprenant.
Pour cela, le concepteur s’approprie un outil structuré, qui est structurant pour son action, c'est-à-dire
organisateur de son activité de conception.
Le concept organisateur central que nous pensons être la clé de voûte de la structure conceptuelle de la
situation de conception est celui de « point de vue de l’apprenant ».
4
L’artefact est plutôt un système d’artefacts, qui devient un système d’instruments dont se sert le concepteur, d’après la théorie instrumentale
de Pierre Rabardel et Gaétan Bourmaud, in Instruments et systèmes d’instruments [7].
131
Nous ne parlons pas de la volonté mille fois affirmée de « placer l’apprenant au centre du dispositif
de formation »…, ce qui était aussi le cas des référentiels.
Non, nous pensons qu’en rapportant et en comparant en permanence chaque détail du programme à
concevoir au « point de vue de l’apprenant », le concepteur organise son activité grâce à ce schème
d’équilibre et de cohésion de l’ensemble du matériau complexe collecté. Ce concept organise
l’ensemble des actions nécessaires à la réussite du projet. Nous l’appelons « concept » du « point de
vue de l’apprenant » et non « notion », à cause de son caractère organisateur. Ce qui n’était sans doute
qu’un principe au départ, est devenu un concept qui permet de comprendre comment s’est organisée
l’activité.
Le concept de « point de vue de l’apprenant » est organisateur de l’activité de conception car il
correspond à un but central de l’activité. Toute la mise en scène que conçoit le formateur, des savoirs,
des savoir-faire et des contenus, sera ensuite dédiée à la machine. Et cela se fait en équipe
multidisciplinaire.
La dimension collective de la nouvelle ingénierie
L’exemple développé par P. Mayen5 à partir de réceptionnaires de clients dans un garage de réparation
automobile, nous fournit par analogie un modèle pour dégager les schèmes d’interaction langagière en
acte dans l’activité des concepteurs.
En effet, la recherche du sens de la situation de conception engage la question du langage collectif ou
plus exactement des langages. Dans le rapport à la tâche qui lui est prescrite, le concepteur a besoin
d’aide, de médiation, de la part de plusieurs spécialistes d’autres métiers, afin d’acquérir les
connaissances qui lui sont nécessaires pour atteindre le but de sa mission. Laissés seul à lui-même, le
concepteur de programme de formation eLearning n’aurait pas pu aboutir. De même, sans lui, le
programme ne sera pas pédagogiquement conforme, vu du point de vue de l’apprenant.
La théorie qui peut nous aider à comprendre ce qui se passe dans cette marge plus ou moins étroite
entre activités solitaires et activités collectives, à 2 personnes ou plus de 2, est celle de la ZPD de Lev
Vygotski. La « Zone Prochaine de Développement » [14] désigne la marge qui permet de réussir avec
l’aide d’autrui ce qu’il n’aurait pas été possible d’apprendre ni de réussir seul. Le concepteur est ainsi
aidé par de multiples tiers, pas seulement sur le plan des savoirs, mais aussi par leur proximité, au sens
psychologique, créée dans l’équipe. Ces concours font partie de la structuration d’un projet de
programme multimédia: pour produire un tel programme, il faut la conjonction et l’aide réciproque de
plusieurs spécialistes, dans une relation d’écoute de l’autre suffisamment empathique et coopérative
pour assurer l’ajustement des langages, et donc du sens de la situation de conception. Les formations
s’échangent entre membres de l’équipe de travail et avec les sous-traitants associés. Chaque membre
du projet est une ressource de l’activité du concepteur dans la mesure où existe ce que Bruner, à la
suite de Vygotski, définit comme « médiation de tutelle » qui agit entre spécialistes. Ainsi « le sens
d’une situation de travail ou de formation est à la fois individuel et partagé. » [8, p. 5]
Conclusion
Pour pouvoir adopter et utiliser cette nouvelle posture, le formateur devenu concepteur de programmes
eL doit avoir à sa disposition des outils, à la fois conceptuels et techniques, comme ceux que notre
travail de recherche a étudiés.
Il est primordial que l’ingénierie de formation formule des demandes très précises sur ce point, ne se
contentant pas d’outils informatiques, plateformes et dispositifs qui seraient uniquement fondés sur le
transvasement quantitatif de connaissances. Il lui faut affirmer et former les équipes concernées pour
que tous comprennent ce que signifie « le point de vue de l’apprenant », formule qui est restée bien
trop longtemps un vœu pieux ou un argument commercial non suivi d’effets probants. La formation en
a souffert, les formateurs ont eu du mal à convaincre, le niveau de qualité des formations a souvent été
critiquée par les maîtres d’ouvrage.
Il reste à étudier plus avant la question de ce que peut offrir une technique binaire qui ne ressemble au
calcul opéré par les neurones que par ses fonctions de déduction, opérations mathématiques et
5
[Pastré, Magnen, Vergnaud, 2006, 9].
132
logiques qui ne permettent pas les fonctions inductives du cerveau humain. Mais cela est l’objet
d’autres chantiers, actuellement en cours, qui feront l’objet de communications.
Références
Caspar, Pierre (1999), Intégrer l’avenir, les nouvelles technologies in Traité des Sciences et des
Techniques de la Formation, CARRE et CASPAR, dir., Paris: Dunod.
Castells, Michel (1996), La société en réseaux, tome 1, L’ère de l’information, Paris: Fayard
(1998).
Delacour, Gérard (1996). Edgeless Web, New York: Publication interne CDC (1997).
Delacour, Gérard (1994). Prolégomènes à une Industrie Didactique de Formation, transmettre les
compétences, sauvegarder les savoirs et les savoir-faire, New York: Publication interne CDC
(1997).
Pain, Abraham (2003). L’ingénierie de la formation, Paris, L’Harmattan.
Pastre, Pierre, dir. (1999). Apprendre des situations. Revue d’Education Permanente n°139 (juin
1999).
Pastere, Pierre (2005). Genèse et identité in Modèles du sujet pour la conception, Dialectiques
activités développement. Rabardel & Pastre, dir., Toulouse: Octarès Éditions, p. 231-260.
Pastere, Pierre ; Mayen, Patrick ; Vergnaud, Gérard (2006). La Didactique Professionnelle, Revue
Française de Pédagogie, n° 154, janvier-février-mars 2006, p. 6 sqq.
Piaget, J. ; Garcia, R. (1987). Vers une logique des significations, Genève: Murionde.
Rabardel, Pierre (2005). Instrument subjectif et développement du pouvoir d’agir in Modèles du
sujet pour la conception, Dialectiques activités développement. Rabardel & Pastre, dir., Toulouse:
Octarès Éditions, p. 11-29.
Samurcay ; Rabardel (2004). cité in Pastre P., Magnen P., Vergnaud G. (2006), p. 9.
Vergnaud, Gérard (1992). Qu’est-ce que la didactique ?... Transposition didactique et mise en
scène in Approches didactiques en formation des adultes, Revue Education Permanente, n° 111,
juin 1992, Paris: Distique, Buchet-Chastel.
Vergnaud, Gérard (1996). Au fond de l’action, la conceptualisation in Savoirs théoriques et
savoirs d’action, Barbier, dir., Paris: PUF.
Vygotski, Lev (1934). Problème et méthode de recherche, et La théorie de Piaget in Pensée et
langage, trad. Françoise Sève (1985). Paris: Éditions La Dispute (1997), 47-134. et PIAGET, Jean.
Commentaire sur les remarques critiques de Vygotski…, in supra, p. 501-516.
133
Schémas
Schéma 1
Dispositif de formation
Instrument
Schéma 2
EIAH
Dispositif et
Concepteur
programme
de formation
Apprenant
+ pairs
Inventeur
+ tuteur
des artefacts
Apprenant
Ing ˇ nierie
pˇ dagogique eL
Concepteur
+ ˇ quipe
Projet eLearning
Inventeur
+ ˇ quipe
Schéma 3
Compˇ tence
Apprentissage
Artefact
instrumental
Concepts th ˇ oriques
Concepts pragmatiques
Mod¸ les
Savoirs mis en forme
Ressources
humaines
Objets
Production
Mise en sc ¸ ne
Enseignant
Formateur
Mˇ diation
l¸ ve
Schéma 4
Feed-back
TECHNE
+
marchˇ
environnement
Apprenant
Enseignant
Formateur
+
compˇ tent
injonction
sociale
Demande
+
marchˇ
Schéma 5
134
Rˇ alisation - production
Ingˇ nierie
pˇ dagogique
Conception - management
Distribution
TICE
l¸ ve
Pluridisciplinarit ˇ
Pluridisciplinarit ˇ
Transdisciplinarit
Transdisciplinarit ˇˇ
Tutorat Tutorat
1
2
Tutorat
3
Tutorat
4
Tutorat
5
ProDid
ProDid
4
5
Tutor
4
6
ProDid ProDid
Tutor
7
Tutor
8
Pro
Did
Pro
Did
7
8
ProDid
APPLIC APPLIC
1
2
Repérer
Imaginer Extraire
APPLIC
3
ProDid
6
4
Modéliser
Scénariser Produire
CERTIFICATION
Évaluer
Packager
Les 8 s équences du process ProDid
Distribuer
© Gérard Delacour1998 -2008
Schéma 6
HORIZONTAL
Extension
du concept
VERTICAL
Compr éhension
du concept
Interfac e Intuitive de Navigation
Auteur:
Gérard Delacour
Diplômé d’Enseignement Supérieur de Philosophie
Sociologue des Organisations, Formateur
Expert TICE auprès de l’Union Européenne
Doctorant en Sciences de l’Education
7 rue au Maire, 75003 Paris,
France
E-mail :[email protected]
135
– NaviCub
©Gˇ rard Delacour1994 -2008
LEARNING PROJECT MANAGEMENT SKILLS IN BUSINESS
EDUCATION USING A GAME BASED ON
A REAL SPORTS TOURNAMENT
Martin Rodriguez (Instituto de Empresa Business School)
Keywords: Project Management, Project Manager, Key Activities, game based learning, serious games
The E-learning Department at Instituto de Empresa Business School (IE) has seven years experience
developing multimedia resources for its Masters Programs. In this period, it has developed more hat
180 products, of which several are serious games.
This session is to present one of these serious games developed by IE, and because we follow the case
study methodology and our cases are based on real businesses, this game is focused on a real life event
and scenario such as is the Tennis Masters Series, played every year in Madrid.
This serious game has been developed for the operations management area and the total time required
to play is around 60 minutes. The main objective is for students to learn and practice how to manage a
project. They have to plan and manage the tournament from a project point of view. They are also
going to learn some important concepts related to this subject such as: key activities, Gantt diagram,
critical path, precedence, risk, budget and time management, among others.
Before facing the game, students should read some short theoretical notes about project management
in order to know the basic aspects of this matter. After the game, students have a class where they are
going to discuss their results. The professor that guides the class will encourage debate among
students and guide them to conclusions.
As the game starts, the student is going to take the role of the General Director of the tournament. The
game is divided into three stages:
103. The first stage has the objective of putting students in the picture. It is very visual in order
to catch the attention of students. It has two parts:
104. The first part is made up of some interviews of the championship executives where
they explain what the project is, its goals, how the operations are and some of the
intrinsic and particular facts of the championship;
105. In the second part, some videos about the constructions of the venue are shown. Here
students can see the size and importance of the event first-hand.
Figure 1. Scenario chapter screenshot
136
106. In the second stage students start playing. Here they have to do the activity planning,
building their own Gantt diagram (specifying the starting point and the end point for each
activity). In total there are 35 activities divided into two main groups.
107. The first group of activities is made up of those tasks of the marketing plan. Students
have a limited budget to spend and can choose among 14 items, as for example, TV
advertising and outdoor advertising;
108. The second group of activities is related to operations. For example, students have to
rent the places where the competition is going to take place, hire temporary staff and sell
sponsorships.
Figure 2. Marketing plan diagram screenshot
Once students have finished their planning schedule, they pass to the management
stage where the time starts running, beginning in November and finishing in October (the
inauguration of the tournament). In this part they face different situations related to the
planning developed in the previous section and they also have to make different decisions
every month. During this stage, some unexpected events happen causing re-planning and
changes to the initial plan.
109.
Figure 3. Management stage screenshots
At the end of the game, students receive an evaluation based on 4 criteria:
110. To reach the date when the tournament takes place;
111. The total number of spectators that visited;
137
112. The tournament’s level of notoriety;
113. The economic results.
At the end of the game, students are encouraged to compare their results and then debate in class.
They can compare their Gantt diagram, how they have managed the 11 months championship
preparation and the decisions made during the tournament. Another point here is that some unexpected
events occur randomly, so students face different situations with different results and effects.
Professors and students comments, as well as their feedback, will be included in the full paper.
Author:
Martin Rodriguez
Instituto de Empresa Business School
C/ Maria de Molina 6. 1º
28006 Madrid
Spain
Phone +34 91 7875126
Fax +34 91 7875101
138
III. Supporting Lifelong Learning and
Employability
139
ENHANCING UNIVERSITY SUPPORT FOR CONTINUING
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, THROUGH A PORTAL DRIVEN
COLLABORATIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
Robert John Harris (University of Wolverhampton Business School, United Kingdom)
Abstract: Contemporary business management is increasingly demanding and technology offers new
opportunities; new customers, new markets, new areas of practice and new methods of working. Such
changes demand new knowledge, new skills and most importantly, a commitment to lifelong professional
learning. Subscribing to lifelong learning requires an active involvement in Continuing Professional
Development (CPD). In today’s knowledge intensive world, it can be argued that the only real source of
sustainable competitive advantage is the ability to learn faster than the competition. Indeed, today there is a
much greater expectation that professionals be both technically competent and managerially capable.
Organisations are increasingly engaging in human capital reporting activities. However, it should be
acknowledged that the value of knowledge transfer erodes over time. For instance, it has been suggested that
knowledge gained through an undergraduate degree has an average life of four years before it requires
updating. Firms that engage with CPD and efficiently tap into all relevant sources of knowledge are more
likely to thrive, whilst those that can’t may struggle. The widespread adoption of technology supported
learning has increased the potential for widening CPD support. The availability of Virtual Learning
Environments (VLE’s) have proved effective for delivering formal learning opportunities, but from a
pedagogical perspective these technology applications can be questioned in terms of their impact on learning
outcomes and their track record in delivering informal learning support. The solution for effective delivery of
CPD to managers and professionals may be to harness the power of the VLE and mesh it with physical
support/mentoring within an open source based learning framework, designed to encourage collaboration and
networking.
Keywords: Knowledge Transfer, Collaborative Learning, Portal, Continuing Professional Development
(CPD)
Context
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is a process by which individuals are mutually
responsible for their own learning and development. Through a system of focused knowledge transfer,
learners can acquire new knowledge and skills and with the aid of effective networking can share the
experiences of others. The importance of the concept of continuous lifelong learning has been
reflected across the professions and demonstrated through the growth of CPD. High growth businesses
are increasingly attributing success to the development of their employees, and strive for competitive
advantage through an improvement in their knowledge base. Indeed many SMEs are realising the
impact of knowledge transfer on their abilities to manage talent in order to effectively compete in
contemporary markets. The need for change and improvement has become increasingly associated
with organisational learning [Lee et al., 2000].
CPD is not a new area of training. Indeed effective managers and professionals in all fields have
identified the importance of new knowledge, improved skills and the development of personal
qualities as being integral to good professional practice. What is new, however, is the greater
importance and relevance of CPD to professional success. The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors
[2007] emphasized the contribution of the following factors to account for the growing importance of
CPD:
Competence: It has been estimated that the knowledge gained in some degree courses, particularly IT
based, has an average useful lifespan of approximately four years. While this will vary according to
the discipline, it does nevertheless highlight the increasing need to maintain an active interest in
keeping up to date with changing technology, legislation and operational procedures. If at the same
time, professionals have expectations of increased managerial responsibility, the need to acquire new
skills and knowledge is even more acute.
140
Consumerism: The development of a more affluent consumer society has also resulted in a better
informed and more sophisticated public. One consequence of this trend is that they expect a higher
duty of care and level of service from their professional advisors than in the past. Again the skills
acquired during an initial training period or during higher or further education may not equip new staff
for this role.
Litigation: The professions are increasingly at much high risk from claims of negligence than in the
past. Professional indemnity (PI) insurance premiums have risen considerably in recent years. CPD
may not totally eliminate PI claims; however, if sceptics are worried by the cost of CPD, such claims
may help emphasise the potential cost of ignorance! Some evidence is also emerging that insurance
companies may be willing to slightly reduce PI premiums, if a structured CPD programme is available
to staff.
Standards: One of the primary roles of professional bodies is to safeguard standards of competence.
CPD has a key role to play in the communication of agreed standards and in ensuring that members
comply with specified procedures.
Quality Management System: The increasing emphasis on quality management systems and the ethos
of continuous improvement has also increased the relevance of CPD. Training and education are key
elements of quality assurance processes and of the ‘Investors in People’ (IIP) standard.
Competitiveness: The highly competitive nature of modern business is a key driver for the need for
continuous development of an Organisation’s human resource. Whether in the private or public sector,
the competitive market edge must be partly or totally focused on client care/service quality and
technological innovation. Both demand a high investment in developing people skills, if they are to be
effective.
What is CPD?
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is a continuous process of personal development, to
improve the capability and realise the full potential of professionals and managers at work. It is
undertaken by acquiring and developing a wide range of knowledge, skills and experience, which are
not normally obtained through initial training or routine work, and which develop and maintain
competency to practice [RICS, 2007]. There is a growing importance placed upon all practitioners to
improve professional competency through a systematic process of continuing professional
development. New technology, changing working practices, legislative changes, and emergence of
new industries/professions underpin the need for constant updating of knowledge and skills in order to
maintain professional competence.
CPD can be defined as” the systematic maintenance, improvement and broadening of knowledge and
the development of personal qualities necessary for the education of professional and technical duties
throughout the practitioner’s working life” [CPD Certification Service, 2007]. A further definition of
CPD is “a combination of approaches, ideas and techniques that will help you manage your own
learning and growth” [CIPD, 2006]. It can, therefore, be considered as a way of a developing
capability that links learning directly to practice. The use of effective domains of reflection and action
are cornerstones of effective CPD, and increasingly web technology is being used to support effective
Organisational mentoring and networking.
Research undertaken by Income Data Services [1999] highlighted CPD as a major intervention that
managers could make into their own development. The key differentiators from other forms of training
are that the learner is in control and manages their own learning agenda from a holistic perspective
(acknowledging work life balance). The process is not dependent upon employer support and elearning provision allows managers to learn on a “Martini” basis - any time any place, anywhere.
Indeed the convergence of technology platforms and the advent of smart phones provide greater
opportunities for managers to learn “on the go” through short power sessions taken when time allows.
The increasing demand for such provision places greater emphasis on the development of dynamic
Portals, Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) and increased collaboration between educators and
training providers. The outcome of an effective system is the systematic maintenance, improvement
and broadening of a firm’s knowledge and skills base.
141
The challenge for VLE’s is to provide mechanisms that allow learners to set realistic learning targets
based upon their aspirations, and to build in reflective processes to measure the effectiveness of
learning support. This is a cornerstone of effective CPD provision and has often been overlooked in
the design of VLE’s. This is particularly important for delivering effective knowledge transfer to
smaller businesses. Although SMEs have a key role in learning and training system there are a number
of problems associated with engaging them in the national skills agenda. Among the problems
identified are low levels of off-the-job training by SMEs, in comparison with larger organisations; lack
of internal capacity (and sometimes motivation) to provide learning opportunities for their staff; and a
disturbingly high proportion of owner managers who had low or no qualifications [National Skills
Task Force, 2000a; DfEE, 2000].
CPD is not restricted to formal off site training courses, seminars or workshops and increasingly the
relevance of other modes of learning is recognised by professional bodies. These may include distance
and open learning, including CBT (computer based training); CAL (computer assisted learning);
action-learning and self-managed learning; structured reading; authorship of technical papers;
membership of committees within nominated professional institutions; and part time teaching
commitments.
For all these activities it is possible to specify a time limit for their execution and many professional
bodies use the accrual of hours of input as a measure of CPD currency (35-70 hours being the norm).
To some extent this demeans the credibility of this valuable knowledge transfer mechanism, since it
assumes a discrete portfolio of learning activities with defined start and end points. The real value of
CPD, however, is its ability to embrace the continuous nature of professional learning. Whilst not
normally formally included within the regulation structure for CPD in many professional bodies, the
informal continuous learning process which takes place within organisations at large is a critical
success factor, and contributes to the development of significant repositories of tacit knowledge.
In order for effective knowledge transfer to be achieved through CPD it is important that an
organisational process exists for business planning and individual targets are set in the context of key
performance indicators. The existence of a business plan and its use in all aspects of organisational
development is a key measure of a firm’s capability [Harris, 2006]. In addition a procedure should be
established for setting individual objectives and reviewing these objectives (performance
review/appraisal scheme). Finally, managers should be encouraged to adopt a Personal Development
Plan (PDP) for recording and planning their knowledge development.
The Importance of formal learning support
Simply performing an existing role efficiently is not sufficient for CPD purposes. However, what
could be considered effective CPD is the production of a structured learning plan which leads to
improved performance in the application of a new skill or utilisation of new knowledge in a specific
area. This plan may, or may not, involve formal ‘training’, e.g. conventional CPD events such as
seminars, training sessions or short courses. However, it could, also, include the provision of evidence,
based on managerial experience. In order to be acceptable as evidence for CPD purposes practitioners
would be required to provide details of improved performance measured against a structured learning
contract. The concept of a learning contract is used in many educational and training circumstances to
help people clarify the nature of the changes which they wish to implement and to record
improvements in capabilities as a result of learning interventions [CPD Certification Service, 2007].
A learning contract requires managers to address five issues:
114. What previous knowledge/skills/experience has been developed that is relevant to the
CPD?
115. What is the learner’s current position/strengths/ weaknesses in relation to the identified
CPD need?
116. What are the proposed targets/outcomes in relation to the development of skills and
knowledge?
117. What is the learning plan/strategy and what programme of activities will be followed?
118. What evidence will be produced for the purpose of reflection and to illustrate improved
performance?
142
Formal learning support from Further and Higher Education Institutes will continue to play a crucial
role in the transfer of knowledge to individuals and organisations. However, there is evidence to
suggest that employers are increasingly demanding work focused learning that is delivered to them in
a flexible manner. The growth and complexity of businesses, the demands from clients/customers and
the pace of change all demand that managers possess a wider range of skills than in the past but
paradoxically increased demands on their time prohibits many managers from engaging with
conventional University products and delivery platforms. Key to the business growth and improved
capability is the ability for firms to demonstrate enhanced managerial and leadership skills in addition
to specialist technical/professional knowledge. Whilst there is evidence that Universities and Colleges
are aware of these business development needs, many are missing the opportunity to fully engage with
the agenda and are failing to provide innovative and flexible ways of providing learning interventions.
Over 200 hundred managers were interviewed for this research, which established a demand for
practical business support focused on the direct needs of contemporary businesses; flexible/seminar
based input; technology supported learning; increased collaboration between learning providers; and
the provision of mentors. In order to meet these perceived business requirements,
Universities/Colleges will have to rise to the challenge and ensure that their provision is fit for purpose
and is delivered through innovative delivery platforms. They must also emphasise to managers that
education does not finish upon leaving university and encourage the concepts of lifelong learning, not
only to better equip managers with knowledge and skills, but to encourage them to be more innovative
and entrepreneurial.
It is acknowledged that people differ significantly in their learning preferences. Furthermore, a large
proportion of effective learning takes place within the working environment but is not always
recognised as being of relevance. Managers learn by doing, which includes their successes and
mistakes. SMEs in particular, contain significant repositories of tacit knowledge, which managers
have acquired over time. In future, a further challenge of educators will be to develop codified systems
and structures which will support the transfer of tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge, which can
then be embedded into the processes of businesses and enhance their overall capability. Intranets and
extranets provide opportunities for organisations to codify and promulgate knowledge internally.
However, from an external perspective, shared portals/VLEs offer opportunities for learning providers
to collaborate in order to maximise the effectiveness of learning interventions. This provides a positive
way of matching the effective delivery of CPD provision with the constraints that limit the
opportunities for contemporary businesses to engage with the learning agenda.
Craig and Jutla [2001] suggested that one of the more useful mechanisms for transferring marketing
knowledge and innovation to the SME sector is through distribution channels such as university
business schools and associated networks. These provide pertinent e-business development skills at
very low cost to SMEs. Furthermore, enablers such as knowledge management applications will play a
key role in the content delivery. Therefore, the University may be perfectly positioned to take on an
enabling role in a collaborative delivery of CPD provision. However, the basic structure of
Universities and the provision of their services have not changed dramatically over recent years.
Technology has enhanced learning support and it increasingly engages with overseas markets.
However, the modes of learning delivery and the processes for designing products and monitoring
quality remain traditional in their approach. The process is highly production orientated, and lacks
flexibility / customer focus. This structure impedes progress in capitalising on CPD opportunities.
Furthermore, once graduates depart, there is very little ongoing contact between them and the
University.
With increasing internationalisation of markets and convergence of communication and information
technologies, the current structure creates a potential weakness for Universities. Furthermore it will
stifles their engagement with contemporary CPD related markets. To be effective this productionbased orientation will need to evolve into one where the University positions itself as a knowledge and
learning network. It has been suggested that the University of the future will no longer be a place but
will consist of multiple, interconnected locations around the world. Individuals will no longer “go to
Uni”. They will join a community, for lifelong learning and networking. This transformation
effectively changes the production-based model towards a much more customer orientated one,
focusing on regular learning top-ups and networking. This model will also require flexibility in terms
of its academic staff. The concept of knowledge professionals or practitioner academics linked into a
learning network will mean that staff may need to be positioned in overseas delivery locations or in
143
international research clusters. Increasing collaboration with overseas institutions will increase the
attractiveness of multi-location staffing.
The transition from a physical place of learning to a lifelong learning network will inevitably create
tensions and challenges. Increasingly, the traditional physical on campus provision will be an entry
point for learners into the learning network. However, to offer a genuine lifelong proposition, the
University will have to work hard to keep its alumni in the network once they leave the physical
campus, and to sustain that network by providing its members with the information, contacts,
interactions, knowledge and learning that they need. Portals (and associated technologies) will provide
a key facilitating role but to be effective the University will need to build a powerful infrastructure to
transfer knowledge to an international community of lifelong learners.
It is clear that in the future the University’s role in knowledge management and transfer could be
pivotal for the development of capability within regional businesses, particularly SMEs. It is, however,
important to recognise diversity in terms of SMEs behaviour and attitudes towards knowledge
acquisition. The different mental models of individual firms must be considered, together with their
personal understanding of knowledge management processes [Sparrow, 2000]. Furthermore, the
potential for collaboration between SMEs to improve capability and knowledge transfer is significant
[Shelton, 2001]. Frey [2002] reported success in establishing Knowledge Management systems in
SMEs, that encouraged information sharing. Knowledge transfer through collaboration is highly
effective for nurturing innovation. Therefore, there will be benefits for the University taking a proactive position regarding collaboration in its widest context.
Methodology
The research underpinning this paper adopted an action orientated approach and is part of a
longitudinal study designed to determine the effectiveness of current CPD support, and to recommend
a framework to improve learning provision The views of 200 business managers were obtained for the
project through in-depth personal interviews, qualitative focus group interviews and mail based
questionnaires. The subsequent analysis of these interviews was used as a foundation for the
establishing an effective framework for CPD support within The University of Wolverhampton. The
longitudinal research identified preferences of managers/professionals for CPD provision and these
underpin the design of a platform to support the delivery of learning opportunities. It is envisaged that
a web enabled portal will form the nucleus of this effective CPD support delivered through The
University of Wolverhampton.
Research Findings
Of the 200 respondents interviewed 40% had previously worked with a West Midlands based
University, 22% with the University of Wolverhampton. In relation to the services that respondents
would prefer, 45% requested employer led work focused learning. 65% requested the provision of
seminar and networking events. It is interesting to note that overall 73% of managers supported the
provision of CPD for their workforce. Consultancy services and direct business assists were requested
by 18% of respondents but 68% were favourable towards the provision of mentors for their
businesses. As could be expected applied research was indicated as a useful service by fewer
respondents (16%). However there was some confusion expressed by respondents as to the
differentiation between practical applied research and “blue sky research”. The provision of incubator
or start up space for businesses was seen as important by 5% of respondents. The opportunity to
engage students in businesses on a short term basis was perceived by 58% of respondents to be a cost
effective method of receiving support.
The range of subject interest varied but the most popular areas were I.T.(58% expressed a keen
interest in developing their employees skills in this area); Business Management (48%); Marketing
(48%) Law (43%); and Environmental (28%).
The findings of the research concurred with research by Clark [2003] who found that respondents
from a raft of industries were enthusiastic towards the concept of technology driven collaborative
learning and employee development. E-tutored collaborative learning with active moderation and
intervention by a mentor or tutor was perceived to be the preferred route to learning, whilst threaded
discussion forums, a less mediated form of collaboration scored lower. This confirms the importance
144
of expert intervention in the delivery framework. Virtual classrooms were perceived to have only
moderate benefits to SMEs, confirming the notion that simply putting a classroom online is not
leading the way of future collaborative learning. Email ranked highly as an effective form of
knowledge transfer and by volume alone is the single most important method of getting knowledge
from one person to another. However, it is so embedded in everyday business practices that it is often
not regarded as a form of online learning [Clark, 2003].
The delivery platform for CPD support was an important issue for respondents. The traditional part
time provision of 1 afternoon and 1 evening was only considered acceptable by 13% of respondents.
55% favoured flexible seminar based delivery methods (breakfast or evening), 32% block sessions or
Weekend. Sunday was considered to be a preferred study day to Saturday by 66% of respondents.
89% of those interviewed welcomed the addition of technology supported learning to streamline their
studies and minimise the impact on their time. Work based delivery of learning was preferred by 27%
but a mix of training delivered at the University and in the workplace would be preferred by 83% of
those interviewed.
It is interesting to note that 92% of respondents claimed that they would be more likely to engage in
learning that was relevant to their industry. Furthermore, the quality of learning and the
credibility/experience of academics/trainers was considered important by 93% of respondents.
The concept of a learning element to the portal, which would also provide materials (such as research
papers, transcripts of seminars etc) was discussed and 68% of respondents suggested they would use
and support this type of learning network subject to access costs. The primary benefit of a portal
driven network from the professional/managers perspective was the opportunity to receive updates on
funded assistance/ CPD seminar opportunities (92% who said they would use the portal placed this
benefit first); to access materials and practical learning objects relevant to their specific
needs/capability gaps (76%). Other key requirements were the potential to network with
universities/colleges and their students (74%). Interestingly, several managers stated a preference for
an independent portal that meshed the services of a number of universities/colleges, rather than them
being locked into one institution. Furthermore, 65% of managers reported that they would welcome
the opportunity to buy downloadable support products from the portal that had been produced by
academics or consultants/advisors.
The provision of diagnostic tools as a pre-cursor to a learning contract was considered to be a value
added element by 72% of respondents. Several managers suggested that although they were aware of
the need to engage with CPD, they were unsure of where to allocate or how to prioritise resources. It
was suggested that the use of an effective suite of diagnostics prior to the development of a learning
contract and then following learning interventions, would develop an effective relationship between
the University and Organisations and would enable a long term programme of support to be
implemented. It would also provide a useful evaluation opportunity in order to monitor the
effectiveness of learning interventions. Research suggests that the true effectiveness of external
support is difficult to measure and is ever changing [Sparrow, 1999]. It is also quite a task to measure
its impact on growth accurately [Summon, 1997]. So far, consultancy from government-led schemes
has received some bad press and it remains unclear which type of help is most effective in improving
the marketing capabilities of SMEs. There appears to be a gap between what SMEs really need and
what is currently on offer to them. The use of diagnostics linked to key performance indicators would
address this issue.
The opportunity to network academics with professionals such as industry practitioners/consultants
was considered to be an effective aspect of the provision (90% ranking it as important). Such
collaboration is conceivably important since there is evidence that academics often lack the experience
to provide adequate advice to practitioners, as substantial knowledge about the context in which the
concepts and theories are to be applied is often required [Ottesen, Gronhaug 2004]. Furthermore, there
is an issue that frequently owner/managers perceive academics as people who lack industry practical
experience and who are incapable of making a meaningful contribution outside the academic
environment [Latham, Latham 2003].
145
Using a Portal driven VLE to enhance CPD Provision
A Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) can be defined as “a collection of integrated tools enabling the
management of online learning, providing a delivery mechanism, participant tracking, assessment and
access to resources.” These integrated tools may be one product (e.g. Blackboard/WebCT) or an
integrated set of individual, perhaps open source tools [Jisc Infonet, 2007].
Virtual Learning Environments can represent a more successful learning environment and have proven
to be motivating contexts for learning. In these virtual environments the learning experience can be
flexible, more accessible and inclusive. Not only are these environments often a more economically
viable option, but they also allow specialist tuition and knowledge to transcend geographical
boundaries.
The future of VLE’s will have innovative and exciting possibilities. New networks and www2 will
allow more learning opportunities beyond those currently offered by the Web, but careful planning
and innovation will be necessary to ensure that the potential for the scope of delivery is achieved. It is
important to consider scalability and mobility so that learning can take place in the most appropriate
context. The increasing conversion of PDA platforms through smart phones such as Blackberry
devices will demand increasingly innovative delivery mechanisms. The portal, which constitutes the
hub of a VLE must be designed to ensure such scalability and multi-directional communication flow.
Open source software is increasingly being used to create flexible learning portals. Open source is a
set of principles and practices that promote access to the design and production of goods and
knowledge. The term is most commonly applied to the source code of software that is available to the
general public with relaxed or non-existent intellectual property restrictions. This allows users to
create software content through incremental individual effort or through collaboration [Wikipedia,
2007].
Currently, one of the main disadvantages of VLE’s is the lack of face-to-face personal interaction and
social contact, which traditional educational contexts provide. Only when learning environments, and
those involved within them, are fully responsive to the needs of students will optimal levels of
progress take place. For most students this will involve a judicious blend of both traditional and virtual
learning environments [Galloway, et al, 2002]. Key to the future success of VLE’s will be the design
of intelligent portals that can seamlessly connect individuals, groups, and knowledge repositories so
that their networked members can take advantage of relevant information (offered both online and by
personal delivery), across a range of business and educational disciplines to help them learn more
efficiently and develop their capabilities.
It is important that a collaborative learning portal aggregates, organises, and searches information so
that users can find relevant information and support quickly. Personalisation of portal content and
layout, and audience targeting must be considered in order to enable information to be published to the
right groups of individuals and members at the right time. A secure, scaleable, Enterprise-class portal
should be designed to integrate into the Microsoft Windows and Office environment and so have
relevance to both managers/professionals and post-graduate students and academics. The main
advantages of a portal’s capability is its ability to aggregate information and present it the right people
at the right time; search capability; quickly retrieve learning information; and to consider document
management capability; and security.
Conclusion
The development of a portal to support the delivery of CPD enhances a University’s provision.
However, it must be designed so as to offer a blended learning approach to CPD, fusing online and
offline learning support through an innovative framework. This would address important issues
identified by Hung [2001] that when accessing a virtual learning environment there may still be a need
for learners to work together. Web-based learning environments should capitalise on social,
communicative, and collaborative dimensions, allowing mediated discourse. They should be portable
as far as possible so that they can be used in the proper context. Furthermore, scalability will be
crucial, since future developments in virtual learning environments will embrace wireless and portable
devices. The benefit of PDA’s and other portable devices will allow learners to collaborate and share
solutions, thus fully acting out the learner’s CPD roles of reflector and peer-tutor [Hung, 2001].
146
Feedback received for this research has established the potential of the Collaborative Learning
Environment for versatile CPD support. Key strengths of a portal driven approach are the wider
stakeholder benefits for networking, both within and between academic institutions and businesses. It
is important, therefore, that the structure is designed to embrace the potential of technology to
transform institutional processes from a collaborative perspective (taking account of the lifelong
learning agenda), rather than that adopted by many university owned VLE’s, which simply replicate
existing systems and traditional ways of working. To be effective, the design, must achieve a scalable
flexible solution that can adapt to meet the changing demands for effective CPD provision. This
structure must effectively encourage and facilitate collaboration/networking, which is a key success
factor for contemporary businesses.
The PricewaterhouseCoopers West Midlands Business Survey [2000] discussed the strategic
importance of an increase in industrial diversification, innovation, business productivity improvements
and business renewal. The recommendation was that substantial investment in capital, skills/training
and infrastructure be made in order to achieve parity in productivity and competitiveness. However,
SMEs tend to be restricted in their ability to acquire knowledge as they have a more mechanistic view
and lack systematic mechanisms for embodying and sharing knowledge. Furthermore the perceived
benefits of knowledge acquisition tend to be targeted towards the market rather than the benefits of
internal effectiveness [McAdam, Reid 2001]. Key to the University’s successful engagement with the
CPD market will, therefore be its ability to offer an innovative and flexibly delivered package of
support, that unlocks these issues and encourages Organisations to engage with the lifelong learning
agenda in a positive, enthusiastic and coordinated manner.
References
Clark, D. (2003). Epic survey: The future of e-learning. [Available at:
http://www.epicgroup.co.uk, accessed: 20.09.2005].
CPD Certification Service (1999). Continuing Professional Development: An Overview. A
Report Prepared by the CPD Certification Service. [Available at:
www.cpduk.co.uk/intro/cpdover.htm, accessed: 20.09.2007].
CIPD (2006). Learning and Development, Annual Survey Report, Wimbledon: CIPD.
Craig J.; Jutla D. (2001). eBusiness Readiness: a Customer Focused Framework. Boston:
Addison Wesley.
DfEE (2000). Labour market quarterly report. Department for Education and Employment,
Skills and Enterprise Network, August. London: HMSO.
Dodson, S. (2001). The Race For a New Internet. [Available at:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/internetnews/story/0,7369,589431,00.html, accessed 07.10.2007].
Frey, R.S. (2002). Small business knowledge management success story. Knowledge and
Process Management, Vol. 9 (3), pp. 172-177.
Galloway, Wayne; Boland, Sarah; Benesova, Adela (2002). Virtual Learning Environments.
[Available at: http://www.dcs.napier.ac.uk/~mm/socbytes/feb2002_i/3.html, accessed:
23.09.2007].
Hung, D. (2001). Design Principles for Web-Based Learning: Implications from Vygotskian
Thought. In: Educational Techology (May-June 2001). Educational Technology Publications
Inc, New Jersey.
Harris R.J. (2006). ‘Doing it Better’ Improving the marketing capability of SMEs through the
implementation of a collaborative support framework. DBA. Birmingham City University.
Income Data Services (1999). Management Pay Reviews (No’s 225 Nov, 219 May, 226 Dec
1999) London: Income Data Services.
JISC (2005). Study of environments to support e-learning in UK Further and Higher Education.
[Available at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/uploaded_documents/e-learning_survey_2005.pdf, accessed
17.10.2007].
147
Lee, G.; Bennett, D.; Oakes, I. (2000). Technological and organisational change in small-tomedium sized manufacturing companies: a learning organisation perspective. International
Journal of Operations & Production Management, Vol. 20, No. 5-6, pp. 549-571.
McAdam, R.; Reid, R. (2001). SME and large organisation perceptions of knowledge
management: comparisons and contrasts. Journal of Knowledge Management, Vol. 5 (3), pp.
231-24.
National Skills Task Force (2000a). Skills for All: Proposals for a National Skills Agenda,
Nottingham: DfEE.
RICS (2007) What is CPD? [Available at:
http://www.rics.org/Careerseducationandtraining/Lifelonglearning/Continuingprofessionaldevel
opment/what_is_cpd.htm, accessed 27.10.2007].
Shelton, R. (2001). Helping a small business owner to share knowledge. Human Resource
Development International, Vol. 4 (4), pp. 429-450.
Sparrow, J. (1999). Using qualitative research to establish SME support needs. Qualitative
Market Research: An International Journal, Vol. 2 (2), pp. 121-134.
Sparrow, J. (2000). Knowledge features of Small Firms [Available at:
http://kmc.tbs.uce.ac.uk/kmcpublications.htm, accessed 05.09. 2007].
Summon, P. (1998). Business Link impact and future challenges. Journal of Small Business and
Enterprise Development, Vol. 5 (1), pp. 49-59.
Ottesen, G.; Gronhaug, K. (2004). Barriers to practical use of academic marketing knowledge.
Marketing Intelligence and Planning, Vol. 22 (5), pp. 520-530.
Open Source (2007). In: Wikipedia. [Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_source,
accessed 27.10.2007].
Worrall, L.; Gilbert, K.; Jones, B.; Roland, R.; Jordan, G.; Mahony, D.; Allen, C.; Roche, M.;
Singh, P.; Babb, N. (2003). Advanced management skills needs: a study of the Black Country
and Wolverhampton – Telford growth corridor research report. Advantage West Midlands and
the University of Wolverhampton Business School.
Author:
Robert John Harris, Dr.
University of Wolverhampton Business School
Compton Road West
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
WV3 9DX
United Kingdom
Phone 00441902323660
148
LE PORTAIL LEARN-ON-LINE: UN OUTIL D’INFORMATION AU
SERVICE DE LA FORMATION TOUT AU LONG DE LA VIE
Marie-France Brundseaux, Sophie Philippart
(Laboratoire de Soutien à l'Enseignement Télématique – LabSET, Institut de Formation et de
Recherche en Enseignement Supérieur – IFRES,
Université de Liège – ULg)
Résumé: Depuis 2004, une réflexion s’est mise en place autour de la création d’un portail fédérateur des
initiatives de formation à distance en Belgique francophone. Cette réflexion s’inscrit dans un projet européen
qui rassemble différents acteurs institutionnels de la Région wallonne et de la Communauté française
impliqués dans l’e-learning et la formation à distance. C’est ainsi que le partenariat Equal Déclic, coordonné
par le Laboratoire de Soutien à l’enseignement télématique (LabSET) de l’Université de Liège (Belgique),
fédère cinq institutions: les centres de compétences TechnofuturTIC et Technifutur, Forem Formation,
l’Enseignement à distance de la Communauté française et l’Agence wallonne des Télécommunications.
Learn-on-line, le portail de la formation à distance en Belgique été mis en ligne dès la fin 2006 à l’adresse
http://www.learn-on-line.be. Il privilégie l’accès à une information centralisée et de qualité.
Dans cet article, nous décrirons brièvement les objectifs du portail Learn-on-line, avant d’en décrire le
contenu et les usages que nous avons pu observer. Viendra ensuite une mise en perspectives avec une
attention portée aux politiques européennes et régionales ainsi qu’à l’intérêt de l’e-learning dans le cadre de la
formation tout au long de la vie.
Mots Clés: elearning, formation tout au long de la vie, orientation, portail, formation à distance
1. Objectifs du portail Learn-on-line
L’objectif principal du portail Learn-on-line est de stimuler l’intérêt pour l’e-learning, d’une part en
augmentant la visibilité de l’offre des formations en ligne grâce à un catalogue des formations; et
d’autre part en fournissant une information sur l’e-learning adaptée aux différents utilisateurs.
Le portail vise les «particuliers» et les responsables d’« entreprises » soucieux de soutenir leur
professionnalisation ou celle de leur personnel via le suivi de cours en ligne. Les «formateurs» ainsi
que les « organismes de formation » sont également concernés. Les uns y trouveront des conseils pour
dispenser des formations de qualité en ligne, les autres des outils pour y présenter leur offre de
formation à distance.
2. Description du portail Learn-on-line
Le portail learn-on-line est composé d’un catalogue de formation, de parties informatives nommées
« ressources » et de divers outils, notamment de communication.
Le catalogue présente plus de deux cent soixante-dix formations en ligne ou partiellement en ligne
dipensées par une vingtaine d’organismes de formation. Chaque formation est détaillée dans une fiche
idoine.
La partie « ressources » est consacrée au concept d’e-learning, à sa définition, à ses avantages, aux
conditions de sa mise en œuvr. Ces informations sont rédigées spécifiquement pour chacun des
publics.
Les particuliers y trouveront non seulement une aide dans la recherche et le choix d'une formation elearning adaptée, mais aussi des « trucs et astuces » pour suivre leur formation en ligne avec succès.
149
Les responsables d’entreprises, quant à eux, y découvriront des ressources permettant de comprendre
la plus-value de l’e-learning pour leur personnel ainsi qu’une aide à la décision et à l’évaluation de la
qualité des dispositifs existants.
Enfin, les formateurs trouveront différents types de ressources, selon leur stade d’implication dans l’elearning. Les novices pourront s’informer sur les rôles de l’e-tuteur, et sur l’e-learning en général. Les
tuteurs de formations en ligne disposeront d’outils pour leur pratique quotidienne (un questionnaire de
satisfaction, un questionnaire de persévérance et une base de données d’échanges d’expériences en elearning). Des conseils théoriques et techniques sont également mis à la disposition de ceux qui
souhaitent se lancer dans la conception d’activités en ligne.
Un espace réservé permet aux organismes de formation de référencer gratuitement leur offre de façon
autonome, après une première validation du webmaster.
Le portail Learn-on-line propose encore divers outils pratiques tels une webographie (bibliothèque de
liens) et un glossaire spécifique interactifs en plus des fonctionnalités courantes que sont les flux RSS,
une newsletter et des actualités.
3. Usages
En 2007, le site Learn-on-line a enregistré 20.070 connexions. Depuis sa mise en ligne, le site présente
une progression constante du nombre de visiteurs (majoritairement belges) pour compter actuellement
près de 3.000 visites par mois. Il est probable que les actions de promotion menées auprès des
différents publics cibles y ont contribué.
Signalons qu’en cours de projet, il s’est avéré nécessaire d’ajouter une fonctionnalité permettant aux
internautes de contacter directement les organismes de formation. Depuis sa mise en place en juillet
2007, 645 contacts directs ont été enregistrés. La majorité des formations qui ont suscité l’intérêt
traitent de l’apprentissage des langues étrangères et des logiciels de bureautique.
Les résultats de fréquentation du site et d’utilisation de cette dernière fonctionnalité sont
encourageants et confirment le bien-fondé et la pertinence du portail, même si des efforts doivent
encore être consentis pour le diffuser auprès d’un public plus large et en étendre l’usage. Des actions
sont déjà en cours telles qu’un meilleur référencement, un design plus moderne, des brochures, etc.
4. Mises en perspectives
4.1. Politiques de promotion de l’e-learning et des TIC
Le portail Learn-on-line est également soutenu par les autorités politiques régionales. Il s’avère
assurément un instrument approprié pour la « Coupole e-learning » lancée en mai 2007, qui a pour
mission de fédérer et de coordonner les initiatives e-learning en Région wallonne.
Ces préoccupations se font évidemment l’écho des objectifs européens des programmes e-inclusion
2008 et 2010. Pour rappel, la Déclaration de Riga [2006] encourage à faciliter « l’accessibilité et
l’utilisation des produits et des services TIC pour tous », dans la formation professionnelle entre
autres.
4.2. L’e-learning et la formation tout au long de la vie
Le portail Learn-on-line s’avère un outil pertinent non seulement pour « veiller à ce que chacun ait
facilement accès à une information et des conseils de qualité sur l’offre de formation dans toute
l’Europe, tout au long de sa vie » (Message-clé n° 5 »), mais aussi pour promouvoir l’e-learning et
ainsi soutenir le Life Long Learning. L’e-learning participe au déploiement de l’apprentissage tout au
long de la vie en soutenant « l’apprenance1», [Carré, 2006] ou tout au moins en favorisant la
mobilisation des capacités inhérentes à l’apprentissage notamment en multipliant «des occasions et
des ressources pour apprendre ». Même si l’e-learning n’est que l’une des nombreuses façons
d’apprendre, il constitue néanmoins un pas incontestable vers cette conception de l’apprentissage
1
L'apprenance décrit un ensemble stable de dispositions affectives, cognitives et conatives, favorables à l'acte d'apprendre, dans toutes les
situations formelles ou informelles, de façon expérientielle ou didactique, autodirigée ou non, intentionnelle ou fortuite »
150
étroitement liée à l’idée de formation tout au long de la vie. Dans cette optique, il est opportun de
mettre l’e-learning en valeur, de le promouvoir et de soutenir les initiatives y afférentes.
5. Conclusion
Learn-on-line s’inscrit dans les programmes européens et régionaux d’inclusion numérique et de
formation tout au long de la vie.
Résultant d’un consensus entre les principaux acteurs wallons de la formation, ce portail est une
initiative régionale, innovante et unique. Ses atouts sont pluriels. Il centralise l’offre de formations de
plusieurs organismes publics et privés; il dispense de nombreuses informations de qualité sur l’elearning et propose divers outils directement utilisables par les e-tuteurs.
L’augmentation constante des statistiques de fréquentation du site, ainsi que les nombreux contacts
des concepteurs et animateurs du portail avec les différents publics cibles mettent en évidence son
intérêt.
Notons enfin que ce portail n’est pas un outil figé. Il est en perpétuelle évolution dans le but de
s’adapter au mieux aux besoins identifiés des publics cibles, aux évolutions techniques et sociétales.
Bibliographie
Agence wallonne des Télécommunications (2007). Lancement de la politique de l'e-learning en
Région wallonne. [Consulté le 28 janvier 2008 dans
http://www.awt.be/web/edu/index.aspx?page=edu,fr,cou,000,000].
Brundseaux, M.-F. ; Philippart, S. (2008). Validation du Produit Learn-on-line, le portail de la
formation à distance en Belgique. Rapport, Liège, Belgique: Université de Liège.
Carré, P. (mai 2006). Portée et limites de l’autoformation dans une culture de l’apprenance.
Communication présentée au 7ème colloque européen sur l’autoformation, Toulouse, France.
[Consulté le 28 janvier 2008 dans http://www.enfa.fr/autoformation/rub-pres/pcarre.pdf].
Commission des communautés européennes (2000). Mémorandum sur l’éducation et la formation
tout au long de la vie SEC 1832. [Consulté le 23 octobre 2000 dans
http://ec.europa.eu/education/policies/lll/life/memofr.pdf].
Cullen, J.; Carneiro, R. (2008). E-inclusion et e-learning. eLearning Papers, No. 6. [Consulté le
28 janvier 2008 dans http://www.elearningpapers.eu/index.php?page=volume].
Déclaration ministérielle de Riga (2006). [Consultée le 28 janvier 2008 dans
http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/events/ict_riga_2006/doc/riga_decl_fr.pdf].
Auteurs:
Chercheurs: Brundseaux, Marie-France; Philippart, Sophie
Université de Liège (ULg, Belgique), Laboratoire de Soutien à l'Enseignement Télématique
(LabSET), Institut de Formation et de Recherche en Enseignement Supérieur (IFRES)
Boulevard de Colonster, 2 (B9) – B-4000 Liège
151
THE PARADOXES OF THE DIGITAL DIVIDE:
THE USE OF ICT AS AN INDICATOR OF CHANGE IN UNIVERSITIES
Adriana Gewerc Barujel, Esther Martínez Piñeiro,
Eulogio Pernas Morado, Lourdes Montero Mesa, Fernando Fraga Varela
(Stellae Research Group. University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain)
Abstract: Here authors present an exploratory study, carried out in five universities (four of them in Latin
America and one in a Spanish university): Universidad de Los Lagos (Chile); Universidad San Francisco
Xavier de Chuquisaca de Sucre (Bolivia); Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (Argentina); Universidad
Autónoma Juan Misael Saracho de Tarija (Bolivia). Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (Spain)
The AIM of the study is to analyse the possibilities, difficulties and limits facing the Institutions of Higher
Education as they deal with the challenges of the knowledge society.
Our findings reveal numerous similarities among the universities analyzed in spite of their different contexts.
The most relevant difference was found in the resources and equipment available as well as the organization
and centralization of university information systems (via Web or portals).
The clearest conclusion to be drawn from the study is that far from strategically minimizing the transmissive
approach to teaching and fostering the necessary changes, university policies for integrating ICT into
education actually reinforce these practices.
Keywords: ICT in Universities, teaching in knowledge society
Challenges and demands of the knowledge society: the digital divide
What are we talking about, when we refer to the challenges facing universities? (in particular, in the
current socio-economic context that some authors have called the knowledge society).
The underlying phenomena that we are currently experiencing in our space-time coordinates can be
summarized as:
119. Globalization,
120. Universalization,
121. Market economies and
122. The expansion of the Information.
These phenomena require that university offers solutions that are also globalize. It also requires
policies that help alleviated the so called digital divide.
In this context, universities face challenges such as:
123. The elaboration of social projects that aim for socio-economic development in their own
communities, taking into account the local culture;
124. To become a flexible organization, that learns, and is ready to modify its structures,
programs and working methods, as well as administrative and financial aspects;
125. To become aware of its responsibility for training future professionals for the development
of a society characterized by abounded information and advanced technology;
126. To establish relations with other social organizations like companies, public institutions
and non-governmental organizations, as a way for obtaining mutual benefits.
127. To establish permanent links upon multiple social actors and with diverse fields of
knowledge. This implies providing the necessary tools for receiving, and assimilating that
come to us from the dominant geopolitical sectors: to filter and adapt that knowledge to the
local context and its necessities; to rediscover the traditional wisdom of the native peoples
which often have demonstrated greater depth than western science;
152
128. Create, maintain and develop information and learning systems together with other
national and international institutions.
Nevertheless, the diagnosis of the situation reveals to us that, in the majority of cases, universities are
encountering serious difficulties to deal with these challenges, because they imply processes of change
and transformation that are very costly.
The initial assumptions guiding our research regarding the elaboration of the tools and the data
analysis include the following:
129. Reductionist view of the concept of “digital inclusion”. Most of the earlier studies which
we have reviewed only refer to the universities’ technical infrastructure resources, but they
overlook such important aspects as training in their use, the content and its purposes;
130. The need to re-think the teaching proposals in the direction of changing the way teaching
and learning is done at the university. This is in line with the conclusions of a number of
studies and theoretical analysis carried out on this subject matter;
131. It is often forgotten that it is necessary to pay close attention to the adaptation and
transformation of organizational aspects in order to deal with the challenges.
Aims of Research
In this context we propose the following research aims:
132. To inquire into the possibilities, difficulties and limitations which institutions of higher
education face when dealing with the challenges posed by the knowledge society;
133. To elaborate action projects adapted to every context;
134. To diagnose the current situation at each University;
135. To create a network of universities.
Universities that are working on this project have put together a network that is still at the initial
stages, because there is much to do in terms of content and ideas.
In any case, we have put together a collaborative environment which encourages interdisciplinary
teamwork and a horizontal structure. We are betting on a project in which everybody wins.
The network has a visible part: the UNISIC portal.
Here we have a capture of the portal, a web site where we can share our conclusions, doubts, research
conclusions, etc.
Diagnosis of the current situation at each University: empirical study
An electronic questionnaire was applied to a sample of professors from the participating universities.
Questionnaires were sent to 4705 subjects, of which 462 responded. The data were analyzed with the
SPSS 14.0 statistical software package.
We decided on an intentional sampling, and a sample was selected in which the six knowledge areas
defined by UNESCO were represented. This is an appropriate procedure for a study of an exploratory
nature. The response rate was less than expected, but sufficient for research in this context.
Although we realize that the response rate is low, our intention was not to make a likelihood sampling,
but an exploratory one.
153
The questionnaire was structured in 6 blocks:
Identification Data;
Education modalities;
Decisions that professors takes when using ICTs for teaching;
Characteristics of interactions mediated by ICTs;
(Resources and materials that are used and produced);
Characteristics of the interactions (Ease and difficulties teaching staff encounter to integrate
ICTs).
Some of the results of the empirical study are detailed below.
Use of ICT in university teaching
The first relevant aspect that appears is that most of the professors surveyed assume that they use ICT
in their teaching. There are no significant differences among the different contexts.
5
4,5
3,47
4
3,35
3,36
3,5
3,1
3
Media
2,8
2,5
2
1,5
1
0,5
0
C1
USC
Los Lagos
S.Fco
Javier
Córdoba
Tarija
Most widely-used strategies in the practice of teaching
When asked which teaching strategies were most often employed, the lecture class predominates and
the sequence is similar in all the universities. Based on these findings, we can infer that we are dealing
with a knowledge transmission model, as the dominant education paradigm
So with respect to this Knowledge transmission model, which ICT are preferred?
Most preferred ICT
Moreover, the preferred ICT are those that basically serve to support that model of transmissive
education: computer, data display, projector and video player.
154
100
95
90
90
78,4
76,5
80
74
70,3
67,2
70
65
60
54,6
48,5
45,4
50
41
40,5
32,4
28
30
39,3
36
40
31
27
16,5
20
10
0
USC
Lo s L ag os
S.Fco .J.
Co m pu ter
Có rdo ba
Data display
Tarija
O verh ead P
Video
What ICT is used for
It isn't used much for planning and the lack of use in learning evaluation is especially significant. We
don’t observe a methodological shift. The question here is... Could it be that there is a distrust of ICT
in learning evaluation? Our study can’t answer this question, but perhaps it is a good topic for future
research.
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
USC
Lagos
S.Fco Javier
Planning
Córdoba
Development
Tarija
Evaluation
Changes produced by the use of ICT
For what we have seen up to now, the predominant model of teaching and learning has been
maintained through time in spite of ICTs. Nevertheless, professors perceive that the use of
presentations, instead of the traditional blackboards, for example, has produced changes in their
teaching. This positive idea of ICTs as introducing improvements on their own, is present in the
representations that the teaching staff has of ICT and their role in teaching.
The view that the teaching staff has, regarding ICT and their role in teaching, seems to reflect the idea
that ICT can produce improvements on their own. This is important because it lead teachers to feel
justified in maintaining the transmissive teaching model.
Mean (range 1-5)
5
4,5
4
3,5
3
2,5
2
1,5
1
0,5
0
USC
Los Lagos
Planning
S. Fco. Javier
155
Córdoba
Development
Tarija
Evaluation
Ways of beginning ICT use
This question aimed to analyze if there has been some type of institutional recognition of the training
that has been carried out in each context.
The majority perceive their training as self-taught, somehow there seems to be a negation of the
impact of the training that has been carried out in the different universities, and fundamentally of its
real impact on practices.
We also found teachers initiating alone, without the presence of colleagues collaborating or working
together. Nor do we perceive in this process the presence of students, helping professors to begin
incorporating ICT.
100
90
80
66,7
70
58,6
60
52,1
50
51,7
50
41,2
40
33,7
30
24,1
21
20,5
16,9
20
12,1
5,2
10
10
8,8
0
0
0
2,6
7,5 5,8
5,1
0
0,7
0
0
USC
Self-taught
Lagos
Training
S.Fco. Javier
Colleagues
Córdoba
Relatives
Tarija
Pupils
How is the university getting ready the knowledge society? Possibilities, limitations and
difficulties.
Our research focussed on the possibilities, limitations and difficulties the university encounter as they
get ready to face the challenges of the knowledge society. Our first conclusions are about these three
aspects:
Possibilities:
136. The universities are making an effort to incorporate ICTs into teaching;
137. Most of the teaching staff recognizes that they use some type of technology in the different
phases of teaching: planning, development and evaluation;
138. This use has meant changes and improvement in significant aspects of teaching;
139. Most of the professors surveyed report using pre-elaborated digital materials and a high
percentage adapt or create materials themselves.
Limitations:
Little use is made of the specific spaces for the development of materials. In response to the question
where and when they elaborate materials, the majority of professors indicate that it is outside of
regular working hours and institutional space. Indeed, ICT imply intensified work for the professor.
Difficulties:
140. Coherence between the type of methodology and the type of TIC used reinforces
traditional methodologies. This transmissive methodology remains and there is no change in
the deepest aspects from a didactic or organizational point of view;
141. Resource policies have followed this process, classrooms and have been equipped with
computers and projectors and professors use what there is;
142. Professors work individually, to the detriment of teamwork, and this enters into a
contradiction with the network society;
156
143. The ICT training modalities that the different universities have pursued have had little
impact on the way in which professors teach their classes;
144. There is no official recognition of the efforts of professors to incorporate ICT in their
teaching ( ICT materials must often be elaborated outside the regular work hours);
145. There was a question in the end of the survey, that professors how they see themselves.
The majority see themselves as experts and transmitters of information and less as
orientators, or tutors who respond to the new demands.
Conclusions
First of all, resources have been given priority: It is true that without equipment we cannot function,
but that is not all there is to digital inclusion. It is necessary to advance towards the creative and
critical suitability of technology. This priority of infrastructure does not take a strategic perspective
into account. In many instances, purchases have been made before determining what use to give the
equipment. This implies an economic and political weakening of the institution. In all the universities
there is a period of non-use that is significant, especially considering useful life of this equipment
nowadays. This has been a common occurrence in both Europe and Latin America.
We are aware that a device by itself cannot make changes. If it is introduced without any planning of
its innovation impact, the teaching staff does what it can with the equipment.
Resources also have reinforced the role of traditional teaching, which suggests that little forethought
has been given to the introduction of these elements into the institutions.
Thus, a need is inferred for making professors think about the new role, and the new social needs. It
will be necessary to conceive of a systematic training proposal, maintained through time. Universities
should reflect on their own approach to the knowledge society and propose lifelong learning also for
university teaching staff.
References
Barro, S. (Dir) (2004). Las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación en el Sistema
Universitario Español. CRUE (Conferencia de Rectores de Universidades Españolas). [Available
at: http://www.crue.org, 23.03.2008].
Barro, S.; Burillo López, P. (Dir) (2006). Catálogo de Objetivos E Indicadores Tic Del Sue.
CRUE (Conferencia De Rectores De Universidades Españolas). [Availabel at:
http://www.crue.org, 23.03.2008].
Mc Cullough, C. (Project Coordinator); Aimard, V. (Survey Coordinator) (2006). E-Learning in
Europe: How Do Trainers, Teachers and Learners Rate E-Learning? Thessaloniki: Cedefop:
European Centre of the Development of the Vocational Training.
Drucker, P. F. (1998). La Sociedad Postcapitalista. Barcelona: Ediciones Apóstrofe, S.L.
Duart, J.; Lupiañez, F. (2005). E-Strategias en la Introducción y Uso de las tic en la Universidad.
Revista Universidad Y Sociedad Del Conocimiento, Vol. 2, No. 1 / Mayo. [Available at:
http://www.uoc.edu/rusc, 23.03.2008].
Lash, S. (2005). Crítica A La Información. Buenos Aires: Amorrotu.
Payaril, G. (1997). Tecnología Y Procesos Socioculturales: Un Acercamiento Desde Los
Sistemas Mundiales: Innovación Tecnológica Y Procesos Culturales. En M. J. Santos Y R. C.
Díaz Cruz (Eds.) Nuevas Perspectivas Teóricas. México: Fondo De Cultura Económica, pp.
212-229.
Ulf-Daniel, Ehlers; Goertz, L.; Hildebrandt; B.; Pawlowski; J. (2005). Quality in E-Learning
Use and Dissemination of Quality Approaches in European e-Learning. A Study by the
European Quality Observatory. Cedefop Panorama Series; 116 Luxembourg: Office For Official
Publications Of The European Communities.
157
Authors:
Adriana Gewerc Barujel
Departamento de Didáctica y Organización Escolar. Facultad de Ciencias de la Educación (Campus
Norte). Universidad de Santiago de Compostela.
c/ Xoán XIII s/n 15782 Santiago de Compostela (SPAIN)
Esther Martínez Piñeiro
Departamento de MIDE. Facultad de Ciencias de la Educación (Campus Sur).Universidad de Santiago
de Compostela.
c/ Rúa Xosé María Suárez Núñez, s/n. 15782 Santiago de Compostela (SPAIN)
Eulogio Pernas Morado
Norte). Universidad de Santiago de Compostela.
c/ Xoán XIII s/n 15782 Santiago de Compostela (SPAIN)
Lourdes Montero Mesa
Sur). Universidad de Santiago de Compostela.
Fernando Fraga Varela
Sur). Universidad de Santiago de Compostela.
158
LE PLAN MOBILISATEUR DES TECHNOLOGIES DE
L'INFORMATION ET DE LA COMMUNICATION
DES MODULES EN LIGNE AU SERVICE DE LA QUALITE
D'APPRENTISSAGE, DE L'INTEGRATION SOCIALE
ET DE L'EMPLOYABILITE
Françoise Jérôme, Marie-France Brundseaux, François Georges
Laboratoire de Soutien à l'Enseignement Télématique (LabSET)
Institut de Formation et de Recherche en Enseignement Supérieur (IFRES)
Université de Liège (ULg)
Le contenu: Trois modules d'apprentissage sont actuellement accessibles en ligne via le site public
http://www.pmtic.net (onglet "stagiaires"). Ils couvrent la totalité du programme de formation destiné au
public cible. Le module 1 correspond à 8 heures de formation et initie les stagiaires à la manipulation de la
souris, au maniement du clavier, à la navigation de base sur Internet et à l'envoi de courriers électroniques. Le
module 2 correspond à 16 heures de formation. Il vise à approfondir l'utilisation de l'outil Internet ainsi qu'à
initier les stagiaires au traitement de texte (Word et Open Office) et aux fonctionnalités de base du système
d'exploitation. Enfin, 24 heures de formation sont consacrées au module 3 qui consolide les compétences en
matière d'édition de textes et initie à l'utilisation du tableur (Excel et Calc). Notons qu'en termes d'utilisabilité,
les modules proposent des activités ludiques, variées et accessibles et qu'ils sont régulièrement mis à jour.
Mots Clés: TIC, apprentissage, employabilité
Le contexte
Depuis 2002, la Région wallonne de Belgique propose aux demandeurs d’emploi faiblement scolarisés
un programme d’initiation aux nouvelles technologies. Le Plan Mobilisateur des Technologies de
l’Information et de la Communication (PMTIC) soutient l’acquisition de capacités utiles à
l’exploitation du Web et d’outils de bureautique. Il a également pour objectif de promouvoir le
déploiement de compétences dynamiques susceptibles de soutenir la réinsertion socio-professionnelle
des participants. À ce jour, plus de 40.000 personnes ont suivi ce programme dispensé par plus de 200
formateurs attachés à plus d’une centaine de centres de formation de proximité. Le PMTIC est
coordonné par le Laboratoire de Soutien à l’Enseignement Télématique (LabSET) de l'Université de
Liège (ULg, Belgique) qui assure la mise en réseau des opérateurs, la formation pédagogique des
formateurs et la réalisation de supports pédagogiques à l'attention du public. Depuis le 3 février 2005,
le PMTIC fait l'objet d'un décret ratifié par le Gouvernement wallon (M.B. du 25/02/2005, p. 7579).
Dans le présent article, outre une succincte description du contenu des modules de formation, nous
abordons les principes pédagogiques qui ont présidé à leur conception, leur récente adaptation au Web
2.0 et les premiers résultats d’une recherche exploratoire centrée sur le parcours des stagiaires au-delà
du PMTIC.
Les fondements pédagogiques
La conception des modules repose sur une série de principes pédagogiques parmi lesquels
l’autonomie, la motivation et l’ambivalence mathétique [Leclercq 2005]. Ces principes concourent à
donner du sens aux activités d’apprentissage et plus de liberté aux apprenants. De la sorte, ils
contribuent au soutien d’adultes en formation. Dans les paragraphes qui suivent, nous tentons
d’illustrer leur mise en oeuvre.
Le Sens
Les modules combinent des approches pédagogiques adaptées à un public cible essentiellement
constitué d'adultes peu scolarisés. Parmi ces approches, le concept d'andragogie [Knowles, 1950 cité
159
dans Georges, Brundseaux, Van de Poël & Verpoorten, 2006, pp. 25-26] joue un rôle important. Selon
Knowles, les adultes apprennent d'autant mieux que les activités proposées font appel à leur vécu et
qu'ils en perçoivent clairement le sens. L'impératif du sens rejoint certaines propositions émises par
Bernard Benhamou [Benhamou, 2003, pp. 19-20 cité dans Georges, Brundseaux, Leduc &
Verpoorten, 2004, p. 19] pour tenter de résorber la fracture numérique : "Si nous ne réussissons pas à
rendre les contenus de l’Internet plus attractifs et plus utiles pour les populations qui ne les ont pas
encore adoptés, celles-ci risquent d’être durablement exclues de la République numérique […]. Plus
qu’une formation technique, c’est la compréhension des apports concrets de l’Internet qu’il faut
développer. Ce n’est qu’en démontrant leur utilité et en associant plus largement les citoyens, que ces
technologies pourront gagner de nouveaux usagers. Le développement de nouveaux services vers les
citoyens impliquera qu’ils en deviennent les acteurs en termes de conception et d’évolution". C'est
pour ces raisons que les modules mettent l'accent sur les multiples usages concrets des TIC dans la
société et la vie quotidienne. A cet égard, ils touchent également à l'une des 3 sources de la motivation
à apprendre selon Rolland Viau [Viau, 2004, pp. 2-3 cité dans Georges et al. 2007, p. 37], à savoir la
perception de la valeur des activités d'apprentissage. La perception de la valeur postule une motivation
accrue dans la mesure où l'apprenant perçoit l'utilité des activités proposées.
La liberté
Un autre principe d'andragogie a trait à l'exercice d'une certaine liberté dans le cadre de
l'apprentissage. Afin de pouvoir s'engager activement dans la formation, il est important que les
stagiaires soient libres de prendre certaines décisions. Par exemple, identifier des besoins, se fixer des
objectifs et des méthodes pour y satisfaire. De cette façon, les stagiaires sont encouragés à développer
des compétences que Knowles regroupe sous le terme de Self-Directed Learning, levier principal de
l'autonomie d'apprentissage. Grâce à leur structure circulaire, les modules invitent les stagiaires à
poser des choix. En sélectionnant des activités en fonction de critères prédéterminés, les stagiaires
prennent en charge leur parcours d'apprentissage et se sentent davantage responsables de leurs
réussites et de leurs échecs [Vassileff, 1994, p. 7 cité dans Georges et al., 2006, p. 26]. A chaque
module sont associés des savoirs, savoir-faire et savoir-être clairement identifiés. Avec l'aide du
formateur, chaque stagiaire peut établir un plan de travail individuel.
L'interface des modules propose systématiquement 5 portes d'entrée dans les contenus. Ces portes
d'entrées correspondent à autant de façons d'aborder les contenus associés à chaque menu circulaire.
Ainsi, il est par exemple possible de débuter dans l'apprentissage en visionnant une animation (cf.
porte d'entrée "Découvrons") ou en testant d'emblée ses connaissances (cf. porte d'entrée "Testonsnous"). Il est également possible de consulter une synthèse des contenus abordés (cf. porte d'entrée
"Avançons pas à pas"). Des exercices permettent d’entraîner les savoir-faire visés (cf. porte d'entrée
"Exerçons-nous") et des ressources supplémentaires permettent d’approfondir la matière (cf. porte
d'entrée "Explorons").
Cette structure circulaire des modules articulée en 5 portes d'entrée s'inspire du modèle des
événements d’apprentissage mis au point par Dieudonné Leclercq [2005]. Ce modèle préconise la
combinaison de plusieurs méthodes d'apprentissage et repose sur le constat selon lequel un apprenant
disposant de plusieurs ressources a tendance à combiner celles-ci selon ses préférences. Outre la
liberté de choix et le gain d'autonomie évoqués précédemment, ce modèle basé sur la diversification
des méthodes d'apprentissage vise à accroître la motivation à apprendre en ce qu'il améliore la
perception de contrôlabilité des apprenants vis-à-vis des activités proposées [Viau, 2004, cité dans
Georges et al., 2006, p.5].
Les adaptations technologiques
En 2007, une nouvelle réflexion a été suscitée par la popularité grandissante du Web 2.0. Elle a abouti
à la réalisation d’un module expérimental à l'aide de « widgets ». Ce nouveau module introduit les
notions d'espace virtuel personnalisé, de traitement de texte et de travail collaboratif en ligne. Les
outils propres au Web 2.0., en particulier ceux permettant de personnaliser l'espace virtuel, servent
également de support à l'apprentissage. De cette façon, le contexte et les contenus d'apprentissage sont
étroitement liés.
Les outils Web 2.0 sont intéressants pour le PMTIC puisqu'ils proposent des modes d'exploitation des
TIC à la fois familiers et innovateurs. Par exemple, la découverte de "Documents" sur iGoogle permet
160
à la fois de revoir les fonctionnalités de base du traitement de texte, d’utiliser l’environnement Web et
de s'initier au travail collaboratif et au partage de documents. De plus, la découverte d’applications en
ligne est particulièrement adaptée au public du PMTIC puisqu’il s’agit d’applications généralement
gratuites, accessibles de n’importe quel ordinateur et permettant le stockage à distance. Les approches
pédagogiques spécifiques aux anciens modules sont également appliquées au nouveau.
Le soutien à la réinsertion socio-professionnelle
Les modules PMTIC ne sont pas autosuffisants. La présence d'un formateur qui soutient les stagiaires
dans leur apprentissage est nécessaire. En effet, c'est principalement le formateur qui assume la
dimension sociale du PMTIC en aidant les stagiaires à s'engager dans une démarche de formation à
des fins ultimes de réinsertion socio-professionnelle. En tant que coordinateur pédagogique du Plan, le
LabSET s'efforce également d'épauler formateurs et opérateurs dans cette mission, notamment en
essayant de repérer et de renforcer au sein du PMTIC des facteurs susceptibles de promouvoir la
réinsertion. Dans les paragraphes qui suivent nous relatons les premiers résultats issus d’une recherche
exploratoire et de la littérature consacrées à l’identification de ces facilitateurs d’insertion socioprofessionnelle.
La proximité, un facteur d’engagement
Ainsi, lors des visites de terrain effectuées dans les centres de formation agréés, l'équipe du LabSET a
eu l'occasion de constater que d'anciens stagiaires continuaient à se former à l’issue du PMTIC. Forts
de ce constat, quelques chercheurs ont interrogé une vingtaine d'anciens stagiaires qui suivaient ou
avaient suivi une formation après celle du PMTIC. Ces interviews ont eu lieu au printemps 2007.
L'objectif poursuivi était double. D'une part, il s’agissait de recueillir des témoignages d'anciens
stagiaires pour les présenter sur le site public du PMTIC dans l'optique d'encourager de futurs
stagiaires, via un processus d’identification positive, à s’intégrer eux aussi dans une démarche de
formation. D'autre part, l'approche exploratoire des interviews avait pour but de repérer des facteurs
susceptibles de favoriser la poursuite d’une démarche de formation afin, dans le cadre du PMTIC, de
pouvoir renforcer l'adhésion à une telle démarche en connaissance de cause.
Les informations récoltées par le biais des interviews ont été consignées dans un rapport intitulé
"Analyse des interviews de 20 stagiaires engagés dans une formation suite au PMTIC" [Huart et al.,
2007]. Les facteurs qui ont été épinglés comme susceptibles de favoriser l'engagement des stagiaires
dans une démarche de formation au-delà du PMTIC sont les suivants: Avoir eu l'occasion de renouer
avec le milieu de la formation grâce au PMTIC et, dans le cadre du PMTIC, le fait d'avoir découvert et
pris goût à l'informatique et l'envie d'approfondir, l'ambiance chaleureuse, la disponibilité des
formateurs et l'apprentissage en petits groupes, le gain d'assurance et la valorisation des progrès
effectués, l'envie de rester actif et de mener une vie sociale. Au vu de ces informations, le rapport
conclut : "Afin de stimuler plus de personnes à s’inscrire dans une démarche de formation, [...], il
semble important de conserver des opérateurs qui répondent aux besoins d’être valorisés, encadrés et
rassurés des stagiaires, soit de petites structures à l’ambiance familiale. Il semble que diversifier les
formations proposées par ces opérateurs soit intéressant, dans la mesure où certains sont motivés à
poursuivre justement parce que la formation subséquente a lieu chez le même opérateur. Il semble
aussi pertinent de veiller à ce que les opérateurs informent les stagiaires des formations existantes,
voire les encouragent à poursuivre" [Huart et al., 2007, p. 17].
La substitution, un facteur de réinsertion
Par ailleurs, le LabSET s'est mis en quête de littérature spécialisée susceptible de fournir des
informations sur la situation psychosociale à laquelle le public cible du PMTIC doit faire face. Les
informations ainsi recueillies doivent contribuer à mieux comprendre les enjeux de la réinsertion et à
favoriser celle-ci autant que possible. L'ouvrage qui a le plus retenu notre attention à cet égard est
intitulé "Travail, chômage et stigmatisation : Une analyse psychosociale" [Herman, 2007]. De cet
ouvrage, il ressort à propos de la problématique du chômage et de ses multiples conséquences pour les
personnes qui y sont confrontées des conclusions susceptibles d'éclairer certaines particularités de
notre public cible dans le cadre du PMTIC. Nous nous contenterons ici d'un bref commentaire à
propos des potentialités compensatoires, voire réparatrices de dispositifs de formation tels que le
PMTIC.
161
A propos des effets délétères du chômage et des moyens de les atténuer, un des contributeurs de
l'ouvrage s'en réfère à la théorie de privation [Jahoda, 1980] selon laquelle toute activité
professionnelle, outre qu'elle garantit un revenu régulier, procure une série de bénéfices latents qui
satisfont des besoins psychologiques fondamentaux. Parmi ceux-ci, citons l'adhésion à une structure
temporelle, le mode de vie actif, la participation à un but collectif et le sentiment d'utilité qui en
découle, l'appartenance à un réseau social, ... Par conséquent, il est possible d'envisager des activités
dites de substitution qui rencontreraient de tels besoins. Pour ce faire, ces activités devraient pouvoir
contribuer au développement personnel des participants et à la construction de relations sociales
satisfaisantes. Tout en étant conscients du fait qu'une activité de ce type ne peut remplacer une activité
professionnelle rémunérée, nous nous efforçons, dans le cadre du PMTIC, de valoriser
l'épanouissement des stagiaires en termes de bien-être psychosocial.
Conclusion
En guise de conclusion, rappelons que le PMTIC est un projet en évolution constante. Cette évolution
s'explique notamment par les innovations techniques et les avancées en matière d’andragogie, mais
surtout par la nécessité de s’adapter au public cible. Il y a cinq ans, les premiers enjeux européens et
régionaux dans le domaine des TIC étaient d’assurer au plus grand nombre les moyens d’acquérir les
capacités suffisantes pour utiliser les fonctionnalités de base d’un ordinateur et naviguer sur le Web.
Aujourd’hui, selon l'Agence Wallonne des Télécommunications (http://www.awt.be/web/dem/
index.aspx?page=dem,fr,005,000,000), ces capacités semblent acquises par plus de 60% de Wallons.
Sans renoncer à la poursuite de cet objectif d’alphabétisation numérique, il convient de soutenir le
déploiement de nouvelles compétences parmi lesquelles l’autonomie, indispensable à l’apprentissage
en ligne et, plus largement, au "Lifelong Learning".
En guise de piste de réflexion, il nous semble important de mentionner la nécessaire ouverture de tels
programmes vers des disciplines qui permettent d'expliquer ou, tout au moins, de mieux comprendre
les succès et les difficultés rencontrées, de façon à maximiser l'impact des mesures gouvernementales.
Autrement dit, la conduite d’un projet tel que le PMTIC ne peut être réalisée sans l’apport de la
psychologie et de ses travaux sur la réinsertion socio-professionnelle, sans l’éclairage de la sociologie
et de son baromètre de taux de pénétration des TIC dans la société, sans l’intervention des sciences
politiques et de leur souci d’exploitation des TIC au service de la citoyenneté et, enfin, sans l’apport
des sciences de l’éducation et de leurs recherches sur les conditions d’acquisition, de déploiement et
de maîtrise des compétences. La mise en œuvre de ce projet nécessite, outre les éclairages théoriques
évoqués ci-dessus, le soutien de l’administration publique, le déploiement d’un réseau d’opérateurs de
formation de proximité et l’engagement de professionnels spécialisés dans la formation d’adultes.
Bibliographie
146.
Benhamou, B. (2003). Le projet Proxima, pour une appropriation de l'Internet à
l'école et dans les familles. [Consulté le 28 janvier 2008 dans
http://www.educnet.education.fr/chrgt/ProjetProxima.pdf].
147.
Georges, F.; Brundseaux, M.F; Leduc, L.; Verpoorten, I. (2004). Plan mobilisateur
pour les Technologies de l’information et de la communication (Rapport). Liège, Belgique:
Université de Liège.
148.
Georges, F.; Brundseaux, M.F; Van de Poël, J.F.; Verpoorten, I. (2006). Plan
mobilisateur pour les Technologies de l’information et de la communication (Rapport). Liège,
Belgique: Université de Liège.
149.
Georges, F.; Brundseaux, M.F.; Jerôme, F.; Petit, L.; Van de Poël, J.F.; Verpoorten, I.
(2007). Plan mobilisateur pour les Technologies de l’information et de la communication
(Rapport). Liège, Belgique: Université de Liège.
150.
Gouvernement wallon (3 février 2005). Décret sur le plan mobilisateur des
technologies de l’information et de la communication. Bruxelles, Belgique: Moniteur Belge
du 25/02/2005, p. 7579. [Consulté le 27 janvier 2008 dans
162
http://wallex.wallonie.be/index.php?mod=voirdoc&script=wallex2&PAGEDYN=SIGNTEXT
&CODE=215676&IDREV=1&MODE=STATIC].
151.
Huart, J.; Georges, F.; Brundseaux, M.F; Jerôme, F.; Van de Poël, J.F.; Verpoorten, I.;
al. (2007). Analyse des interviews de 20 stagiaires engagés dans une formation suite au
PMTIC (Rapport). Liège, Belgique: Université de Liège.
152.
Herman, G. (Ed.) (2007). Travail, chômage et stigmatisation: Une analyse
psychosociale. Bruxelles, Belgique: De Boeck Université.
153.
Jahoda, G. (1980). Theoretical and systematic approaches in cross-cultural
psychology. In: Harry C. Triandis; William W. Lambert (Eds.), Handbook of cross-cultural
psychology, Vol. 1, Perspectives, Boston: Allyn & Bacon, pp.69-141.
154.
Knowles, M. S. (1950). Informal Adult Education, New York: Association Press.
155.
Leclercq, D. (2005). Méthodes de Formation et Théories de l’Apprentissage. Liège:
Les Editions de l’Université de Liège.
156.
Vassileff, J. (février 2004). Former à l’autonomie. [Consulté le 28 janvier 2008 dans
http://www.ymca-cepiere.org/f2f/documents/former_a_l%20autonomie.htm].
157.
Viau, R. (2004). La motivation: condition au plaisir d’apprendre et d’enseigner en
contexte scolaire. Communication présentée au 3e congrès des chercheurs en Éducation,
Bruxelles, Belgique.
Auteurs:
Chercheurs: Jérôme, Françoise; Brundseaux, Marie-France; Georges, François
Université de Liège (ULg, Belgique), Laboratoire de Soutien à l'Enseignement Télématique
(LabSET), Institut de Formation et de Recherche en Enseignement Supérieur (IFRES)
Boulevard de Colonster, 2 (B9) – B-4000 Liège
E-mails:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
163
E-LEARNING, MÉTIERS DE LA SANTÉ ET INTÉGRATION
PROFESSIONNELLE
Yves Messier (CERFAH, France)
Résumé: Comment dans le cadre d’une région, le e-learning peut devenir un vecteur de développement de
l’emploi pour des groupes socialement et économiquement fragiles ? Cette proposition de communication
présente les axes que nous avons définis et que nous suivons pour la conception d’un cours préparatoire enligne pour un public d’adultes se préparant aux métiers du sanitaire et du social, notamment le métier d’aidesoignant.
Mots clés: e-learning, cours préparatoire, intégration sociale, intégration scolaire, employabilité
Communication
La région Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (PACA) compte environ 700 maisons de retraite et ces
établissements représentent le vivier principal pour l’embauche des aides-soignants. Ce métier
intéresse des salariés en reconversion professionnelle et les sortants des lycées professionnels qui
choisissent cette voie car pour s’inscrire au concours d’entrée le niveau de 3e du système scolaire
français suffit. Cette formation est attrayante car elle donne accès à des débouchés professionnels
nombreux et à la promotion professionnelle et sociale.
Le CERFAH (Centre régional de formation aux métiers de l’hospitalisation) CFA de la branche de
l’hospitalisation propose des formations d’aide-soignant ouvertes à tous et que les 18-25 peuvent
suivre sous contrat d’apprentissage. Ces derniers bénéficient alors de la prise en charge des frais de
formation et d’un accès privilégié au marché du travail.
Le CERFAH soucieux de poursuivre sa mission d’insertion professionnelle et soutenu par le Conseil
Régional PACA, a pris l’initiative de créer un cours en ligne pour la préparation au concours d’entrée
en école d’aide-soignant. Le e-learning apparait comme une voie privilégiée compte tenu des éléments
suivants:
158. Faible coût de l’inscription pour les étudiants des lycées professionnels, engagés dans la
filière sanitaire et sociale;
159. Conception favorisant l’apprentissage progressif des fonctionnalités de l’outil informatique
et promouvant l’employabilité;
160. Acquisition de réflexes propices à l’autonomie et la professionnalisation, qualités
recherchés dans le monde de la santé et pour le travail en équipe;
161. Promotion de l’insertion professionnelle par l’acquisition de l’auto-apprentissage et de la
culture de la mise en réseau des connaissances.
Notre but a été de créer un cours que l’on peut aborder selon diverses approches pédagogiques. Cet
objectif rencontre le vœu de BISHOP [2003] qui invite les concepteurs de cours à créer des approches
pédagogiques diverses pour les formations en ligne. Ceci permet d’améliorer la qualité des cours et de
stimuler l’activité intellectuelle. La progression pédagogique de notre « prépa » est adaptable à un
public d’adultes, souvent en difficultés scolaires et aux styles d’apprentissage divers. Nous rejoignons
SWAN [2003] qui affirme qu’un cours doit permettre à chacun de structurer l’information de façon
originale. Notre projet suit donc les axes suivant:
162. Création de pages prenant en compte les caractéristiques du public pour favoriser la
meilleure rétention possible d’information;
163. Des instructions de navigation pour faciliter l’usage du cours;
164
164. Création d’une communauté de pratique pour promouvoir le soutien technique et
pédagogique entre les enseignants et les étudiants mais aussi entre les étudiants eux-mêmes
pour générer des communautés de « bonnes pratiques »;
165. Tests automatisés pour permettre aux utilisateurs de vérifier régulièrement et à la fin de
chaque module leur niveau d’intégration des connaissances proposées;
166. Animations Flash pouvant remplacées ou soutenir le contenu écrit;
167. Utilisation de la philosophie de la pédagogie par projet pour promouvoir l’émulation,
l’esprit de groupe et la communication;
168. Aspects modulaire : division en module de la totalité du curriculum et redivision en sousmodules de chacun des modules.
Bibliographie
Bishop, T. (2003). Linking Cost Effectiveness with Institutional Goals: Best practices in online
education. In: J. Bourne and J. C. Moore (Eds.) Elements of Quality Online Education: Practice
and direction. Needham, MA.: Sloan-C, p. 75-86.
Swan, K. (2003). Learning effectiveness: What the research tells us. In: J. Bourne and J. C.
Moore (Eds.) Elements of Quality Online Education: Practice and direction. Needham, MA.:
Sloan-C, p. 13-45.
Auteur:
Yves Messier
CERFAH
14, rue Centrale
06300 Nice
France
Phone 04 93 81 50 93
165
NETSTART – ACHIEVING NEW ABILITIES WITH ICT
Luís Barreto (Escola Superior de Ciências Empresariais de Valenç),
Alexandre Vilaça (Exertus - Consultoria em Organização e Estratégia Empresarial, Lda.),
Cláudia Viana (Associação Empresarial de Viana do Castelo)
Abstract: This work presents the NetStart project. The project main objective is to develop a set of tools and
learning environments that allow people to develop, or update, abilities. The first step of the project, as it is
supported in a set of Web based tools and ICT technologies, is to give their users some basic computer skills.
And then, users through a cycle of continuous improvement, supported in virtual learning environments, will
be able to gain, or improve, new abilities. This continuous improvement cycle is called IPAT- Personalized
Itinerary through Technological Adaptation.
In its first phase the IPAT will allow disfavored people like unemployed, young people with low
qualifications and older actives acquire the necessary abilities to use the basic Web and ICT tools. This phase
is supported in a Flyer and a CD-Rom. The Flyer shows the basic steps of turning on a computer and
accessing the CD-Rom. The CD-Rom is composed by a set of interactive tutorials that, in a very clear and
simple manner, will allow the user to acquire competencies in using the basic ICT tools and, also, the tools
used in the project.
In its second phase the IPAT will lead the user to trace its goals of career, using for that, professional profiles
adjusted to the work market of and adjusted to the new and emergent types of jobs, in order to take a place in
the work market. This phase is supported in a web-based diagnose tool and an e-learning platform. The last
phase of this cycle consists in the participation of the user in the online training. This phase only depends in
the motivation and the needs of the user. It was privileged the e-learning system known as blended learning
(b-learning), and it was also defined that all the evaluation would be done physically in a classroom. This is
important for the credibility and recognition of the abilities.
Keywords: abilities, e-learning, professional profiles, training
1. Introduction
Northern Portugal region, and specially the region of Viana do Castelo, is facing a real problem. New
jobs are emerging; unemployed people and older employees need to develop new abilities and
competencies [2]. Another problem is the lack of knowledge and usage, among this group of people,
of the new Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). This region also has a relevant
number of young people with very low qualifications that only can get low qualification and low wage
jobs [1,4,6].
ICT allows in a more flexible and easy way, namely through e-learning, to rapidly achieve or develop
new abilities [14]. So it’s necessary to increase the knowledge and the dissemination of these new
technologies within our region.
2. Main Objectives
NetStart Project main objectives are the development of several instruments that will allow, in an
independent way, people, especially unemployed, young people with low qualifications and older
actives, to begin using ICT and then being able, supported in those technologies, to develop new
abilities, thus becoming more competitive and capable of facing new career challenges.
Netstart is a project in the EQUAL1 Initiative, and is funded through the European Social Fund. The
EQUAL initiative is a laboratory for new ideas, implemented in and between Member States, to the
European Employment Strategy and the Social inclusion process. Its mission is to promote a more
inclusive work life through fighting discrimination and exclusion based on sex, racial or ethnic origin,
religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation.
1
http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/equal/index_en.cfm
166
Netstart Project is focused on the abilities development, beginning with basic computer skills needed
for accessing the project web based tools, and proceeding, according with the established objectives,
through a cycle of continuous improvement of the abilities. For the achievement of all these goals it
was defined the Personalized Itinerary through Technological Adaptation (IPAT). This Personalized
Itinerary consists of two distinct phases. The first phase will emphasize in giving the target users the
first steps in using and accessing the basic ICT and web tools. This phase is supported in a Flyer and a
CD-Rom. The second phase, the more important and also the nuclear one of the project, will lead
users to trace its goals of career, using for that, professional profiles adjusted to the work market of the
region and, also, adjusted to the new emergent jobs, in order to take a place in the work market. This
phase is composed by a web application and an e-learning platform.
3. Diagnostic
All the members of the NetStart partnership noticed, in the development of their normal activities, that
people were worried with their professional development. This was a way of increasing their
employment capacity and also their opportunities for better wages. But their concerns, regarding their
professional development, were not followed by the organizations main concerns and, also, by the
market needs, thus, this was leading to low levels of employment and qualification.
A question arose: “What is the most suitable model to develop, in a continuous way, training, that
could be used by unemployed and employed people, capable of conciliate practice and theory?” This
problem was, in an initial phase, formulated in an empirical manner based in the experiences of the
partnership. Afterwards, this was validated through the diagnose phase.
For the diagnostic analysis was taken in consideration micro, macro and local data. To acquire micro
data it was decided to make an inquiry in all the region companies (mainly Small and Medium
Enterprises- SMEs). This inquiry was related to four distinct areas: target users/public, Internet access
and type of connection (low or high bandwidth), analysis of technological evolution within the
organization and evaluation of their training program and, finally, their sensibility to training
supported in e-learning [10,12,13].
The macro data was obtained consulting National and European Governmental Organizations as:
Instituto Nacional de Estatística [1], the National Action Plan for Employment [2] and the European
Employment Strategy [3]. Finally, to obtain local data were organized meetings - called focus groups with all the local entities concerned with the employment questions. The entities participating in those
focus groups were Unions, Enterprise Associations, Regional Associations and the National
Employment Institute/ Instituto de Emprego e Formação Profissional [4].
It was possible to concluded, after all the data analysis, that: there was a great gap between the
training, people were doing and the real enterprise needs; ICT technology was not fully used within
the organizations, unemployed people were mainly in the range of 35-40 years old having great
difficulties in using ICT, in the region there was not a strategy for the development of ICT supported
training, the region was not aware of the advantages of e-learning and b-learning, the main reasons for
the inscription of unemployed people in the local employment service [11] are shown in Figure 1 (it
must be emphasized that “fired” and “end of short period job” are the most relevant components).
167
Figure 1. Main reasons for the inscription in the Local Employment Service
With all the previous results, it was evident that it was important to put organizations and people
seeking, in terms of training and abilities, the same solutions and results and, thus, it was necessary to
build a bridge that would be the shortest path between the enterprises and the society.
The NetStart Project was, therefore, organized in a way that could support and develop all the
economic tissue in the constant acquisition of knowledge though a technological platform that would
be available to organizations, older, unemployed and employed people. This platform would be
concerned with the abilities development and the professional orientation, leading, consequently, to a
high employment success rate.
4. Learning Pathway Development
The methodology used in the development of this project had different moments for clarifying and
redefining the problems to solve, and the goals to achieve. These moments were, mainly, composed of
information research and analysis, ideas discussion and evaluation, test and confirmation of its
applicability followed by its validation. To, effectively, finish this tasks some project management
tools were used.
These were very important moments for the partnership as it was possible, with the help of some
SMEs and target users, to make decisions that guided, consistently, all the work.
All the methodology used was supported in a constructive process where all the results of the
initiatives taken (we can refer the target public participation) were effective contributions to the
development of all the products.
Involving the target public was done through the realization of traditional training in basic ICT
knowledge. This training allowed us to realize the real difficulties of the target public when using ICT.
This training was, also, very important for the development of the first version of our flyer. Two more
training courses were done, “How to become a successful commercial” and “ICT for life”. These two
courses were done in e-learning and with different pedagogical methods, which allowed us to define
the best learning and training method for both the companies and the people. These two courses were
also important to validate what type of technique, regarding electronic learning, would suite people
needs and, of course, companies needs.
Another important moment, in the development of the learning pathway, was the definition of the
professional profiles that would guarantee a high level of employment in the region [9]. The definition
of those profiles was done in strict collaboration between the potential beneficiaries- organizations and
people - leading us to a group of essential training modules, more adapted to what the companies
really needed. This result was very important; allowing us to simplify all the training developed.
As a way to validate all the work done defining this pathway - and to close the cycle - trainees were
put, in some of the companies for a period of three months, working in real conditions. This way,
168
trainees could, in a practical manner, evaluate and apply all the knowledge obtained during the elearning sessions.
5. Pedagogical Models
As mentioned before different pedagogical models were used during two of our on-line courses. We
used linear and nonlinear models [15]. We also used different kind of collaboration and participation
teaching techniques [16].
We found that linear models were easy to establish but they were nor very effective in maintaining the
students motivation. Thus, we introduced some changes to this model. In one of the tests, the trainer
would be seated in a different classroom, and using the chat tool would try to evaluate how the
trainees felt about all the learning process.
Nonlinear models were more effective, but with trainees that have more difficulties in language and
interpretation results were not very satisfactory. So it was important to use a mix of both models.
It was also important to realize that keeping trainees’ motivation in high standards was of extreme
importance for the courses success. Another conclusion was the need to use working groups and to
use, during the learning process, games that allowed students to solve problems, and, thus, obtain the
necessary knowledge in a more flexible way.
6. Learning Model
As our main target public was a target group with a lot of difficulties, especially in what concerned the
use and accessibility of the new training/ learning systems and tools supported by the new ICT, it was
important to define a learning model that was able to keep their motivation in satisfactory levels.
It is important to mention that a person who does a learning pathway, which drives to a new
professional profile, has to do a set of training modules that in a whole will be considered a training
action.
Thus, thinking in our target public, and after having discussed the results of all the tests previously
done, the partnership decided that the learning model should have the following characteristics: each
training module should guarantee the acquisition of some abilities needed to the development of some
task; each training module shouldn’t correspond to more than 12 hours of trainee work, this is an
important factor essentially related to people’s motivation; all the content should be able to involve the
participants, thus, the referred content should be interactive enough (too much interactive would arise
new problems); all the training modules should have an initial and ending live session, the ending live
session should be used to the evaluation of the trainees, this is important for the training recognition
among the SMEs; all the sessions should be supported with working techniques (individual work,
team work, ideas discussions), this would allow a higher participation and intervention of the trainees.
Also, as a way to keep the group of users motivated, it was decided that a Tutor should have an active
participation and all the language used should be as simple as possible.
For supporting these results, we defined a set of professional profiles and we offered to fifteen users
the possibility of doing a complete learning pathway. Among those users we had employed and
unemployed people. Almost 87% of them finished his/her learning pathway, and were able to
candidate to a new job. From those, 50% were able to get a new job. These were very encouraging
results.
7. Netstart Products
As mentioned before, NetStart Project has two distinct phases- they together realize the Personalized
Itinerary through Technological Adaptation - and in each phase a set of tools and products. The
following sections will describe each of its products and tools.
7.1 First Phase Products- Flyer and CD-Rom
The products that realize this phase are a flyer (Figure 2) and a CD-Rom (Figure 3). The flyer will give
all the necessary directions, to someone without any computer skills knowledge, to start using a
Personal Computer (PC) until the stage of inserting and start using the CD-Rom. All the language used
169
within the flyer and CD-Rom is very simple and easy to understand. This is a very important factor, as
we are dealing with low qualification people. Thus, it was also decided that all the language in the
development of the project would have a special attention, allowing more people to use all the project
tools.
Figure 2. Flyer
Figure 3. NetStart CD-Rom
The CD-Rom consists of several games and tutorials that will allow the user to access, in an
independent way, the second phase tool and the e-learning content. The CD-Rom is divided in four
main subjects: Knowing better your PC (using the mouse and the keyboard, how to use
programs/applications, etc.), the Internet (browser, hyperlinks, search engines), E-mail as an important
communication tool (how to create an email account, how to use e-mail) and how to use NetStart
(portal, tools and e-learning platform). All the tutorials in the CD-Rom are interactive and need the
user to be a participant in them. This will allow the user to get all the necessary knowledge in a
pleasant and simple manner.
7.2 Second Phase Product- Diagnostic platform
This phase is supported in a web based application. In this application, developed within the project
partnership, the user, after an initial registration, selects the job functions were he, already, has
abilities, then regarding those job functions he has to select what tasks/ roles has skills. Going on, the
user has to tell the level of ability that he has for each task. For simplifying all the process it was
previously defined three levels: simple, medium and advanced. Then, the user has to select how he
will prove those levels. He can prove it with a document, for example with a certificate; his employer
can also prove its abilities levels and he can also ask for a diagnose test. The next step will make a
170
match between the profiles and needs that are stored in the system and the information introduced by
the user. A graphical representation is used, for a better reading and understanding, to show how
approximate is the information introduced by the user to the profiles needed or stored in the system.
For finishing all the process, the user selects a profile that satisfies his career goals and the system will
return his Personalized Itinerary. The itinerary will inform the user what training he needs to entirely
satisfy, considering as a starting point his actual abilities, that professional profile.
The web application stores all the information introduced by the users and keeps track of all changes
occurred, and, as needed, users can access and update the information. The web application retrieves
what activities - namely training courses, proof of task/roles levels - are done and what needed to be
finished.
Employers or organizations managers can, also, use the web application to submit and/or introduce
specific needs, and to manage the training needs within their organizations. The development of this
web application was preceded by the definition of a functional analysis (Figure 4). For the development
of this functional analysis was important the participation of the target people, the technicians and,
also, the partnership. They together worked as a whole, satisfying all the requirements and defining a
tool that can increase the competitiveness of our region. The functional analysis was supported in the
work of [5,7,8].
Figure 4. Functional analysis
When the user has his Personalized Itinerary, he can through the participation in online training
courses reach the goals and abilities asked by the profile selected- this is the third phase. This phase
only depends on the motivation and the needs of the user. It was privileged the e-learning system
known as blended learning (b-learning), and it was also defined that all the evaluation would be done
physically in a classroom. This is important for the credibility and recognition of the abilities among
the employers. The training courses, if chosen by the user, can be done externally, even through
traditional training system (physical classroom). After the completion of the courses the user will be
able to update its itinerary. Such process allows the user to choose what best suits its interests and
needs.
171
Figure 5. NetStart Portal
8. Conclusions
NetStart is a powerful mean of competitiveness improvement supported in abilities development and
ICT. These together, surely, will make the difference and will start changing the training paradigm in
our region and possibly in all European countries. Nowadays, the traditional training is used, the tools
and results of the NetStart project firmly advise that it’s time to move on and to assume that training
can be more flexible and accessible. All these results will be in a web portal (www.netstart.pt – Figure
5); from here it will be possible to access the web application, the e-learning platform and also
relevant information.
NetStart set of tools allow, also, people to increase their ICT abilities. These tools will permit an
increase in ICT usage and, also, an efficient exploration of all the information and content created and
delivered by those technologies.
NetStart web portal wants to be, to all people with low qualifications, an open door to the digital
world. Its main development characteristics, such as ease of use and simple language, will allow a low
qualification person to find their real needs in terms of professional competencies and, also, allows
this same person to select and begin new training, supported in ICT, which will satisfy organizations
real needs.
All the tests done allowed concluding that this model is effective. It is possible in a quick way the
acquisition of the basic abilities to the development of a task/ function. This functionality facilitates
not also employment but, and sometimes more important, the integration of any person in an
organization or even in society.
Nevertheless, we have to evaluate the results of the project application in a more real scenario i.e. in
presence of a higher number of SMEs and users. It is also necessary, after a period of further
utilization, to make a comparative evaluation of the employability level in the region.
References
Instituto Nacional de Estatística, http://www.ine.pt
National Action Plan for Employment, http://www.dgeep.mtss.gov.pt/estudos/pne.php
European Employment Strategy,
http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/employment_strategy/task_en.htm
Instituto de Emprego e Formação Profissional, http://www.iefp.pt
HR Online Inc.: Performance Development Smart Suite: A comprehensive integrated web
enabled suite of HR workflow process, (2004).
Confederação do Comércio e Serviços de Portugal, http://www.ccp.pt
172
Lavoro Regione Emilia-Romagna, http://www.provincia.bologna.it/lavoro/
Servicio Basco de Empleo, http://www.lanbide.net
Catálogo Nacional de Profissões,
http://portal.iefp.pt/portal/page?_pageid=177,139188&_dad=gov_portal_iefp&_schema=GOV_
PORTAL_IEFP&id=4
International Labour Office – Genève, Recommendation concerning Human Resources
Development: Education, Training and Lifelong Learning, Recommendation 195
IEFP: Relatório Trimestral, Evolução e Situação dos Mercados Locais de Trabalho, 2º Trimestre
2004.
Programa Operacional Temático Potencial Humano (FSE) – QREN,
http://www.qren.pt/item3.php?lang=0&id_channel=34&id_page=203
TRICTSME- TRaining of Information and Communication Technologies for Small and Medium
Sized enterprises, http://vegnet.beds.ac.uk/trictsme/index.htm
Sarojni Choy, Benefits of e-Learning Benchmarks: Australian Case Studies. Queensland
University of Technology, Australia
Ronald Robberecht, Interactive Nonlinear Learning Environments. Department of Rangeland
Ecology, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, USA
Authors:
Luís, Barreto
Escola Superior de Ciências Empresariais - Instituto Politécnico de Viana do Castelo
Av. Miguel Dantas, 4930-678 Valença,
Portugal
Alexandre, Vilaça
Exertus - Consultoria em Organização e Estratégia Empresarial, Lda.
Centro Empresarial da Maia - Sala 206, Rua Eng. Frederico Ulrich, 3210 - Bloco B - 2º, 4470-605
Maia
Cláudia, Viana, Dra.
AEVC- Associação Empresarial de Viana do Castelo
Largo João Tomás da Costa, 41 – 1º, 4900-509 Viana do Castelo
173
UN EPORTFOLIO STRUCTURÉ ET TUTORÉ POUR LA GESTION
ET LE SUIVI PERSONNALISÉ DE L’EVALUATION DES PRATIQUES
PROFESSIONNELLES EN TECHNOLOGIE ET MÉDECINE
TRANSFUSIONNELLES
Stéphanie Jullien, Patrice Roussel, Thierry Zunino, Philippe Rouger
(Institut National de la Transfusion Sanguine, France)
Pascal Staccini, Sophie Vessiere, Christophe Bordonado
(Faculté de Médecine de Nice-Sofia Antipolis, France)
Jean-François Quaranta (Centre Hospitalier Universitaire De Nice, France)
Jean-Jacques Cabaud (DRASS Ile-de-France, France)
Mots Clés: eportfolio, évaluation, évaluation des pratiques professionnelles
Introduction
La mise en œuvre quinquennale d’une évaluation des pratiques professionnelles (EPP portant sur les
savoir faire) a été introduite par la loi du 13 août 2004 relative à l’assurance maladie et précisée par
des textes réglementaires ultérieurs. A ce jour, cette obligation couplée à celle de formation médicale
continue (FMC portant sur les savoir) introduite par la loi du 9 août 2004 relative à la politique de
santé publique, concerne tous les médecins en activité, quel que soit le mode d’exercice. Elle sera
élargie à l’ensemble des professions médicales et paramédicales selon les souhaits de la Haute
Autorité de santé (HAS). Ce dispositif complète d’autres démarches de maîtrise de la qualité et des
risques dans le champ de la santé: procédure de certification obligatoire tous les quatre ans de tous les
établissements de santé publics et privés engagée depuis 1999, accréditation volontaire de la qualité de
la pratique professionnelle des médecins et des équipes médicales avec pratiques à risques engagée en
2006.
Par décision du 15 mars 2006, la HAS a confié à l’Institut National de la Transfusion Sanguine (INTS)
la responsabilité de la mise en place de l’EPP en technologie et médecine transfusionnelles. L’INTS,
qui dispose en effet du statut d’organisme formateur indépendant et d’une logistique adaptée, a donc
engagé plusieurs programmes thématiques, en lien avec les sociétés savantes concernées, ceci dans un
cadre organisationnel associant un comité scientifique, un comité de pilotage, des experts, un comité
d’évaluation.
La finalité de l'évaluation des pratiques est d'améliorer la qualité, la sécurité des soins et le service
médical rendu au patient par les professionnels de santé, mais aussi la prévention et la santé publique
en général.
Cette évaluation doit constituer une opportunité d’échanges stimulante pour tout professionnel, être
simple d’accès et équitable dans ses modalités de mise en œuvre et être intégrée aux pratiques
quotidiennes à moindre coût. Afin de rendre la participation des médecins à l’EPP la moins
contraignante possible, l’INTS a développé avec la Faculté de Médecine de Nice- Sofia Antipolis un
outil de gestion personnalisé à distance appelé eEPP .
174
Outils et méthodes
Une réflexion a été menée conjointement entre l’INTS et le laboratoire des Sciences et Technologies
de l'Information et de la Communication en santé (Lab STIC Santé) de l’UFR de Médecine de
l’Université Nice Sofia-Antipolis pour définir à la fois un outil mais aussi un mode de gestion et un
modèle de suivi individuel des parcours des praticiens. Cet outil est défini pour répondre à des besoins
fondamentaux formulés en amont:
169. Disposer d'un outil unique pour l'ensemble des praticiens en transfusion;
170. Tracer l'ensemble des étapes du parcours du praticien.
Décentraliser la saisie (au niveau du praticien participant mais aussi au niveau de l'administration de la
plateforme). Permettre le suivi individualisé d’un praticien grâce à un dossier personnel, un
programme d'évaluation qui correspond à son activité, la possibilité de créer un plan d'action
individuel et de gérer les actions mises en place de manière à s'adapter aux mieux aux impératifs de la
profession et le l’accompagnement à distance d’un pair assurant la fonction de tuteur.
Cet outil a donc été structuré comme un portfolio électronique interactif, structuré, et tutoré. Afin
d’impacter au minimum l'activité professionnelle des praticiens et être disponible sur l'ensemble du
territoire, la plateforme est disponible grâce à une connexion internet.
Son développement a été planifié sur deux ans à compter du 1er janvier 2006 selon quatre phases:
171. une phase de spécification et de conception fonctionnelles;
172. une phase de prototypage avec tests integers;
173. une phase d’exploitation monitorée avec des médecins volontaires;
174. une phase d’évaluation.
En parallèle, des groupes d’experts ont travaillé à l’élaboration de programmes d’évaluation en
fonction des différents métiers de la transfusion. Ainsi, treize programmes ont été identifiés et leurs
développements planifiés. Un premier programme s’adressant aux hémovigilants pratiquant en
établissement de santé a ainsi été développé. Celui-ci repose sur une méthodologie d’autoévaluation
par rapport à un référentiel (validé en mars 2006) et à la mise en œuvre d’actions d’amélioration des
pratiques. Toute la phase de tests et d’évaluation du dispositif a donc reposé sur ce premier
programme.
Au final, le eportfolio comporte différents types de données:
175. Les données liées à la description d’un programme d’évaluation et à sa composition en
actions et en activités à réaliser;
176. Les données liées à la mise en œuvre des activités par le médecin, concrétisées par le dépôt
d’éléments d’appréciation sous la forme de documents-preuves;
177. Les données liées aux échanges (questions / réponses) entre un praticien et son tuteur;
178. Les données liées aux décisions finales apportées par le tuteur (acceptation des preuves,
validation des actions).
Toutes les modifications de l’eportfolio sont enregistrées par le système, qu’il s’agisse des étapes de
création du programme, d’affectation du tuteur, de son instanciation dans le dossier du praticien, du
dépôt des preuves et de la validation des actions.
Résultat
Le dispositif est actuellement en validation sur un premier programme incluant cinq groupes de dix
médecins et leurs tuteurs. Le souhait de l’INTS a été ainsi de démarrer au plus vite une phase pilote
pour expérimenter l’eportfolio, finaliser le stade de développement et débuter le cycle de vie de la
plateforme. Le premier programme d’EPP a été traduit informatiquement sous forme d’actions.
Un programme (Cf. Figure 1) est à l’heure actuelle défini en action continue et en action ponctuelle.
Une action continue a une durée d’au moins 18 mois. Le médecin participant à un programme
s’engage donc à mettre en œuvre une ou plusieurs actions, cohérente(s) avec sa pratique et suivie(s), le
cas échéant, par un indicateur. Les actions d’améliorations peuvent être de nature organisationnelle
175
et/ou technique. Le médecin participant est encadré par un tuteur, expert du programme. Par
définition, l’action ponctuelle est limitée dans le temps. Il existe différentes possibilités de
participation à une action ponctuelle d’EPP, par exemple en atelier au cours d’un congrès ou à
distance par Internet.
Figure 1. Cette présentation d’un programme d’EPP pour un praticien, indique les éléments de sa planification (délai de
fin de période d’évaluation) et sa décomposition en activités, avec pour chacune d’entre elle l’accès aux éléments de suivi
(commentaires, dépôt des preuves, état de validation).
Le déroulement d’un programme d’EPP en technologie et médecine transfusionnelles comporte
donc plusieurs étapes (Cf. Figure 2).
Figure 2. Roue représentant les étapes du processus EPP via la plateforme
Le praticien s’inscrit tout d’abord en ligne par le biais du site http://www.epp-ints.fr et choisit à cette
occasion le programme d’EPP adapté à sa spécialité. Il est ensuite convié à une journée de «
lancement » organisée par groupe de 10 médecins dont l’objectif est la présentation du contexte
réglementaire et du cadre organisationnel, des méthodes et outils de l’EPP, du référentiel
d’autoévaluation, de la plateforme électronique et du tuteur accompagnant chacun à distance tout au
long de la démarche.
Le médecin réalise ensuite à distance l’état des lieux de ses pratiques sur la base d’une autoévaluation
par rapport à un référentiel thématique. Il définit alors un plan d’action personnel validé par le tuteur
pour chaque proposition d’amélioration (nommée activités dans le système). Le praticien met alors en
œuvre ce plan d’action et en apporte la preuve (Cf. Figure 3) dans les délais qu’il s’est lui même fixés.
176
Figure 3. La fenêtre indique l’état de validation de la preuve après l’intervention du tuteur.
Les preuves validant ces actions sont ainsi stockées dans l’outil et tracent l’ensemble des étapes
d’évaluation du praticien. Les preuves apportées par le praticien sont analysées et validées par son
tuteur. Celui-ci valide ainsi les différentes actions qui composent le programme d’EPP.
Le portfolio garde la trace de son cycle de vie et de son utilisation par les praticiens et les tuteurs.
L’historique des actions sert de base à l’évaluation statistique de l’activité du dispositif qui est prévue
dans les suites du développement (Cf. Figure 4).
Figure 4. L’historique du parcours d’un praticien
Un système de boîtes de dialogues, d’alerte de gestion du temps par email et d’outils mis à
disposition en téléchargement aident le praticien à remplir sa démarche d’amélioration des pratiques
dans le temps imparti. A l’issue, le praticien reçoit son certificat d’EPP par l’INTS.
Conclusion
L’ eEPP est un outil convivial et simple d’utilisation qui permet:
La gestion et l’accès sécurisés à distance au dossier personnel
La mise à disposition de documents, méthodes et outils Le
suivi et l’évaluation des actions d’EPP par le tuteur Des
échanges individuels
Une montée en charge du dispositif est attendue dès 2008 avec l’intégration progressive de douze
nouveaux programmes.
Les futures évolutions de la plateforme électronique sont en cours de planification et intègrent entre
autre la construction d’indicateurs de fonctionnement de l’outil et de suivi qualité du dispositif. Il est
également prévu d’intégrer la possibilité de participation à des forums de discussion qui favoriseront
les échanges collectifs.
Au-delà du contexte législatif, il existe une alternance constante entre l’évaluation et la formation.
Ainsi mener une
177
EPP demeure une manière simple de faire le bilan des connaissances et des compétences qui va
permettre la jonction de l’EPP et de la FMC. En ce sens, l’INTS a le souhait d’accompagner les
médecins en transfusion dans le processus de FMC.
Références
Lorenzo, G.; Ittelson J. (2005). An overview of e-portfolios. Educause Learning Initiative.
Staccini. P; Hergon, E.; Bordonado, C.; Jullien, S.; Quaranta, J-F. (2007). Un portfolio structuré
pour la gestion et le suivi des dossiers d’évaluation des pratiques professionnelles en techniques
et médecine transfusionnelles. Transfusion Clinique et Biologique, Vol. 14, p.352-358.
Hergon E.; Py, J-Y.; Jullien S.; Quaranta, J-F.; Cabaub, J-J.; Staccini, P.; Rouger P. (2007).
L’évaluation des pratiques professionnelles en technologie et médecine transfusionnelles: De
quoi s’agit-il? La Gazette de la transfusion, No. 199, Cahier pratiques (Juillet-aout 2007), p. 5-8.
Hergon, E.; Py, J-Y.; Jullien, S.; Quaranta, J-F.; Folléa, G.; Andreu, G.; Cabaub, J-J.; Staccini,
P.; Rouger, P. (2007). L’évaluation des pratiques professionnelles des médecins en technologie
et médecine transfusionnelles. Transfusion Clinique et Biologique.
Staccini, P.; Hergon, E.; Joubert, M.; Fieschi, M. (2007). Collaborative and workflow-oriented
digital portfolio: Creating a web- based tool to support a nationwide program of pratices
evaluation in the blood tranfusion area. International Journal of Medical Informatics, Vol. 76, p.
383-392.
HAS, Décision n°2007.10.035/EPP du 07/11/07 relative aux modalités de mise en œuvre de
l’évaluation des pratiques professionnelles (http://www.has-sante.fr).
Auteur:
Stéphanie Jullien
Institut National de la Transfusion Sanguine
6 rue Alexandre Cabanel
75015 PARIS
France
Phone 01.44.49.30.00
178
PERSONNEL, PROFESSIONALISM AND LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
Kamakhaya Lal Kamal, Devika Paul
(Kasturba Institute Of Rural Studies KIRS, India)
Keywords: professionalism, learning, organisation, personnel, culture
Professionalism and Profession
The success or failure of an organization largely depends on the level of professionalism of its
personnel. It is, therefore, one of the most critical aspects of human management. Professionalism as
defined by Frank B. Miller includes (a). high standard and careful definition of the job, preceded by
long careful preparation (b). a set of loyalties with standards of performances set by the profession as
well as by the employer and (c). a considerable investment of time and effort keeping up with changes
in practice. In brief, professionalism is a value-loaded concept involving knowledge, expertise,
commitment, vision, perspective and integrity.
A profession denotes rendering service to the society in accordance with central values through a
systematic body of knowledge, commitment and vision in a methodical way. It involves necessary
training and skills for performing the job entrusted. In brief, profession requires theoretical knowledge
of the subject, education and training for competence, integrity resulting from the application of the
moral code of ethics, meaningful dialogue among colleagues and co-workers in place of arrogance,
show of authority. It needs continuous study of professional literature, debate, discussion over the
latest trends and developments in the discipline. Here it would be relevant to quote Aristotle who said
that a committee is wiser than the wisest of its members. This shows that every thinking person, may
be lesser known and not placed high, can add something to whatever is being resolved. Decision of a
committee is based on consensus which is an outcome of longer debates and serious discussions
among its members. This decision would always be more rational, authentic and functional than the
opinion of one person, however, knowledgeable, competent and talented he/she may be.
Personnel
Personnel management has multiple roles to play both in and outside the organization. In fact, it
includes personnel administration which is an integral part of management. Its objectives are threefold (a). catering to the need and development of the organization, (b). personal interest and job
satisfaction and (c). attaining the social goals. It may be stated that management is predominantly
culture specific. Culture, precisely speaking, includes knowledge, belief, morals, law, custom,
tradition, ethos etc that an individual acquires as member of a given society. The personnel are also
required to adapt to an inter – disciplinary approach for understanding, analyzing human behaviour
with a view to facilitating success of organizational goals while watching and safeguarding individual
interests of the personnel. To sum up it may be stated that the personnel be concerned with cognitive
as well as with the affective domain. The cognitive domain is concerned with the taxonomy of
organizational objectives which may include knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis,
synthesis and evaluation. The affective domain includes objectives of interests, attitudes, values,
development of appreciation and adjustment. It may, however, be conceded that it is very difficult to
study and analyse human behaviour in a scientific and objective way as internal feelings and emotions
are not as clear as overt behaviour manifestations. The testing procedures for the domain are still not
globally standardized.
179
Organising Learning Environment
Learning is an un-ending continuous life long process. In this age of science and technology the
traditional mode of learning has been substantially replaced by e-learning. Briefly speaking e-learning
is commonly referred to the international information and communications technology. E-Learning is
gaining popularity because of its direct relation to the increasing access to information and
communication technology and its reduced cost. The capacity of information and communication
technology to support multimedia resource-based learning is also relevant to the growing interest in elearning.
Congenial environment is pre-requisite for learning. Biologically speaking, environment is said to
comprise whole range of external influences acting on an organism. To be precise, environment may
be defined as the aggregate of all the external conditions and influence affecting the life and
development of an organism. Here we are concerned with the environment in which the personnel
work in an organization. We propose to study and analyse the environmental factors which affect the
personnel in their working. Here we take into consideration the socio-economic structures and cultural
configurations which affect the man and the environment. In sum, environment in an organization
means relationships between man and bio-physical surroundings, between man and fellow workers
which affects his thoughts and actions.
Following Aristotle’s teleological method, environment in an organization should be conducive for the
development for both the organization and its personnel. There should be no conflict between the two
as the goals of both are identical. The growth of an organization essentially includes the growth of its
personnel. To be personnel-friendly environment the system should be open and transparent.
Democratic values should be inherent in the system. The system should provide facilities and
favourable conditions to the personnel to enable them to be at their best. Merit alone should be the
only criterion of promotion and elevation to the higher position, neither age nor hierarchy. Decision
making should be based not on the show of authority but on rational thinking and competence. Effort
should be made to evolve consensus for arriving at some decision. Then there should be a provision
for creatively resolving conflict by replacing win-loss situations with win-win types. Conciliation, not
confrontation, should be the mode. This may further be stated that sincere efforts be made to reduce
dysfunctional competition and maximize collaboration. Healthy competition is necessary but
competition that embodies rivalry, vengeance does not lead to the growth of an organization. Rules be
adhered to but inter-personal relationship is no less important for creating harmony and congeniality.
Mutual respect, love, trust and comradeship contribute a lot to the development of an organization.
There should also be a well developed communication system for effective functioning of an
organization. Proper feed back system is equally important. There should a provision for regular
meeting, discussions, seminars in which all the employees have an opportunity to participate
irrespective of their ranking, expertise and qualifications. An organization should be well-equipped
with a library comprising relevant literature including latest books and journals relating to the subject.
Last but not the least is the role of the leader who is also the manager. An organization needs a
manager not an administrator, not a boss but a leader. It is said that an administrator hides his
ignorance under the cover of arrogance because he believes in issuing orders, not in dialogue, in
hierarchy not in comradeship. He can cite reasons as to why work was not done whereas a manager
will show how a work can be done, all odds notwithstanding. A manager is a facilitator and a
motivator and does not show his authority.
Here we quote from an unknown source an extract that aptly shows how a leader is different from a
boss qualitatively.
BOSS OR LEADER ?
The boss drives his men,
The leader inspires them;
The boss depends on authority,
The leader depends on goodwill;
180
The boss evokes fear,
The leader radiates love;
The boss says “I”,
The leader says “we”;
The boss shows who is wrong,
The leader shows what is wrong;
The boss knows how it is done,
The leader knows how to do it;
The boss demands respect,
The leader commands respect;
SO BE A LEADER
NOT A BOSS.
Authors:
Kamakhaya Lal Kamal, Prof.
Former Vice- Chancellor
University of Rajasthan
Jaipur (India)
Devika Paul, Dr.
KASTURBA INSTITUTE OF RURAL STUDIES (KIRS)
A-3 City Apartments
21 Vasundhra Enclave
Delhi 110096
India
Phone +91-11-43034559
Fax +91-11-43034559
181
QUALIFYING UNIVERSITY STAFF IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
FOR E-LEARNING
Harald Hauge (TISIP / GVU-UNU, Norway), Bodil Ask (University of Agder, Norway)
Keywords: e-learning, university staff, developing countries, access, qualification
Background
Growing demands for higher education around the world render particularly universities in developing
countries under pressure to accommodate larger numbers of students. As the situation is now,
economy, campus facilities as well as access to qualified staff set limits for intake of new students, far
below national and regional demands. Vast masses of knowledge-hungry candidates are knocking on
the university gates. Available resources are insufficient to meet the needs through traditional methods
and organisations.
Governments and agencies in developed parts of the world have programmes for foreign aid, financing
education, health services and employment projects in developing countries. There are almost no end
to the needs for solving the most urgent situations like starvation, famine and diseases in the poorest
areas. Much of the efforts towards education go into primary and adult education in order to overcome
illiteracy. By the time these obvious and urgent needs are supported, there are hardly any means left
for higher education, let alone for in-service or further education of already qualified academics. In
some cases bursaries or grants are offered for further studies or post graduate work at institutions in
developed countries, thus taking the grantees away from important duties and students at their home
institutions. The training in a different cultural setting may even be of less value when they return, or
still worse, may tempt the grantees to continue working under better conditions in the developed parts
of the world.
Could net based study programmes, developed and anchored locally, be a way to keep the academics
at their home institutions, thus creating new learning environments for larger masses of their countrymen? This may improve capacity, accessibility and cost effectiveness for more students, and avoid the
brain-drain from already scarce resources.
Objectives and actions
The United Nations University (UNU) [1] encourages activities that may raise competence and
confidence at universities in developing countries. A special branch of the UNU, the Global Virtual
University (UNU-GVU) [2], has during a pilot period of 5 years (2002–2007) initiated and established
a global network of universities for developing joint degrees and building online competence for tutors
and course developers. Main objectives are to support sustainable development and establishment of
learning organisations and communities that strengthen local competence and meet demands for
higher education. One joint master programme is already up and running with great success (GEDS)
[3]; the first batch of students have graduated in 2007. Others are being planned.
By qualifying local staff in Africa, Latin America and parts of Asia to develop, organise and tutor their
own online courses and study programmes, this will raise confidence and promote self reliance. It will
also strengthen the local cultures and national characteristics without lowering quality of higher
education. This is contrary to the practice of delivering courses and study programmes from or in more
developed countries, options that may be regarded as cultural imperialism.
182
Two dedicated courses on e-learning, both at master’s degree level, each awarding 10 credits (ECTS)
[4], are offered online to professors and teaching staff by UNU-GVU:
179. E-teaching 1, basic online methodology and pedagogical principles for tutors [5];
180. E-teaching 2, planning, designing and development of online courses [6].
The courses are developed on the basis of material and experiences from collaborative EU projects on
e-learning (MENU) [7] and take advantage of expertise in partner institutions. Jointly with UNU-GVU
two Norwegian universities, University of Agder (UiA) [8] and Stord/Haugesund University College
(HSH) [9], are running the courses and take the academic responsibility, awarding formal credits and
diplomas to students who complete the work and exams.
In principle the courses are to be financed through student fees of the order US$ 1000 for each course.
During the UNU-GVU pilot period, however, available funding has allowed to establish bursaries to
cover greater parts of the fees for participants from developing countries. Economy has thus not been a
major obstacle for interested staff members so far. The major challenges are related to lack of time and
to the unstable infrastructure, causing some of the registered students to drop out without completing
the course.
The lack of infrastructure and access to modern technology is often argued against this strategy for
offering higher education to target groups in developing countries. Statistics now show, however, that
the situation is changing drastically:
WORLD INTERNET USAGE AND POPULATION STATISTICS
World Regions
Population
(2007 Est.)
Population
% of World
Internet Usage, % Population
Latest Data
( Penetration)
Africa
Asia
Europe
Middle East
North America
Latin Am/Carib
Oceania / Austr
WORLD TOTAL
941,249,130
3,735,439,436
801,821,187
192,755,045
334,659,631
569,133,474
33,568,225
6,608,626,128
14.2 %
56.5 %
12.1 %
2.7 %
5.1 %
8.6 %
0.5 %
100.0 %
44,234,240
461,703,143
343,787,434
33,510,500
237,168,545
116,847,600
19,243,921
1,256,495,383
4.7 %
12.4 %
42.9 %
17.4 %
70.9 %
20.5 %
57.3 %
19.0 %
Usage
% of
World
3.5 %
36.7 %
27.4%
2.7 %
18.9%
9.3 %
1.5 %
100.0 %
Usage
Growth
2000-07
879.8 %
303.9 %
227.1 %
920.2 %
119.4 %
546.7 %
152.6 %
248.1 %
Figure1. Internet statistics (Internet World Stats) [10]
(Copyright © 2000-2008, Miniwatts Marketing Group. All rights reserved worldwide)
Nowhere in the world is the usage growth as high as in Africa, Middle East, Asia and Latin America.
It is thus reason to believe that within a few years’ time the access to Internet will be rather
widespread also in the developing world. Therefore, preparing the present staff at universities and
schools in these regions for the new learning arenas may be of particular value to future strategies and
activities.
Pedagogical approaches to effective learning are changing with trends and time, also for online
learning. The online courses have both presented and practiced a social constructivist approach, a
method that has caught great interest among the highly qualified students, i.e. professors and teachers.
This is acclaimed a very suitable method to make online learning an attractive alternative for higher
education, particularly in lifelong learning perspectives. Social constructivism is a variety of cognitive
constructivism that emphasizes the collaborative nature of learning. According to the Berkley
Graduate Student Instructors’ Teaching Resource Centre (Berkley GSI) [11], social constructivism
was further developed from the Soviet psychologist, Lev Vygotsky, and is now well applicable for
online learning.
An extra asset here is the high level of knowledge among the participants, all of them being well
qualified academics. It is thus a matter of tutoring and guidance to make collaboration, peer tutoring
and constructive criticism among peers constitute a strong learning resource. To many of the
participants this way of studying and learning is new, and it has taken both time and efforts to break
183
their academic habits and convince them of the benefits. The final results, however, have come out
very positive.
In addition to the online courses offered to individuals several local f2f seminars and workshops with
similar content have been conducted by UNU-GVU for groups of staff at different African
universities. Ministries of education as well as university administration have seen the potential of the
new learning channels and opportunities for their regions, and have asked representatives from GVU
to arrange workshops and seminars for their staff. Feed-back from these seminars has been equally
positive as for the online activities.
Outcomes and conclusions
During the past 5 year pilot period UNU-GVU has established its network, initiated professional study
development and taken on the task of training university staff for e-learning activities. The results so
far are promising, challenges and feed-back are valuable experiences for further activities and
development.
Positive feed-back
The E-teaching 1 course has now been running for 3 years, a total of 5 times, while the E-teaching 2
course has only been on the net for 1 year, run twice, spring and fall 2007. The interest has been great
and students have registered from all over the world. During this period the feed-back from students
has been overwhelmingly positive. Several quotes of enthusiasm are recorded and show that there is
really a potential for online learning in Africa and other developing parts of the world. A few
examples from the recent courses (Training the trainers) [12] prove the point. First one example from
the Middle East:
Participating in GVU E-Teaching course has proved to be a time-wise and worthwhile
decision. It does fill a gap that exists in the online learning world. I recommend the GVU
course without any minimal hesitation. I just would like to thank the faculty for allowing
the students the golden opportunity to participate in a collaborative learning
environment. We all learned this the best way available and this is by practice.
Amal Saadallah, M.D., M.Sc., Ph.D., CCRP, Saudi Arabia (E-teaching I)
Then one from Somaliland, Africa:
I thought that it was like other classes where you have to compete for higher marks and
grades, instead I found myself more of a collaborator and a contributor than a receiver.
The discussions are held in a more academic style and it also requires reading if you
have to upgrade your reasoning.
Amir Ahmed Manghali, Capacity Building Advisor, Somaliland National Disability
Forum, Progressio Hargeisa, Somaliland (E-teaching I)
and a third example from Malawi, Africa:
I support e-learning as a better option for achieving a learning goal especially in the socalled developing nations, as Face-to-Face education is becoming more and more
expensive and unaffordable to the common man. The cell phone is also welcome as you
can communicate with tutors when you are in a dilemma by either calling or sending sms
to ask for assistance. Please continue to develop and offer on-line courses like these for
adults like us to develop our selves.
Grace Gwalla, primary school teacher, Gaborone, Botswana (E-teaching II)
Expressions like these from mature, well qualified students are way beyond what has been
experienced through years of “normal” university teaching. It encourages further efforts and beliefs
that the method is worth while pursuing.
184
Challenges
Infrastructure was frequently a problem in the past, especially in developing countries where Internet
access is unstable and the bandwidth is low. Some of our students e.g. in Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi
have had difficulties in this respect when the electric power is interrupted for several days and the
students had no possibility to log on and collaborate. As indicated above, this is now gradually
improving.
Economy has been a challenge, and is now becoming an even sorer point. Most students from
developing countries can not afford to pay course fees according to European or USA standards, and
bursaries have to be established to cover the costs of running the courses. After the pilot period ended
in December 2007, the UNU-GVU is looking for alternative ways for funding the activity.
Language is also a challenge. Courses using English as the working language can be hard for students
who have English as their second or third language. Being able to read, write and discuss in an
academic style may be too difficult for some of them and cause much extra work. The use of
asynchronous discussion forum helps a bit, allowing students better time to formulate their meanings,
compared to e.g. chat or even a physical class room situation.
Status
Despite uncertain funding and support, a new group of students has already started on the first
modules of E-teaching 1 in January 2008, and more students are waiting in line. Several requests for
workshops and seminars are on hold while negotiations for funding and sustainability are going on at
different levels, nationally and internationally.
The UNU-GVU courses seem to fill a need for pedagogical and basic education and training for
university personnel in order to exploit the possibilities of ICT and Internet in developing countries.
Results and experiences of the pilot period are presented in a recently released Pilot Phase Completion
Report (GVU 2008) [13], and are still to be more closely analysed before new steps and strategies are
planned. It seems clear, however, that the interest within target groups as well as among university
leadership and politicians is already great and is likely to grow in the years to come, when the
infrastructure improves.
In addition to helping with primary and secondary education, one of the challenges to the developed
parts of the world is to find ways of supporting activities that open up for efficient use of new
technologies and relevant pedagogical approaches for offering education to the vast masses of
candidates to higher education. The acquired skills and knowledge may also be used for facilitating
secondary education, thus preparing more candidates for university studies. Our domain is higher
education, however, and we believe that this is the most correct end to start the training of national and
institutional personnel for dissemination to other areas. Experiences from fairly simple efforts with
online training, as outlined above, are worth following up in the years to come.
References
UNU: United Nations University. [Available at: http://www.unu.edu, accessed 14.02.2008].
UNU-GVU: United Nations University – Global Virtual University [Available at:
http://www.gvu.unu.edu/courses.cfm, accessed: 17.09.2007].
GEDS: Global Environment and Development Studies. [Available at:
http://www.gvu.unu.edu/prog.cfm, accessed: 14.02.2008].
ECTS: European Credit Transfer and accumulation System. [Available at:
http://ec.europa.eu/education/programmes/socrates/ects/index_en.html, accessed: 17.09.2007].
E-t 1: E-teaching 1. [Available at: http://gvu.unu.edu/courses.cfm?pageid=1031&courseid=1002,
accessed: 17.09.2007].
E-t 2: E-teaching 2. [Available at: http://gvu.unu.edu/courses.cfm?pageid=1031&courseid=1025,
accessed: 17.09.2007].
MENU: Models for a European Networked University. [Available at:
http://ans.hsh.no/lu/inf/menu/, accessed: 17.09.2007].
185
UiA, University of Agder. [Available at: http://www.uia.no, accessed: 10.01.2008]
HSH: Høgskolen Stord/Haugesund, Stord/Haugesund University College [Available at:
http://www.hsh.no, accessed: 04.01.2008].
Internet World Stats. [Available at: http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm, 03.01.2008].
Berkeley GSI. Graduate Student Instructor Teaching Resource Centre. [Available at:
http://gsi.berkeley.edu/resources/learning/social.html, accessedd: 03.01.2008].
Training the Trainers. E-teaching flyer (2007). UNU-Global Virtual University. [Available at:
http://gvu.unu.edu/docs/E-teaching%20course%20flyer.pdf, accessed: 17.09.2007].
GVU 2008: Pilot Phase Completion Report, UNU GLOBAL VIRTUAL UNIVERSITY, UNUGVU, Arendal, Norway.
Authors:
Harald Haugen
TISIP, UNU-GVU
Tyselio 18
5416 Stord
Norway
Phone +47 90951514
Fax +4753491401
Bodil Ask
University of Agder
186
IV. Exploiting the full potential of
of digital
identity
187
HOMO DISCENS – A NEW SCALE OF LIFELONG LEARNING
Stephan Graf, Sabine Rathmayer (Technische Universität München)
Abstract: The possibilities to acquire knowledge have changed enormously until today. This change has not
only considerably influenced human beings in their process of knowledge acquisition itself, but also in
reference to basic technical conditions, and has hence finally created a new learning culture. A novel
paradigm becomes manifest in this new learning culture: Homo Discens –the learning human being. We do
not understand this term regarding to the person and related steps of development or other approaches
focusing on the person as it already exists in literature [4, 15]. Of higher interest and the essential aspect of
this extract is the conceptional figure of the Homo Discens in IT. Standardized schemata have been developed
in the past to define attributes and values relating to a person and to manage them in IT systems, i.e. identity
management systems. The focus of our research is to derive a new paradigm and an advanced definition of
Homo Discens for lifelong learning. Therefore, we have to review current identity management systems and
add substantial power to existing schemata. In order to find a holistic solution, we have to consider the
following aspects and problems: Up to now, no continuous model has been available which enables a
consistent integration of learning persons with their roles, learning histories and related ePortfolios.
Universities and enterprises still use different standards. This makes it particularly important to carry out a
qualitative examination. We have specified a number of aspects, including the following: consideration of
different groups, mobility-, convenience-, privacy- aspects and –one of the most important points– association
of identifiers. This results in a performance spectrum starting in preschool and reaching as far as retirement.
Only then a continuous ePortfolio can be created. And new possibilities will ensue for personnel promotion
and personal employee development.
Keywords: Homo Discens, Identity Managment Systems, Schemata, Lifelong Learning, ePortfolio
Introduction
In the course of their life, human beings are consistently confronted with learning. This already starts
at a preschool age when important aspects for their future are conveyed to children at nursery school
or kindergarden. As early as that, a constant switching takes place between learning and teaching. At a
preschool age in particular, children do not only absorb knowledge, but they also communicate it to
other children. This intensive interaction between children and their ability to make use of an immense
learning potential is the beginning of a future "teaching learning career". Based on preschool
education, the knowledge acquired at an early age is extended and enhanced in the course of
education. Throughout their days at school, most people get a more precise idea of their plans for the
future. Primary education and the different levels of secondary education provide students with a
practical and theoretical knowledge base and enable them to gain important learning experiences.
After finishing school, part of the students decides for the practical application in an enterprise of the
things they have learned, others go to university. Both ways represent the beginning of a somewhat
longer career which is concluded by retirement. Learning as well as teaching are still topics in working
life, in research at university or mentoring by an employee of a company, for instance. Thus, human
beings create a repertoire of knowledge and certificates of their knowledge over the years.
In this context in particular that learning is no concluded process (any more), this repertoire often
exhibits considerable dimensions. This is promoted by an increasing trend towards universities for
senior citizens. The substantial repertoire is commonly called portfolio or, when it exists digitally,
ePortfolio, especially in conjunction with eLearning [3, 11, 18]. A continuous ePortfolio is of very
high importance. It keeps record of a person's development and grants access to their skills, experience
and knowledge. The seamless documentation of this information, which is partly contained in a normal
CV, is an important characteristic of ePortfolios and thus an important aspect regarding the job
market.The human being and learning, however, have changed essentially over the years. This issue
will be illustrated in further detail and set in relation to the ePortfolio we have just introduced.
188
Human beings and learning in the course of time
While good education at universities or practical trainings were a guarantee for a lifetime position in
often only one company until far into the 20th century, the situation is completely different today.
Good education, excellent training and constant learning merely offer the prospect of lifelong
employment. A guarantee for a lifelong position, however, is not given any longer. Every member of
the society is requested to participate in constant learning in some form or other. A foresight shows
that the current rules will not be valid forever. It will be more likely that high-quality education will
be a prerequisite for participating in the global labour market. Lifelong learning and constant further
education will be standard. It is in this context that we talk about the Homo Discens. This paradigm
characterizes the human being in a new learning culture which eventually results from the technical
possibilities and basic conditions for knowledge acquirement. The term Homo Discens already exists
in literature, e.g. in [4]. Here, however, the image of humanity described under [15] is always used.
We would like to amplify this idea and embed it in a technical environment. The demand of constant
training and continuous learning calls for manageable and accessible learning histories, which means
that it must be possible to keep record of the knowledge acquired in a lifetime
Status Quo
So far the learning process and its transition have been illustrated. Subsequently we introduced and
described the Homo Discens paradigm. What is still missing is the reference to IT technology
between these two aspects. If you use an IT system and want to use it in a personalized way, a user
management system must be available in the system. In common learning systems (LMS) in
particular, this user management is linked with the person's learning history. Currently, no integrated
model is available for mapping the Homo Discens. If a user leaves the systems he has used so far and
uses a new system due to a change of company or university, the information he has collected so far
does not get lost, but is not integrated and visible. The main reason is that currently no sort of pack &
go standard for ePortfolios is available in a unique standard for the exchange between different
institutions. Although some researches are carried out and some standards are already established,
such as the diploma supplement and the CurriculumVitae by europass [9], or the IMS ePortfolio
Standard [12]. But these initiatives and standards are only applicable for subareas. Another problem
lies in the application of multiple systems with partly identical, partly different and partly
superimposing processes. At universities for example, marks are saved in an exam management
system, the learning history is in part traceable over a (central) LMS and registrations for lectures are
carried out in a third system. The registration process alone affects three systems which provide
different processes for it. This study, however, will not mainly focus on this problem. It is just an
example to clarify the difficulties and problems that arise of an integrated view of a continuous
ePortfolio.
Identity Management and eLearning
As mentioned in the previous chapter, user information is stored in a (central) user management system.
This in particular is the key to the holistic perspective of the Homo Discens and directly leads
to Identity Management (IM).The drawbacks of an individual user management for every system in an
institution obvious. Since every system independently manages all identities, users must keep multiple
credentials, e.g. user name and password. This is not acceptable with regard to security and does not
enable unique authorisation structures. Other disadvantages include a difficult central service,
inconsistencies between systems and guest accounts which must be created individually for every
system. These points have led to the introduction of so-called Identity Management Systems in many
institutions. These systems provide connected systems with personal data and therefore contribute to
optimized management processes. Personal data are centrally managed and therefore possess a
considerably higher data quality than a variety of individual sources. The advantages do not only
include improved processes, but also comprise a clear increase in efficiency of diverse technical
operations.
A central IM forms the basis for an authentication and authorization infrastructure (AAI). This
infrastructure can be used internally in an institution or across institutions (federated). Figure 1 gives a
more detailed overview. Within an AAI, users may access services of other institutions without
additional effort. Regarding to eLearning in particular, this step is of great importance. New
189
requirements regarding mobility will be of increasing importance, in particular with regard to the
Bologna process for which "our aim is 50% more learning mobility in Germany" […] [17]. When
students change universities more often, they want to fall back on previous learning units and claim
achieved results at the new university. In this case it is inevitable and very important to plan the IM as
a central core. Other aspects that may be subsumed by mobility are the desire or the demand for further
education and the flexibility often required in relation to knowledge contents. Also in relation to joint
degrees and multiple research associations, the organisation of a national or international AAI is
indispensable. In this context, we also speak of a federated Identity Management (FIM). Once again,
clear conditions must be created for lifelong learning and, especially in connection with an FIM,
wisely planned in consideration of the special requirements of eLearning. For this, the DFN-AAI has
recently been founded in Germany. As an independent service of Deutsches Forschungsnetzwerk
(DFN – Germany`s National Research and Education Network), it represents a German-wide
federation on the basis of Shibboleth and is available for all universities and other educational
institutions [5].
Figure 1. Difference between an AAI-Infrastructure and a normal infrastructure [19]
The DFN is currently consolidating the required attributes with different education institutions. TU
München, among others, has submitted various suggestions which are now to be integrated into the
AAI scheme. Previous considerations regarding ePortfolios, however, have not yet been taken into
account. The present scheme primarily concentrates on the library environment that mainly works with
aliases and not personal eLearning environment [10]. It is therefore necessary –for instance for issuing
certificates– to receive the students' registration number, date of birth, course and term.
There are essential points with regard to IMs and eLearning which distinguish themselves from other
subject areas such as administration and organisation. One aspect that is also related to mobility is the
desire for a convenient usage. This alone is no specification of eLearning, but with regard to frequent
changes to other universities in particular, students would like to transfer their ePortfolios or take them
with them. In this context, clear guidelines and rules must be defined which are now much easier to
find, considering the BA/MA unification through the Bologna process, than in the heterogeneous
learning conditions almost 10 years ago [2].
Not only the transferal of the previous learning/teaching spectrum but also comfort in the sense of
Single Sign-On (SSO) becomes an issue. It is thus not necessary, for instance, to transfer a student's
personal data to another university when both universities are in a federation (see Figure 1). This, in
turn, reduces the number of administration processes, contributes enormously to data protection and
essentially increases comfort. A user may capitalize on the service of a different institution using the
credentials of his home institution without having to apply for new access data or rights. This keeps
the Bologna idea in good stead.
An IM forms the central core for various requirements. In connection with the desire for a continuous
ePortfolio in particular, an IM contributes considerably to this, which will become more obvious in
Figure 4 in this paper.
190
Roles
In our introduction, we already pointed out the different groups and frequent changes between learning
and teaching. This is a vital aspect of the Homo Discens and also has great influence on Identity
Management systems. In an IM every person possesses certain attributes. These attributes may
comprehend name, first name, address, etc. They may, however, be an affiliation to an institution or
the allocation of a role. Roles, in turn, may be selected by destination systems, e.g. the LMS, and used
for rights allocation. Roles in general reduce the administration effort by enabling the allocation of
rights on a role and not an identity level. The great advantage is that changes of rights are thus linked
to a role, and a minor number of roles in most cases covers a broad spectrum of requirements for the
rights allocation within a system. Roles are actually an abstraction of a process, an activity or an
affiliation in the real world. Frequently, roles are connected to certain rights. An employee, for
example, may view student data. Students on the other hand, may only view their own data. Roles may
change and thus entail new rights.
This picks up on the Homo Discens concept. In his entire life, a human being is always in transition
between different roles. Let's consider the university context. At the beginning of studies, you have the
role of a student. This role enables the student to attend lectures at the LMS, write exams and complete
tutorials. When you finish university and decide for an employment at university, you become an
employee and receive a new role. That means that, in the course of your life, you build up a long and
versatile learning history with different roles. This history may be temporarily accessed in the
corresponding system, but gets lost in the long term. The information belonging to a role is usually not
considered when changing a role, and thus gets lost. The essential aspect is that roles may be captured
via an IM, and thus a connection with an existing ePortfolio may be established. This is one of the
central issues of the Homo Discens paradigm and will be explained in more detaile below.
Identifiers
Another central topic in the field of Identity Management and eLearning is the clear definition of
identifiers. Computers do not use attributes such as name, first name, date of birth etc. to identify
users, but machine-readable IDs. Ideally, an ID has to be assigned to a user only once. By assigning a
user to an ID, a "real world" identity is converted into a machine-usable ID. This process enables IT
systems to handle users and create corresponding profiles or histories. IDs contain different functions
and are classified according to certain specifications such as persistence, readability, capacity,
uniqueness (see [13]). If you associate the ID topic with the request for a continuous ePortfolio for the
Homo Discens, it becomes obvious that a global unique ID is required. Only this unique ID makes a
corresponding portfolio in all systems possible. The technical aspects of this topic are illustrated in the
"Homo Discens" chapter.
Assigning a unique ID to a learner must also be critically viewed, as in doing so human beings
become"transparent". Every activity in a system leaves a clearly trackable data trace. The
informational self- determination is only given in a limited dimension. In this regard it is not only very
important to consider data protection but also to monitor data security. Although the creation of a
complete ePortfolio seems to be of high importance in the long-term, the ePortfolio's compatibility
with data protection must always be observed. A user must always be able to control the portfolio
access, to determine to which systems the portfolio is propagated and, naturally, what may be saved in
the portfolio.
Homo Discens
The Homo Discens paradigm has been mentioned several times, but it has not been comprehensively
introduced and explained what we understand by it. We have seen different constructs around the
word "Homo" in history [16]. Every construct describes a human nature or stage of development.
This may be understood as a completed period or a long-term human characteristic. The term Homo
Discens may be comprehended as the essential ability of learning. If we consider this ability in the
context of higher education demands and the frequently quoted knowledge society, it becomes
obvious that the human being completely meets the requirements of the Homo Discens paradigm.
This characteristic is of course an essential part of the definition of the Homo Discens. In addition,
weunderstand the term in connection with the ePortfolio. Homo Discens is the learning human being
whose teaching/learning history is in a continuous form digitally traceable and who has the technical
191
possibilities to build up a seamless ePortfolio. We comprehend an ePortfolio as a collection of
documents, files and other digitally available information which are placed in a digital repository by a
human being for different purposes (comprehensive CV with certificates, documentation of his own
learning progress, etc.). The folder in Figure 2 represents such an ePortfolio.
Figure 2. Distributed ePortfolio
With an ever wider distribution of computers, mobile technologies and also the internet, ePortfolios
become an important issue which becomes more important through eLearning, which is learning by
electronic means. Meanwhile, almost every fifth person possesses internet access [6] and thus access
to digital learning contents. Knowledge in its conventional form cannot only be retrieved via libraries
but globally via the Internet. These conditions enable the user to recall information independent from
time and location.
The previous procedure for the creation of an ePortfolio is displayed in a simplified form in Figure 2.
A person is active in different systems and uses various services. The knowledge fragments generated
in this context, however, are linked with the corresponding system and can only be retrieved over this
system. Of course, parts of it, e.g. documents, may be saved by the user and tracked by him on his
private computer. The disadvantage is that only part of it may be accessed without the source system.
A learning history, for example, may not be transferred identically from the corresponding source
system to one's own computer, because the individual lectures may rarely be exported in the context of
the registration. There are different standards which enable the import and export of learning contents
(AICC, SCORM, IMS,…). This, however, is only possible in one direction. SCORM courses, for
example, may often only be imported in a learning platform but not exported. Moreover, only few
lecturers completely publish their courses. Figure 3 shows the described way to manage information
on a private computer, e.g. in a personal folder tree. This procedure is not ideal and does not enable a
comprehensive composition and flexible availability.
Currently, various institutions engage in the ePortfolio issue. Suggestions have already been compiled
and are available online [1, 8, 9, 12, 14]. We see diverse overlapping points here, but our approach
differs, because we illuminate the continuity issue relating to IM or FIM. The previous definitions for
the standardization of ePortfolios or the appropriate exchange are important and necessary. These
processes enable the transferal of an appropriately standardized ePortfolio from one institution to
another. This step could also be taken in the way suggested by us via an IM/FIM without the explicit
export and import of the ePortfolios by using a web-based service for the storage of ePortfolios.
192
Figure 3. Personal ePortfolio
Figure 4 contains a schematic description of this point. Within an institution a user is recorded in a
central IM. The user information is thus available for all services connected with or provided by the
IM. The user information available via the IM does not only include a unique identifier but also
affiliation or diverse role information. In addition to personal information, other attributes may be
embedded. If a user is active in a service, his knowledge fragments may be made permanently
available in a separate service according to the push or pull idea ("DB" stands for Data Base in the
graphic). This would avoid the loss of information during a role change, because the external storage
represents a guarantee for lasting availability. In order to give users full control over their ePortfolios,
adequate views and access rights in form of versatile ACLs are necessary for such a system. Only
then a continuously accessible ePortfolio unfolds its full potential. This means that the user may grant
full access, access to certain parts or define a certain view for the ePortfolio. The red arrow in the
graphic shows as an example for a system that knowledge modules, documents or other parts of an
ePortfolio may be created via the corresponding DB.
Figure 4. Schematic Representation of a continuous ePortfolio
193
In this context, we currently analye in different researches the possibilities in connection with
existing and established products at universities ([7, 20]). We focus on the following
approaches:
181. Concept of the DB service on the basis of UID;
182. Amplification of the known schemata by other right structures in relation to the
central Service DB;
183. Transparent service by means of an Enterprise Service Bus;
184. Integration in an AAI.
Conclusion
Lifelong learning cannot be ignored in today's working life. Consequently, the availability
and quality gain a crucial meaning for the job market. In this regard, a multitude of
institutions are meanwhile active in the research and development of technologies around
ePortfolios. In the global job and education market ePortfolios will become an essential tool
in competition. With all these important efforts, it is crucial to keep in mind certain criteria
such as data protection and data security. Such a comprehensive information potential must
be protected against external access and illegitimate usage, which is an essential challenge
too. Data protection is a top priority, and privacy and the necessary protection of personal
data are essential for such a service.
Another central aspect in this context is the crucial demand for the service's lifelong
availability. It must be guaranteed that the service used or a person's continuous learning and
teaching spectrum may always be accessed or that the service provides appropriate
possibilities for export and external usage. This in particular is the reason for a standardized
approach.
The model shown here always focuses on education institutions and universities. At the
beginning, however, we were talking about the period from childhood to retirement. This
vision is to be implemented step by step by the prototype implementation within a period of
life. A crucial aspect is the corresponding infrastructure. At universities in particular, the
formation of a continuous and powerful IT infrastructure is consistently given. This, however,
does not apply for preschools and, unfortunately, quite frequently not for schools either. This
still requires further considerations.
The mobility of learning has extremely increased over the last years. In addition, new
possibilities for personal development have emerged through the Internet and the linking of
knowledge. The access to the international knowledge market is thus obviously linked to the
model presented here.
References
E-Portfolio Initiative Austria (2006). Austria E.-P.I. [Available at: http://www.eportfolio.at, accessed: 23.01.2008].
Bildungsminister G.E.D.E. (1999). Der Europäische Hochschulraum. [Available at:
http://www.bmbf.de/pub/bologna_deu.pdf, accessed: 09.01.2008].
Brahm, T.; Seufert, S. (Hrsg.). (2007). Ne(X)T Generation Learning: E-Assessment Und
E- Portfolio: Halten Sie, Was Sie Versprechen? Themenreihe Ii Zur Workshop-Serie.
Brentel, H.; Klemisch, H.; Rohn, H. (2003). Lernendes Unternehmen Konzepte Und
Instrumente Für Eine Zukunftsfähige Unternehmens- Und Organisationsentwicklung.
Wiesbaden: Westdt. Verl.
DFN. DFN-AAI - Authentifikation Autorisierungs Infrastruktur (2007). [Available at:
https://www.aai.dfn.de/, accessed: 24.01.2008].
DPA/AP. Fast Jeder Fünfte Erdenbürger Ist Online (2007). Sueddeutsche. [Available
at: http://www.sueddeutsche.de/computer/artikel/484/115369/, accessed: 11.01.2008].
194
Eduperson Object Class (2001). EDUCAUSE I . [Available at:
http://www.educause.edu/eduperson/, accessed: 24.01.2008].
EIfEL (2007). Europortfolio. [Available at: http://www.eife-l.org/about/europortfolio,
accessed: 23.01.2008].
EU (2004). Europass. [Available at: http://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/, accessed:
23.01.2008].
Gietz, P.; Lienhard, J.; Makedanz, S.; Oberknapp, B.; Pfeiffenberger, H.;
Rauschenbach, J., Ruppert; A., Schroeder (2006). R. DFN-AAI Technische und
Organisatorische Voraussetzungen – Attribute. [Available at:
https://www.aai.dfn.de/fileadmin/documents/vertraege/attribute.20061130.pdf,
accessed: 11.02.2008].
185. Hornung-Prähauser, V.; Geser, G.; Hilzensauer, W.; Schaffert, S. (2007).
Didaktische, Organisatorische und Technologische Grundlagen von E-Portfolios und
Analyse Internationaler Beispiele und Erfahrungen mit E-Portfolio-Implementierungen
an Hochschulen.
186. IMS Eportfolio Specification (2005). IMS Global Learning Consortium I. [Available
at: http://www.imsglobal.org/ep/index.html, accessed: 23.01.2008].
187. Internet2 M.I. (2000). Identifiers, Authentication, and Directories: Best Practices for
Higher Education. [Available at: http://middleware.internet2.edu/internet2-mi-bestpractices-00.html, accessed: 08.01.2008].
188. JISC (2002). MLEs for Lifelong Learning: Building MLEs Across HE and FE.
[Available at:
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/programme_buildmle_hefe.aspx,
accessed: 24.01.2008];
189. Prange, K. (1978). Pädagogik Als Erfahrungsprozeß.
190. Prisching, M. (2006). Mensch, Individuum, Identität. [Available at: http://www.unigraz.at/~prischin/0006s-kulturth/kulturth03-mensch.doc, accessed: 11.01.2008].
191. Schavan, A. (2007). Drei für Bologna: Qualität, Mobilität und Transparenz.
[Available at: http://www.bmbf.de/press/2050.php, accessed: 09.01.2008].
192. Stangel, W. (2008). Portfolio - Was ist ein Portfolio? [Available at:
http://arbeitsblaetter.stangl-taller.at/praesentation/portfolio.shtml, acessed: 08.01.2008].
193. SWITCH (2008). About the Authentication and Authorization Infrastructure (AAI).
[Available at: http://www.switch.ch/aai/about/, accessed: 09.01.2008].
194. TERENA (2005). TF-EMC2 SCHAC Project. [Available at:
http://www.terena.org/activities/tf-emc2/schac.html, accessed: 24.01.2008].
Authors:
Stephan Graf Dipl-Inf. (Univ.)
Rathmayer Technische Universität München
München Faculty of Computer Science, I10
Boltzmannstraße 3
85747 München
Germany
Sabine Technische, Dr. rer. nat.
Universität München
Faculty of Computer Science, I10
195
IDENTITY MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS IN HETEROGENEOUS
LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
Stephan Graf, Technische Universität München
Ivan Gergintchev, Technische Universität München
Sabine Rathmayer, Technische Universität München
Introduction
The successful implementation of eLearning strategies is considered a major goal of German higher
education institutions (HEIs). This goal includes an organisational concept of eLearning, as well as
eLearning’s technical integration into the existing information and communication technology (ICT)
infrastructures. In the context of two main research projects, we at Technische Universität München
(TUM) have developed user-customizable, technologically enhanced learning environments for
different user groups of varying interests, preferences and expertise. Based on this research work in
elecTUM (http://www.tum.de/electum) and ZePeLin (http://www.zepelin.org) we propose suitable
identity management solutions corresponding to heterogeneous learning scenarios.
Quite often different campus management systems are deployed for the purpose of digital
administration of students, staff, guests and alumni accounts at a single HEI. However, the
establishment of a modern integrated IT infrastructure requires a holistic view of personal data used by
web applications, such as learning platforms. Therefore most HEIs implement their own central
identity information broker by providing tools for profile modelling, authentication and authorization
data management, as well as by efficient search interfaces based on directory services.
To ensure eLearning services that serve both TUM and external institutions, we identified various
requirements tailored to the needs of specific user groups. One such group consists of intra-university
users, such as students and employees. Another group includes all guest users, such as exchange
students who, unfortunately, are not registered in the central identity management system but requires
seamless access to available IT services. A third group is one of external users who require access to
certain IT applications (for example, due to course enrolment). Because these users are not regular
university members, they are also not existent in the central directory. Aspects important to all groups
are data protection and privacy. To meet user group demands, we analyzed a number of centralized
and federated approaches to seamless user management. Here we present three customized solutions
and describe their application areas, advantages and disadvantages. We will introduce our solutions in
order of increasing level of functional complexity.
The simplest identity management solution for web applications (excluding local user management) is
clock-controlled user import. We implemented it in the TUM’s central learning management system.
For the requirements of our external partners' HEIs we developed an integrated distributed solution,
which is within the scope of ZePeLin and based on the Microsoft framework ASP.NET. Because we
also aimed at building up a future-oriented, widely spread federated authentication and authorization
infrastructure (AAI), we cooperated closely with Germany’s National Research and Education
Network (DFN) and the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre (LRZ).
Clock-controlled user import
The chosen identity management solution for CLIX, the central TU München learning management
system, involved clock-controlled profile import and role assignment as well as user authentication
against the directory service (as shown in Figure 1). The user database was imported in two ways: by
196
using CSV files and via a direct data pull over LDAP. The first approach used a program that
processes directory data for a nightly build of a file with new or modified personal records. To achieve
better performance results and lesser amount of transferred data, we agreed with the provider of the
directory services on a customized scheme of the directory information tree. That scheme takes into
account that applications based on a relational database cannot deal with multi-value attributes.
Furthermore, we marked modified records with a flag, allowing for minimal, yet precise import over
LDAP.
Figure 1: Clock-controlled user import in the TUM environment
Although this approach increases adjustment costs only marginally, it has some severe drawbacks.
One of them is this solution’s inflexibility caused by the application specific format of the data.
Another one is data redundancy due to shadow accounts and privacy issues. A third drawback is risk
of data inconsistencies which may occur since data is updated in regular intervals only. The latter risk
implies increased administration effort and costs when importing a database of external users is
needed.
Integrated distributed identity management
In October 2006, we launched the ZePeLin initiative to provide an organizational model as well as an
integrated infrastructure for adaptable, modular, powerful and scalable learning management in
Bavaria. Built on top of Microsoft Sharepoint Portal Server (MOSS) 2007, our web platform includes
a set of basic portal functionalities plus the flexible integration of additional components for learning
management.
Along with ASP.NET 2.0, Microsoft provides a customizable standard implementation of a
membership model with basic functions, such as log-on or user lists. That model uses web forms or
Web SSO to authenticate users against an identity management system that is not based on Windows
or that is external. ASP.NET 2.0 includes a connector (provider) to a local MSSQL database and
Active Directory domain. MOSS 2007 adds a connector for directory services from any manufacturer
imposing some assumptions in terms of the source data structure, e.g. the existence of explicit domain
groups, which cannot always be satisfied. The crucial point, however, is the opportunity to implement
an own provider over an open interface to connect to arbitrary data sources. In addition to a
membership provider, a role manager may also be registered. MOSS 2007 uses the standard ASP.NET
role manager interface to gather group information about the current user. Each ASP.NET role is
treated like a domain group by the authorization process.
To allow extranet usage in the hosted environments of the first three customers –the HEI of München,
Regensburg und Deggendorf– we implemented our own ASP.NET membership system that achieves
high-value integrated identity management. In Figure 2 this implementation is shown as “custom
membership provider”. In our solution we dynamically retrieve membership data for a user from the
directory service of each HEI on the fly. We also support connections to multiple data stores for the
same portal to enable shared courses, in particular those of partner institutions. Secure communication
197
over LDAP SSL and adaptability constitute other main characteristics of this solution. Its disadvantage
is server-side dependence on single-vendor software.
The main elements of our membership system are a membership provider and a role manager. The
profile connector carries out the authentication against the directory of the HEI education, accesses
user profiles and queries the data source with implicit wildcards according to various criteria through
the implementation of the abstract System.Web.Security.MembershipProvider class of the
ASP.NET framework. The only attributes that are required to be saved locally are the account name
and the e-mail address. Management of other important ones, such as first name and surname, depends
on the user’s preference.
Figure 2: Membership system Architecture from [9]
The essential methods of the membership provider are the following:
// checks the credential of a user
Public Boolean ValidateUser (String username, String password)
// MOSS 2007 calls these methods to populate the user picker control
Public MembershipUserCollection FindUsersByEmail(String emailToMatch)
Public MembershipUserCollection FindUsersByName (String usernameToMatch)
// MOSS 2007 calls these methods to resolve user names and to get the user's
display // name
Public MembershipUser GetUser (Object providerUserKey)
Public MembershipUser GetUser (String username)
// MOSS 2007 calls this method to resolve user names in
invitations
Public String GetUserNameByEmail (String email)
198
A core component of all three e-learning portals is our role manager which implements the abstract
System.Web.Security.RoleProvider class. Since the directories of the HEIs include no groups, we
derive the desired information by interpreting several user profile attributes and the directory structure.
This approach allows us to build easily particular faculty’s student groups and the group of all
professors. The possible granularity of these groups depends mainly on the quality of the data in the
corresponding directory. The following methods are relevant to MOSS 2007:
// MOSS 2007 calls this method to check the existence of a domain role
Public Boolean RoleExists (String roleName)
// returns every domain role of an user
Public String() getRolesForUser (String username)
// returns all domain roles
Public String() GetAllRoles ()
Figure 3: User picker dialogue in MOSS 2007
As mentioned above, data transfer takes place via encrypted SSL channels. Encryption affects
performance of the connector directly. So an SSL bind with the directory in Regensburg claims over
500ms compared with about 200ms on an insecure channel. Another operational issue is the strong
dependence of the portal’s smooth operation on the availability of the remote directory’s services. We
address this weakness by applying a randomized algorithm for accessing redundant directory
machines. In Figure 3 you can see the user picker dialogue which dynamically retrieves the necessary
information of a user.
Our ASP.NET solution realizes distribution transparency of personal data for a single web application
so it can be applied very successfully on this well defined domain. However, in order to achieve some
kind of distribution transparency of personal data for different learning services and different domains
a decentralized approach is required.
Authentication and Authorization Infrastructure – Federated Identity Management
Both contexts described above show an efficient solution for the particular scenarios. Due to differnet
199
kind of limitations of the solutions a powerful and flexible identity management with federated
authentication and authorization is needed. With the IntegraTUM [1] project, TUM therefore started to
build up a flexible identity management a while back. This management is shown in Figure 4. A
central meta-directory is fed by different source systems over an administration satellite. In this
process data formats from the different providing systems are adapted and other administrative
processes take place. The central meta-directory forms the TUM's consolidated data inventory and
thus guarantees a high data quality. As necessary, connected destination systems may be fed in
different formats and with a certain selection of attributes. Due to the diverse requirements of the
destination systems, data formats will also be converted or the data supply correspondingly reduced.
Through the IntegraTUM identity management, a basis for the creation of an authentication and
authorization infrastructure at TUM was formed. This structure enabled the implementation of a
unified login for all systems, including the central LMS. Here, students may use the central identifier
they receive on enrolment to log on to all connected systems. However, every system requires an
individual login. Real value and palpable integration of the systems, however, are mainly achieved by
implementing a Single Sign-On (SSO).
Figure 4: Identity management infrastructure of IntegraTUM (see[3])
For the implementation of a Single Sign-On, various studies have been carried out, analysing,
classifying and surveying the application of multiple SSO at TUM ([2, 7], among others). Aspects
such as standard conformity, flexibility, costs and integration in the TUM infrastructure were of high
importance in this context. Out of this, a suggestion has been developed that has been presented to the
TUM's IT technical committee and used as a basis for decision for the university's executive ([6]).
Two different scenarios have been considered that were already mentioned at the beginning of the
document.
We are talking about the different user groups. This is an essential aspect regarding the usage of an
LMS. Internal user groups may be fed over the central identity management and thus have access to
the system. This scenario could be covered by the identity management suggestion we presented first
– the clock-controlled user import. The central identity management is an important criterion as a
basis for an internal SSO. However, the necessary infrastructure for an SSO is missing between
systems. Furthermore, we are confronted with various problems regarding guests and external users.
In addition, connecting different external identity management systems proves to be quite difficult.
200
These problems could be solved with the help of the second solution. Here, however, everything
depended on a corresponding guest management and did not yet form the base for a standardized
exchange of user information between the individual HEIs and thus no federated context. Thus, only a
third solution was possible for an internal and external SSO in connection with the chances and
possibilities of a federated authentication and authorization infrastructure.
Here, Shibboleth was the clear favourite. Thereby, the university's broad executive decided to build up
and implement an AAI on the basis of Shibboleth. The solution just presented covers all previous
scenarios. External users may receive controlled access to part of the resources, and all internal
systems may be seamlessly connected via an SSO.
Shibboleth is a project of the Middleware Architecture Committee for Education (MACE) of the
Internet2 initiative. Shibboleth is an open-source product and enables a standard-based internal and
organisation-wide web SSO. For secure exchange, version 1.1 of the OASIS SAML standard is used.
This also guarantees the compatibility with other web SSO systems. User information may be
transferred and systematic decisions may be made for authorization (see [8]). An essential aspect of
Shibboleth is the approach of "federated administration" and "access control based on attributes".
This, in particular, satisfies the special situation of eLearning systems with an irregular number of
users and thus forms a powerful and efficient solution. An in-house identity provider saves the
relevant personal data and corresponding information for every user in different attributes. Through
these attributes, a user has access to a resource (e.g. affiliation to an institution, membership in a
certain group, etc.). The identity provider transfers information, so-called assertions, to a service
provider –that is a service a user wants to use–, according to specified rules (attribute release policies).
Here, identity information or only individual attributes may be transferred. We are talking about an
extremely capable SSO system that meets the high demands of flexible identity managements. Figure
5 shows a graphical overview over the functionality of Shibboleth. TUM's decision for Shibboleth was
not only made based on technological aspects, but also considering other projects.
Shibboleth is widely used at universities and libraries. As early as 2002, a preliminary study to build
up an AAI was carried out by the SWITCH association in Switzerland. Groundwork for this was the
well-established co-operation of different Swiss universities. Several systems were analysed according
to certain aspects set beforehand. The main focus in Switzerland lay on the integration of eLearning
systems. In the end, Shibboleth was the first choice (see [11]).
Figure 5: Functionality of Shibboleth (taken from [12])
In Germany, the "Verteilte Authentifzierung, Autorisierung und Rechteverwaltung (AAR)" project
(Distributed authentication, authorization and rights management) started in 2005. It focuses on an
SSO relating to library services. Thus, the main target lies in the optimization of the access to
201
electronic contents. The technological groundwork is also formed by Shibboleth (see [13]).
Initiated by the AAR project, the DFN (Verein zur Förderung eines Deutschen Forschungsnetzes e.
V., Association for the promotion of a German research network) decided in January 2006 to assume
the co-ordination of an AAI on a national level. In this context, a new service, the DFN-AAI, was
founded which has been in use since October 2007. This is a federation based on Shibboleth. The DFN
administers the membership by terms of contract and provides a stable technical operation (see [4]).
So far, we have only explained the functionality and the TUM's decision for the implementation of
Shibboleth. We have also mentioned the term AAI several times. In this context in particular, we have
inserted Figure 6 for a better understanding. This graphic shows why a federated identity management
Figure 6: Overview Authentication and Authorisation Infrastructure
system is necessary within a heterogeneous user environment in relation to eLearning. Regarding
TUM, one field of application is "Virtuelle Hochschule Bayern" (vhb, virtual Bavarian university).
Students of other universities may access TUM courses after registering at vhb. The current process
for this is as follows: a student registers at vhb, submits his identification to vhb (normally via mail;
some universities, however, have implemented a proprietary online process suggested by vhb, such as
TUM) and is then activated as a vhb user. This does not mean, however, that the student now has
automatic access to the corresponding lecture at another university. For this purpose, vhb informs the
respective lecturer to admit the student to his course (see [14]). The previous process –even in the
proprietary version– is neither convenient nor reasonable in the long term. In this context, vhb also
wants to join DFN-AAI. As shown in Figure 6, the entire organisational process would thus be
considerably easier. Students would not have to register via vhb, but could use vhb as their own
service provider which forwards the students directly to the courses of the individual universities.
Thereby, a seamless service evolves which replaces complex paper processes and supersedes
subsequent work at the individual universities.
Here, however, it is necessary to extend the previous DFN-AAI scheme appropriately. We have
submitted the following suggestions: Title, sex, date of birth, place of birth, registration number,
course, aspired degree and term. This information is required by universities for issuing certificates
and enables a more efficient service in LMS systems for lecturers.
Here, the hitherto collected experiences regarding TUM's central LMS system and the knowledge
from ZePeLin as well as the attributes used in both systems have been matched with the suggestions of
the DFN-AAI (see [5]) and complemented according to the example of the Swiss SWITCH
association (see [10]).
Conclusion
For the TUM's central learning platform a new authentication interface based on the position paper
compiled by TUM is currently developed by the manufacturer. At present, the interface is still a
prototype but has already been incorporated into the test federation of the DFN-AAI. TUM-specific
data can already be transferred, and user may thus access the system. This is an important step to meet
202
the demands of the Bologna process for a higher mobility of students and to position TUM on the
global education market in the long term.
The presented identity management solutions are essential for the development of systems for webbased learning and co-operative knowledge management in consideration of the initiatives in the field
of education and Web 2.0. All three solutions presented here were or are currently used at TUM since
they represent an adapted solution for the respective user scenarios. In principle, the solution we
presented last is to be applied at TUM, because it meets the requirements best. It is still important,
however, to check the possibilities shown here for changes and accommodate appropriate
improvements.
References
BODE A. INTEGRATUM DFG ANTRAG. 2004 [CITED 06.02.2008]; AVAILABLE FROM:
HTTP://PORTAL.MYTUM.DE/IUK/INTEGRATUM/DOKUMENTE/INDEX_HTML/CIOTU_MUENCHEN.PDF.
BONITZ R., EINBINDUNG VON PORTLETS AUS DER ZENTRALEN LERNPLATTFORM CLIX IN DAS PORTAL
DER TUM DURCH NUTZUNG VON WEB SERVICES UNTER BER†CKSICHTIGUNG EINER SINGLE SIGN-ON
STRATEGIE, IN FAKULT€T F†R INFORMATIK. 2007, TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITÄT MÜNCHEN.
BOURSAS L., HOMMEL, W., EFFICIENT TECHNICAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL MEASURES FOR PRIVACYAWARE CAMPUS IDENTITY MANAGEMENT AND SERVICE INTEGRATION, IN EUNIS. 2006: ESTONIA.
DFN. DFN-AAI -AUTHENTIFIKATION AUTORISIERUNGS INFRASTRUKTUR. 2007 [CITED 24.01.2008];
AVAILABLE FROM: HTTPS://WWW.AAI.DFN.DE/.
GIETZ P., LIENHARD, J., MAKEDANZ, S., OBERKNAPP, B., PFEIFFENBERGER, H., RAUSCHENBACH,
J., RUPPERT, A., SCHROEDER, R. DFN-AAI TECHNISCHE UND ORGANISATORISCHE
VORAUSSETZUNGEN -ATTRIBUTE -. 2006 [CITED 11.02.2008]; AVAILABLE FROM:
HTTPS://WWW.AAI.DFN.DE/FILEADMIN/DOCUMENTS/VERTRAEGE/ATTRIBUTE.20061130.PDF.
GRAF S., HOMMEL, W., SINGLE SIGN-ON AN DER TUM: K†HNE VISION, KLARE ENTSCHEIDUNG,
NACHHALTIGE REALISIERUNG. 2007: IT-FACHAUSSCHUSS DER TECHNISCHEN UNIVERSITÄT
MÜNCHEN.
GRAF S., RATHMAYER, S., VORSCHLAG ZU „SINGLE SIGN-ON“ – UNTER BER†CKSICHTIGUNG
AKTUELLER ENTWICKLUNGEN –. 2007, TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITÄT MÜNCHEN, PROJEKT ELECTUM.
INTERNET2 M.I. SHIBBOLETH PROJECT -INTERNET2 MIDDLEWARE. 2000 [CITED 06.02.2008];
AVAILABLE FROM: HTTP://SHIBBOLETH.INTERNET2.EDU/.
SCHWICHTENBERG H., MICROSOFT ASP.NET 2.0 MIT VISUAL C#. MICROSOFT PRESS
DEUTSCHLAND. 2005.
SWITCH. AAI ATTRIBUTE SPECIFICATION. 2007 [CITED 12.02.2008]; AVAILABLE FROM:
HTTP://WWW.SWITCH.CH/AAI/DOCS/AAI_ATTR_SPECS.PDF.
SWITCH, AUTHENTICATION AND AUTHORIZATION INFRASTRUCTURE (AAI) PREPARATORY STUDY.
2002.
SWITCH. SWITCHAAI -EXPERT DEMO. 2006 [CITED 07.02.2008]; AVAILABLE FROM:
HTTP://WWW.SWITCH.CH/AAI/DEMO/EXPERT.HTML.
UNIVERSITÄTSBIBLIOTHEK F. AUTHENTIFIZIERUNG, AUTORISIERUNG UND RECHTEVERWALTUNG
(AAR). 2005 [CITED 07.02.2008]; AVAILABLE FROM: HTTP://AAR.VASCODA.DE.
VHB. VIRTUELLE HOCHSCHULE BAYERN. 2008 [CITED 12.02.2008]; AVAILABLE FROM:
HTTP://WWW.VHB.ORG/.
Authors
Dipl-Inf. (Univ.) Stephan Graf Dipl.-Inf. (Univ.) Ivan Gergintchev Technische Universität München
Technische Universität München Faculty of Computer Science, I10 Faculty of Computer Science,
I10 Boltzmannstr. 3, 85747 Garching Boltzmannstr. 3, 85747 Garching [email protected]
[email protected]
Dr. rer. nat. Sabine Rathmayer Technische Universität München
Faculty of Computer Science, I10 Boltzmannstr. 3, 85747
Garching [email protected]
203
V. Improving Quality of Learning with
Technologies
204
DIFFUSION EN DIRECT ET EN DIFFÉRÉ DE VIDÉOS DE COURS:
L’EXPÉRIENCE DE L’UNIVERSITÉ P.M. CURIE (PARIS VI)
Yves Epelboin (CPM-SGTICE, université P.M. Curie (Paris VI)
Résumé: La faculté de Médecine de l’université Pierre Marie Curie accueille chaque année plus de 2000
étudiants de première année de médecine (PCEM1). En mai 2006 il a été décidé de mettre en place un
système de vidéo à la demande qui permettrait aux étudiants de suivre les cours en direct ou en différé depuis
leur domicile ou à partir de n’importe quel lieu relié à l’Internet par une connexion ADSL modeste. Ce
système a été intégré dans l’espace numérique de travail qui emploie la technologie uPortal / ESUP. Un profil
spécial pour les étudiants de PCEM1 a été créé. Ce système fonctionne depuis le mois d’octobre 2006.
Nous nous sommes attachés à retenir des technologies qui puissent être utilisées sur tous les modèles
d'ordianateurs pourvu qu'ils ne soient pas trop anciens.
L’emploi des nouvelles technologies est légitimé par le fait que les étudiants sont très nombreux à disposer à
leur domicile du matériel adéquat. Une enquête menée en 2006 auprès des étudiants de première année en
Sciences dures montre que la quasi-totalité des étudiants dispose d’un ordinateur à leur domicile et que plus
de 60% ont une connexion ADSL.
Plus de 400h de cours ont été enregistrées en 2006-2007, il continue cette année.
Depuis cette expérience s'est élargie: quelques professeurs emploient cette technique occasionnellement, pour
des enseignements à distance ou pour remplacer un cours qu'ils n'auraient pu assumer. Dans ce cas ces vidéos
sont intégrées dans un parcours pédagogique, dans la plate forme d'enseignement de l'université, Sakai.
Les étudiants accèdent aux vidéos aussi bien en direct qu'en différé et on observe plus de 200 connexions
simultanées de tôt le matin jusque tard dans la nuit 7 jours par semaine. L'observation montre qu'ils se sont
affranchis des contraintes temps et espace. Ils choisissent de regarder le cours depuis leur domicile à l'heure
qui leur convient le mieux, pas forcément en direct.
En mars 2007 une enquête a été lancée auprès des étudiants et 660 y ont répondu. Elle montre leur intérêt
pour cette nouvelle approche tant pour regarder un cours à distance que pour le réviser.
Cependant tous sont attachés au maintien des cours en amphithéatre et à la possibilité de le suivre à
l'université. Ils expriment clairement leur attachement au face à face.Ils sont par contre réservés sur l'emploi
du podcast. Il est vrai qu'en sciences et en Médecine le discours ne suffit pas: il s'accompagne de schémas et
d'équations indispensables à la compréhension. Cet usage n'est envisagé qu'en accompagnement d'un
polycopié prévu pour cet emploi spécifique.
Mots Clés: video enseignement à distance podcast
Introduction
Pour faire face au nombre croissant d’étudiants en première année, la faculté de médecine de
l’université P.M. Curie a mis en place, depuis plusieurs années, un système de vidéo interne qui
permet de diffuser les cours magistraux dans plusieurs amphithéâtres simultanément. Les étudiants se
retrouvent en face du professeur par rotations successives. Dans les autres amphithéâtres, ils suivent le
cours sur un grand écran où est projetée une image composée de la vue de l’écran de l’ordinateur du
professeur et d’une vidéo qui le montre à son pupitre. L’enseignant peut remplacer l’ordinateur par un
banc titre pour écrire sur une feuille de papier ou présenter de petits objets comme un modèle de
molécule, par exemple. Le cours est répété deux fois dans la journée. La préparation au concours
comprend 16 heures de cours magistraux par semaine pendant deux semestres de 15 semaines.
A la demande du doyen de la Faculté de Médecine, au cours d’une réunion tenue à la fin du mois
d’avril 2006, le Centre de Production Multimédia de l’université a étudié la possibilité de diffuser
également ces cours sur Internet afin de donner la possibilité aux étudiants de suivre le cours à
distance, notamment les jours où ce ne serait pas leur tour de se trouver en face du professeur. Les
fonds ont été réunis rapidement, avec une aide partielle de l’UMVF [1].
Insistons sur le fait que le projet a pour but de donner aux étudiants la possibilité de suivre leur
enseignement à distance mais qu’il n’entre pas dans l’idée des concepteurs de supprimer ni les cours
ni le face à face étudiants-enseignants.
205
L’emploi des nouvelles technologies est légitimé par le fait que les étudiants sont très nombreux à
disposer à leur domicile du matériel adéquat. Une enquête récente menée en L1, Sciences dures, dans
le cadre du SGTICE-LUTES [2], service d’appui aux étudiants dans les nouvelles technologies tant
sur les aspects pédagogiques que dans la mise à disposition de salles équipées, montre que la quasitotalité des étudiants dispose d’un ordinateur à leur domicile. Seuls 10% n’ont pas de connexion
Internet et le bas débit est marginal. Il n’y a pas lieu de penser que les étudiants de PCEM1 soient
moins bien équipés.
Les choix techniques
Les choix techniques ont été faits en prenant en considération les aspects suivants:
195. Le signal encodé est celui qui est diffusé entre les différents amphithéâtres sans modification
des conditions de travail des professeurs;
196. Les vidéos devaient pouvoir être vues depuis leur domicile par les étudiants disposant d’une
ligne ADSL à bas débit à 512 Kbauds;
197. La technologie retenue doit permettre de regarder le cours en direct ou en différé;
198. Le format d’encodage doit être indépendant des systèmes d’exploitation des ordinateurs des
étudiants de façon à pouvoir visualiser les cours aussi bien sur PC Windows que sur Mac
Intosh ou sur PC Linux;
199. Les vidéos de cours sont accessibles à partir de l’Environnement Numérique de Travail
(ENT) de l’université qui permet de leur présenter un profil et des services personnalisés.
Nous avons retenu le format Real, seul format pour lequel il existe un outil de visualisation pour les
trois plateformes. Une version gratuite est distribuée par son constructeur Real Networks. Certes elle
n’est pas installée de façon native sur les machines Windows et Apple mais son installation est simple
et prévue pour ces systèmes. Il existe une version Open Source pour Linux. Real Player est très
largement employé dans le monde entier pour les raisons que nous avons énoncées. Une FAQ a été
mise en place pour aider les étudiants à installer le logiciel [3].
Real est reconnu comme étant l’un des formats d’encodage qui fournissent le meilleur résultat.
Environnement de travail
Lorsqu’un étudiant se connecte à l’ENT, le serveur établit son profil et lui présente les onglets qui le
concernent, notamment, en ce qui nous concerne:
200. Le canal qui indique automatiquement si une vidéo est en cours de diffusion. L’étudiant est
immédiatement alerté du début d’un cours;
201. Accés aux cours antérieurs dans un canal d’archivage qui présente immédiatement après la
fin du cours toutes les vidéos par thématique ou sous forme calendaire;
202. Les documents de cours de ses professeurs au format PDF;
203. Les annonces: changement d’horaire.
206
La vidéo à la demande
La plus grande attention a été apportée pour assurer la plus grande fiabilité et garantir, même s’il était
impossible de voir le cours en direct, de le regarder en différé.
La vidéo de l’amphithéatre principal où le professeur donne son cours et qui est diffusée, à la Pitié,
dans les deux autres amphithéatres, est capturée
dans deux PCs placés dans la cabine de
Pitiˇ
projection. Le signal, codé par l’encodeur 1, est
envoyé à Jussieu, au travers du réseau,
Encodeur 1
Encodeur 2
simultanément vers deux serveurs video1 et
video2. Ce sont eux qui permettent aux étudiants
de regarder le cours en direct. Un dispositif
Jussieu
répartit les demandes de connexion sur ces deux
serveurs pour mieux répondre à la demande
simultanée d’un nombre important d’étudiants.
Serveur
Serveur
Serveur
Lorsqu’on regarde les cours en différé ce sont les
Video 1
Video 2
Video 3
trois serveurs video1, video2 et video3 qui se
répartissent les demandes.
Simultanément les deux encodeurs enregistrent
le cours sur disque. Ainsi en cas de rupture de
la liaison Pitié-Jussieu cela permet de rapatrier
le fichier rapidement, après le cours, afin d’en
disposer en différé. L’encodeur 2, copie
conforme du premier, est là uniquement, dans le
cas peu probable, d’une panne de l’encodeur 1.
Un technicien vérifie que le cours a bien démarré et, après sa fin, qu’il a été enregistré en entier:
204. Si un cours n’est pas complet ou si l’amphithéâtre était vide (changement d’horaire
impromptu) un enregistrement est immédiatement programmé pour la répétition de l’aprèsmidi.
205. Si la liaison a été coupée, la vidéo enregistrée localement sur l’un des encodeurs est
rapatriée dès qu’elle est rétablie.
Ce schéma a évité toute perte et, s’il est arrivé qu’il soit impossible de regarder un cours en direct, ils
ont tous été disponibles en différé.
L’image diffusée est composée avec deux sources: l’écran de l’ordinateur du professeur et une vidéo
de basse résolution le montrant à son pupitre, vu depuis la cabine de projection située au fond de
l’amphithéâtre. La vidéo est présentée comme une vignette en haut et à droite (figure 3). Sa position
fait perdre une partie utile du champ diffusée (en gris sur le schéma) et il aurait été préférable de
l’incruster dans la diapositive. Cette disposition n’a pu être retenue car il aurait fallu que les
professeurs respectent strictement un gabarit qui aurait laissé libre la partie en haut à droite des
diapositives. Ceci n’est pas envisageable.
L’opinion des étudiants
Un questionnaire a été mis à disposition des étudiants au travers de l’ENT pendant deux semaines
environ dans la deuxième moitié du mois de mars 2007. Sur les 2134 étudiants inscrits en
PCEM1, 663 ont répondu, ce qui est très satisfaisant. D’habitude on se satisfait de 10% d’une
population ou moins. Ce nombre en lui-même montre l’immense intérêt qu’ils portent à la vidéo. Les
résultats vont le confirmer.
207
6% 1%
Windows (XP,
2000, Vista)
Mac OS
Linux
93%
Ordinateur employˇ
Emploi d’un environnement électronique
9% seulement des étudiants déclarent ne pas employer régulièrement l’ENT. La majorité (70%) ne
justifie pas pourquoi. Parmi ceux-ci 18% ne disposent pas des moyens matériels, 12% seulement
refusent ce moyen d’enseignement.
91% des étudiants se connectent régulièrement à l’ENT.
20% disposent de la connexion minimale requise pour regarder les vidéos, 55% déclarent disposer de
plus, 25% ne savent pas mais comme seulement 6,5% ne regardent jamais les vidéos, cette réponse ne
signifie pas qu’ils ne disposent pas du débit requis.
Ceci montre qu’aujourd’hui la plupart des étudiants peut suivre un cours en vidéo à distance.
L’immense majorité emploie un PC sous Windows mais l’existence d’une minorité justifie que nous
ayons choisi un format de diffusion indépendant de ce constructeur. Notons au passage que, en dépit
de cette suprématie écrasante, 54% seulement emploient le navigateur Internet Explorer de Microsoft
contre 35% pour Firefox. 93% des étudiants emploient un PC sous Windows.
Les étudiants interrogés sur l’usage d’un outil de visualisation des vidéos différent de celui qui est
fourni avec leur machine n’éprouvent pas trop de difficultés. La principale difficulté rencontrée
semble provenir du fait que les fournisseurs de service sont très
souvent incapables de fournir le débit demandé pendant toute la
Jamais
21%
durée
d’un cours. Les étudiants sont bien loin d’obtenir le débit
Souvent
35%
nominal promis par leur prestataire!
Certains se plaignent également de ne pas disposer des boutons de
manipulation classiques d’un magnétoscope mais ils ne réalisent pas
qu’ils travaillent dans les conditions d’une émission de télévision. Ils
n’en disposent que lorsqu’ils regardent le cours en différé!
Parfois
44%
L’usage de la vidéo
Interrogés sur leur usage de la vidéo en direct, c'est-à-dire à l’heure
où a lieu le cours on s’aperçoit que l’usage est varié. 35% des
étudiants regardent souvent le cours en direct, 44% parfois. Ceci ne
signifie pas pour autant qu’ils les regardent tous ni qu’ils les suivent dans leur intégralité, comme nous
le verrons plus loin.
Usage du direct
Lorsqu’on interroge les 21% qui ne regardent jamais les cours en direct sur leurs motivations, il
apparaît très clairement qu’ils apprécient de se retrouver en face du professeur, même dans un grand
amphithéâtre : 58% répondent qu’ils préfèrent assister au cours, 31% qu’ils n’y assistent pas du tout. Il
s’agit vraisemblablement de redoublants. 11% justifient leur choix par
208
Raisons techniques
11%
Jam ais
6,50%
Souvent
40%
Ne suivent pas les
cours
31%
Assistent au
cours 58%
Parfois
53,50%
Raisons pour ne pas regarder les vidˇ os en direct
Regardez vous les cours en diffˇ rˇ
une raison autre, difficultés techniques rencontrées avec le direct très probablement. Nous en avons
expliqué l’origine la plus vraisemblable : un débit de ligne très inférieur au débit nominal.
Lorsqu’on pose les mêmes questions sur l’usage du différé des nuances très intéressantes se font jour:
la proportion des étudiants qui ne regardent jamais de cours tombe à 6,50%!
Ceci est un véritable plébiscite pour la vidéo, confirmé par les commentaires enthousiastes. 40% des
étudiants regardent souvent les vidéos et 53,50% répondent parfois.
Parmi ceux qui répondent jamais (6,50%), on retrouve ceux qui éprouvent des difficultés techniques
pour recevoir les vidéos (15% des jamais) et une minorité résolue qui refuse d’employer ce moyen
pour remplacer les cours ou pour les réviser.
93,50% des étudiants regardent les vidéos de cours.
45
Suivi des cours
38,5
40
On pourrait penser que les étudiants emploient
la vidéo pour suivre les cours dans leur
intégralité. Ceci est effectivement le cas pour
le direct mais l’usage est bien différent pour le
différé : 38,5% seulement répondent qu’ils les
regardent en entier (5 sur l’échelle employée).
Ceci signifie que pour eux la vidéo leur permet
de s’affranchir des horaires. Ils peuvent
assister aux cours aux heures qui leur
conviennent et pas seulement à celles où ils
sont délivrés.
35
30
25
22
20
17
15
12
10,5
10
5
0
1
2
3
4
5
Regardez vous les cours dans leur intˇ gralitˇ ?
Mais on s’aperçoit également que la vidéo est
employée pour réviser et revoir les parties qu’ils n’ont pas comprises, comme le montre la proportion
importante d’étudiants qui situent entre 1 et 3 la proportion d’un cours qu’ils regardent.
40
En complément nous leur avons demandé,
toujours sur une échelle de 1 à 5 la proportion des
cours qu’ils regardent. Seuls 8,5% regardent tous
les cours, un grand nombre d’entre eux (38%) est
très sélectif.
38
35
30
23,5
25
20
20
15
10
10
8,5
5
0
1
2
3
4
5
209
Les raisons en sont assez claires et les étudiants nous l’expriment dans leurs remarques.
D’abord, et la présence constatée aux cours au mois de mars 2007 le montre, ils apprécient se
retrouver en face du professeur même dans un grand amphithéâtre : celui dans lequel est délivré reste
plein, ceux dans lesquels on retransmet ce cours en vidéo sont vides. Les étudiants ne regardent donc
pas forcément les cours qu’ils ont suivis à l’université. Deuxième raison de cette sélectivité : tous les
professeurs ne « passent » pas également en vidéo. La qualité de leurs diapositives, dégradée dans la
retransmission comme nous l’avons expliqué, explique en grande partie ce choix. Les étudiants
insistent beaucoup sur ce point. Les étudiants regardent donc de préférence à distance les cours dont la
qualité technique est bonne.
Notons que les remarques sur la qualité s’appliquent également sur la diffusion dans les autres
amphithéâtres bien que la résolution soit meilleure que sur l’Internet.
L’appréciation de la vidéo
Les questions que nous avons posées dans la dernière partie ont trait à la composition des images.
L’image est composée, comme nous l’avons expliqué, de la capture de l’écran de l’ordinateur et d’une
vignette qui est la vidéo du professeur placé derrière son pupitre. Cette vignette oblige à réduire le
champ utile de la diapositive donc diminue la lisibilité de son contenu. Nous nous sommes donc
demandé s’il ne serait pas préférable de la supprimer et de ne transmettre que les diapositives et la
voix du professeur. La réponse est cinglante: 90% des étudiants veulent voir leur enseignant. Même de
qualité réduite cette image est utile pour fixer l’attention et
introduire une certaine dimension humaine. On retrouve là encore
Inutile
10%
l’intérêt du contact.
Nˇ cessaire
37%
90% des étudiants jugent utile la diffusion de l’image du
professeur.
Il serait possible de diffuser des diapositives de meilleure qualité
en se limitant à synchroniser des vues fixes des diapositives. On y
perdrait, en particulier, la vision du curseur que le professeur
emploie pour attirer l’attention sur certaines parties de ses vues.
Intˇ r t de la vue du professeur
Les étudiants sont unanimes sur la nécessité de pouvoir visualiser
ces déplacements. Nous avons d’ailleurs modifié son aspect pour
le rendre plus visible. A titre anecdotique, signalons que l’un d’entre eux nous demandait de signaler à
un enseignant qu’il était inutile d’employer un pointeur laser!
Utile
53%
Certains professeurs n’emploient pas Powerpoint mais écrivent sur une feuille de papier placée sous
un banc titre. 76% des étudiants sont d’accord avec la proposition que cette technique est adaptée à
certains cours, ceux où on présente de nombreuses équations, en particulier. Ils ne rejettent pas cette
méthode qu’ils trouvent vivante à condition que l’enseignant écrive suffisamment gros. Notons que
cette remarque s’applique également à la diffusion dans les amphithéâtres.
Ils apprécient également la possibilité de présenter des objets, comme un modèle de molécule par
exemple.
La suite
Comment améliorer l’usage des nouvelles technologies et de la vidéo pour leurs cours? Interrogés sur
ce point les étudiants font de nombreuses remarques, qui se divisent en trois catégories:
Ils demandent à leurs professeurs de préparer des diapositives dont la qualité soit prévue pour
la diffusion: taille des textes, épaisseur des traits, choix des couleurs… Visiblement certains
enseignants y prêtent plus d’attention que d’autres. Cela explique certainement le choix des
cours vus à distance. Cette remarque s’applique également à la diffusion dans les
amphitheatres;
Ils aimeraient des images plus grandes et de meilleure résolution: nous avons expliqué les
compromis que nous avons du faire pour permettre une réception par le plus grand nombre.
Nous pourrons donc y répondre lorsque les fournisseurs de service seront capables, pour un
prix raisonnable, de fournir de meilleurs débits effectifs à domicile;
210
Certains voudraient pouvoir charger sur leurs ordinateurs les vidéos plutôt que de les regarder
en streaming. Sachant qu’un cours représente 300 à 400 Moctets, on imagine la taille des
disques nécessaires. Il faudrait pratiquement un Goctet par jour! Sans compter le temps
nécessaire au transfert. Enfin le streaming est la seule méthode pour rendre plus difficile des
piratages indélicats.
Pour répondre partiellement à cette dernière demande nous avons demandé aux étudiants s’ils seraient
intéressés par la possibilité de distribuer en baladodiffusion la bande audio des cours. Nous excluons à
priori la distribution de la bande vidéo, bien que cela soit envisageable, car l’image n’est pas,
aujourd’hui, de la moindre utilité sur l’écran d’un baladeur. Leur réponse est encourageante, comme le
montre le graphe joint, et nous nous appliquerons à mettre en place ce service pour la rentrée
prochaine.
Pour répondre par avance aux objections probables de certains ayatollahs, nous n’envisageons ni de
changer de format d’encodage ni de visualiseur. Certains étudiants nous reprochent déjà de ne pas
employer celui natif avec Windows et éprouvent des difficultés pour installer celui-ci pour qu’il soit
illusoire de rechercher une solution plus exotique! Nos étudiants ne sont pas des informaticiens et ne
s’intéressent, pour la pupart, que très peu à leur machine.
Conclusion
Le nombre de réponses reçues extrêmement élevé pour une enquête de ce type, la chaleur des
commentaires des étudiants plébiscitent ce nouveau service. Il répond indéniablement à une demande
forte: jusqu’à 250 étudiants sont connectés en direct. Nos mesures montrent un nombre moyen de
connexions compris entre 100 et 150 tous les jours, y compris le week-end, du matin à tard dans la
nuit. Les étudiants sont donc très satisfaits de ce nouveau service qui les aide aussi bien pour suivre les
cours que pour les réviser.
En même temps les étudiants expriment leur attachement à l’existence de cours en amphithéâtre.
L’introduction de la vidéo à la demande telle que l’a conçu l’université P.M. Curie va visiblement
dans la bonne direction. Elle a en tout cas complètement répondu à l’objectif recherché: permettre aux
étudiants de préparer le concours dans de meilleures conditions.
Bibliographie
206. Université Médicale Virtuelle Francophone http://www.umvf.org, accessed: 11.04.2008.
207. Béatrice Matheron LUTES-SGTICE UPMC, communication personnelle.
208. Démonstrations: http://www.edu.upmc.fr/TICE, accessed: 11.04
Autheur:
Yves Epelboin, Prof.
Université P.M. Curie (Paris VI)
CPM, case 1205
Université P.M. Curie
75252 Paris Cedex 05
France
Phone 0144276568
Fax 0144276544
211
PODCASTING POSSIBILITIES: INCREASING TIME
AND MOTIVATION IN THE LANGUAGE LEARNING CLASSROOM
(Language Centre, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology)
Abstract: Podcasting is the publishing of audio or video via the Internet, designed to be downloaded y
listened to on a portable mp3 player of any type, or on a personal computer. Campus Beat is a student
magazine podcast produced by HKUST students and the Language Centre. Segments of the podcast are
written and recorded by a student volunteer staff and students from the Language Centre’s Campus Beat
module. In addition to commentaries and campus news, Campus Beat provides an English language learning
segment called “Word Power”.
Podcasting has many educational benefits. For example, student produced podcasts have the potential for a
world-wide audience, giving students purpose and motivation to create a better product. The Campus Beat
podcast is used in conjunction with a Language Centre module that teaches students how to write various
styles of texts. One assignment is to write a news article about something on campus; this assignment evolves
into the Campus Beat podcast. This presentation will show how Campus Beat promotes an effective language
learning environment and provides opportunities for cross-curricular activities.
Keywords: Podcasts, podcasting, audio, student, English language, communication, media
Introduction
A continuing problem in the English language classroom is time. This problem occurs on different
levels for both teachers and students. For example: the number of school days allocated towards
language learning may be insufficient; a teacher may not have enough time to cover materials in a
lesson; students may not have the time to practice English outside of the classroom; and students may
not be motivated to or want to spend the necessary time to learn English. At the Hong University of
Science and Technology, for example, attending two 50-minute English language lessons a week is
not enough time to effectively practice and learn the language, but that is what many students most
likely do. So the questions are, then: how can teachers increase the odds of students studying or
practicing their English language skills outside of classroom time? And what is needed to motivate
students to do so? This talk will illustrate how podcasting can be used to increase a student’s time
allocated to language learning, and, while doing so, provide a meaningful experience that is
motivating, stimulating and useful for a language learner. The HKUST Language Centre’s Campus
Beat podcast will be used as an example to show how podcasting can innovatively be applied to
English language teaching and learning, creating more interaction outside of the classroom, thus
providing more practical and worthy practice using the target language.
What Is Podcasting?
Podcasting is the publishing of audio or video via the Internet, designed to be downloaded and listened
to on a portable mp3 player of any type, or on a personal computer. As Stanley [2006] suggests,
listening to audio or watching videos are nothing new to the Internet: “What puts podcasting apart
from other ways of delivering audio online, such as streaming, is the idea of automatically
downloaded content. What makes this possible is RSS (Really Simple Syndication). […] Just as RSS
transformed blogging, enabling people to manage vast quantities of text content, so a revision of RSS
for podcasting has made it easier for people to now leave their homes with pieces of the Internet
crammed into their mp3 players.”
Podcasting is one term for this new rich media. Other terms used when applied to specific uses
include: autocasting, blogcasting, learncasting, MMS podcasting, mobilecasting, narrowcasting,
peercasting, podstreaming, photofeed, soundseeing tour, vodcasting, voicecasting, audio wikinews and
phone casting [Tynan, Colbran 2006].
212
Podcasting in Education
The potential uses of podcasting in education are numerous. In higher-education, professors can use
podcasts in various ways to extend the classroom, either by providing recordings of their lectures,
review notes, or preparatory material for the next lesson [O’Bryan, Hegelheimer 2007]. Another
approach is to have students produce their own podcast about a specific topic related to their studies.
Podcasting is considered to be a part of m-Learning. Tynan and Colbarn [2006] identify m-Learning
as “a different form of eLearning, as it takes the learner away from a fixed point and ‘respects that a
user would like to interact with educational resources whilst away from a normal place of learningclassroom or computer’” The idea is that podcasting creates a borderless classroom. By extending the
classroom, making it mobile, educators are able to increase the time students allocate towards
studying.
But podcasting in education is more than extending the classroom; it enhances the potential outcomes
of a course for today’s students who are more tech-savvy. As Campbell [2005] explains in There’s
Something in the Air: Podcasting in Education, more students are aware of this technology and know
how to use it: “More and more students come to school with these skills. This is a language they not
only understand but use, often and on a daily basis. […] These are the tools of their native
expressiveness, and with the right guidance and assignments, they can use these tools to create
powerful analytical and synthetic work”. Barnnes, Marateo and Ferris [2007] categorize these students
as Net Geners and suggest that “the challenge of evolving pedagogy to meet the needs of New-savvy
students is daunting, but educators are assisted by the fact that this generations values education.
These students learn in a different way than their predecessors did, but they do want to learn”.
Podcasting In English Language Teaching And Learning
Language instructors can develop creative ways for encouraging students to practice their language
skills outside of the classroom through the use of four types of podcasts: ESL podcasts, native-English
podcasts, podcasts focusing on test preparation and student produced podcasts. The purpose of ESL
podcasts is to teach English as a second language by providing audio lessons or themes, such as
"giving directions" or English idioms. Native-English podcasts are produced for an audience that is
fluent in English. Learners of English can learn the language in an authentic context through these
podcasts. Many universities request that non-native speakers pass an English test by approved
examination bodies, such as IELTS and TOEFL, before they admit them. Podcasts focusing on test
preparation are available for students preparing for such tests. Student-produced podcasts are different
in that they are produced by the students themselves as part of a task.
Podcasting should not, however, be the centre of attention in an English language course. Instead, it
should be integrated into the curriculum, and, essentially, be invisible [O’Bryan, Hegelheimer, 2007].
The advantage of podcasts over other invisible tools (for example, compact discs) is their mobility.
For example, a podcast is a tool that can be used to assist with listening exercises, which is similar to
the ways a compact disc or projector are tools used in the classroom.
Campus Beat
Campus Beat is two things: a student magazine podcast produced by HKUST students and a course
offered by the Language Centre. Segments of the Campus Beat podcast are written and recorded by a
student volunteer staff and students from the Language Centre’s Campus Beat course. The volunteer
staff writes stories related to entertainment, academics and current events at HKUST, in Hong Kong
and worldwide. Students enrolled in the Campus Beat course write two news segments, one related to
Hong Kong current events and one related to HKUST, as an assessed task for the podcast. All stories
are broadcast on the Campus beat podcast. In addition to news, Campus Beat provides an English
language learning segment called “Word Power”.
Campus Beat: the course
The Campus Beat course teaches students news writing. The purpose: to help students become better
critical readers of English, to introduce them to the various styles of writing, and to write more
effectively. Students are taught basic news writing skills and theory, such as news values, and they
213
practice their own writing skills through two assigned tasked. The first assessed task of the course asks
students to work in groups of 3-4, find a newsworthy story in Hong Kong, paraphrase the story if it is
taken from a newspaper, record it and submit it to the teacher who will include it in an episode of
Campus Beat. This task is a part of their participation mark and is used primarily to allow students to
become familiar with podcasting and news writing. The second task is an individual assignment.
Students must write a newsworthy story about something occurring on campus, record the story and
submit it to their teacher who will include it in an episode of Campus Beat. In addition to language
skills, students have the chance to adapt technical skills as they are required to record and edit their
voice using a free audio recording tool for podcasting called Audacity. Because Campus Beat has a
real audience, that is, an audience outside of the classroom, these tasks provide students a chance to
work in a real life situation.
Campus Beat: the podcast
The Campus Beat podcast is a platform for students to practice their English writing, speaking and
listening skills. In addition to the stories written by students taking the course, Campus Beat has other
segments that are marketed towards a university audience. This includes commentaries, entertainment
news, English language tips and English-language music. Each episode is approximately 30 minutes in
duration. Students and staff are invited to contribute stories for or comment on the podcast. In
addition, commercials for student organizations, such as NAUTY, and the Language Centre’s Check
My Worlds, have been included in past episodes. The goal of this podcast is to create an English
speaking community on campus and to provide interesting, entertaining, and newsworthy information
for students and staff. To date, the average download rate is over 600 per episode. This includes
listeners from HKUST and other countries, such as Japan and the United States (students and
instructors from a university in Japan have left comments about Campus Beat on the Campus Beat
website).
Motivation factors
As mentioned in the introduction, motivating students to practice English outside of classroom time is
often difficult to do. Podcasting may assist with this problem. There is a potential for podcasting “to
foster a more seamless integrations of in-class and out-of-class activity and materials, in addition to
the wealth of authentic foreign language material freely available for download [Thorn, Payne 2005].
O-Bryan and Hegelheimer [2007] also suggest that podcasting has the potential for creating intrinsic
and extrinsic motivation in students. Stanley [2005] suggests that students who produce podcasts for
assessed tasks “will probably take more care with the preparation, knowing that it could be potentially
listened to by people all over the world. After discussing and planning the contents, the learners
should be involved in writing and rewriting scripts which they will revise with their classmates (and
later their teacher) ensuring that the content is understandable and there are no mistakes. They will
then rehearse the show before finally recording it.” The Campus Beat course attempts to create both
intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in students through listening and writing activities (see Table 1).
Cross-curricular activities
The Campus Beat course model is not only applicable to one language-learning course; it can be
applied to any discipline and any course. In addition, the Campus Beat podcast has the potential to be
a hub for information, activities, or announcements related to HKUST. That is, professors in any
department can request students to produce a segment related to their studies to be included in a
Campus Beat episode.
Conclusion
Because time is a factor involved with language learning, and classroom time is limited, it is important
to find new ways to motivate students to practice their language skills as often as possible. Podcasting
offers a way to do this. This tool can be integrated into the language learning curriculum, providing
students with authentic and simulated environments that can be used to practice their language skills.
It offers a chance for students to be motivated, and, at the same time, it makes them more accountable
214
for the work they produce. Campus Beat has been well-received by students, and an increase in
motivation to practice their English skills has been seen during and out of class time. As one student
enrolled in the Campus Beat module said, “I think Campus Beat is an excellent tool to improve one's
language skills – it’s also a great test of creativity. I for one have thoroughly enjoyed the course.”
Table 1. Use of podcasts in the Campus Beat module
Content
Type of task
Integrated
listening
podcast
Short-answer
response,
comprehension
Integrated
writing
podcast
News story,
descriptive or
argumentative
essay, technical
report
(video or audio)
Type of
student activity
Type of
feedback
Teacher’s
role
Frequent
interaction with
students.
Some
interaction with
computer
through the
lesson.
Frequent
interaction with
students.
Some
interaction with
computer
through the
lesson
Interpreting,
evaluating,
commenting,
stimulating
thought
Facilitator
Manager
invention,
content,
grammar,
revision,
peer, and
formative
Facilitator
Manager
Position of
podcast in
curriculum
tool for
learning;
normalized
integration into
syllabus;
adapted to
learners’
needs
tool for
practicing;
normalized
integration into
syllabus;
adapted to
learners’
needs
Position of
podcast in
lesson
Assigned as
homework;
smaller part
of every
lesson
Assigned as
homework;
assessed
tasks
Motivation
Intrinsic
and
extrinsic
Intrinsic
and
extrinsic
References
Barnes, K.; Marateo, R.; Ferris, S.P. (2007). Teaching and Leaning with the Net Generation.
Innovate [Available at: http://www.innovateonline.info, accessed: 4.11.2007].
Campbell, G. (2005). There’s Something in the Air: Podcasting in Education. EDUCAUSE
Review, Vol. 40(6), pp. 33-46.
O-Bryan, A.; Hegelheimer, V. (2007). Integrating CALL into the Classroom: the Role of
Podcasting in an ESL Listening Strategies Course. ReCALL, Vol. 19(2), pp. 162-180.
Stanley, G. (2006). Podcasting: Audio on the Internet Comes of Age. TESL-EJ, Vol. 9(4).
Stanley, G. (2005). Podcasting for ELT. [Available at: http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk,
accessed: 10.11.2007].
Tynan, B.; Colbran, S. (2006). Podcasting, Student Learning and Expectations. [Available at:
http://www.ascilite.org.au, 4.11.2007].
Thorne, S.; Payne, J. (2005). Evolutionary Trajectories, Internet-mediated Expression, and
Language Education. CALICO, Vol. 22 (3), pp. 371-397.
Author:
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Language Centre, HKUST
Clear Water Bay, Kowloon
0 Hong Kong
Hong Kong S.A.R. - China
Phone (852) 2358-7863
215
MicroCSCL – COMBINING CSCL WITH MICROLEARNING
Manfred Kaul (University of Applied Sciences, FH Bonn-Rhein-Sieg, Germany)
Abstract: In our approach we have merged Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) with
microlearning into a new system called MicroCSCL [4], which we have implemented in Ruby on Rails [6].
Departing from outdated technologies such as PHP4, on which most open source eLearning platforms are still
based, it is essential to integrate new Web 2.0 attainments to allow for new features and more flexibility.
CSCL has brought group dynamics to eLearning by introducing wikis, blogs, forums, FAQs and
collaboratively written knowledge webs and databases. Yet, most systems do not integrate these elements of
collaborative work outcomes uniformly.
Key concept and root object in our object-oriented system is the learning artefact, which is any collaborative
contribution of any student any time to the learning process, e.g. solutions to problems or exercises, FAQ
entries, Wiki contributions as well as blog entries. E.g. in software engineering labs not only source coding is
honoured, but also tests, peer reviews, FAQ answers and steps in a peer to peer eCoaching process. All these
learning artefacts are stored uniformly in the same database and the management tools are the same for all of
them.
Microlearning is a rather young approach to eLearning, in which students are learning micro units in micro
steps. There are two meanings to microlearning. The first is delivering multiple micro learning units to the
students every day. E.g. in language learning vocabulary is sent to the mobile phones of all participants
several times a day, carrying on the learning process once started in a classroom. The second meaning is
learning by getting immediate feedback to every tiny action. This feedback cannot be generated by the
teacher, otherwise resulting in overload. High quality system feedback is hard to generate automatically, but
there are working examples in higher education: It is well known in software engineering education from
lessons in eXtreme Programming (XP) and Test Driven Development (TDD), [1]. Transferring the underlying
philosophy means, that students perform test- driven learning by declaring their learning outcome, specifying
the corresponding test and learn by searching for constructive paths to successfully pass the test.
CSCL and microlearning are combined as follows: E.g. collaboratively written glossaries and databases are
taken as output from the CSCL process and as input for the micro learning units, which are distributed to all
students after class time via mobile devices.
The overall learning process is managed as a game, assigning points and grades to all learning artefacts
immediately by a two level review process. Every student can compare her or his learning progress to
companion students any time directly by appropriate statistics and benchmarking.
Keywords: CSCL, microlearning
1. Introduction
Software engineering and eLearning are using the Internet as a platform in different ways. Software
engineers share their source code via web databases and version management systems, using wikis,
blogs for sharing more general project artefacts and using bug tracking systems for synchronizing
work. Compared to that, the use of the Internet in eLearning is still in its infancy. Most eLearners
today still use the Internet in pull-mode only, downloading the slides of the teacher or extracting
information for homework or assignments. But it is well known from learning psychology that
learning happens mainly by being active and constructing information by oneself. Learning from the
advanced tools and processes in software engineering, ways and means eLearning could be enhanceda
lot.
The paper is organised as follows: First, we describe the deficiencies found in traditional eLearning
systems under the heading “eLearning 1.0”. Then we describe solutions with CSCL, microlearning and
their proper combination, which is built into our own system MicroCSCL [4].
2. ELearning 1.0
Today teachers mostly use eLearning in push mode: The teacher organises the lectures, publishes his
presentation slides online or pushes any kind of learning material towards the students. Recent
216
multimedia content management systems are just a comfortable way for this procedure. No matter how
the learning material is presented online, this kind of eLearning suffers from the following problems:
209. Teacher orientation: The teacher is the active centre of all learning activities. Therefore, in
the overall performance view, the teacher becomes the bottleneck. Learning feedback,
marks and grades cannot arrive faster at the student than the teacher´s workload allows for;
210. Consumers´ attitude: Learners are assumed to consume learning material, store it in their
head and reproduce it in the exams. The western culture fosters consumerism, which creates
high demands concerning the product´s, learning material´s and teacher´s quality. Tuition
fees, introduced in Germany last year, reinforce this attitude towards learning;
211. Lack of self-organisation skills: The learning process being mainly organized by the
teacher does not foster the learners´ self-organisation capabilities;
212. Group dynamics has always led to strong learners´ motivation, but was not supported
sufficiently by eLearning 1.0 systems;
213. Training of soft skills and best practices is becoming more and more important in industry,
but are poorly developed by eLearning 1.0 systems;
214. Production of edutainment and serious games is comparable in costs with the expensive
production of video games or movies. A Hollywood budget is needed as well. This might be
feasible for subjects addressing a large audience, but not for narrow specialised scientific
fields. We call this problem the Hollywood problem and come up with a solution later in
this paper;
215. The flow problem: Video games are designed to induce flow, which is a special state of
mind, see Czíkszentmihályi [3]. Without flow video games cannot achieve sufficient market
share and are doomed to fail. Therefore flow has become a must-have in video game
industry. Children growing up with everyday flow experience are hard to attract by learning
environments without flow. The future is flow learning, but flow has been hardly addressed
in eLearning system design up to now.
Later in the paper we come up with approaches and solutions to these problems.
3. Constructivist Learning and Constructing Software
Constructivism is a philosophical theory how learning happens. It basically says that learning happens
by actively constructing, not by passively consuming. Therefore teaching by pushing learning material
towards students must fail. Constructivism advocates some kind of push/pull turn around: Students
have to pull learning material and concepts into their scope.
Computer-supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) is a special eLearning approach focusing on
online collaboration as its central medium. It has been derived from a special area in software
engineering called Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), which focuses on collaboratively
designing and constructing software. Applications are well-known in industry and public open-source
projects.
Software projects are a metaphor for learning projects. The way new software is designed and
implemented is a very creative art. The way programmers work together, share ideas and source code,
can very well be translated into learning environments.
Group dynamics is very well supported, even more than by face-to-face meetings. CSCL learning is
similarly exciting as video games. The excitement is ignited by the group process itself, not by a
costly produced video game, solving the Hollywood problem. All participants of CSCL sessions have
at least to be active, freeing them from the consumer´s attitude. Feedback is generated by all
participants, not only by the teacher. The quality of the learning material provided by the teacher
diminishes in value. Using the internet and libraries, the compilation of the learning material becomes
an important part of the students´ work. Thereby the bottleneck problem is solved. CSCL
environments allow for more active engagement of the students in a truly constructive learning
process. Collaborative learning is managed mainly by the students themselves, thereby training self
organisation skills.
217
4. Learning artefacts
CSCL might well be organised by general purpose Web 2.0 tools, like forums, wikis and/or blogs. For
novices this means initial training for a bunch of different web applications. These applications are
only poorly interconnected. There are no common means for quality assurance, leaving the teacher
alone collecting all the tiny bits and bytes of the students. This makes the teacher´s job of controlling
and assessing very hard. Integration is bluntly needed. Our approach is a generalisation hierarchy of all
kinds of learning artefacts:
Figure 1. Generalisation hierarchy of learning artefacts
Learning happens while constructing any kind of learning artefact, e.g. a wiki page, an FAQ answer,
source code in software engineering courses, source testing, code review, or documentation. All these
learning artefacts are treated uniformly at a certain abstract level. Every learning artefact has at least
timestamps, a version history, authors, comments and reviewers. Obviously, a general artefact
management system treating all learning artefacts uniformly is missing in a heterogeneous Web 2.0
tools collection, but can be accomplished in an object-oriented system very easily. Unfortunately,
major eLearning platforms like Moodle are still based on PHP4 and therefore lack object-orientation.
This is another reason to start from fresh with the development of a new system.
5. eLearning and Software Engineering
The relationship between eLearning and software engineering is not only one way. XP programmers
state “We cannot construct software products faster than we can learn.” In other words, there is a direct
relationship between development speed and learning speed. Industry pressing hard on programmers
to deliver faster and faster, also fosters the improvement of learning environments for programmers
and software engineers.
Software engineering has witnessed a steep learning curve for delivering software products faster and
more accurately. Lessons learned in software engineering might also help understanding lifelong
learning better:
216. There is no silver bullet, neither in software engineering nor in eLearning: There is no
single system, nor single process, nor single learning material which is best for all purposes,
all learning environments and for all people;
217. Cathedral versus bazaar: The big vendors tend to build cathedrals of knowledge, instead of
allowing for free flow of market forces as on an oriental bazaar. Eric Raymond discusses
these two fundamentally different development styles, the "cathedral" model of most of the
commercial world versus the "bazaar" model of the Linux world. Raymond describes his
distinct shock, that the Linux world “not only didn´t fly apart in confusion but seemed to go
from strength to strength at a speed barely imaginable to cathedral-builders”;
218
218. Micro iterations: “Release early and often” is not only a success story in Open Source
development, but also the best way to understand and to learn. It has been the successful
mantra in the Linux world. Pushed to the extreme in eXtreme Programming, micro
iterations turned out to be the best procedure to learn about the real customers’ needs on the
one hand and the technological capabilities on the other hand;
219. Do not try to do it all perfect in the first step: Instead, build small modules for specific
tasks, which are best at their task and nothing else. This calls for small dedicated services,
that can be combined in any way suitable to the teachers and learners. The way of
combination may be in the RESTful or in the SoA style. Which style will succeed is still an
open question.
6. Flow Learning
The flow concept has been introduced into psychology by Mihály Csíkszentmihályi [3] in 1990. It
describes a certain kind of mental state of full immersion into the flow of some very intense action,
e.g. in extreme sport, or group dynamics. But flow is not a mere subjective phenomenon: There are
also measureable bio-physical symptoms like dopamine hormone concentration, and heart rate
variability. Flow is known – more or less consciously – to nearly everyone. Little Children know best
how to get into flow easily while playing quietly and undisturbed. Adults seem to need more
challenges like extreme sport.
Csíkszentmihályi [3] found 9 components, some of them conditions, for getting into flow. The most
important are:
220. always knowing what to do next;
221. focusing on a limited field of attention;
222. cool awareness of present situation without any barrier of misleading conceptions;
223. some kind of loss of self-consciousness;
224. time does not matter any more;
225. direct and immediate feedback;
226. balance between challenge and abilities.
Sub-challenge leads to boredom, over-challenge to anxiety. So it is important, to mediate between the
two extremes of sub- and over-challenge. This is known as “Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment” (DDA)
in video games and discussed in chapter 8.
Flow has not only positive effects. Gamers as well as extreme sport athletes are known to get addicted
to the only flow entrance they happened to know. Flow entrance and flow state are mixed up. Addicts
are locked into the only way of flow entrance they learned to know perchance (flow entrance lock-in).
The new challenge of learning environments will be to release this lock.
The generation of children and adolescents growing up today with high end computers and realistic
video games are accustomed to the everyday flow experience getting their quotidian quantum of the
dopamine hormone. While the generation before still doubts about flow being too risky and dangerous
for being introduced into education principles, it is an irrevocable fact that flow as everyday
experience has already arrived in human mind at least in our children. Learning environments have
increasingly to address this fact.
7. The challenge of the 21st century in learning
Video game industry very actively uses flow research. Games without flow effect cannot gain
sufficient market share. Very early in their lives, kids today get accustomed to everyday flow.
Videophilia is a new term for growing up in front of video games instead of nature, which is an
upcoming general tendency observed in [7], see also www.videophilia.org. Meanwhile, gambling
addiction becomes a mass problem in western civilization. Boys are known to be more exposed to
gambling addiction than girls. The school performance of boys has become at least one grade worse
than of girls at least in Germany. If we do not change our learning environments, schools and
universities we will lose a huge amount of young talents.
219
Flow enhances human information processing dramatically, but does not influence the direction in
which to go. On the one hand there is flow in gambling and distraction. On the other hand there is flow
in learning and creativity. The challenge of the 21st century is to get the right direction, to bring enough
flow into learning environments and to bring enough people to creativity. This is truly a permanent
subject in lifelong learning.
8. Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment
(DDA)
challenge
Dynamic Difficulty
Adjustment
Video game industry very actively uses
flow research. Games are designed
carefully to include the right amount of
challenges and to meet the skills of the
average player, preventing both boredom
and anxiety as well keeping the player in
the middle of the flow zone. But the flow
zone for novices is very different from the
flow zone of hardcore players. Therefore
skills, abilities
there is no single best solution. In order to
Figure 2. DDA helps to avoid anxiety or boredom
widen the audience and market share of a
video game, an adaptation system is
needed. The difficulty level has to be
adjusted dynamically by a Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment system (DDA), see [8].
In [8] Jenova Chen describes two different approaches, system-oriented DDA (SDDA), and playeroriented DDA (PDDA). The SDDA system monitors the player´s actions, analyses them and gives
feedback to the game engine, in particular to the difficulty control. The PDDA implements different
kinds of active steering wheels into the game, by which the player can control the difficulty level and
actively ask for more or less advanced challenges.
These achievements in game design are very helpful for CSCL design. SDDA is translated into
eLearning by monitoring the learner´s activities, her or his commit and interaction frequency, and the
rating of the learner´s contributions by other learners and last not least by the teacher. On the basis of
the personal profile of the learning activities appropriate actions are initiated. If the commit frequency
is too low, the learner is asked to commit more. If the learner does not interact with other students,
guidelines for interaction are offered and group work stimuli introduced. If the quality of the
contributions is too bad, lectures for increasing writing, or managerial abilities are introduced into the
course work.
The player-oriented DDA depends on the learner´s initiatives and actions. If the learner does not know
how to solve a problem, she or he can ask for help in a help forum. Additionally, in a collective ToDo
list all current group tasks are listed. The learner can take any task away from the ToDo list and work
on it, or can enter a new item into the ToDo list. ToDo lists are a central synchronisation point for
group work. A learner can increase the own challenge level by taking hard tasks from the ToDo list, or
could reduce the difficulty level by submitting subtasks, on which other group member have to work
for helping in the own big task.
Both, SDDA as well as PDDA, can very well be translated into the learning environment and
constitute a uniform framework for difficulty adjustment in CSCL.
9. Microlearning
Microlearning is a rather young approach to eLearning dealing with micro learning units in micro
iterations. E.g. if a new language is learned in a classroom, learning all the vocabulary could very well
be done in micro iterations outside the classroom, e.g. via mobile devices and SMS services. This has
a double effect: First, small chunks of knowledge are learned in a digestible form, second the students
keep in touch with their learning community: They stay tuned to the learning process even after
classroom time.
220
More generally, besides bulk learning modes, microlearning addresses micro modes of learning, which
is adequate for refreshing, consolidating, extending existing knowledge in small steps. Mobile devices
being ubiquitous nowadays, the technological platform for microlearning already exists. This new
generation of learning tools is branded “ubiquitous learning” or simply “uLearning”. Microlearning,
offering new business opportunities for telecom operators, has an economic effect also.
There is a second view on microlearning meaning learning in micro steps always getting direct and
immediate feedback, which is a prerequisite for flow learning. Before the computer age this meant
having a personal trainer per learner, which for most learners is too costly. Today the immediate
feedback can be computer generated in some cases.
Micro iterations have just recently entered the software engineering scene by new agile software
development practices like XP, or Test Driven Development (TDD), [1]. In TDD first an executable
test is defined, second the implementation work is done, and third the implementation is tested, giving
immediate system generated feedback. So, software engineers do the same work, but in another order:
First the success is specified in an executable form, before the system is built. By organizing work
differently, system generated feedback becomes feasible. This also holds true for learning processes.
10. MicroCSCL
In order to send out micro units to mobile devices, databases of contents are needed. One type of
microlearning is based on a database of question-answer or problem-solution pairs. Then, a
microlearning unit consists of a question, which the candidate has to answer, and a direct and
immediate feedback. Such a database has not necessarily to be built up costly by teachers, but can be
constructed by the students in CSCL sessions. This solves the bottleneck problem. Both eLearning
approaches fit well together.
Table 1. Complementing learning modes in MicroCSCL
CSCL
Microlearning
collaborative effort
individual effort
group dynamics
staying tuned
producing contents
consuming contents
large amounts of learning material
micro units of learning material
long sessions
micro iterations
parallel processing of information
singular processing of a single piece of
information
flow state of mind
remember, consolidate knowledge in
repetitive mode
A practical example is “shock memory”. This is a didactic game, in which students have to write down
on their own an exam question, to which they know an answer themselves. These questions are
dispersed randomly, so that every student gets a different question. Uncovering the assigned question,
the student is shocked. That is where the name stems from. Collecting questions and answers into an
online database can very well be done in a CSCL session skill level construction delivering.
Transmitting single questions to mobile devices can be done as microlearning units. So, both learning
modes gain mutual benefits from each other, which is depicted in Table 1.
CSCL is well combined with microlearning in a two- phase approach, according to the pareto
principle: In the first phase, CSCL is used for constructing contents and the major bulk (80%) of
learning, in the second phase the achievements are consolidated and the long tail towards perfection is
stretched for a longer period of time, in which many micro units of learning chunks are delivered, see
fig. 3.
221
Figure 3. Pareto principle (80-20-rule) in learning
11. Software architecture
Software architectures and paradigms change at an ever-increasing pace. Today we witness the
change from monolithic systems to RESTful applications or Service oriented Architectures (SoA),
from the consumer oriented read-only WWW to the collaboratively writeable Web 2.0, and from
heavy-weight eLearning products to CSCL and microlearning. All these changes happen in parallel
and inconsistently. Well established eLearning systems are still based on good old PHP4 and other
deprecated technologies: PHP4 is not even object-oriented. Object-orientation has been developed in
software engineering since 1967. eLearning applications cannot follow the fast pace of underlying
technological change and therefore are not ready for the next technological leaps without friction.
Therefore it still makes sense to build up completely new eLearning systems from bottom up based
on completely new software technology.
Figure 4. MicroCSCLBrowser
The Web 2.0 hype has decisively been impelled by Ruby on Rails [6], which is the underlying
platform for many new web applications. Therefore at FH Bonn-Rhein-Sieg we started out a new
Open Source software development project of MicroCSCL on this platform. The result now
comprises almost 40 PM work, 24515 LOC in Ruby with 321 classes and 1679 methods. The
software will be released as Open Source to the internet under [4] this year.
222
12. Summary
In summary, MicroCSCL is the point of culmination of different trends in software engineering,
psychology, and eLearning, see fig. 5:
Figure 5. Network of trends towards MicroCSCL
References
Beck, Kent (2002). Test-Driven Development. Addison-Wesley, Boston
Cockburn, Alistair (2002). AGILE Software Development, Addison-Wesley, Boston.
Mihály Csíkszentmihályi (1990). FLOW: The Psychology Of Optimal Experience. New York:
Harper and Row.
Kaul, Manfred (2008). MicroCSCL [Available at: http://kaul.inf.fh-bonn-rhein-sieg.de/microcscl,
accessed: 23.09.2007].
Raymond, Eric S. (2001). The Cathedral and the Bazaar: Musings on Linux and Open Source by
an Accidental Revolutionary, O'Reilly Media.
Thomas, Dave; Heinemeier Hansson, David (2007). AGILE Web Development with Rails,
Pragmatic Programmers.
Zaradic, Patricia; Oliver, Pergams (2007). Videophilia: Implications for Childhood Development
and Conservation. The Journal of Development Processes, Vol. 2(1). [See also:
www.videophilia.org, accessed: 23.03.2008].
Chen, Jenova (2006). Flow in Games, MFA Thesis, USC School of Cinema Arts. [See also:
www.jenovachen.com/flowingames, accessed: 23.03.2008].
Author:
Manfred Kaul, Prof. Dr.
University of Applied Sciences FH Bonn-Rhein-Sieg
Computer Science Department / Informatik
Grantham-Allee 20
D-53757 Sankt Augustin
Germany
223
USER REQUIREMENTS FOR ADULT LEARNERS
WITH SPECIAL NEEDS IN ACCESSIBLE LIFELONG LEARNING
Elisabeth Unterfrauner, Cäcilia Weiermair-Märki (ZSI)
Abstract: Most Higher Education Institutions (HEI) all over Europe offer some kind of e-learning, be it fully
or partly online courses, using different technologies such as email, the web-based Virtual Learning
Environment (VLE) or other specific software [Seale, 2006a]. While e-learning offers many advantages for
users like flexibility in time and location thus reducing the barriers for students with disabilities [Wroblewski,
Unger, Schilder], it can also be a disadvantage if the technology used is not fully accessible to all the different
user groups. This paper tries to give an insight into different stakeholders’ points of view when dealing with
the topic of e-accessibility in the university context in Austria. The term “e-accessibility” is used as defined
by EASI (Equal Access to Software and Information): “Accessible e-learning means courseware and content
that is designed to be accessible to the widest possible variety of computer operating systems and specialized
applications removing needless barriers for students with disabilities and providing a level playing field to let
them work and learn like everyone else” [Seale, 2006b]. The study represents the results of a multimethodological analysis that were collected in the context of the project EU4ALL.
Keywords: Accessibility, learners with special needs, online survey
The Project EU4ALL
The project EU4ALL (European Unified Approach for Accessible Lifelong Learning), a four-year
long FP6/IST IP project, is researching and developing technologies to make lifelong learning
accessible to everyone. To address this, EU4ALL sets forward the concept of Accessible Lifelong
Learning (ALL) uniting 3 key strategies:
227. That the technology that mediates lifelong learning does so accommodating the diversity of
ways people interact with technology and the content and services it delivers;
228. That this technology is used to bring support services to disabled learners;
229. Providing support services and technical infrastructure that enable teaching, technical and
administrative staff of educational institutions to offer their teaching and services in a way
that is accessible to disabled learners.
The aim of EU4ALL (www.eu4all-project.eu) is to improve the efficiency and efficacy of
implementing these strategies by developing an open service architecture for ALL. To achieve a wide
impact the approach taken is not to develop a single EU4ALL system but a standards based
framework that facilitates the integration of the approach with a wide range of e-learning systems.
The partners involved in the project are experts in various relevant fields in order to cover the
complexity of the topic. The consortium of the project consists of 13 partners from seven different
European countries that represent universities, training institutions, research institutions and industry
players such as system providers and developers and ICT consulting companies.
Starting by analysing the needs of inclusive learning that is delivered technically such as learning in
VLEs and learning with other information and communication technologies which are becoming
predominant in higher education institutions and adult education institutions, the main aim of the
project is to construct a common architecture that can be used equally by learners with special needs,
like persons with disabilities or older learners.
More specifically the goals of EU4ALL are to:
230. Design an open service-oriented architecture for ALL;
231. Develop the software infrastructure for ALL services (including content, support and
access services);
224
232. Provide technical standards/specifications for ALL applications integrated with current and
emerging e-learning standards;
233. Validate the results in large-scale higher education settings.
Barriers to Accessibility - The User Requirement Elicitation
The user requirement elicitation is fundamental because it basically determines the attributes,
functionalities and properties of the evolving architecture, tailored to the needs of the learners and
therefore playing an important part in the project.
The target groups of the evaluation are different stakeholders: the learners themselves, students with
visual impairments, hearing impairments, physical impairments, cognitive impairments and mature
learners, as well as various professionals such as instructional professionals, facilitators, technical
support professionals, content production professionals, administration professionals, library staff,
disability officers and counsellors.
Several methods were chosen to combine quantitative and qualitative data. Besides desk research and
literature review, two online surveys were constructed: one for students and one for professionals. The
surveys were translated into the partners’ languages (German, Spanish, Greek, and Italian) and
distributed to various European higher education institutions and adult education institutions.
However, it is clear that a certain bias among the respondents of these surveys can be expected,
particularly in the case of the online survey of learners and potential learners. Not all people with
disabilities who are in learning situations or who would like to be in learning situations necessarily
have access to a computer and the Internet and are therefore in a position to respond to the survey.
Another bias might result from the online instruction that in order to fulfil ethical criteria (withdrawal
from questionnaire possible at any time in order to avoid that participants feel pressured) according to
the EU4ALL policy was formulated in a way that could lead to incomplete data sets. Participants
could answer any question while leaving out others or could quit the survey at anytime, which makes
it difficult to interpret the given answers, it not being clear why a users did not answer a specific
question or because they were not willing to answer or because the question did no apply to them.
To compensate these shortcomings and to get a deeper insight, focus groups and interviews were also
arranged by all partners. All data was collected anonymously and entered into a wiki after tagging. So
by clicking on a tag different sources of information were available to draw together a comprehensive
picture. For this paper all the tags that dealt with the topic “e-accessibility” and different user roles
were analysed.
The survey and the lineout of the interviews were constructed using the Critical Incident Technique
(Flanagan 1954), in which participants are asked to identify specific incidents which they have
experienced personally, and which have made a significant contribution - either positively or
negatively - to an activity or phenomenon, e.g. “When was the last time that you felt empowered by
electronic learning materials?”. This technique is extremely useful for pinpointing specific problems
or solutions and identifying uncommon events that might otherwise be overlooked by other methods
which only focus on common and everyday events.
The online surveys were realised using a tool that guaranteed accessibility according to the World
Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
Austrian Sample
While research was undertaken all over Europe and beyond, this paper focuses on the case of Austria.
As a matter of course an international analysis to gain a greater perspective and to compare the
findings would be interesting but at the time of the submission of this paper not all data were readily
available. These results will also be published soon in the following paper.
During the translation of the online survey and the outlines for the interviews and focus groups, it
became already clear that some questions were not feasible for Austria, because of differences
amongst others in the education system.
Internet and literature research about different stakeholders guided the selection of the interview
partners and focus group participants that were contacted via email. One objective was to cover a wide
225
range of higher education institutions, professionals, and persons with different special needs by
creating a very heterogeneous user group. All the partners were “experts” in their fields and had dealt
with the topic of accessibility either in research or practise. Finally, 12 interviews and one focus group
with five partners were conducted using a list of questions with open ended questions in order to get
more in-depth information. The interviews were carried out face to face or via telephone.
The student participants for the online survey were mostly acquired through disability officers and
other relevant stakeholders that sent the web address of the online surveys to their mailing lists and
contacts. They were asked to forward the email to other recipients as well in order to create a snowball
effect. In all cases advertising the survey had to occur through contact persons as the partner
responsible for the advertisement in these countries had no direct contact to students (with disabilities)
which made the success of the promotion activity highly dependent on the engagement of the contact
persons.
Unfortunately, the participants’ rate was quite low and the drop out rate high. Only 27.7% of the
participants finished the questionnaire, thus 89 student surveys were utilisable: About 47% of the
participants were between the age of 18 and 25, about 45% between 26 and 39 and the rest were
mature students above the age of 40. Slightly more female students (55%) carried out the survey. In
the sample Germany in comparison to the Austrian participants was overrepresented with a proportion
of 60% but of course considering the different sizes of the countries a higher participation rate of
German students was expected. Around 53% already had gained a level A degree, the rest of the
acquired degrees differed very much: from a vocational training certificate to a PhD. The students
reported to have different disabilities: 12.4% stated to have visual, 15.7% hearing and 12.4% physical
impairments. The remaining 40.5% did not (want to) report any disability respectively reported
specific disabilities that were not categorised beforehand such as Asperger syndrome or psychiatric
disorders.
The participants of the online professional survey, who resulted from mainly desk research, were
contacted via personal emails. The drop out rate for professionals was similarly high while less
participants were willing to contribute to the survey in absolute numbers thus only 39 surveys could be
used for further analysis. Fortunately, all professional roles could be reached by the survey hence
allowing an interpretation of different points of view among various stakeholders. Seven professionals
reported a disability themselves: Four stated that they were blind respectively three had physical
impairments. The proportions of German and Austrian participants were nearly equal.
Information gained through interviews, the focus group and the two online surveys was used to
distinguish different points of view in the context of e-accessibility to higher and adult education in
Austria. Obviously, the analysis – being based mainly on the information gathered from interviews
and augmented with data from the online surveys – is a qualitative one and does not claim to be
representative due to the limited number of participants and the above discussed biases. The results
can be interpreted as trends. The aim is to seek possible answers to the question: “Is e-accessibility a
reality in higher and adult education institutions in Austria and if not, what are the possible influencing
barriers?”
The following paragraphs provide some examples of different stakeholders’ points of view on
“accessibility” at higher and adult education institutions in Austria by integrating the different sources
of information.
Results
Students’ Point of View
On the one hand, students with hearing impairments said that the use of technology improved their
situation as students considerably. Online registration for courses or assessments and online discussion
boards to exchange ideas with other students are particularly helping those having problems in
communicating with others. Information, that they would have previously had to gather personally at
university offices or with the help of another person via telephone, can now be easily retrieved through
the Internet or via email, thus improving the autonomy of the person concerned. Surprisingly 63% of
the online survey participants stated that they had no experience with online learning.
226
On the other hand, specific problems with online tools have arisen because of literacy problems, since
for most deaf students sign language is their first and written language their second language. Thus,
differentiating between very similar contents is a difficult task. For instance, online assessments often
use a multiple choice format, which might be an unfair format for deaf students. The debate about fair
assessments seems to be quite controversial as some claim that all assessments, from the end term test
until the thesis, should be offered with a sign language interpreter, while others ask for written exams.
In general, a deaf person needs to have good literacy skills to be able to understand and use an online
resource for desk research. Another issue deaf students complained about was that videos rarely got
captioning, thus making the content inaccessible to deaf persons. Only one of the participants of the
online survey stated that audio and video captioning were available at his/her institution. Some
institutions, like the University of Vienna, even provide videos in sign language on their web pages
that contain basic information, which means a step into the right direction for most deaf students.
The biggest challenge for blind students seems to be to get accessible material, be it hard or soft copy.
The same applies to VLEs: Some blind students cannot use the VLE due to inaccessibility of the
system used or the contents or formats, e.g. because the content is built up graphically or the provided
alternative text is inapprehensible or in a format that causes compatibility problems with assistive
technology and enhancements. Assistive technologies represent a “broad range of devices, services,
strategies, and practices that are conceived and applied to ameliorate the problems faced by
individuals who have disabilities” [Cook, Hussey 1995].
Some students with visual impairments reported that the process of getting alternative formats very
much depended on the good will of the lecturers, who for example sent them an accessible digital
copy via email instead of making accessible the VLE that the other students were using. Another blind
student who was enrolled in a distance university did not describe any of these problems: The
University offered different formats without him having to ask for them.
When asked about the satisfaction with different features of the Learn Management System (LMS)
used in their institution only a few participants complained about shortcomings: About 16% found it
difficult respectively very difficult to search for files, 15% reported difficulties in finding specific
messages in a message board. Around 9% had experienced frustration when trying to read course
materials and 7% were not satisfied when communicating one to one in private messaging.
While these figures do not seem appalling, the proportion of the students who complain abut features
and functionalities of the LMS used in their institution augments considerably when differentiating
according to the kind of disability the students reported. Those who were blind seemed to experience
the greatest challenges when searching for files (about 50%) or reading contents (also about 50%).
Similar figures can be found when asking for the accessibility of online materials: 18.2% of the
students with disabilities overall reported that online materials were not accessible to them, while the
percentage of blind students was higher with 50%. This shows that LMS are still highly inaccessible
for students with visual impairments although especially this target group favours digital materials as
90% of the blind participants stated in the online survey because reading of accessible digital formats
are readable with the use of assistive technology.
Another common complaint among students with visual (44%) or hearing impairments (33%) was the
incompatibility of assistive technology and virtual learning environments (the overall percentage was
40%).
On the technical side students claimed that in the used LMS it was not possible to get email
notifications of new postings in the forum. Also the clarity of the structure, the usability, and the
reliableness were criticised in the survey. Other suggested functionalities were: information about
achievements during the course, easier providing of material, material in different formats and online
registration for assessments or seminars (and according notification). Students also expressed their
wish for an institutional use of one LMS among different subjects with uniform criteria.
Nevertheless, those students that have experience in using a VLE can generally be said to be more or
less satisfied with its features.
Lecturers’ Point of View
Many lecturers do not seem to be aware of the needs of students with disabilities or of mature learners
and hold false estimations according to an expert who is specialised in pedagogy for deaf students.
227
Most lecturers stated in the interview that they were using the LMS only for limited purposes such as
to share materials, upload presentations etc.
Around 88% of the survey participants stated that they didn’t receive any training regarding their work
with mature students, compared to 55% in the case of students with disabilities. The majority also did
not know of any available support for older students concerning basic computer skills like working
with search engines or writing emails although most of the survey participants also stated that mature
students would benefit very much from this kind of support especially those mature students who are
enrolled in an e-learning course.
Thus, many lecturers are not aware of accessibility issues or of difficulties that students with special
needs encounter when using a specific technology: For example, they do not know which formats are
accessible for blind students or which changes they would have to undertake to make an online
document accessible. And if they do, they estimate that it would take a disproportional amount of time
to convert inaccessible formats into accessible ones. In fact, minor changes or additions to the digital
document that do not require a lot of effort could enhance its accessibility considerably such as
labelling graphical elements [Coombs, 2000].
Lecturers often think that they are fair if they create exactly the same study conditions for disabled and
not disabled students and avoid accommodations for students with special needs, e.g. same conditions
in online assessments without reflecting that a student with a motor disability of the upper limbs
needed more time to answer the open ended questions.
It seems that lecturers who have already worked with students with disabilities are generally more
aware of these issues. A common strategy among educational staff if they encounter students with
disabilities is to ask the disability officer for advice. Again, it depends very much on the willingness of
the lecturers themselves, since in most investigated institutions an institutional strategy or policy is
missing.
Librarians’ Point of View
According to the interviewed librarians many university libraries in Austria are still not accessible for
persons with motor disabilities who use a wheelchair. Even though one of the librarians tried to raise
awareness of accessibility standards during reconstruction some years ago, it was not reflected, so that
students in wheelchairs, if they actually want to borrow a book, they need to use the elevator and call
from outside the door with their mobile phones to ask the librarian to bring the reserved book. In
addition, electronic resources and systems such as library catalogues which are used by every student
to search for and reserve books have never been evaluated regarding accessibility, according to one
librarian.
Most Austrian universities provide a special work station that is equipped with scanners and other
hard- and software that helps students to access digital resources. It appears that only those librarians
who work with the special work station get training regarding the special needs of students with
disabilities, e.g. about how to create alternative formats. A librarian responsible for converting hard
copies into accessible soft copies such as scanning books with OCR (Optical Character Recognition)
made clear that the procedure had still not been optimised since it takes up to four weeks from the
request until the delivery of the accessible book which can be crucial for students preparing for an
exam.
Technical Support’s Point of View
Although it is not part of his job description, a member of the technical support staff interviewed, who
is blind, tries to raise awareness of accessibility issues within his institution and encounters resistance
from the institutional side with the argument that there are not sufficient financial resources.
Interviewees criticised that some institutions buy accessible Virtual Learning Environments but the
contents that the system is fed with are not accessible. They argue that the ones involved in the content
production process, the lecturers at university, have different educational backgrounds and
consequently are not equally aware of this issue.
Evaluation of accessibility should address all kinds of digital resources, such as library catalogues,
institutions’ web sites, used intranets and virtual learning environments, technical support staff stated.
228
Some members of the technical support staff argued that websites that follow all the guidelines of the
World Wide Web Consortium (2006) would be completely unattractive and that the guidelines would
limit their creativity when programming. Some question if it was possible to satisfy all different user
needs, since user needs seem to diverge, especially among those who have more than one disability.
Even the needs of persons diagnosed with the same disability can differ very much. For instance, a
person with visual impairments might be able to read Braille, another one uses a screen reader, a third
one reads using DAISY and a fourth person is partially sighted and therefore can read if the contrast is
adapted to his need or is able to read large prints.
Institutional Side/ E-learning Strategist’s Point of View
In the professional survey mentioned above, 55% of the participants claimed that their institution had
an accessibility plan, 44% knew of an online learning plan and 33% of an e-accessibility plan. Around
37% of the professional participants did not know of any e-accessibility strategy and 25% stated that
their institution did not provide a policy document regarding e-accessibility at all.
The expert interviewed argued that due to the small number of students with disabilities enrolled at the
university there are no e-accessibility strategies at the institutional level. Lecturers concerned would
have to react in providing different kinds of learning material if a student with a disability was
enrolled in their course. As long as the university does not provide solutions for students with
disabilities, there will not be any requests. Therefore, the university tries to make studying more
accessible for students with disabilities. The VLE, that the institution in question is using, is currently
being evaluated regarding accessibility but there is no specific budget for this purpose.
Content Developer’s Point of View
In comparison to other materials the accessibility and availability of online resources is rated more
positively because they are available all the time while other materials have to be requested (e.g.
request for a scanned book).
In this context around 57% of the professional survey participants are aware of copyright issues.
According to a content producer there is a huge need for educational material for deaf persons.
Technologies for blind persons are far more elaborate. However, for deaf persons they are rudimental,
which is also reflected in the content production process. At the moment, the interviewed content
producers try to meet these needs by developing segments in sign language that could be used later for
different purposes, e.g. an electronic platform within an innovative project.
Conclusions
Results from the interviews and online surveys indicate that e-accessibility is a topic that is widely
discussed among different stakeholders in the university context but even though improvements can be
noticed over the past few years, accessible digital contents and systems are still not a matter of course.
Possible influencing factors might be best summed up as barriers which may be technical, financial,
pedagogical barriers, attitudinal, and institutional barriers.
According to the gathered information in different institutions there is rarely a budget available for the
purpose of e-accessibility evaluation which constitutes a financial barrier. If an evaluation is
undertaken, it often covers just a part of different digital systems used within one institution. For
instance, in some institutions the Virtual Learning Environment used is accessible but the intranet that
employees use (e.g. for reserving a room for lecturers or the matriculation tool for students) is not. In
order to reduce their expenses, other institutions, which cannot afford to buy an accessible system,
developed their own LMS which in most of the cases is inaccessible.
However, an accessible Learning Management System per se is not sufficient if the provided contents
and formats are not. Pedagogical guidelines and trainings could raise awareness among those who are
not informed about special needs of students with disabilities or older learners and could have a direct
impact, e.g. on an optimal delivery of digital resources.
At the moment, work with persons with special needs seems to depend very much on the good will of
the persons concerned which comprises attitudinal barriers as some hold false estimations of the
needs of students with disabilities and older learners.
229
It can be assumed that as long as institutional strategies, accessibility plans, online learning plans, and
e-accessibility plans are missing, e-accessibility is not a matter of course because in many reported
cases the responsibility for disabled students lies with one or several individuals, seldom with the
institution as a whole. Accommodating the needs of disabled students thus becomes a daily battle with
administrative and teaching staff. Inventiveness and creativity are needed when acknowledgment by
the institution is limited, thus creating institutional barriers.
Technical barriers that were mentioned in the survey and the interviews dealt especially with
incompatibility problems and the heterogeneity of standards but as one of the participants said,
“Technical barriers are relatively easy to change; the most dangerous are the barriers in the heads of
people, the stereotypes that they bear in mind”.
Thus, in order to improve the e-accessibility level it is important to amplify the responsibility and to
comprise different stakeholders.
References
Flanagan, J. C. (1954). The Critical Incident Technique. Psychological Bulletin, Vol. 51(4), pp.
327-359.
Cook, A.; Hussey, S. (1995). Assistive Technologies: Principles and Practise. St Louis: Mosby.
Coombs, N. (2000). Assistive technology in third level and distance education. [Available at:
http://www.rit.edu/~nrcgsh/arts/dublin.htm, accessed: 01.2008].
Seale, J. (2006a). E-learning and Disability in Higher Education. London, New York:
Routledge.
Seale, J. (2006b). A contextualised model of accessible e-learning practice in higher education
institutions. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, Vol. 22(2), pp. 268-288.
[Available at: http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet22/seale.html, accessed: 01.2008].
World Wide Web Consortium. WAI (2007). Policies relating to web accessibility. [Available at:
http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT/, accessed: 10.2007].
Wroblewski, A., Unger, M.; Schilder, R. (2007). Soziale Lage gesundheitlich beeinträchtigter
Studierender. Vienna: IHS.
Authors:
Elisabeth, Unterfrauner, Mag.,
ZSI-Centre for Social Innovation, Department Technology & Knowledge
Linke Wienzeile 246, A-1150 Vienna,
Austria
Cäcilia, Weiermair-Märki, Mag. MAS,
ZSI-Centre for Social Innovation, Department Technology & Knowledge
Linke Wienzeile 246, A-1150 Vienna,
Austria
230
QUALITÉ DANS LES SERVICES TICE: EXEMPLE DE MISE EN
OEUVRE À L'UNIVERSITÉ D'ANGERS
Valérie Moreau (Université de Technologie de Compiègne, France),
Françoise Galland (Université d'Angers, France)
Mots clés: En cours de réalisation
Contexte
Les structures de formation, qu’elles soient publiques ou privées, subissent actuellement une mutation
des demandes de leurs clients. Ces derniers sont en effet en attente d’une plus forte réactivité dans les
réponses formation. Ils attendent, en outre, de ces structures une capacité à répondre à la diversité de
leurs besoins par des dispositifs proposant des modalités pédagogiques adaptées à leurs spécificités,
pouvant intégrer formation à distance et formation présentielle. D’autre part, les clients ont de plus en
plus d’exigence sur la visibilité de la qualité de la prestation en termes de gestion de projet (tenu des
délais, gestion budgétaire et atteinte des objectifs fixés)
Les structure de formation s’ouvrent de plus en plus à la FOAD. Ce terme couvre un large champ
allant du présentiel traditionnel intégrant le numérique dans ses formes les plus variées (utilisation de
diaporamas, animations, vidéos, etc.) à la formation intégralement à distance (Cf. Scénarios
COMPETICE).
La mutation des demandes clients, ainsi que la nécessaire intégration du numérique sous peine de
paraître dépassé, induisent des changements au niveau les métiers de la formation. Dans le but de
continuer à remplir pleinement leur mission, de conserver leur légitimité au sein de leur organisation,
leur reconnaissance auprès de leurs clients et de pérenniser leur structure, les acteurs de formation
témoignent d’un besoin d’évolution et expriment une volonté de professionnalisation.
L’un des moyens d’atteindre et d’afficher ce professionnalisme est de mettre en place une démarche
qualité. Ce type de démarche a été à l’origine appliqué au milieu industriel pour répondre à des
besoins similaires. On trouve aujourd’hui la qualité dans le secteur tertiaire et notamment appliquée à
des prestations de service immatériel telles que la formation.
Les points clefs de la démarche
Les démarches qualités traditionnelles présentent un certain nombre de caractéristiques dont nous
avons souhaité nous démarquer pour mieux répondre aux attentes de nos clients. Ces caractéristiques
sont les suivantes :
234. L’essentiel de l’énergie mobilisée dans la mise en place d’une démarche qualité est axé sur
l’obtention de la certification ISO. La conséquence est souvent une démobilisation après
l’obtention de la certification et un sentiment de frustration lié au manque de retour sur
investissement pour les acteurs ayant été activement impliqués dans la demarche;
235. Une démarche qualité est basée sur la formalisation de ce qui est fait. Les auditeurs
vérifient la traçabilité des actions menées dans le respect de la norme et n’ont pas vocation à
vérifier leur pertinence;
236. Une démarche qualité est souvent perçue comme une démarche longue et lourde à mettre
en place, venant s’ajouter au travail quotidien.
231
Pour répondre le mieux possible aux attentes de nos clients, nous avons mis en œuvre une démarche
originale basée sur les critères suivant:
237. Par opposition aux démarches traditionnelles, cette démarche qualité a pour objectif
premier d’être un outil de management par la clarification de la mission de la structure et la
formalisation de ses processus de fonctionnement;
238. Cette formalisation implique un questionnement sur la cohérence entre la mission et
l’organisation mise en place pour remplir cette mission. Elle induit donc une potentielle
remise en cause des processus de fonctionnement de la structure. En ce sens, ce n’est pas
une simple démarche de formalisation de l’existant, mais une démarche d’amélioration et
d’anticipation par rapport aux besoins identifiés, qu’ils soient latents ou exprimés par le
client;
239. Il s’agit d’une démarche participative impliquant l’ensemble des acteurs de la structure de
la direction aux opérationels en les faisant collaborer autour d’un objet commun;
240. L’objet de cette collaboration est l’ensemble des processus qui sont, ou doivent êtres, mis
en œuvre par les différents acteurs pour permettre à la structure de remplir sa mission. Ce
travail permet une clarification des rôles et responsabilités de chacun directement
exploitable dans l’activité courante;
241. L’une des contraintes forte que nous avons dû prendre en compte est la disponibilité
réduite des acteurs. Cette démarche se doit donc d’être efficace et rapide. Nous avons pour
cela utilisé une technique d’hybridation basée sur la formalisation a priori de processus
proches de ceux de la structure sur la base de laquelle les acteurs peuvent réagir, débattre et
se positionner afin de formaliser leurs propres processus;
242. Une fois ce travail de clarification et de formalisation effectué, La structure dispose des
outils nécessaires pour se lancer dans une démarche de certification qu’elle pourra acquérir
pour un coût additionnel faible.
L’usage des technologies
Les technologies numériques sont utilisées à deux niveaux:
243. Lors de la formalisation des processus, l’utilisation du numérique permet une très grande
réactivité pendant les sessions de travail collaboratives et la mise à disposition d’un format
et d’un mode de représentation communs et manipulable par les différents contributeurs;
244. Une fois les processus formalisés, ils sont mis à disposition des acteurs ayant à les mettre
en œuvre sous la forme de sites interactifs leur permettant de naviguer dans ces processus et
d’avoir à la fois une vision synoptique (processus) des actions à mener et des interactions
entre les différents acteurs et une vision détaillée (mode opératoire) des actions qu’ils ont à
mettre en œuvre dans le cadre de leur activité. Ce site interactif est produit à l’aide des
outils de la suite Scenari (scenari-platform.org);
245. L’usage des technologies numériques permet ainsi d’assurer une continuité entre la
formalisation et la mise en œuvre des processus.
Les clients de cette démarche
Nous avons à ce jour expérimenté cette démarche dans trois contextes différents.
Les CFA tunisiens: Le premier terrain d’application fut l’ensemble des CFA (centres de formation
par l’apprentissage) tunisiens. La Tunisie vit une période de mutations industrielles fortes dues au
phénomène de mondialisation. Pour répondre aux besoins, les systèmes de formation initiale sont
confrontés à une demande d’adaptation très rapide. D’autre part, afin de permettre une plus grande
réactivité, ces systèmes sont fondés sur une forte décentralisation. Le projet a consisté à mettre en
place le système qualité de la structure national et de sa collaboration avec les structures locales.
Les cellules TICE de l’UVPL: Forts de cette expérience et de notre connaissance du milieu
universitaire, nous avons pu très rapidement produire des processus génériques décrivant le
fonctionnement d’une Cellule TICE d’université. Notre nouveau terrain d’application fut les cellules
TICE (Technologies de Information et de la Communication dans l’Enseignement) des universités de
232
Nantes, d’Angers et du Maine. Ces dernières ont un enjeu d’ancrage et de pérennisation de leur
structure par une participation active au défi de la modernisation des universités (amélioration de la
qualité des formations, intégration des technologies dans l’enseignement, réponse aux attentes
sociétales, etc.). Malgré un univers culturel très éloigné du monde industriel qui prédisposaient ces
structures à être peu réceptives à des démarches de type managérial ou qualité, celles-ci se sont
fortement mobilisées autour de la démarche que nous leur avons proposée. Cette dernière leur a
permis :
246. De partager et de mutualiser leur experience,
247. De Clarifier leur mission au sein de l’établissement,
248. De Formaliser leurs propres processus de fonctionnement.
Le STIC : Suite à cette étape de clarification et de mutualisation, le STIC, Service TICE de
l’université d’Angers a décidé d’approfondir cette démarche en formalisant et en mettant en œuvre un
système complet de management de la qualité. Nous avons accompagné le STIC dans la formalisation
de ses processus, dans l’amélioration de son fonctionnement, dans la recherche d’adéquation aux
référentiels ISO 9000, et dans l’information et le transfert vers l’ensemble des acteurs du service.
L’ancrage de la qualité dans le quotidien des personnels est instrumenté via un intranet de mise à
disposition des processus et outils associés.
Conclusion
Ces trois projets nous ont permis de formaliser et de consolider une démarche générique applicable à
d’autres structures de formation. D’autre part, Le modèle Process, chaîne éditoriale Scenari dédiée à la
mise en œuvre d’une démarche qualité, a été redéveloppé en tenant compte des exigences de la norme
ISO 9001 et des usages des acteurs de la démarche. Il permet de rendre les processus plus accessibles
tant sur le plan ergonomique que sur le plan cognitif.
Author:
Valérie Moreau
Rue du Docteur Schweitzer
60200 Compiègne
France
Phone 03 44 23 52 63
Françoise Galland
Université d'Angers, France
233
DISCOVER HOW THE LMS HELPS REALISE AMBITIONS
FOR ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE
Martin Belton (e2train)
Abstract: Training technology systems (such as Learning Management Systems) are typically purchased for
one of two reasons. Possibly the organisation has a desire to leverage the financial and time saving benefits of
e-learning. Alternatively they must meet some kind of compliance regulations. But the real benefit of the
LMS may really lay elsewhere. That is in its capability to create and manage critical organisational change.
Whilst this is an important function, the real value an LMS has a much greater impact for organisations. The
unique metrics and reporting data that LMS's provide can help Learning and Development staff to measure
the benefits and achievements that training is providing to the organisation, to their senior management. Thus
demonstrating the value of learning and assisting in evaluating training ROI. This is especially true within
change management programmes.
Keywords: Change management, Learning technologies, e-learning, Reporting
The fallacy of change management
Many change management books concentrate on what they think is a universal truth; that is, people
don’t want to (or like to) change (titles like ‘Change or Die’ are not uncommon). But is this really
true? A new vision suggests that actually, we don't resist change or even the concept of change, at all.
Rather, we enthusiastically engage in all sorts of personal risks everyday, such as buying a new house
or getting married.
The reality is that we resist change where we don’t see the benefits; where we don’t see the necessity,
or the explanation given for change is either patronising or superficial. From this point of view, and
given the importance and investment that can be involved in a change programme, it can come as
something of a shock to discover just how little is done to deal with this issue. To encourage people to
change and adopt new ideas, they must recognise they have a gap in their knowledge or skills and
want to fill it. They will then be committed to the process - and the learning – the kind of dedicated
commitment that comes from self discovery.
Using the LMS to change your organisation
Providing understanding and delivering messages is just what the LMS is designed to do! It has the
capability to deliver critical ‘change’ messages in a compelling way via e-learning, and to help people
understand the need and benefits (both personal and corporate) for change. Simple reports will identify
who read your change messages, and how long they spent doing it. Change messages can even contain
polls that can identify issues which are causing concern.
But it is in the LMS’s capability to provide complex metrics - and then link it to performance data that really makes it such a powerful tool. Assessing the change requirements in terms of personal skills
availability and then identifying the resultant skills gap is a huge step forward in any change
programme. But that’s just part and parcel of the LMS/Performance solution. Skills measurements can
also demonstrate how ready individuals are to deal with that change (and their likely response towards
embracing it). From here, the LMS can easily enable organisations to create a training and
management programme which will place the right knowledge in the right hands. Positive change
behaviour can even be rewarded via certification and formal recognition.
234
What does it mean for the e-learning/training manager?
The head of change for most organisations is simply the Managing Director. It is for this reason that
the measurable results an LMS can provide in managing the change programmes, will become as
interesting to them as the sales figures and company profitability! That means that today’s heads of elearning could be about to discover they have one of the most powerful and influential roles within the
company; a role which, for some at least, is just waiting to be grasped!
Author:
Martin Belton
Sales & Marketing Director
e2train
101/102 Cirencester Business Park
Love Lane
Cirencester
Gloucestershire
UK
GL7 1XD
235
THE USE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING BY STUDENTS AND STAFF
IN HIGHER EDUCATION
Federica Oradini, Gunter Saunders (Online Learning Development)
Abstract: From September 2007 new and returning students at the University of Westminster have had a
brand new way of staying in touch with their friends and classmates through an innovative new social
networking site, Connect. The Connect system (powered by Elgg) is allied to a re-development of the
University’s online support for students called ‘My Westminster’. Available to all current students, it allows
users to create their own profiles, upload photographs and documents, create and join discussion groups, send
messages and publish blogs and presentations. So far (November 2007) Connect has over 3100 student and
staff visitors and over 100 communities have been established. This paper will describe and present an
evaluation of the initial use of Connect by staff and students. The nature and success of purely social type
communities (e.g. the film club) will be discussed as will the creation and use of study groups that have been
set up by students. An analysis of preliminary feedback from students and staff on the value of Connect in
both social and academic life will be included.
Keywords: web 2.0, social networking
Introduction
For well over a decade now there has been widespread interest and
innovation in different forms of web based learning (e.g. learning material
availability, online discussion fora, online testing) often to support and
complement face to face teaching [1, 2, 3]. Despite the beacons of first
class work that exist the bulk of e-learning across higher education has
been concerned with reproducing old models of teaching leading to
largely passive online learning opportunities [4]. It is a fact that despite
the mass of proof relating to the value and effectiveness of e-learning, and
the shining examples of effective practice and student satisfaction, the
predominant methodology for the teaching of undergraduates remains the
one-to-many lecture [5]. As pointed out by Barnes and Tynan [6] some
would argue that this is not surprising as many university teachers were themselves taught in a class
room and so as teachers who have not had much personal experience of online learning, they are likely
to continue to teach in a way that is familiar to them. However several other reasons are also often
cited for this relatively poor penetration of interactive e-learning into the mainstream, including a lack
of understanding of the technologies available and what they can do, the belief that e-learning is a
poor alternative to face to face interaction, the growing perception that students are paying for and
therefore want a face to face experience and, perhaps most critically, insufficient time for staff to not
only understand the technologies available but to really think about how best to incorporate the
effective practice emerging into their own teaching context [7].
Much of the e-learning that has been attempted by staff in universities since the early 1990s has
centred on so called Web1.0 technologies manifested mainly through the tools found collected
together within virtual learning environments (VLEs) [8]. Most of these tools are by design staff led,
often work best for someone working alone and require therefore much effort and direction on the part
of individual staff to be effective in changing the predominant pedagogic model within the framework
of a traditional face to face course. In contrast so called Web 2.0 technologies are not by design
‘controlled’ and can therefore be managed and used to the same degree by students as well as staff9.
They are also designed to facilitate and stimulate collaboration and sharing. Whilst academic staff are
currently still trying to work out how best to make use of older technologies, many students have
moved on, certainly in their social lives, to using online tools that are much more flexible and user
centred [4].
236
In recent years social networking systems, which make use of Web 2.0 technologies, have received
much attention in higher education in the United Kingdom as increasing numbers of younger people
(typically less than 30 years old) have made use of public systems such as Facebook and MySpace.
Such systems, coupled to other Web 2.0 tools (e.g. social bookmarking and syndication technologies)
help individuals or groups to readily create or find and then share knowledge [10]. Critically the
capability of these systems to enable forms of communication controlled by the user makes them very
different to the ubiquitously used and increasingly corporate virtual learning environments (VLEs). In
social networking systems the individual user (or groups of users) can decide what they wish to
discuss and who they wish to work together with [11]. This means that social networking systems truly
have the capability to deliver a platform for learning where the student is potentially at the centre of
activities.
The scope for such student led activity to complement and enhance the tutor led work conducted
within VLEs is considerable and could contribute to a solution to the problem of teaching ever
increasing numbers of students who have difficulty in attending regularly at a single physical location.
In addition the use of social networking tools also presents a viable alternative to the engagement of
students within large physical classrooms often not built to serve the purpose of interactive learning.
As well as their potential in the learning of an academic subject, social networking systems also have a
major role to play in the effective induction and integration of a very diverse student populations
which in the UK is frequently made up of a large proportion of overseas students and others who may
have travelled a long way from their local community.
1. Background to this investigation
The University of Westminster teaches around 24000 students undertaking degrees, Masters, research,
professional programmes and short courses. There are more than 4,000 international students,
from over 160 overseas nations, making Westminster one of the top 15 most popular UK universities
for international students. Since its foundation in 1838 as Britain's first polytechnic, the University has
been closely involved in the business, professional and academic life of London. The University is
very much associated with courses that are taught face to face and currently has only around 100
students taking a distance learning course.
The University uses a virtual learning environment (VLE) significantly to support its face to face
course delivery. In most cases the VLE is used as source of content (largely static and text based) and
only a relatively small percentage of courses use more active components of the VLE system (online
tests, e-submission, discussion fora). In recent years it has become clear that within the Westminster
context academic staff are finding it very difficult to determine the best ways to make use of the VLE
and there is a growing feeling that its use is merely re-inforcing a model of teaching where the teacher
controls and is at the centre of the process. However, the last academic year saw the introduction of 3
student centred tools within the VLE (e-portfolio production tool, blog and wiki functionality). To
date approximately 4000 students and 50 staff have made use of these tools indicating some interest
amongst staff in exploiting these more active Web 2.0 technologies with their students.
With this interest in mind and with the realisation that the majority of Westminster staff, in common
with those at other Universities, have only a limited experience of Web 2.0 technologies, a decision
was taken to provide a Westminster only social networking system. The Connect system provided a
range of features typically associated with Web 2.0 systems including personal and community
blogs, tagging, private and public communities, personal and community file storage and social
networking capability including full syndication support. It was reasoned also that the Connect system
could be instrumental in helping to combat the difficulties faced by students in developing a sense of
community across an institution based within a busy metropolis across multiple physical sites.
For the purposes of this study our specific research questions were:
249. Would students who already use social networking tools want to use and benefit from a
closed, university only social networking system;
250. To what extent would students use such a system for socialising versus informal academic
learning;
251. Would academic staff who generally are not Web 2.0 exponents explore the new
technology to any significant degree.
237
2. Research Approach Taken
This paper reports on an analysis of the use by students and staff of a social networking system,
branded Connect but powered by Elgg [12], at the University of Westminster. The study covered all
staff and students who accessed the system between 10th September 2007 and January 8th 2008. The
period of qualitative data collection occurred between December 15th 2007 and January 8th 2008.
Quantitative data was collected via questionnaires early October 2007 and then again in early January
2008. The qualitative data, comprising personal blog posts and community forum posts were read and
then categorised into types with the number of types being created spontaneously as successive blog
posts were read. Once all blog posts were categorised a summary of the different categories was
written and related to the research questions posed.
3. Results
3.1. Overall Summary of users of the Connect system
The Connect system was launched in September 2007 and by 8th January 2008 there were 3048
(approximately 2300 students and the rest staff) registered users of the system. A total of 107
communities had been established and 508 blog posts made. The majority of students who accessed
Connect were from the Business School, Computer Science and Social Sciences/languages. A much
smaller proportion came from Biosciences/Health Sciences, Law and Architecture/Built Environment.
Amongst the undergraduates, more first year students tended to access Connect than second or third
years (first years comprised 34% of the total number of students that accessed Connect). More
postgraduate students accessed Connect than either second or third year undergraduate students.
Similarly, the majority of students who maintained a personal blog were either first year
undergraduates or postgraduates (64% combined of the total keeping a blog).
Amongst students who accessed Connect, 44% had logged in regularly (defined as an average of 2-3
times per week), 80% of students surveyed said the main reason that they used Connect was to look
for people with common interests and arrange meetings, 14% wanted to share their views about
University life such as reviews of museum visits for their course, whilst 18% said they needed the
answer to a question or a problem they had. Some (about 5%) used Connect to sell things such as used
books.
Quite a high proportion of students, 49%, logged in only once. The most common reason for not
accessing Connect more was that they preferred using Facebook, while others mentioned that they
used Blackboard instead to communicate with their fellow students or stated that they simply did not
have the time. An appreciable number of students surveyed (about half) didn’t feel the need or see the
point in Connect as they attend the University everyday and can talk to their course mates face to face.
3.2. Personal Blogs
Personal blog posts on the Connect system could be broadly divided into reflective contributions or
those which were in some way providing or seeking practical information, help or support. The former
type, which comprised 55% of the total, could in turn be split into reflections linked directly to the
University and those which were focused more generally on life, personal problems or external
news/events.
Overall about 2.3% of users kept a blog with each user writing an average of 3 blog posts. More
students than staff started a blog, however students wrote an average of 2 blog posts, compared to 5
blog posts each by staff. The students mainly blogged to look for people with similar interests or for
an answer to a question/problem or to advertise events and share feelings. Staff mainly blogged about
their work or the subject they teach or to give their opinion on something related to University life.
The blog post below is an example of a reflection related to a students’ course and shows how support
was provided through the ‘comments’ feature by a peer.
By student:
“I don't know where to start or how to even begin formulating how I am feeling right
now. I have lots of pent up frustration and the only thing I could think of to release it
all was to write. OK so I get this amazing "job" on a music/fashion magazine a few
238
weeks ago. I'm so chuffed - as you can probably imagine. The actual title of the job
is "freelance fashion writer" The editor told me to come in for a day so she could see
how I work, how much work I can get done etc so I go in and I produce a brochure
for an upcoming charity fashion show. The environment is nice, people are friendly
and at the end of the day she says to me that she would send my work to another
writer and that she would contact me after the Christmas period to let me know how
I did etc. Its been 3 weeks and I've heard nothing and so I decided to e-mail the
editorial assistant to ask her if she knows what’s going on. That was at the
beginning of this week. No news.
Comment left for the student above by another student
As the saying goes: Don't put all your eggs in one place. You should have applied to
as many place as possible (more than one), that way you have more chance to be
successful than just waiting on one. Even applying to more than one doesn't help
sometimes. I've applied to over 20 placement vacancies and a telephone interview
was the furthest I got and some as you've noticed don't even send you a rejection
email (Google :)). I am some what surprised the number of connections the
university has in some industries though, hopefully they have more connections in
your area than mine.”
The following examples show how staff and students used Connect to seek or provide information
from/to other users or to stimulate discussion on a topic. For example advice from a member of staff:
“If you miss being able to chat on instant messenger when you're supposed to be
studying, there are a few ways around the university firewall. The easiest way is to
sign in using “meebo”. It's free, and you can sign in with all the big instant
messenger services in one place, and it rocks bells.”
Or news, again from a member of staff:
“Finally, the News Plugin problems in the SSHL site have been sorted out. Fabienne
has done a great job co-ordinating the emptying of the page approval list then
synchronising the staging and Live databases. Next week the Westminster Admin
Root site will get the same treatment and all will be well with the world at last. Well
at least with the News plugin :)”
Or updates on activities or hobbies or sports such as this from a student:
“Hi everyone, Just a quick post to let you know that the community for the Harrow
Football team is set up. The address is: https://connect.wmin.ac.uk/harrowfc The
Harrow football team won the BUSA4B division last season and were runners up for
team of the year. This season we will be playing in BUSA Division 3A. For all those
who are interested in joining the team, the trials will be taking place on Wednesday
26th September & Wednesday 3rd October at Chiswick Sports Ground, with buses to
run from Harrow Campus. For information visit us at the fresher fayre next
Wednesday between 11-4. Thanks, Tom Barbour “
All remaining posts could be categorised as either speculative attempts to stimulate discussion on
topics ranging from recent government decisions related to the funding of universities to the ‘Green’
agenda or were simply attempts to introduce themselves to the Connect community.
3.3 Connect Communities
The communities established by individuals and groups within the Connect system could be classified
into 3 broad types. Type I were typically staff led and were established to discuss or exchange ideas on
an issue associated with the functioning or business of a staff department or sub-section of a
department. Thus the most popular (in terms of number of staff signed up to it) community was one
239
set up to seek feedback on proposals for re-structuring the information technology services provision
across the University. However in the event, although many staff proactively joined into the
community very few actually made any contribution. In contrast a community set up specifically to
consider a review of libraries in the University had a much higher level of activity and demonstrated
through the community forum the potential for active discussion by staff on real issues. Type II
communities were based around hobbies and interests and included for example a film and cinema
community and one on domestic cats as pets. Other community topics frequently seen included food
and beverages, music, the arts and favourite football clubs. The type II communities were set up just
as frequently by students or staff and it was not unusual (the film and cinema and domestic cats
communities were very good examples of this) to see students and staff sharing such communities and
exchanging views and information and supporting one another.
Within the type II communities were student led efforts to engage students studying at a specific
physical location to make friends across subject boundaries and to discuss issues that were affecting
the student experience. So for example one student started a thread on the community forum seeking
views to pass to the students’ union on what the ideal social space should look like/contain for
students and this received appreciable feedback which could then be collated and returned ultimately
to those responsible for managing and developing the University estate. The film and cinema
community appeared to be a good example of a type II community. This community attracted a high
number of potential contributors but in common with many of the communities only a small minority
actually posted information.
Type III communities were those set up for the support of academic study, with about half being set up
by students and generally excluding staff whilst the rest were more staff led/facilitated. Staff led
communities of this type included those for the support of skills development (e.g. how to give
presentations or how to make the best use of the institutional virtual learning environment) and others
for specific modules of learning around an academic subject. So for example the Visual Culture Group
community has the following as its stated aim:
This group is for sharing information about places, activities and events that you
have been to, want to go to, or think you might be interested in going to and
wondering if anyone else might go as well... Anything from a visit to a gallery,
another town or a pub.
3.4 The views of staff and students on use of the Connect system
3.4.1 The student views
Students were very evenly split about whether it was useful or not to have the Connect system.
Students commonly commented that Connect should be invaluable for making friends and supporting
each other, especially within the first few weeks after arriving at the University. One student for
example said:
It could be the best way for students to socialise and possibly find partners and be
there for one another all the time.
A frequently held view by those in favour of Connect was that the closed community which Connect
provided was somehow better than the more diverse groups presented by systems like Facebook or
MySpace. Even in circumstances where external systems provide a group function (e.g. there is a
Westminster Facebook community) it was often felt that the local nature and feel of Connect provided
something more personal and collegiate. Other students felt it was helpful to keep online social
activities that are linked directly to university life separate from wider online social activity with
friends and family outside of University, typically undertaken through a system like Facebook. There
were also students who thought that having a University owned social networking system would help
in knowing where to go for educational help although others made the point that the institutional
virtual learning environment (Blackboard) was the best place for that. Linked to this view was the
perceived need to better integrate the functions that Connect could support with Blackboard so as to
provide a seamless transition between the more formal learning activities and a space where students
had greater control and autonomy. However although Connect was seen as a space where students had
greater freedom to do what they wished there was very strong support from students for their tutors to
240
use the Connect system as well, and for them to be part of at least some of the communities together
with students.
Amongst students who thought that there was no point in having the Connect most cited either not
having enough time or their being too many systems for them to interact with or most commonly, they
already used Facebook and Connect duplicated what they could already do on that system.
3.4.2 The staff views
Most staff felt that they had very little time to use Connect themselves but 84% thought that Connect
has a role to play in helping students to build a community either prior to or after arrival at the
University. For example one member of academic staff said:
“I can certainly see the potential benefit to existing and prospective students.
Existing students can, well, connect with others (albeit in a virtual sense) around
common interests, as well as possibly to off-load, etc. Prospective students may find
it useful in getting a sense of the nature of the social life at University.”
Academics main concerns were mostly about the fact students would have to duplicate efforts to
maintain two sites and their access after completing their studies.
4. Conclusion and Discussion
The results presented show that students can benefit in a variety of ways from the availability of a
closed ‘university only’ social networking system, as evidenced from the wide range of activities that
they engaged in. However it is also clear that one size does not fit all in the sense that whilst half of
the students surveyed could see reasons to have something distinct from say Facebook, the other half
could not. Selwyn [2007] notes how Facebook can function ‘in different ways depending on the
preference of the user’ this degree of personalization seems to be fundamental to its popularity and is
an important factor to consider when seeking to offer students a competing technology.
Whilst a significant number of students have engaged with Connect in this first phase of development,
only a small minority of those have tried to use Connect for overtly academic related activities. In
addition groups of students that did start communities with an academic focus were not able to
maintain them successfully. Panckhurst [2008] suggests the value of ‘specific, focused tasks’ when
trying to effectively use a social network for direct educational benefit. It is generally felt that the
future that the future of learning lies in a carefully planned and integrated network designed to give
autonomy to learners, whilst involving tutors in a facilitating role, stressing the importance of
guidance rather than management in forming “communities of practice” [Lave, Wenger 1991].
Data derived from the questionnaire suggests that students were keen to see their tutor’s active in the
Connect system and this is almost certainly a contributing factor in the lack of academic use of
Connect by students. It is worth noting that where academics have encouraged and worked with
students to engage with Connect for academic purposes (e.g. the visual culture group) more significant
contributions have been made.
Staff, perhaps not surprisingly, used Connect for quite different reasons to students, with their
academic work often forming the focus of contributions. Whilst it was refreshing to see so many staff
explore Connect, they, like students, found it difficult to maintain momentum in the activities that they
started.
Taken as a whole, the results obtained from the evaluation show that significant numbers of students
and staff can see a role for Connect within the University of Westminster context. However it is clear
that wider acceptance and precise definition of that role needs to be established and accepted before
the full potential of Connect to support students and extend their learning can be realised. In this
respect one of the most common pieces of feedback from staff and students alike was the need to
integrate Connect with the more formal learning environment provided by Blackboard. It is hoped that
having dedicated student led, module based discussion groups, with all learners automatically
assigned, would assist in establishing and maintaining meaningful “communities of practice”. This,
coupled to a focused campaign specifically to explain the role of Connect in the wider picture of
academic life would be likely to lead to a more successful and beneficial exploitation of the system
than has been achieved to date.
241
References
Anderson, P. (2007). What is Web 2.0? Ideas, technologies and implication for education, JISC
Technology and Standards Watch. [Available at:
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/techwatch/tsw0701b.pdf, accessed: 23.09.2008].
Collis, B. (1998). New didactics for university instruction: why and how? Computers and
Education, Vol. 31 (4), pp. 373-393.
Beetham, H. (2005). E-learning research: emerging issues? ALT-J, Research in Learning
Technology, Vol. 13 (1), pp. -89.
Jamieson, P. (2004). The University as workplace: preparing lecturers to teach in online
environments. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, Vol. 5 (1), pp. 21-27.
Lammers, W.J.; J.J. Murphy (2002). A profile of teaching techniques used in the university
classroom: a descriptive profile of a US public university. Active Learning in Higher Education,
Vol. 3 (1), pp. 54-67.
Barnes, C.; B. Tynan (2007). Learning in a Web 2.0 millenium. ALT-J, Research in Learning
Technology, Vol. 15 (3), pp. 189-200.
Naidu, S. (2003). Trends in faculty use and perceptions of e-learning. [Availabe at:
http://www.celt.mmu.ac.uk/ltia/issue6/naidu.shtml, accessed: 18.04.2008].
Good Practice and Innovation, Effective Use of Virtual Learning Environments (2006). JISC
Infonet. [Available at: http://www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk/InfoKits/effective-use-of-VLEs/intro-toVLEs/introtovle-approaches/index_html, accessed: 18.04.2008].
Franklin, T.; M. van Harmelen (2007). Web 2.0 for content for learning and teaching in higher
education. JISC [Availabe; at:
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/programmes/digitalrepositories/web2-content-learningand-teaching.pdf, accessed: 18.04.2008].
Selwyn, N. (2007). Screw Blackboard... do it on Facebook! an investigation of students'
educational use of Facebook. [Available at: http://www.scribd.com/doc/513958/Facebookseminar-paper-Selwyn, accessed: 17.04.2008].
Hinchcliffe, D. (2007). How Web 2.0 works. [Available at:
http://web2.socialcomputingmagazine.com/howweb2works.htm, accessed: 18.04.2008].
Elgg: http://elgg.net
Panckhurst, R.; Marsh, D. (2008). Communities of Practice. Using the Open web as a
collaborative Learning platform. iLearn Fourm, Paris, France.
Authors:
Federica Oradini,
Gunter Saunders
Online Learning Development
University of Westminster
115 New Cavendish Street
London W1W 6UW
Tel: +44 20 7911 580
Email: [email protected]
[email protected]
242
QUALITY VS QUANTITY: INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN FOR
DISTRIBUTED COMPUTING∗
(National e-Science Centre, United Kingdom)
Keywords: e-learning quality, instructional design, delivery mode shift
One of the biggest challenges currently facing grid computing community is development of efficient
ways to disseminate grid knowledge and skills to wide range of users who are not interested in grid
computing for its own sake, but in the contexts of their applications. Using jargon of education, grid
community needs a comprehensive educational service scalable to large numbers of participants from
wide range of backgrounds and different organisational units, cities, countries and continents.
Distributed computing usually refers to “a method of computer processing in which different parts of a
programme are run simultaneously on two or more computers that are communicating with each other
over a network” [1]. It allows individual resources connected to the Internet to become a single, much
more powerful resource shared by everyone. Distributed computing currently stands at the cutting
edge of information and communication technologies. Its current position in Rogers’s
innovation/adoption curve [2] requires broad, comprehensive education accessible to all distributed
computing users throughout the network. Epistemologically, distributed education delivered in fully
online mode addresses such demands. Shift towards e-learning, however, implies much more than
simple transfer of materials from classroom to the screen – it requires a completely new approach to
education, especially in the field of quality management.
The International Collaboration to Extend and Advance Grid Education (ICEAGE) project aims to
foster education in grid computing in the Higher Education sector. The project aims at developing
policy recommendations in relevant international bodies, and applies this through organising grid
computing summer schools and maintaining a Digital Library to share teaching and learning resources.
The series of International Summer Schools on Grid Computing (ISSGC) has run annually since 2003.
The ICEAGE project has organised the ISSGC since 2006. In order to provide wider access to lectures
and tutorials run by some of the world’s most recognised grid experts, the ICEAGE project decided to
deliver some ISSGC material online. ISSGC materials have been developed into various audiovisual
and textual formats and stored in the ICEAGE Digital Library. The representative selection of those
materials, carefully hand-picked by leading authorities in the field, forms the basis of the International
Winter School on Grid Computing.
Building on previous works on delivery mode shifts from face-to-face to online education [3], this
paper exposes quality issues connected with transfer of successful series of ISSGC into online
International Winter School in Grid Computing ’08 (IWSGC’08). Considering the importance of
reaching participants unable to attend traditional summer schools and the increasing trend towards
extending grid usage by non-expert audiences, this paper is focused to achieving a successful
compromise between quality and quantity when shifting from face-to-face to online learning mode.
The existing ICEAGE face-to-face grid education is of highest quality, but reaches a very limited
number of users. The main issue addressed in this paper is sustaining the important quality elements
while multiplying the number of School participants by shifting to an online learning environment.
This paper is based on the case of instructional design of IWSGC’08. The School curriculum consists
of four main grid technologies: Condor, OGSA-DAI, Globus and gLite. Each technology is allocated a
period of one week as its prime delivery period with a tutor dedicated to a technology.
∗
Paper available also in French.
243
The educational goals of IWSGC'08 are to:
252. Provide participants with the necessary theoretical background for practical exercises;
253. Enable participants to use Condor, OGSA-DAI, Globus and gLite;
254. Direct participants towards available grid services;
255. Encourage collaboration between participants.
The relationship between quality and quantity created by shift to online delivery of grid education
depends on many factors which are not directly connected with characteristics of delivered
technologies. For this reason, authors are convinced that conclusions drawn from the case of
IWSGC’08 can confidently be used in the context of other grid computing educational systems, and to
a certain extent, distributed computing in general.
References
Distributed Computing (2007). Wikipedia. [Available at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distributed_computing, accessed: 16.11.2007].
Rogers, E. (2007). Innovation Adoption Curve. [Available at:
http://www.12manage.com/methods_rogers_innovation_adoption_curve.html, accessed:
16.11.2007].
Jandric, P. (2006). Door-to-Door Service: Transition of CARNet Education Centre Edupoint
from Face-to-Face to Online Delivery Mode. Proceedings from 28th Int. Conf. Information
Technology Interfaces ITI 2006, Cavtat, Croatia, pp. 65-70.
Author
Petar Jandric
National e-Science Centre
15 South College Street
Edinburgh
EH8 9AA
United Kingdom
244
QUALITÉ ET QUANTITÉ: CONCEPTION PÉDAGOGIQUE POUR
L’INFORMATIQUE RÉPARTIE
(National e-Science Centre, United Kingdom)
Mots Clés: e-learning quality, instructional design, delivery mode shift
L’un des plus grands défis auquel la communauté de la grille informatique doit faire face est le
développement de manières efficaces de disséminer la connaissance et les compétences en grille
informatique à un éventail d’utilisateurs plus large, qui ne sont pas intéressés par la grille pour ellemême mais pour ses applications. Dans le jargon éducatif, on dit alors que la grille a besoin d’un
service éducatif évolutif pour un grand nombre d’apprenants issus de différents domaines, différentes
unités organisationnelles, villes, pays et continents.
L’informatique répartie est souvent décrite comme « une méthode de traitement informatique dans
lequel les différentes parties d’un programme sont exécutées sur deux ordinateurs ou plus qui
communiquent entre eux en réseau » [1]. Cela permet à des ressources individuelles connectées à
Internet de devenir une ressource unique et plus puissante partagée par tous.
L’informatique répartie se trouve actuellement à la pointe des technologies de l’information et de la
communication. Dans sa position actuelle dans la courbe innovation/adoption de Rogers [2] elle a
besoin d’une éducation étendue et de qualité, accessible à tous les utilisateurs de l’informatique
répartie à travers le réseau. D’un point de vue épistémologique, l’éducation sur l’informatique répartie
dispensée dans un environnement totalement en ligne répond à de tels besoins. Cependant, l’eLearning implique bien plus qu’un simple transfert de matériels d’apprentissage de la classe à l’écran
– cela requiert une nouvelle approche pédagogique, particulièrement dans le domaine du contrôle
qualité.
Le projet ICEAGE (International Collaboration to Extend and Advance Grid Education) a pour
objectif d’encourager l’éducation de la grille informatique dans l’enseignement supérieur. Le projet a
pour ambition de développer des recommandations de politique éducative au sein d’organismes
internationaux concernés par l’informatique répartie, les mettre en pratique à travers l’organisation
d’écoles d’été sur la grille informatique, et la gestion d’une bibliothèque numérique permettant de
partager les matériels pédagogiques et d’apprentissage.
La série des International Summer Schools on Grid Computing (ISSGC) se déroule annuellement
depuis 2003. Le projet ICEAGE organise cette série depuis 2006. Afin de donner un plus grand accès
aux cours et travaux pratiques donnés par des experts de la grille informatique les plus reconnus du
monde, le projet ICEAGE a décidé de dispenser en ligne certains cours et matériels de l’ISSGC. Les
matériels d’apprentissage de l’ISSGC ont été développés en nombreux formats audiovisuels et écrits,
et sont disponibles dans la bibliothèque numérique ICEAGE. Une sélection représentative de ces
ressources a été soigneusement opérée par des experts faisant autorité dans le domaine de la grille
informatique afin de constituer une base de ressources pour l’école d’hiver internationale sur la grille
informatique (International Winter School on Grid Computing).
Se basant sur des travaux antérieurs sur le passage d’un mode de présentation face-à-face à un mode
de présentation en ligne [3], nous exposerons les problèmes liés à la qualité lors du transfert de la série
d’écoles d’été renommées en une école d’hiver internationale: l’International Winter School on Grid
Computing (IWSGC’08). En prenant en compte la nécessité d’attirer des apprenants dans l’incapacité
de participer aux écoles d’été traditionnelles, ainsi que le fort mouvement vers l’élargissement de
l’utilisation de la grille informatique à des publics plus larges et non-experts, nous nous concentrerons
sur l’adoption d’un compromis réussi entre qualité et quantité lors d’un passage à un mode de
présentation face-à-face à un mode de présentation en ligne.
245
Cet article se base sur l’exemple de la conception pédagogique de l’IWSGC’08. Le programme de
l’école comprend 4 principales technologies de la grille informatique : Condor, OGSA-DAI, Globus et
gLite. Une semaine est consacrée à chaque technologie avec un tuteur spécialisé dans chaque
technologie. Les objectifs pédagogiques de l’IWSGC’08 sont les suivants:
256. Apporter aux apprenants les connaissances théoriques préalables aux travaux pratiques;
257. Permettre aux apprenants d’utiliser Condor, OGSA-DAI, Globus et gLite;
258. Orienter les apprenants vers des services disponibles de la grille informatique;
259.
Encourager le travail collaboratif entre les apprenants.
Avec de tels objectifs et un programme ambitieux, et étant donné les défis posés par le mode de
présentation en ligne de matériels d’apprentissage aussi techniques, les auteurs de cet article sont
convaincus que les conclusions qu’ils tirent du cas de l’IWSGC’08 sont pertinentes pour d’autres
systèmes pédagogiques dans la grille informatique ainsi que, dans une certaine mesure, dans
l’informatique répartie en général.
Références
Distributed Computing (2007). Wikipedia. [Available at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distributed_computing, accessed: 16.11.2007].
260. Rogers, E. (2007). Innovation Adoption Curve. [Available at:
http://www.12manage.com/methods_rogers_innovation_adoption_curve.html, accessed:
16.11.2007].
261. Jandric, P. (2006). Door-to-Door Service: Transition of CARNet Education Centre Edupoint
from Face-to-Face to Online Delivery Mode. Proceedings from 28th Int. Conf. Information
Technology Interfaces ITI 2006, Cavtat, Croatia, pp. 65-70.
Author:
Petar Jandric
National e-Science Centre
15 South College Street
Edinburgh
EH8 9AA
United Kingdom
246
TELE-ASSESSMENT OF THE TELE-TAUGHT UNIVERSITY
DEGREE IN COMPUTER SCIENCE ENGINEERING
Federico Filira, Natalì Anghelidis, Marcello Dalpasso
(Department of Information Engineering, University of Padova)
Abstract: Since 2001 all courses of a 3-year university degree in computer science engineering at the
University of Padova are being taught in 4 geographically distributed sites using real-time simultaneous teleteaching technologies. The aim of the system is to deliver academic lessons to geographically distributed
classrooms, preserving as much as possible the way the teacher communicates and interacts with students in a
traditional classroom.
The focus is on the quality assessment survey submitted to both students and teaching staff at the end of the
(last) 3rd period. Objectives of the survey are: to assess the effectiveness of the lessons delivered with teleteaching modality; to get indications on the perceived quality of the tele-teaching technology, of classrooms,
laboratories and services in the remote sites. An on-line questionnaire has been designed and is currently
submitted to all the teachers and all the students attending these courses in the 4 sites.
The Moodle environment has been adopted to create online courses integrated with the above mentioned teleteaching platform. All aspects concerned in the question of the survey have been statistically analyzed, and
results report grouping data by enrolment year, site and role of the answering have been disseminated through
the web site.
Keywords: quality assessment, tele-teaching, moodle, learning technologies
Introduction
The Department of Information Engineering of the University of Padova has developed a real-time
interactive platform for live teaching, using the most modern multimedia technologies. This platform
is the last step in the evolution of a distance learning path started in 1992 [1], that involves four
regional sites of the University of Padova (Padova, Feltre, Rovigo, Treviso).
The aim of the system is to deliver academic lessons to geographically distributed classrooms,
preserving as much as possible the way the teacher communicates and interacts with students in a
traditional classroom: delivering lectures, projecting slides, presenting output of program executions,
drawing of text and graphics on a blackboard, and interacting with single students.
The innovative aspects of the system are: (1) full integration of several communication channels
(audio, video and data) into a digital flow over the IP infrastructure, granting high quality
communications among a number of remote classrooms, with a bandwidth less than 2 Mbps. (2) fully
open-source solution. (3) high quality performance for real-time multimedia presentation. (4) real time
interaction between the teacher and the remote students. (5) the absence of a main control center: any
classroom can be used for teaching or for attending lessons. The virtual class-room is built dinamically
without planning anything in advance. With this platform there is no need for a main center: the
teacher enters the room and plays its lesson with the platform from anyone of the sites.
Tele-teaching platform
The remote sites of the University of Padova in Feltre, Rovigo and Treviso are connected to the
Department of Information Engineering through a wired line Intranet, with a bandwidth limited to a
maximum of 2 Mbps per lesson.
247
A specific feature is the absence of a main control center: the connections that define a virtual
classroom (described in the next session) are dynamically built when lessons start, with no need for
any previous planning. Hence teachers may deliver lessons from any classroom located in anyone of
the connected sites.
Finally, the system is stateless: if one of the connected sites runs into problem (e.g. loss of
connectivity), the other sites doesn’t be influenced and the recovery actions is transparent to the
teacher, apart from a possible alert.
Figure 1. Classroom’s architecture
The virtual classroom
With this term we refer to a set of geographically distributed physical classrooms in which students, at
different places, are attending the same lesson delivered, at the same time, by the same teacher. A
virtual classroom is characterized by the same didactic effectiveness in any of its physical classrooms,
regardless of the physical presence of the teacher. Figure 1 shows the system components in each
physical classroom and their connections. Any site (physical classroom) can host the teacher’s
activities and conversely the same site can be a teacher or a student site, even within the same lesson
(the teacher could be temporary substituted by an assistant in another site of the virtual classroom).
The two main actors, the teacher and the students, are provided with the following tools:
The teacher
−
−
−
−
The students
a control interface for selecting sources and
destinations of audio/video streams;
a wireless microphone
a document camera (that allows the teacher
to display printed pages in addition to
handwriting)
a general desktop utility for producing
graphical outputs
−
−
−
−
248
two displaying devices, that may be wall
projectors, wide screen TV sets or monitors.
a hi-fi audio speaker system
a wireless microphone to ask questions
a software interface to request and activate
remote students to teacher interaction
Platform architecture
As a general view, the system can be described in terms of two main components: a multimedia
streaming engine and a control desk. The former is responsible for generating and managing all the
video/audio streams in a suitably uniform manner; the latter provides the teacher with all the functions
required for configuring the lesson, selecting input and output devices and handling exceptional
conditions. The multimedia engine is provided by the RoomPC, whereas the control desk functions are
provided by the DirectorPC.
The directorPC is used by the teacher himself to manage the lesson. It is a notebook equipped with an
additional LCD monitor. The notebook’s display presents the shared desktop, in which the teacher can
execute any application that may be of help for the lesson. The other one provides the graphic userfriendly interface, implemented in Java, used by the teacher to select which video signals have to be
carried by the streams, to control remote classrooms, to manage questions from the remote sites and to
control the RoomPC.
The RoomPC encodes, decodes and streams the different video sources (teacher/student/document
cameras, and a VHS/DVD player). These sources and the two (PAL converted) VGA outputs of the
RoomPC are switched to the selected output devices (TV and projector) in the (physical) classroom
using a computer controlled analog video matrix. The matrix outputs are connected to the displaying
devices in the classroom, and to the frame-grabbers card of the RoomPC (figure 1).
The bandwidth limitation is mainly achieved using IP multicast [2], whenever possible, to avoid the
multiple generation of packet streams that would occur with unicast transmissions. Multicast address
ranges are properly assigned to each virtual classroom, reserving one multicast group for each stream:
teacher’s audio, teacher’s video, teacher’s document camera, classroom’s audio and video, and control
commands.
Teaching approach and staff
What are the main differences between a virtual and a traditional classroom ? The first matter is the
huge exploitation of IC technologies, i.e. 8 Mbps wide connection between geografical sites and high
quality multimedia transmission, along with desktop sharing application or digital document cameras.
From the logistic point of view the actual virtual classroom are less crowded than traditional ones,
moreover from the educational approach the teaching staff is enlarged with the figure of the teaching
assistant. To achive the main objective two key pedagogical approaches are used. First of all the
introduction of the roaming teacher figure. Second, practical activities are tightly coupled through
course planning and the presence of a local tutor in each site of the virtual room.
The teaching staff of each course consists of both an appointed teacher and a local tutor or local
teaching assistant for each site: in total 5 people. The latters are appointed by the course Secretariat
from a list proposed by the teacher. Local assistants are coordinated by the appointed teacher and
deliver lectures and laboratory session.
At least twice during a course, the teacher should visit in person each remote site, in order to have a
human contact with the student and to get in touch with the local reality and the work of the assistants.
This leads to the so called roaming teacher. The course schedule counts that almost 50% of the lessons
are delivered from the main University site, while remaining lessons are even up to remote sites, in
order to avoid the isolation of the site itself.
Collaborative tools permit to maintain both a good coordination between the teaching staff and to
overcome technological trouble that block the regular delivery of a tele-taught lesson. If a remote site
can’t teake part to a virtual lesson, the local assistant should take the floor and tell the lecture
superseding the teacher. In order to define the final grade, the teacher can take into account the
opinion of the local assistants.
The teaching assistant’s role is to guide and advice students along their learning course. During the online teaching lectures, the local assistant attend the lesson together with the students, and test out the
latter attention. He operates the first level action in case of technical trouble.
249
The survey
The paper deals with the quality assessment survey submitted to both students and teacher at the end
of the (last) 3rd period. The whole questionnaire items and the survey history can be found at
http://elearning.unipd.it/moodle/ing/. The evaluation has been expressed by the students attending the
tele-taught courses of the 3-year university degree in computer science engineering, and by the
assistant professors that are involved in the teaching of these courses.
Objectives of the survey are the assessment of the effectiveness of the lessons delivered with teleteaching modality; to get indications on the perceived quality of the tele-teaching technology, of
classrooms, laboratories and services in the remote sites; to compare the didactic results with those
achieved by students in the same courses run in “traditional classrooms”. Period of the survey ranges
from the 5 to the 25 june 2006.
The survey has been carried out using an on-line questionnaire. The survey has been preceded by the
various activities aimed at informing the students about the initiative and getting their collaboration.
To fill-in the questionnaire students are requested to access the URL of the Moodle application from
any Internet connected workplace (also at home). In the section " Assessment", after a short
description of the survey and of its objectives, the students are presented with the simple instructions
to follow. The questionnaire starts by asking the students to insert their id number. The system allows
to interrupt the procedure and to resume it later.
At the end of the survey period, the data have been gathered together and set up for statistical analysis
and graphical reports. The results of the evaluation have been communicated to the interested persons
with regard to their role:
262. Students: results about the bachelor course;
263. Teacher: results about their own course and the bachelor course;
264. Tutors: results about their own course, tutor section, and the bachelor course;
265. Head of Centers of Study: results about the section "study centers" and the bachelor course;
266. Didactic commission of Bachelor: results about "tele-teaching" section, single course,
"study centers" section and for the whole bachelor course.
The survey tool
The questionnaire proposed to the students is similar to that one proposed from the Nucleus of
Assesment of the University of Padua with the addition of few specific sections concerning the teleteaching aspects. The sections of the questionnaire are six and comprise the following questions:
Tele-teaching: the questions in this section are intended to measure the satisfaction of the students on
some aspects related to the tele-taught lessons: regularity of the lessons, organization of the timetable,
classes with a limited number of students, total workload and global satisfaction on the courses.
Course: these questions concern general aspects like the teaching of concepts and/or useful
techniques, the adequacy of previous knowledge required to attend the course, the detailed definition
of the program, the relationship between theory and practice (exercises), the proportion between
workload of the course and credits assigned, the definition of the examination modalities and finally
the global satisfaction.
Teacher: in this section several aspects of the teaching activity are assessed: clarity and speed of the
lectures, ability to stimulate the interest towards the study of the matter, ability to effectively manage
the technical instruments during the lessons, global satisfaction.
Teaching assistant: besides the questions on clarity and speed of the lectures, ability to stimulate the
interest towards the study of the matter, availability in helping the students and total satisfaction, other
questions are specifically concerned with role of the tutor: competence and completeness in answering
to the questions and proposal of interesting exercises.
Didactic material and laboratory: the questions concern the adequacy of the material regarding the
theoretical part, the amount of exercises, the availability and the total satisfaction. The questions on
the laboratory, only for the courses that need it, regard the effectiveness, the organization and the
global judgment.
250
Center of study: the section introduces questions on the didactic and formative structures, in
particular classrooms and laboratories.
At the end of every group of questions there is the possibility of typing-in comments and suggestions,
in free format: the information gathered in this way has proved very useful in improving of several
aspects of the didactic activities.
Different on-line questionnaires have been developed for collecting the evaluations of teachers and
teaching assistants (tutors). The questionnaire has been subdivided into 6 sections:
267. The didactic organization: these questions aim to find the opinion of the teacher and
tutors about some specific aspects related to the fact that lessons are tele-taught;
268. The tele-teaching modality: these questions aim to find the satisfaction of the
teachers/tutors on the use of the technological instruments and on the reliability of the
system;
269. The remote center: a single question regards the overall adequacy of classrooms and the
laboratories;
270. The educational service: the questions regard the organizational and technical
management of the three-year degree curriculum;
271. The teacher (in case the questionnaire is filled-in by the tutors): in this section the
questions regard the quality of the coordination performed by the teacher in specifying what
tutors are expected to provide: detailed didactic outline of the course, involvement of the
tutors in the didactic organization and in the process of student evaluation;
272. The tutor (in case the questionnaire is filled-in by the teacher): the questions proposed in
this section aim to find the satisfaction of the teacher on the activities performed by the
tutors: compliance of the tutor to the assigned tasks, contributions of the tutors to the course
content and materials, global satisfaction of the teacher on the activity and behaviour of the
tutor;
273. The students: the questions that regard the students are intended to find the opinions of
teachers and tutors concerning the adequacy of previous student’s knowledge in entering the
course, their interest and motivation in following lectures and laboratory sessions, and the
degree of satisfaction of the results obtained.
Table 1. Percentage of compilation of the questionnaire for course year
1° year
2° year
3° year
Totale
2002/2003
36,8%
30,5%
-
34,0%
2003/2004
48,8%
41,3%
47,4%
46,4%
2004/2005
56,3%
41,5%
25,3%
39,4%
2005/2006
39,7%
35,1%
25,3%
32,9%
Survey results
All aspects concerned in the question of the survey have been statistically analyzed, and results report
grouping data by enrolment year, site and role of the answering have been disseminated through the
web site.
The participation of the students to the survey for the last academic year has been 32,9%, while 85%
of the teacher and 76% of the tutors took part to the survey: these percentages give an indication of the
interest on the initiative. Table 1 shows the time series of students participation.
In order to have easy readable data, the medium score for every section has been estimated (local
course, teacher, tutors, didactic material and laboratory), considering the assessment of all the
students.
In this survey the best appraisal has been obtained by the local tutors with a medium score of the 7,76.
Also for the other sections the appraisals can be considered satisfactory: the course with a medium
score of 7,14, the didactic material with 7,09, the teacher with the 6,91 and finally activities of
laboratory with 6,74.
251
The comparison with the previous years (Figure 2) shows that the results are pretty much aligned
with the results of previous surveys and thus shows a stability of the appraisals expressed by the
students, although the reference community has changed. In particular, the medium scores regarding
the course, local teacher, tutors and didactic material have slightly increased, while those related to
the laboratory has remained unchanged. However the differences do not appear meaningful.
6,
Figure 2. Comprehensive appraisal medium score of the courses by year
Assessment of structures, services, and ways of teaching
Tele-teaching
The questions proposed in this section have the scope to find the satisfaction of the students respect to
some aspects of the didactic organization of the tele-teaching approach. From the prospect it emerges
that the development (begin/end time) of the lessons has been regular and it has been appreciated from
the students of all the three years and all the centers. With respect to the organization of the timetable,
even if all together it catches up satisfactory, rigorous are the appraisals of the students of 3° the year
of Padova while the students, always of 3° the year, of Rovigo are a lot satisfied.
The students think useful that the teacher are present, in turn, in the four centers, above all the students
of 2° the year. A much higher satisfaction is found for the frequency of the lessons in classes with a
limited number of students, and the students think that she is much favorable to have relationships
directed with the teachers/tutors and consequently to be more followed. Much strict are the appraisals
given from the students of 3° the year of the center of Feltre that on this aspect that does not catch up
the satisfactory.
Altogether the students turn out satisfied of the didactic organization of this Course of Bachelor in
tele-teaching. To the inside of this section, even if he does not regard the tele-teaching, it has been
inserted the question on the proportionality between total assigned workload of the courses and
credits. Strict they are the appraisals given of the students about this aspect that does not catch up the
satisfactory.
252
Remote sites
The following study aims to give a detailed analysis of the data and concurs to face the appraisals
expressed from the students subdivided for year and center. As far as the secretariat services, the
students of Feltre and Padova are less satisfied of their colleagues in Rovigo and Treviso. For the
didactic equipments (systems audio/video) the students of Feltre, Padova and Rovigo are enough
satisfied, while the students of Treviso many satisfying. Only the students of 1° the year of the center
of Padova give to appraisals under the satisfactory the didactic structures, while all the students are
atisfied of the laboratory equipments the students of Rovigo are not satisfied. Regarding the support
for the activity of the training (question for the students of 3° the year) the least satisfied are only the
students of the of Feltre and Padova. Altogether the judgment on the study centers is satisfactory.
Table 2. Medium Scores of the tele-teaching section subdivided for year and center
Tele-teaching
The development of the lessons has been regular (hour of
fine beginning/, etc)
Feltre
Padova
Rovigo
Treviso
Totale
The timetable of the lessons is well organized
Feltre
Padova
Rovigo
Treviso
Totale
Is it profit that the teacher, in turn, goes in the four centers Feltre
Padova
Rovigo
Treviso
Totale
Is it favorable to attend the lessons in classes with a
Feltre
limited number of students
Padova
Rovigo
Treviso
Totale
Is the total workload of the actual courses in the trimesters Feltre
proporzionato to the assigned credits
Padova
Rovigo
Treviso
Totale
Altogether, is the judgment on tele-teaching satisfactory
Feltre
Padova
Rovigo
Treviso
Totale
1° year
8.50
7.43
7.00
7.30
7.41
6.75
6.00
6.50
6.60
6.45
6.25
8.14
8.00
7.40
7.59
9.25
8.71
8.00
8.10
8.38
3.50
6.71
5.75
5.30
5.52
7.50
7.57
6.75
8.10
7.52
2° year
7.40
7.20
8.25
7.80
7.81
6.20
7.80
6.92
7.20
7.00
8.75
6.20
8.58
8.60
8.15
7.40
9.20
8.50
9.40
8.59
4.80
2.80
3.83
5.20
4.07
6.40
7.80
6.67
7.40
6.96
3° year
8.00
8.43
7.75
9.00
8.30
6.67
5.57
9.00
8.00
6.52
8.33
7.23
9.00
8.50
7.82
5.67
7.64
9.00
10.00
7.83
3.33
5.50
7.00
5.00
5.43
7.67
6.93
9.00
8.50
7.52
Totale
7.92
7.92
7.75
7.65
7.81
6.50
6.12
7.13
6.94
6.66
7.73
7.28
8.46
7.88
7.84
7.58
8.23
8.42
8.71
8.29
4.00
5.31
5.00
5.24
5.00
7.08
7.27
7.08
7.94
7.33
Teachers and tutors
Also for this academic year has been carried out the collection of the opinions of the teacher and tutors
through the on-line questionnaire. It has participated 85% of the teacher and 76% of the tutors,
percentages that confirm the interest and the success of the initiative. From the data it emerges that
teachers think it is useful for they and much profit for the tutors, to have the lessons/exercitation in the
afternoon while it is little useful for the students. To the same question the tutors have answered that
also for the students it is useful to hold the lessons in the afternoon. Both estimate that to make four
consecutive hours of the same matter it is little useful for both the teacher and the students. While the
tutors prefer to make four hours consecutive of lesson the teacher think that for they it is little useful.
Finally, both estimate that it is useful for all that some lessons and/or practices are held from the single
tutors and that the teacher is roaming. The tele-teaching platform is estimated adapt from both. The
satisfaction on the reliability of the system demonstrates that the platform has caught up a good quality
of operation. Both the categories are satisfied also of the didactic-organizational and technical service
253
and the structures near the study centers (classrooms and laboratories). The teacher are very happy of
the job carried out from the tutors and, viceversa, the tutors are much satisfied of the activity of
coordination and involvement with the teacher. Finally, in the questions that regard the students, the
appraisals given from the teacher do not catch up the satisfactory while those of the tutors are positive.
Conclusions
The levels of the appraisals have been confirmed all together good even for the carried out didactic
activity than for the quality of the logistic structures and support. The academic year 2005/2006,
analyzed in the paper, can be summarized as follows. More positive appraisals for the local tutors, the
course and the didactic material. Good the judgments also on the teacher and the activities of
laboratory. The comparison with the previous years shows an improvement for all the sections except
that of the laboratories even if the appraisals is always positive.
The level of satisfaction about tele-teaching turns out good. The aspect that emerges with greater
evidence is the attendance of the lessons in small classes (the students very appreciate) and the
presence of the teacher, in turn, in the four sites. The more critical opinions regard the proportionality
between total workload of the instructions in the trimesters and credits assigned, independent from the
modality of the lessons.
About remote sites, it comes out a general satisfaction regarding the functionality of the didactic
equipments (systems audio/video) and the adequacy of the didactic structures (classrooms, laboratories
etc).
References
Clemente, G.; Filira F. (2202). Teledidattica multimediale interattiva.
Filira ,F. et all (2006). A new multimedia distributed system for live teaching. Proceedings Iadate2006 - 3rd Intl. Conf. on Education, Barcellona (Spain) July, pp. 21-25.
Ansaloni, D. (2003). Indicatori dell’istruzione. Teorie e applicazioni. Lecce, Pensa.
Confrey, J.; Sabelli, N.; Sheingold (2002). A Framework for Quality in Educational Technology
Programs. Educational Technology, Vol. XLII, No. 3, May-June.
Trinchero, R. (2002). Sistema telematico per la valutazione dell’apprendimento. In: Galliani L.
(a cura di) L’Università aperta e virtuale, Pensa Multimedia, Lecce.
Authors:
Federico Filira, Dr. PhD
Natalì Anghelidis, Dr.
Marcello Dalpasso, Prof.
Department of Information Engineering
University of Padova
\Via Gradenigo 6/A, 35131 Padova
Italy
254
EXPÉRIMENTATION D'UN ENVIRONNEMENT
D'APPRENTISSAGE EN LIGNE
Nasreddine Bouhai (Laboratoire Paragraphe – Université de Paris VIII)
Résumé: Le présent article est un compte rendu d’expérience d’intégration des TIC dans l’enseignement
universitaire. Il s’agit de conception et de la mise en place d’un dispositif pédagogique d'apprentissage de
cours en ligne WebCEEL (Editing and Learning Web Course Environment) dans un contexte « présentiel
enrichi ». L’un des objectifs étant de tenter à mettre en évidence l’apport pédagogique des TIC dans un cas
pratique d’apprentissage de cours informatique.
Mots-clés: apprentissage assisté, scénario pédagogique, adaptation, XML, profil apprenant, parcours
individualisé, évaluation, auto-évaluation, QCM.
1. Introduction
Le développement d'outils d'aide à l'apprentissage sur le Web reste un champ important dans le
domaine des TICE. Parmi les facteurs principaux de leurs certains succès, on retrouve d'un côté, la
personnalisation du parcours d'apprentissage côté de l'apprenant et de l'autre, l'élaboration et mise
à jour des contenus pédagoqigues du côté enseignant. Le manque de simplicité d'usage et de
développement de contenu laissent indifférent beaucoup d'acteurs du champ éducatif universitaire
en particulier les non spécialisés.
2. Contexte
Le développement du réseau était un facteur majeur pour le transfert des masses non négligeables de
supports de cours en ligne. Les propriétés hypertextuelles du Web ont participé au développement des
structures plus riches en médias qui sont les hypermédias [Balpe et al., 1996]. Leurs utilisation dans la
pédagogie universitaire est un phénomène en plein essor dont l'objectif est d'inscrire l'enseignement
dans une évolution technopédagogique pour améliorer la transmission des savoirs.
Beaucoup de questions sur l'apport pédagogique des ces envorinnements restent posées. Un certains
nombre de travaux dans des contextes pratiques avaient mis en avant un apport pédagogique restreint
suivant le contexte d'usage [Dillon et al., 1998; Hall et al., 2003; Chen et al., 1996]. D'autres
recherches ont alors essayé de minimiser l’aspect négatif des hypermédias par le biais de la notion
d'adaptation [Brusilovsky, 2004]. L'adaptation dynamique d'un hypermédia pédagogique au profil d'un
apprenant peut être réalisée au niveau du contenu ou de la présentation .
3. Architecture
3.1 Le modèle du domaine
Le modèle du domaine renvoie sur un espace de connaissanses expertisé [Bouhai, Morvan 2006] est
représenté dans une base de données sous forme d'un document structuré basé sur une representation
de son organisation logique. Une composition relationnelle d'éléments hiérarchisés. La structuration
logique spécifique d'un support numérique d'un cours sera par exemple composé d'un titre, d'un
résumé et de chapitres, eux-mêmes composés d'un titre et de sections, et ainsi de suite jusqu'au niveau
des éléments de base commme: un paragraphe, un graphique, une liste, un exemple, un tableau, etc.
Tout document structuré peut être représenté sous forme d'arbre, par exemple la représentation
arborescente d'une instance de la classe Cours.
255
Le dispositif ne propose pas à l'heure actuel d'activités collaboratives soit pour les enseignants ou pour
les apprenants. L'accès en création, modification, suppression et droits de visualisation est fixé par
l'auteur principal dont il est le titulaire de la Propriété Intelectuelle du matéreil pédagogique ainsi créé.
3.2 Le modèle de l'apprenant
La représentation arborescente des différents concepts d'un enseignement (voir 3.1) permet entre
autres, une adaptation visuelle complète ou partielle. Suivant le profil de l'apprenant, le dispositif
positionne l'accès sur le concept le plus pertinent pour entamer le parcours pédagogique. Ceci se
traduit par la présentation d'un sommaire (une sous-arborescence) temporaire mettant en évidence
les liens hiéarchiques des différents concepts associés. L'apprenant peut alors interagir et accéder aux
éléments (fragments) associés aux concepts dont chaque fragment est: une définition, un exemple ou
un exercice.
3.3 Individualisation de parcours
Le système WebCEEL est basé sur la notion d'adaptabilité. A partir du profil de l'apprenant qui
définit son niveau des connaissances en rapport avec les connaissances du domaine que le système
permettrait le contrôle, l'accès et la présentation des concepts suivant leurs ordre dans les
différents parcours au sein du domaine.
4. Expérimentation
4.1 Le matriel pédagogique
Le choix de l'enseignement s’est porté sur le cours « Langage de programmation PHP » assuré en
1er semestre de l'année 2007/2008, un contenu à orientation pratique pour les débutants.
L'expérience s'est déroulée sur 13 séances au total dont chacune est consacrée un concept.
4.2 Les participants
Le nombre total d'étudiants qui ont suivi cet enseignement est de 27 (voir tableau 1). C'est après
un premier test diagnostic (évaluation sommative) que le groupe qui devrait participer à cet
expérimentation a été constitué. Les sujets devaient répondre à un profil prédéterminé afin de
constituer un échantillon. C'est le groupe «Novice» issu de ce test qui constitue l'échantillon des
participants avec un effectif de 27 apprenants, il a été divisé en 2: une moitié est concernée par
l'utilisation de l'environnement WebCEEL et l'autre suivra le cours en présentiel avec un support
de polycopiés. Il s'agissait d'une participation sur la base du volontariat.
4.3 Situation en présentiel
Comme pour un enseignement classique, l’enseignant doit suivre une stratégie pédagogique basée sur
l’imitation et la découverte progressive des différents concepts du domaine concerné par
l'enseignement. Une démarche classique que nous avons suivi pour présenter les concepts
concernés. Chaque séance est divisée en deux parties: une permière partie théorique et la seconde pour
des travaux dirigés.
La partie théorique est conscrée à un ou plusieurs concepts avec une série d'exemples, suivie par des
questions/réponses; La deuxième est consacrée à une série d'exercices à faire avant la fin de la séance,
ainsi qu'une série complémentaire à travailler en dehors de la séance.
L'enseignant présente toujours en début de cours les objectifs à atteindre et fait un petit résumé de la
séance précédent. Il s’appuie sur un support visuel en utilisant un vidéo-projecteur pour une meilleure
visibilité. Une façon de faire appréciée dans les enseignements pratiques; Elle permet aux apprenants
de voir les manipulations que l’enseignant effectue et de les faire à leur tour par imitation.
4.4 Situation en présentiel « enrichi »
La représentation arborescente des différents concepts d'un enseignement (Voir 3.1) permet entre
autres, une adaptation visuelle partielle. Suivant le profil de l'apprenant, le dispositif positionne l'accès
sur le concept principal le plus pertinent pour entamer le parcours pédagogique.
256
L'apprenant peut alors interagir et accéder aux éléments (fragments) associés aux concepts dont
chaque fragment:
274. est composé de plus d'un segment;
275. et chaque segment peut contenir des différentes unités atomiques type texte ou
image/graphique.
Un fragment peut être:
276.
une definition;
277.
un exemple.
Pour une question de homogénéité , chaque concept est composé:
278. d'un descriptif générale détaillé;
279. d'une série d'exemples;
280. et d'une série d'exercices QCM permettant une auto-évaluation.
La gestion des évaluations ce fait par le biais des différentes techologies Web qui offrent la possibilité
de proposer une rétroaction immédiate et automatique. L'évaluation de l'apprentissage des concepts
se base sur les résultats des exercices qui y sont associés. Les résultats des exercices sont
sauvegardés dans la base de données.
4.5 Processus d'évaluation
Le processus d'évaluation se prolonge sur l'ensemble du semestre, l'évaluaion consiste à un test
sommatif commun au début de chaque séance pour les deux groupes, le choix s'est porté sur des
QCM sur papier. Elle mesure la somme des connaissances acquises lors de la séance précédante, les
erreurs sont alors sanctionnées comme des faiblesses. Cette évaluation est sanctionnée par une note
qui comptera pour la moyenne ou la réussite de l'apprentissage. Cette évaluation est basée sur une
synthèse évoluée des différents exercices proposés lors des différentes étapes de cours. Un
principe pour permettre d'éviter les simples mémorisations.
4.6 Analyse et Interprétation qualitative
La comparaison du taux de réussite de l’apprentissage s’est fait par rapport aux résultats des tests des
deux groupes pour l'ensemble des séances. Globalement, les résultats obtenus sont très proches
pour les deux groupes (voir tableau 2.):
281. Le nombre d'apprenants en ligne (avec WebCEEL) ayant obtenu une moyenne et plus est:
8.41/14 (60,07%);
282. Le nombre d'apprenants en présentiel (sans WebCEEL) ayant obtenu une moyenne et plus
est: 7.58/13 (58,30%).
Tableau 1. Statistiques des sujets
Tableau 2. Récapitulatif des résultats
257
5. Bilan et perspectives
Cette experimentation peut constituer un point de départ pour répondre à d'autres besoins pour
l'enseignant ou l'apprenant:
283. Permettre des activités d'apprentissage collaboratives pour les apprenants;
284. Fournir la possibilité d'activités collaboratives en matière de contenus pédagogiques.
La possibilité d'accéder aux traces des différentes sessions de travail des apprenants sur l'environnement
informatique, dont la première lecture permettrait:
285. Un accès à tout moment à l’historique des performances de l’apprenant à travers la
visualisation de ses taux de succès et du nombre d’essais effectués;
286.
Améliorer les contenus suivants les difficultés répétitives constatées.
A court et à moyen termes, il est question d' expérimentations et d'évaluations par d'autres enseignants
et avec d'autres enseignements, dont plusieurs font déjà l'objet de modélisation avec WebCEEL.
6. Conclusion
Notre environnement s'adresse à deux catégories d'utilisateurs. A l'aide de WebCEEL, l'apprenant
dispose d'un outil assistant pour l'apprentissage de cours en ligne, peut voir l'état dans son
apprentissage en permanence et accède à l'auto-évaluation en continu. Entre autres, l'enseignant peut
construire facilement des contenus pédagogiques et y indiquer des parcours individualisés aux
apprenants, suivre pas à pas l'apprentissage des uns et des autres, détecter facilement les difficultés et
raisonner sur/et améliorer les contenus suivants ces difficultés.
L'objectif de cette première expérimention était d'évaluer l'apport pédagogique d'un environnement
d'apprentissage informatique centré sur l'individualisation des parcours qui permet à des apprenants
d'être assistés dans l'apprentissage de cours techniques en ligne. En utilisant une méthodologie d'étude
expérimentale, nous avons pu comparer les performances des apprenants de l'environnement avec une
situation pédagogique traditionnel. L'expérimentation de l'environnement continue ainsi que son
développement, les différents retours issus du dispositif ou des sujets seront pris en considération
pour améliorer son efficacité sur le plan technique, ergonomique et didactique de connaissances à
enseignées.
Références
Balpe, J. P.; Lelu, A.; Papy, F.; Saleh, I. (1996). Techniques avancées pour l´hypertexte. Hermès.
Dillon, A.; Gabbard, R. (1998). Hypermedia as an Educational Technology : a review of the
quantitative research literature on learner comprehension. Review of Educational Research, Vol.
68(3), pp. 322.
Hall, R. H.; Philpot, T. A.; Flori, R. E.; Yellamraju, V.; Subramanian, P. (2003). A
Comparison of Different Formats for Presenting Example Problems in Basic Engineering WebBased Learning Modules. In: World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia, and
Telecommunications.
Chen, C.; Rada, R. (1996). Interacting with hypertext: a meta-analysis of experimental studies.
Human-Computer Interaction, Vol. 11, pp. 125-156.
Brusilovsky, P. (2004). Adaptive Navigation Support: From Adaptive Hypermedia to the
Adaptive Web and Beyond. PsychNology Journal, Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 7-23.
287. Bouhaï, N.; Morvan, F. (2006). Apprentissage: Une approche orientée espaces de
connaissances expertisées. Colloque international E-prospectives et territoires de la
connaissance, Les Journées de THOT.
258
Authors:
Nasreddine Bouhai
Maître de conférences
Université de Paris VIII,
Laboratoire Paragraphe
2 Rue de la Liberté
93526 Saint-Denis Cedex 02
259
DiGiscuola PROJECT.
INTERACTIVE WHITEBOARDS AND DIGITAL CONTENTS:
AN INNOVATOVE RECIPE FOR SCHOOL RE-MEDI@TION
Elena Mosa (National Agency for the Support of School Auhonomy ANSAS, formerly INDIRE)
Abstract: DiGiscuola Project is the result of intensive research and defines new roles for on-line and ‘inpresence’ approaches to tutoring.
Keywords: interactive whiteboards
From the monomedia to the multimedia school, or from “chalk and talk” to “create and
participate” lessons.
Who is the “new millennium learner?” What is the profile of today’s student? How does he think,
communicate, and express himself? But, above all, how does he learn?
International reflection is focused on these and analogous questions to bridge the “digital disconnect,”
that communicative discrepancy that distances the world of teaching from that of the student. The
formative models proposed today “do not speak a familiar language” for the student and risk
demotivating him, losing his attention and his involvement.
The students of the new millennium are characterized by their ability to engage in “multitasking,” that
is, to do many things concurrently, to learn under numerous and varied stressors. Their language is
made up of text messages, acronyms, music listened to on an mp3 reader, i-pod, videogames involving
less and less text, and more images, animation, video, audio, etc.
The international debate centers on whether or not it is the case “to speak to the student” with his
language to involve him in a learning process which is more active, rich, engaging and motivating.
Prensky also emphasizes it, in his brilliant article entitled “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants”
[Prensky, 2001] an extract of which is presented below.
“Our students have changed radically. Today’s students are no longer the people our educational
system was designed to teach. Computer games, email, the Internet, cell phones and instant messaging
are integral parts of their lives. It is now clear that as a result of this ubiquitous environment and the
sheer volume of their interaction with it, today’s students think and process information fundamentally
differently from their predecessors (…) we can say with certainty that their thinking patterns have
changed. (…) What should we call these “new” students of today? Some refer to them as the N-[for
Net]-gen or D-[for digital]-gen. But the most useful designation I have found for them is Digital
Natives. Our students today are all “native speakers” of the digital language of computers, video
games and the Internet.
Let’s speak, instead, of “Digital Immigrants” those who, like us, were not born and did not grow up in
the digital era but that, willing or not have accepted it in their cultural heritage at a later time (the
digital immigrant needs the support of the instruction manual). Scientists confirm that a “language”
learned by an individual in an advanced developmental phase is “recorded” in a different part of the
brain.
The main problem, at this point, seems to be that a population of “immigrant” teachers who speak a
dated language (that of the pre-digital era) is trying to teach another population which expresses itself
with radically different languages.”
It is, we add, as if we wanted to teach the Pythagorean theorem in Greek to a population of teenagers
that we could rename “screenagers.”
260
You could ask yourself if the evolution of technology, from paper and pen to the computer, in its
multiple facets and its more and less multimedia supports (cd rom, internet, projector, IWB…) is not a
natural process that accompanies the cognitive paradigm shifts of humans.
At this point it becomes strategic to adapt the school to the external world, allowing it to contaminate
the school with new ideas and languages, and facilitating their assimilation by the school.
The DiGiscuola Project
DiGiscuola (www.digiscuola.it) is a pilot project aimed at introducing digital contents in the
classroom by exploiting the potential of a new, innovative tool: the interactive whiteboard (IWB). The
project currently involves 556 Italian schools, 3300 Italian and Maths school teachers who are enrolled
in the methodological training run by the National Agency for the Support of School Autonomy
(ANSAS, formerly INDIRE, www.indire.it), and about 3300 students. The choice of the subjects on
which to base the experimentation derives from the worrisome outcomes of the OECD-PISA [OECDCERI, PISA, 2006] surveys that attest to the very low-level performance of Italian students in basic
disciplines. DiGiscuola is a project promoted by the Ministry for Reforms and Innovation in Public
Administration, in collaboration with the Education Ministry, with the objective of creating a bridge
between traditional didactics and the new generations. Among the other collaborators we would like to
recognize the above mentioned National Agency, the main Italian Publishers (digital content
providers) and the University of Milan, entrusted with conductiong the monitoring activities (focus
groups, interviews, questionnaires…) of the project’s results.
The project involves the selection (through a call for applications) of high schools that have joined the
initiative and the allocation of, to each of them, an IWB equipped with video projector and a laptop for
each teacher in training (up to a maximum of six teachers per school, three Italian and three
mathematics teachers). The recipients of the training are teachers in the regions Sicily, Sardinia,
Puglia, Campania, Basilicata, Calabria, Abruzzo and Molise.
DiGiscuola has a complex architecture that foresees the allocation of an “electronic scholarship” to the
participating schools. These vouchers serve to acquire the digital didactic contents that publishers
insert in the DiGiscuola.it portal, thus generating a marketplace based on the principle of free market.
Within this environment are the teachers who have joined the project, their scholastic administrators
who purchase the selected didactic contents, and the students, enrolled in special virtual classes within
which they work on the contents assigned to them.
Parallel to the DiGiscuola.it portal (“the school, the classroom”) a second exists, devoted to the
methodological-didactic training of the teachers (“the teacher’s lounge”) who are introduced to a
critical selection of the didactic contents, didactic planning with the integration of the IWB and,
finally, the delicate phase of experimentation with the students. We will now concentrate on this
model of training that has been entrusted to the National Agency and which is divided in two phases.
First is the training and then the coaching. In the first, teachers are asked to work with an e-tutor on
some case studies and best practices documenting the use of the IWB in school and then develop a
project (of Italian or Maths) for its use in the classroom with their students. In the second phase, they
are supported by a coach who helps them to “translate” into action the purposes declared and
described in the project they designed.
The training began with an in-person first encounter conducted over the course of a two-day
residential training seminar during which the teacher-trainees met with the National Agency
researchers and with their respective e-tutors, previously selected and trained by the Agency. The
activities that began during the course of the seminar (training agreement, familiarization with the
portal, the contents and the phases of training) were then continued at a distance over the following
months under the careful direction of the tutor who, working with his/her own teachers (10-15 at
maximum) in a dedicated online environment (the virtual classroom), led an analysis of three themes
that constitute the backbone of the DiGiscuola program:
288. How to strengthen the face-to-face lesson with the use of the multimedia interactive
whiteboard integrating it and blending it with the “media” that has always made up the
educational setting of the classroom: the blackboard, ball-point pen, the geographic maps,
all the way to the cd and computer;
261
289. How to carry out the personalization of the educational course of the student keeping in
mind individual needs, understanding different sensibilities and intelligences, and taking
advantage of the potentialities of multiple semiotic codes: text, audio, images, video;
290. How to choose the digital didactic contents, to evaluate the quality in relation to the
curriculum, to didactic planning and the educational objectives the teacher intends to
pursue.
The training is divided in three phases: two months of analysis of case studies based on the
educational nodes proposed, a month of planning an innovative didactic course (training) and a final
phase of three months during which the experimentation planned in phase two is put into action
(coaching).
The teachers in training are assisted by the expert tutors and are followed, until the final phase, by a
coach who assists them during the course of the experimentation in the classroom with the students.
The project has currently reached the conclusion of the training phase and is in the coaching phase.
Achievements and further developments
The project has a big impact on the School System as a result of its innovative aspects and its many
declared objectives:
291. to promote innovation in school;
292. to bridge the digital divide gap between students/teachers;
293. to promote the use of the Interactive Whiteboards and digital contents;
294. to create a marketplace of digital contents.
There was significant research behind the development of the DiGiscuola Project since it depicts new
roles for the on-line/in-person tutoring. On the one hand we find the e-tutor who is a facilitator of the
collaborative activities (using both synchronous and asynchronous tools like audio/video conferences,
web forums, chats, blogs, wikis, calendar...) and is, at the same time, an expert on the topics being
addressed (Italian or Mathematics). On the other hand, after the e-tutor has completed his/her work
(corresponding to the “training phase”), it is the turn of another expert, with a different mission: the
coach (corresponding to the “coaching phase”). His/her work is more in-person oriented since the
main goal is to scaffold teachers in their work with their students, supported by the IWB. The focus,
here, lays in the introduction of this new tool: the interactive whiteboard. Researchers maintain that its
use in class creates the right (physical and methodological) setting for a more collaborative didactic
approach with students who become involved and interested by the new codes engendered with the
IWB: assets (music, videos, pictures) combined with texts open new horizons for a learning (rather
than teaching)-oriented method.
From the monitoring conducted by the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano it is discovered
that the teachers in training have comprehended and internalized the integration of the ICT in their
daily teaching (56.87%) managing to draw on the motivation of the students (55.32%) and putting into
practice collaborative learning dynamics among students (41.01%).
From an analysis of the projects which were created by the collaborative work of the teachers in
training and the object of the in-class experimentation phase (coaching) it emerges that:
295. 74% of the projects foresee the use of the IWB to support in-class production, thus mainly
impromptu use;
296. 45% for internet navigation;
297. 40% for the use of specific software.
The fact that the majority of the projects foresee a collaborative use of the IWB between students and
teacher (86%) is meaningful even if the real level of collaboration will need to be investigated in depth
at the end of the coaching phase.
As a last analysis we take into consideration the roles that teacher and student are called to assume
during the project work:
298. Expert (role centred around the communication of content) 62.41%;
299. Organizational support (advice, information) 34.83%;
300. Tutor (if presence-distance integration is foreseen) 29.66%;
262
301. Group leader (support the work groups) 64.48%;
302. Technical support 23.45%;
The conception of the teacher as the distributor of contents and as the only individual eligible to
provide education, rooted in the principle of one-way teaching to the detriment of personalization
according to multiple intelligences [Gardner, 1993] and the multiple cognitive styles of the students,
tends to disappear.
The following diagram summarises the varied approaches of use which emerged from the monitoring
of project work on the IWB interpreting its applications from an instrumental approach (IWB as an
instrument more than a methodology) to a critical approach (IWB as a catalyst of the processes of coconstruction of knowledge). The axis of the ordinates is intersected by the typology of didactics
interpreted by the teacher: from the transmissive dimension (IWB to project digital contents) to the
collaborative dimension (IWB to trigger didactic group dynamics).
Different from the blackboard, the IWB user can no longer think in black and white, but must learn to
produce effects in visual terms. Perhaps more complete and surely more complex communication is
delineated in this manner, where the written word loses part of its historical fascination and its
undeniable power to compromise with other semiotic codes in order to adapt itself to new forms.
Furthermore, while on the blackboard the signs produced have an ephemeral nature of a maximum
duration of one or two hours of lesson, the majority of the IWB software allows the recording, in a
selective way, of significant portions of the lesson, the interactions and, on the same support, also
audio fragments with the voices of the teacher or the students themselves. In this way the
metacognitive dimension of learning is increased and can be revisited at anytime (thanks to the
recovery of files saved and to the recording of the actions conducted on the surface of the IWB).
According to Antinucci, in the engaging essay “The school is broken” [Antinucci, 2000] the
modality of perceptive-motor learning is more isomorphic with respect to our cognitive style, too often
constrained by rigid conceptual cages that impoverish the situations and contexts of learning: “You
want an immediate example of it? How many of us that write with a computer have learned Word (…)
reading and studying the manual, that is, in a symbolic-reconstructive manner? And how many,
instead, have done it in a perceptive-motor way, that is, acting directly on the commands, observing
what happened, consequently modifying the successive actions, etc., in short, trying and retrying.”
From the interviews carried out by Higgins et al. [2005] we learn that:
303. 99% of teachers recognize in the use of the IWB an added value on student motivation and
attention;
304. 85% of teachers notice improvements in student performances;
263
305. 87% of teachers say they are more confident with ICT since they began using the IWB.
In conclusion, we believe that teachers should be trained to a critical and conscious use of the IWB
with students, since “tools” by themselves cannot innovate school.
The etymology of the term “project” refers us back to the Latin projectus, that is “to throw ahead,” “to
move something,” in a word: “to innovate.”
We believe that the DiGiscuola project is moving in this direction.
References
Antinucci, F. (2000). La scuola si è rotta. Laterza, Bari.
Armstrong, V.; Barnes, S.; Sutherland, R.; Curran, S.; Mill, S.; Thompson, I. (2005).
Collaborative research methodology for investigating teaching and learning: the use of
interactive whiteboard technology. Educational Review, Vol. 57, Taylor & Francis Group.
[Available at:
http://www.interactiveeducation.ac.uk/Publications/Armstrong%20&%20Barnes%20%20proof.pdf, accessed: 18.04.2008].
Beauchamp, G.; Parkinson, J. (2005). Beyond the ‘wow’ factor: developing interactivity with the
interactive whiteboard. School Science Review, Vol. 86 (316). Association For Science
Education. [Available at: http://www.tlrp.org/dspace/retrieve/1168/beyond+the+wow+factor.pdf,
accessed: 16.04.2008].
Becta (2003). What Research says about interactive whiteboard. Becta Research Reviews.
[Availabe at: http://www.virtuallearning.org.uk/2003research/Becta_research_paper.pdf,
accessed: 18.04.2008].
Cogill J. (2002). How is Interactive Whiteboard being used in the primary school and how does
it affect teachers and teaching. [Availabe at:
www.virtuallearning.org.uk/whiteboards/IFS_Interactive_whiteboards_in_the_primary_school.p
df, accessed: 18.04.2008].
Gardner, H. (1993). Multiple Intelligences: The theory in practice. New York: Basic Books.
Higgins, S.; Falzon, C.; Hall, I.; Moseley, D.; Smith, F.; Smith, H.; Wall, K. (2005). Embedding
ICT in The Literacy and Numeracy Strategies: Final Report, Centre for Learning and Teaching,
School.
OCSE-CERI-PISA (2006). Assessing Scientific, Reading and Mathematical Literacy: A
framework for PISA. [Availabe at:
http://www.pisa.oecd.org/document/33/0,3343,en_32252351_32236191_37462369_1_1_1_1,00.
html, accessed: 16.04.2008].
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. [Available at:
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/, accessed: 18.04.2008].
William D.; Beeland, Jr., (2002 ). Student Engagement, Visual Learning and Technology: Can
Interactive Whiteboards Help? [Available at:
http://chiron.valdosta.edu/are/Artmanscrpt/vol1no1/beeland_am.pdf, accessed: 18.04.2008].
Author:
Dott. Elena Mosa
National Agency for the Support of School Auhonomy (ANSAS, formerly INDIRE)
Department of Education and Training
Via M.Buonarroti n.10
50121 Florence (Italy)
Email: [email protected]
264
ENHANCING QUALITY OF LEARNING CONTENTS WITH
QUALITY FUNCTION DEPLOYMENT
Giovanna Avellis (TECNOPOLIS CSATA, Italy)
Abstract: Author aims to develop a scheme to enhance the quality of learning contents by applying the
product marketing and manufacturing concept of Quality Function Deployment (QFD) improved by the
approach used in decision support systems to assure that quality requirements, especially the Non Functional
Requirements (NFR), are traced in the learning contents. The goal of QFD is to ensure that the voice of
customer drives all actions concerned with quality. A case study on Multimedia Educational Software (MES)
and Mobile Learning Contents (MLC) has been performed in this context, while the further research to trace
the NFR to architectures has been performed in the domain of Information Systems and is still a work in
progress in the Mobile Services Application domain.
Keywords: Quality Requirements, Architecture, Traceability, Quality Function Deployment.
Background
Techniques are needed to express quality requirements and technology has to be develop to manage
and evaluate learning contents. Our approach is to underline at the centre of the learning content
development process, the ‘generation of a value model’ such as is used in classical engineering
disciplines. A key component of the development process is achieving a model of what is valued in the
resulting learning content. Using this view, quality characteristics are not externally imposed on a
development process but ‘constructed’ within it.
We have developed a scheme for representing critical NFRs, and applied it to the domains of mobile
e-learning contents (MLC) and multimedia educational software (MES) for validation. Our approach
extends the model for the representation of design rationale by making the evaluation goals explicit
and providing the means to improve the quality of e-learning contents by Quality Function
Deployment (QFD) [Mizuno, Akao 1978]. Finally, further issues for research will be underlined,
including the need to relate quality requirements to system architectures.
Quality Function Deployment (QFD) as a method has been used in several projects in Software
Engineering, such as NATURE project (Novel Approach to Theories Underlying Requirements
Engineering) to enhance the communication between developers of different views. It is based on
reconcilied planning and communication procedures arranged in a form called House-of-Quality
(HoQ). Most of the today QFD implementations neglets its communication aspects. QFD has been
improved with approaches used in the area of Computer Supported Co-operative Work (CSCW) as
well as Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS) to lead to a new generation of QFD tool.
In general, customer-driven projects have been identified as the ones where the requirements are
expressed much more fully and formal than market-driven projects, which use techniques from
product marketing and manufacturing rather than software engineering, such as Quality Function
Deployment (QFD) [Houser et al., 1988].
Mobile learning systems represent a broad class of software systems with complex characteristics that
tend to make evaluation difficult, because there are no existing comprehensive frameworks for
formative evaluation in the mobile environment. The effectiveness and pedagogical soundness are, for
example, very important to evaluate in mobile contents [Taylor, 2004]. Quite apart from the intrinsic
difficulty in assessing these characteristics, the novelty of mobile application and the future use, often
difficult to anticipate, makes this a very hard task.
The educational potential of MES learning contents, both as a learning and teaching tool, is, on the
contrary, widely acknowledged, and various initiatives have been undertaken to encourage the
integration of educational multimedia resources in school practice [Avellis, Capurso 1999a].
265
Many national and international activities in Multimedia Educational Software (MES) are currently
partially funded by the European Commission, involving private and public sector organisations
[Avellis, Fresa 1999]. In this context, the need for educational multimedia for vocational training
purposes is widely recognised. However, users of educational multimedia cannot appraise educational
resources because they are not able to evaluate their characteristics, potentialities and limits. The
reason it that it is not easy to carry out a critical evaluation of mobile educational multimedia because
these resources are relatively new compared to traditional print-based learning materials. Most people
are still not used to handling them nor aware of their educational potential.
Educational multimedia has an additional intrinsic complexity because it is a type of software that runs
on a computer and also an educational resource. Evaluating both these aspects is very different from
evaluating a book or any traditional educational resource because of the interleaving of the two
aspects: software and learning resource. The distinction between software and supporting learning is
blurred because of the way the application runs, which affects its educational effectiveness, and the
educational purpose, which underlies the design of the software. Therefore, both aspects must be
carefully considered during the evaluation. However, it is difficult to develop a pre-defined set of
standards against which the educational value of the software can be defined, because it is not possible
to define a unique and general instructional approach. Thus the educational value of a piece of
software is very difficult to define in practice [Avellis, Capurso 1999b].
The evaluation methodology adopted in the ESPRIT project ERMES [Avellis, Ulloa 1997] consists of
identifying aspects of the object under evaluation, and then defining quality indicators in relation to
these aspects. Defining the object of evaluation is a key step, because it suggests the evaluation criteria
to be used. We group the characteristics of MES under the following four evaluation categories:
306. educational features;
307. technical features;
308. aspects relating to the ease of use (usability);
309. aspects relating to the content.
Each one of these categories has been further divided into sub-categories. For example, educational
features can be divided into target users, pedagogical characteristics, instructional support materials,
and so on. That means that when evaluating the educational features of an MLC or MES, the aspects
relating to the target users, the pedagogical characteristics, the instructional support materials, and so
on, all have to be taken into account. MES is a computer program, which performs a specific
educational task. The multimedia component can be identified in the use of a variety of media to
deliver instruction or support for the learning activities. MES is also characterised by the presence of
interactive components, which should enable the user to control the learning environment.
We have also classified the features of mobile learning contents (MLC), which include:
310. content to be taught;
311. delivery media used to provide information;
312. user interface the way the educational software presents itself to the user; interaction
devices by which the user interacts with the computer, making choices, answering questions
or performing activities, and is provided with feedback to each response;
313. instructional strategy adopted;
314. access which refers to the navigational paths available to the user to reach the needed
content;
315. navigation allowing the user to go from one piece of content to another;
316. presentation which can provide guidelines for defining the visual communication strategies
or presenting the content, navigation strategies and operation to the user;
317. user operation those operations that are visible to the users and the only ones the user must
be aware of system operation that are not visible to the users, but are essential in building
user operation [Avellis, Capurso 1999a; UWA Consortium 2002]
The aim of this work in progress paper is to address the main issues of Evaluation of Learning
Resources and to manage the traceability of quality requirements to architectures.
266
Quality of learning resources is attracting more and more attention in e-Learning for two reasons: on
the technical side, it is usually not clear to those involved in the development how to measure the
various quality criteria on a day-to-day basis (ie formative analysis), nor how to achieve them and
measure them on completion (summative analysis). On the customer’s side, the issue is simply not
knowing what to ask for. To this end, a distinction has been made between basic quality factors, such
as functionality, reliability, ease of use, economy, safety, and extra quality factors, such as flexibility,
repairability, adaptability, understandability, documentation and enhanceability. The latter are quality
factors related to the external, or observable, quality of a learning resource and are particularly
important in the world of e-learning where technical strategies are emerging in parallel with
educational and pedagogical strategies. They are also important in the framework of mobile learning,
where the constraints of mobile devices and the supported software are very important for delivering
effective contents, in addition to mobile quality factors identified so far such as accessibility,
navigation, presentation and system user operation.
The nature of these factors is not well understood, which is why we propose to research how to
evaluate quality factors in wireless and e-learning modules, and apply the research results to several
domains and scenarios to validate the scheme. This will produce an integrated set of mobile learning
training modules, and an analysis and assessment of evaluation criteria to understand their
requirements for advanced mobile and wireless technologies. To this end, we will collaborate with
current standardisation working groups, especially the evaluation and assessment of NFRs of mobile
learning and e-learning modules. The current industry standards such as Aviation Industry CBT
Committee (AICC), Instructional Management System (IMS), Dublin Core Metadata Initiative
(DCMI), Institute for Electrical and Electronic Engineering/Learning Technology Standardization
Committee (IEEE/LTSC), Information Society Standardization System/Learning Technology
Workshop (CEN/ISSS LTWS), Alliance of Remote Instructional Authoring and Distribution Network
for Europe (ARIADNE), PROmoting Multimedia access to Education and Training in EUropean
Society (PROMETEUS) have already addressed the problem of metadata tagging of educational
resources to allow easier access and retrieval through e-learning systems. Further improvements in
standardisation could be achieved by extending the NFRs (eg target delivery device) to include the set
of characters currently adopted to describe and classify learning modules. This will result in an
increased capability of the user to assess the suitability of selected educational material for a specific
application environment (eg mobile learning).
Section 2 introduces the scheme for NFR traceability to architectures based on design rationale and
QFD.
Section 3 summarize the issues addressed in the paper, underlining the advantages and limitations and
its applicability to different application domains, and further work in Mobile Services and
Applications (MSAs), which is an emerging domain for future time-to-market applications, with very
interesting and critical quality characteristics of the learning resources.
A Scheme to Represent Non Functional Requirements Links to Architectures
The scheme developed to manage and evaluate quality of learning contents is based on the work done
on Quality Function Deployment (QFD) [Mizuno, Akao 1978] and in the area of design rationale
[Lee, 1991]. We also take into account the "issue-position-arguments" model [Conklin, Begeman
1988]. In our scheme, an “issue”, that is a problem to solve, is a quality characteristics/subcharacteristics to evaluate. An “argument", that is a supporting justification of the issue, is a
procedure which helps to determine which design alternative to choose to implement in the related
quality requirement or NFR. Finally, a "position" that is a solution to the problem, is either a statement
of the NFR, which gives a quality goal to be supported by the final design, or design alternatives. A
statement is an ascertainable property (possibly measurable, characterising NFRs). The complete
annotation scheme for NFR representation and the link to architecture is given in Figure 1 below:
267
activity
process
description
achieves
(strong, medium/weak/negative)
generalizes/
specialises
characteristic
replace/question/
is-suggested-by
(issue)
is-suggested-by
specified-by
respond-to
generalizes/
specialises
statement
determined-by
(position)
generalizes/
specialises
evaluates
ascertains
supports
(strong, medium/weak/negative)
procedure
(argument)
applied-to
architecture
product
description
Figure 1. Non Functional Requirements Representation Scheme to Architectures
It is important to underline that the statement contains measurable elements by which the NFR can be
"constructed" in software systems. It is a procedure which applies to different architectural choices. In
this way we relate NFRs to architectures, by linking statements and different system architectural
choices. We have enhanced the representation of NFR with Quality Function Deployment (QFD)
features. Mizuno and Akao [1978] have established a new systematic method of design oriented
approaches to ensure that customer needs drive the product design and production process since the
late 1960s. They developed a method called “Quality Deployment and/or Quality Function
Deployment” (QD/QFD). We have enhanced the scheme of NFR representation above by introducing
the context of evaluation and weights to the links above as follows. In order to be assured that we will
achieve a particular software quality characteristic it is helpful to associate it with some activities
within the software evaluation and development process. Activity is the evaluation and/or
implementation activity of the quality characteristic, which provides the context of evaluation. A
quality characteristic is obtained in a strong/medium/weak/negatively way as a result of performing an
activity. In a Quality-Function-Deployment (QFD) style we attach some weights - strong/ medium/
weak/negative – to this link, in order to let the evaluators to assign a weighted value to the
characteristic of the system under evaluation. Although a quality characteristic can be constructed
independently of the description of the development process of a product, it is useful to link the
product and process descriptions to the quality characteristics. We introduce the explicit representation
of architecture in the annotation scheme of NFR given before in order to set a link between the process
view and the product view of the software system under evaluation. The complete scheme for the
representation of the links between NFRs and architectures, provides the explicit representation of the
architectural description of the software system and new links to architecture and statement (position)
and procedure (argument), as follows:
318. supports (a statement is grounded on the specific choice of an architectural description and
upkeep it. It becomes obsolete if the statement/position changes in the software system. An
architecture can be chosen as the alternative which satisfy the statements in
strong/medium/weak or negatively way, following the QFD style);
319. applied-to (a procedure has to be implemented by the related architecture, that is the
architecture accomplishes or neglects a given procedure both formal or informal, which can
also be provided as argument during the evaluation to improve the current software system).
268
An example is the NFR ‘the MES package should be easy to operate’
The activity related to this is ‘understanding the usage of a MES package’, which achieves in medium
form the quality characteristics of ‘usability’. This in turn can be further specialised into the subcharacteristics ‘ease of use’, which is suggested by the requirements’ statement ‘the way software
operates’ and several procedures are used to measure usability: ‘What are the IT skills required to
operate the software? Is on-screen help available? Are directions clear and accurate? Are directions
available at all times? Is the management of assessment instruments easy?’
Another example is a quality NFR related to a MLC could be: ‘the MLC should fit the subject/topics
and learning objectives of my course’. The activity related to this example is to: ‘evaluate the
educational aim of the MLC package’, which strongly achieves the quality characteristics’
‘educational features’. ‘Educational features’ quality characteristics have several sub-characteristics to
be taken into account, such as ‘instructional characteristics’, which suggest by their requirement
statement that ‘appropriateness of learning objectives are suitable for the age and competence of target
users’ and this is measured by a procedure to ‘verify that the content and learning objectives are
consistent with the national curricula requirements’.
Conclusions
This paper presents work in progress to trace requirements to architectures [Avellis, 2008; Avellis,
Finkelstein 2005; Finkelstein et al., 2004]. A system quality attribute (ie the NFR) is largely permitted
or precluded by its architecture. The motivation for software architecture is to have a basis for
understanding and standardising systems and their components. Software has yet to achieve the level
of reuse realised by hardware disciplines. Although software is easy to reproduce, its variations are
much more difficult to standardise, identify and control. Although a universal reuse solution remains
elusive, great improvements have been made by focusing on well-defined areas of knowledge or
activity domains [Arango, Prieto-Diaz 1991]. Architectures provide a means for structuring
knowledge of the system within a domain, including their requirements. The possibilities for reuse are
greatest when the specifications are the least constrained at the architectural level. Reuse is normally
considered only at the implementation phase. This practice limits reuse to fine-grained modules at
best, and fails to allow for broader use of assets at a subsystem or higher level, by neglecting to plan at
the early stages of development.
In this context, we have focused on setting down a process where argument on the quality of an MLC
and MES, is considered on the basis of identified NFRs, and have developed some case studies to
evaluate the process critically. A follow-up research result project will develop an evaluation tool to
help not only MES users but also MLC users to choose educational software of high quality, suitable
for their needs and valuable as a educational resource to integrate into their own courses or current
curriculum based on the selection of NFRs. A further aim is to research and demonstrate innovative
mobile contents for training in the IT and education sectors, and to evaluate the requirements,
especially NFR, of e-learning modules for mobile applications and services. The wireless e-learning
solution will focus on the representation of mobile learning objects that suit the mobile delivery media,
and on methodologies for adapting MES to mobile learning environment.
In [Avellis, 2008] we give another example of the application of the scheme above to a Banking
Information System, we adopt the concept of architecture from IESEM (Integrated Environment for
Software Evolution Management) environment [Canfora, 1995]. It is called generic design, that is a
design scheme which describes the software solution as a highly portable architecture.
Further applications of the scheme is under study for the domain of Mobile Services Application
(MSAs), such as in the innovative use of Mobile Learning for training long term absents from work
for occupational stress [Avellis, Finkelstein 2005]. We aim to investigate whether MSA applications
have similar NFRs and architectures and to search for evidence whether there are common challenging
ones that characterize the domain. An important result will also be the method to analyze the
suitability of architectural styles which fulfill a given NFR, which can serve a broader community of
MSA planners, managers, architects and developers. The architectures of MSAs will be shown to
exhibit characteristics of various architectural styles. By analyzing how these styles support the NFRs,
we can identify those styles that offer the “best-fit” and provide guidelines for the engineering of
MSAs. Finally, the work will be validated in the chosen domain. Several case studies will be
269
performed in the domain, in industry and SMEs interested to exploit the results with respect to its
applicability in the near future time-to-market products.
Acknowledgement
This work has been partly financially supported by the European Commission under the Human
Capital and Mobility scheme, and the European projects ERMES (EuRopean Multimedia Educational
Software) [Avellis, Capurso 1999], MACS (Maintenance Assistance Capabilities for Software)
[Avellis, 1990], and MOBITECH (European SMEs Challenge in Mobile Communication
Technologies) [Avellis et al., 2004]. The author thanks Prof. Antony Finkelstein (UCL, London, UK)
for his support and encouragement to the research.
References
Arango, G.; Prietro-Diaz, R. (1991). Domain Analysis and Software System Modelling, IEEE
Computer Society Press,. Los Alamitos, CA.
Avellis, G. (1990). MACS ESPRIT project and the Software Evolution Expert System.
Proceedings of Annual Conference of Associazione Italiana per l’Informatica e il Calcolo
Automatico AICA, Bari, Italy, pp. 3-7.
Avellis, G. ; Ulloa, A.S. (1997). ERMES technical annex. ESPRIT 24111 Project, ERMES
Consortium (eds.).
Avellis, G.; Capurso, M. (1999a). ERMES evaluation methodology to support teachers in skills
development. In: Tuomi, E.; Salonen, M.; Saarinen, P.; Sinko, M. (eds.). Proceedings of IFIP
WG3.1 and 3.5 Open Conference on Communications and Networking in Education: Learning in
a Networking society, Painopaikka Yliopistopaino, Hameliina, Finland, pp. 12-19.
Avellis, G.; Capurso, M. (1999b). ERMES Services for Education. In: Roger, J.; Stanford-Smith,
J.; Kidd, P.T. (Eds). Business and Work in the Information Society: New Technologies and
Applications. Stockholm, Sweden, IOS Press, pp. 520-527.
Avellis, G.; Fresa, A. (1999). Education and training: a challenge between industries and
cultures. In: Roger, J.; Stanford-Smith, J.; Kidd, P.T. (Eds). Business and work in the
information society: new technologies and applications. Stockholm: IOS Press, pp. 401-407.
Avellis, G.; Finkelstein, A. (2002). How to Annotate Educational Multimedia with NonFunctional Requirements. Educational Technology & Society, Vol. 5.
Avellis, G., et al. (2003). Evaluating Non Functional Requirements in Mobile Learning Contents
and Multimedia Educational Software. In: Learning with Mobile Devices- research and
development LSDA Agency, London, pp. 13-20. (Also presented at the MLEARN 2003
Conference, London).
Avellis, G.; Finkelstein, A. (2005). Innovative use of Mobile Learning for Occupational Stress:
Evaluation of Non Functional Requirements and Architectures. Proceedings of the third IEEE
International Workshop on Wireless and Mobile Technologies in Education 2005, WMTE2005,
Tokushima, Japan, pp. 146-148.
Avellis, G. (2008). Traceability of Non Functional Requirements to IS Architectures. Submitted
to IADIS International Conference e-Society 2008, Algarve, Portugal, 9-12 April 2008.
Canfora, G.; et al. (1995). IESEM, Integrated Environment for Software Evolution Management.
International Journal of Software Engineering and Knowledge Engineering, SEKE, Vol. 5,
No.1, pp. 49-71.
Conklin, J.; Begeman, M.L. (1988). gIBIS: A Hypertext Tool for Exploratory Policy Discussion.
ACM Transactions on Office Information Systems, Vol.6, No. 4, pp.303-331.
Finkelstein, A.; et al. (2004). Relating Requirements and Architectures: A Study of Data-Grids,
Journal of Grid Computing, Vol. 2, pp. 207-222.
270
Houser, J.; Clausing, D. (1988). The House of Quality. Harvard Business Review, May-June.
Lee, L. (1991). Extending the Potts and Bruns Model for Recording Design Rationale, IEEE
Software, pp.114-125.
Mizuno, S.; Akao, Y. (1978). Quality Function Deployment. Nikkagiren-Syuppan, Tokyo, Japan.
Taylor J. (2003). A task-centred approach to evaluating a mobile learning environment for
pedagogical soundness. In: Learning with Mobile Devices- research and development LSDA
Agency, London, pp. 13-20. (Also presented at the MLEARN 2003 Conference, London).
UWA Consortium (2002). The UWA approach to modeling ubiquitous web applications. In:
Proceedings of IST Mobile and Wireless Telecommunications Summit 2002: Towards
Ubiquitous Communications, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Author:
Giovanna Avellis
TECNOPOLIS CSATA
Via M.Troiani 10
Rutigliano
70018 Bari
Italy
Phone +39 080 4670 374
Fax +39 080 4670 363
271
VITRA – LE PREMIER CENTRE VIRTUEL EUROPEEN
DE FORMATION AUX ARTS ET TECHNIQUES DU VERRE
Catherine Claus-Demangeon (Vidéoscop-Université Nancy 2)
Denis Garcia (Centre Européen de Recherche et de Formation aux Arts Verriers),
Nathalie Vaglio (Vidéoscop-Université Nancy 2)
Mots Clés: E-learning , Techniques verrières, Vidéothèque
Résumé du projet
Face à la délocalisation vers l’Asie de l’industrie du verre, les professionnels européens du secteur des
arts verriers doivent s’orienter vers la fabrication de nouveaux produits. Seul le marché des produits à
forte valeur ajoutée artistique leur permettra de disposer d’un avantage concurrentiel face aux pays à
faible coût de main d’œuvre. Leur réalisation nécessite alors une maîtrise parfaite des savoir-faire
traditionnels anciens, nécessaires à la fabrication de ces objets d’art, ainsi qu'une bonne connaissance
des tendances artistiques des différents pays. Pour accéder à ces savoirs et aux savoir-faire artisanaux
rares, disséminés dans les grandes places verrières européennes, les artisans du verre doivent pouvoir
les identifier, les expérimenter et les maîtriser.
Il existe en Europe plusieurs centres de formation aux techniques verrières. Des formations
diplômantes ou qualifiantes sont assurées en présentiel par des professionnels, des pédagogues et des
artistes spécialisés dans les techniques verrières régionales. On y rencontre parfois des maîtres verriers
étrangers, qui complètent l’enseignement dispensé dans le cadre de stages de courtes durées.
Spécifiquement sollicités pour la maîtrise d’un savoir-faire qui leur est propre, leur présence nécessite
toutefois que les centres de formation disposent des équipements nécessaires pour les accueillir. Ces
contraintes techniques, comme par exemple la mise à disposition d’un four spécifique et les
investissements financiers qu’ils supposent, limitent les possibilités d’intervention. Pourtant ces
rencontres, quand elles sont rendues possibles, sont riches d’enseignement. Elles permettent aux
participants, d’enrichir leurs connaissances techniques, de tisser des liens à l’international, d’entrevoir
de nouveaux marchés, de nouveaux produits et de diversifier une activité économiquement difficile.
La création, sur Internet, du Centre Virtuel Européen de Formation aux Arts et Techniques du Verre VITRA est le projet que 5 partenaires issus de 4 pays ont réalisé avec le soutien du programme
Socrates Leonardo Da Vinci pour répondre à cette problématique. Il s’adresse aux artisans et au PME
du secteur de l’artisanat d’art verrier, aux centres de formation qui enseignent les techniques verrières,
aux artistes et designers qui conçoivent les objets et aux écoles qui forment ces artistes. L’enjeu est
d’assurer une meilleure compétitivité du secteur verrier en Europe par le développement des
compétences des professionnels, de permettre à un plus grand nombre de s’initier aux techniques
développées par d’autres pays et de mettre en place un observatoire européen des techniques verrières
et des expériences en matière de création.
VITRA s’inscrit dans une logique de e-learning. Il se structure autour de modules d’apprentissage
autonomes spécifiquement conçus pour une exploitation sur Internet.
Ces modules sont définis selon le modèle pédagogique suivant :
320. des vidéos didactiques qui décrivent les compétences et les savoir-faire rares spécifiques à
chaque pays;
321. des documents de soutien, synchronisés à la video;
322. des documents d’accompagnement accessibles à tout instant et qui doivent aider
l’utilisateur à tirer le meilleur profit des vidéos diffusées:
272
323.
Un guide pédagogique;
324.
Des conseils synchronisés à la video;
325.
Une liste d’équipement et d’outillage;
326.
Une bibliographie et une webographie;
327.
Une Foire aux Questions;
328.
Des photos des œuvres réalisées à partir de chaque technique;
329.
Une présentation historique des savoir-faire;
330.
Un traducteur des termes techniques.
Pour mettre en œuvre ce dispositif, un partenariat de qualité a été monté. Il réunit des centres de
formation européens, qui ont apporté au projet leurs compétences pédagogiques et leur connaissance
du secteur verrier, et un centre universitaire spécialisé dans la formation à distance, la production
audiovisuelle et multimédia et la gestion de projets européens.
Présentation détaillée du projet
Le secteur cible
Le projet vise la filière verre en Europe et plus précisément le secteur des arts et techniques du verre,
plus communément appelé artisanat d’arts verriers. Ce secteur, qui concerne la fabrication d’objets à
haute valeur artistique ajoutée, nécessite une maîtrise accrue des techniques traditionnelles verrières
européennes. En ce sens, il se différencie de l’industrie du verre qui déploie son activité en Europe
vers la production de masse à travers des processus d’industrialisation et de simplification des
techniques.
Les publics cibles
Les utilisateurs finaux
Les utilisateurs finaux du projet, sont les suivants:
331. les artisans et les PME en Europe, qui utilisent les techniques traditionnelles verrières pour
fabriquer les objets d’arts;
332. les stagiaires, les apprentis, les étudiants européens qui apprennent les techniques
traditionnelles;
333. les centres de formation européens dans lesquels ces techniques verrières sont enseignées.
Les utilisateurs potentiels
Les publics cibles, utilisateurs potentiels du projet, sont les suivants:
334. les artistes et les designers qui conçoivent les objets qui seront fabriqués par les
professionnels verriers;
335. les écoles d’art et de design qui forment ces artistes à la conception de ces produits.
Les partenaires du projet
Le partenariat a été construit de manière à rassembler toutes les compétences nécessaires à la réussite
d’un tel projet:
336. Vidéoscop-Université Nancy 2: centre universitaire de production vidéo et multimédia,
spécialisé dans le management de projets, dans la réalisation de programmes audiovisuels
de formation et dans la réalisation de dispositif d’enseignement à distance;
337. 2 établissements d’enseignements supérieurs (l’école d’Etat de Novy Bor en République
Tchèque, Pukeberg School of Design de l’Université de Kalmar en Suède), spécialisés dans
l’enseignement universitaire et la formation professionnelle aux techniques verrières;
338. Un centre national d’innovation et de formation, le CERFAV (Centre Européen de
Recherche et de Formations aux arts verriers) de Vannes-le-Châtel, spécialisé dans la
formation aux arts et technique du verre et dans la création d’activité verrière;
273
339. Un centre d’enseignement et de recherche, l’école Abate Zanetti en Italie, spécialisé dans
l’enseignement et les travaux de recherche appliquée.
Le contexte
L’industrie du verre en crise
La filière verre, en Europe, connaît de grandes difficultés en raison de la concurrence des pays à faible
coût de main d’œuvre (comme l’Asie par exemple). En France, Cristal D’Arques, la plus grande
verrerie européenne, malgré une production déjà fortement automatisée a choisi de délocaliser en
Chine une partie de sa production provoquant la disparition d’un millier d’emplois et plus de 2000 à
l’horizon 2007. La Manufacture des cristalleries de Baccarat a connu 2 plans de réduction de
personnels en 2004. Les cristalleries Daum ont recentré leur activité sur la fabrication de pâtes de
verre délaissant toute la partie liée aux arts de la table et la verrerie mécanique (150 emplois
supprimés). Les verreries de Vianne ont cessé leur activité pour redémarrer avec une dizaine de
personnes. D’autres verreries et cristalleries, comme Hartzvillers, Royale de Champagne ou les
Cristalleries de Haute-Bretagne, ont récemment fermé ou réduit radicalement leur activité à la suite de
plans sociaux et en raison de coûts de production trop élevés pour des produits à faible valeur créative.
La situation est la même dans toutes les grandes places verrières européennes. Ainsi, en République
Tchèque, les grandes verreries industrielles telles que Crystallex commencent à se restructurer. Les
cristalleries Orrefors et Kosta-Boda en Suède viennent de connaître, pour la première fois de leur
histoire, des réductions de personnels et de production.
Le développement de l’artisanat d’art comme solution à cette crise
Parallèlement aux entreprises de ce type, qui licencient et recentrent leurs activités vers l’artisanat
d’art sur des segments différenciés (ex : sculpture pour Daum (FR), bijou et luminaire pour Baccarat
(FR)), un nouveau marché s’ouvre. Il concerne des structures plus artisanales qui fabriquent des
produits à plus value esthétique et créative en faisant appel à des savoir-faire anciens et différents de
ceux valorisés jusqu’alors dans l’industrie.
L’industrialisation des process et la segmentation du travail ont contribué à la déqualification des
personnels par une sur-spécialisation dévolue à la fabrication d’objets de grandes séries. Les décors et
les difficultés techniques ont été considérablement allégés. Cette voie, se poursuivant, ne laisse pas
d’espace aux entreprises de grande production sur le territoire européen car l’intervention humaine est
importante et les coûts de main d’œuvre restent très élevés pour le type d’objets fabriqués. Les pays
comme la République Tchèque, partenaire du projet, commencent à ressentir les effets de cette
tendance.
Par contre l’artisanat d’art trouve des niches d’activités pour de petites séries fréquemment
renouvelées, des reproductions d’objets ou des travaux de restauration. Il propose surtout de nouveaux
produits originaux, à faible édition et où la dissociation entre l’objet et son producteur est difficile à
faire. Le sens de l’objet devient prépondérant et sa qualité esthétique également. Les entreprises telles
que Daum ont su anticiper cette tendance en se recentrant sur une fabrication de pâtes de verre, objets
uniques fabriqués selon des modes très artisanaux. Les verriers suédois ont su lier un
concepteur/designer à l’objet et probablement la tendance sera-t-elle de lier le concepteur/verrier et
l’objet.
Les besoins du secteur cible
Une bonne connaissance des savoirs anciens comme facteurs de réussite
Si le renouveau du verre, en Europe, passe obligatoirement par la création de nouveaux produits et
donc par l’artisanat verrier, cet artisanat doit maîtriser les savoir-faire anciens qui lui permettront de
réaliser ces objets à haute valeur artistique ajoutée.
Ces savoirs anciens sont restés présents, en Europe, dans différentes zones très bien localisées:
340. Le soufflage et la pâte de verre en Lorraine (France);
341. Le soufflage, la coloration et l’assemblage des verres dans le Smaland (Suède);
342. Le soufflage et la décoration à Venise (Italie);
343. La taille, la décoration et la peinture sur verre en Bohème (République Tchèque).
274
Ils correspondent à des savoir-faire traditionnels très généraux derrière lesquels se déclinent des
techniques plus pointues et plus spécifiques (ex: le soufflage renvoie aux techniques de filigranes, de
murrhines, de reticello, d’incalmo, de graal, etc.). Il devient donc essentiel que les compétences
traditionnelles détenues dans chaque région citée ci-dessus puissent être mieux identifiées et partagées
entre les uns et les autres: verriers, centres de formations, concepteurs et apprenants (étudiants,
apprentis, stagiaires ou lycéens).
Des outils pédagogiques à développer
Face à ce constat, il est aujourd’hui nécessaire de développer des outils pédagogiques destinés à
enseigner ces techniques. Ces outils, qui favoriseront les échanges entre les différents acteurs
concernés des différents pays et rendront transparents et accessibles à tous les savoir-faire et les
compétences disséminées en Europe, doivent être adaptés aux besoins des publics cibles.
Les besoins du public cible
Les besoins des artisans
Isolés dans leurs ateliers, ils sont pris par les contraintes de production. Les artisans sont donc peu
consommateurs de formations car celles-ci sont souvent synonymes d’absence, chose délicate pour
eux compte tenu de leur organisation de travail. Ceci est d’autant plus vrai, par exemple, pour les
souffleurs de verre, tributaires d’un four qui fonctionne toute l’année sans possibilité de l’arrêter.
Difficile dans ces conditions de partir suivre un stage de 3 à 4 jours dans un centre spécialisé. Ils sont
conscients, pourtant, de la nécessité de perfectionner leurs techniques, de s’initier à d’autres savoirfaire afin d’accroître leur compétitivité. C’est pourquoi ils réclament des enseignements adaptés à leur
spécificité professionnelle. Ils souhaitent des formations qui pourraient enfin se dérouler sans qu’ils
aient à se déplacer, dans leur propre atelier et à temps choisi.
Les besoins des stagiaires, des apprentis et des étudiants
Actuellement, les cursus de formation suivis par ces publics sont essentiellement centrés sur les
techniques traditionnelles prépondérantes dans leur région. Ils sont par conséquent très rarement
formés aux techniques verrières européennes, ce qui limite considérablement leur possibilité
d’intégration dans des ateliers européens et leur mobilité professionnelle.
Les besoins des centres de formation
Les centres de formation aux arts et techniques du verre, y compris ceux fortement dépendants d’une
industrie locale, ont le souci de faire évoluer les savoir-faire enseignés pour répondre aux nouvelles
demandes des entreprises. Ces demandes, qui concernent la fabrication d’objets à forte valeur
artistique ajoutée, nécessitent l’appropriation d’autres techniques que celles jusqu’alors enseignées.
Les séries d’objets d’arts verriers évoluent et se renouvellent plus vite que par le passé. Leurs
réalisations techniques ne se fondent plus exclusivement sur des pratiques traditionnelles régionales.
Elles peuvent faire appel à d’autres savoir-faire qu’il est nécessaire de pouvoir identifier. Elle
nécessite donc une grande adaptabilité et une bonne connaissance de ces savoir-faire afin de choisir
rapidement la technique la plus adéquate à l’objet à réaliser. Les écoles françaises, italiennes,
suédoises ou tchèques, entre autres, sont en relation pour revoir leurs modalités d’enseignement des
arts verriers en ce sens. Les habitudes de formations, fondées sur des séries de gestes et de savoir-faire
régionaux, sont remises en cause afin de répondre à ces nouveaux marchés.
Les besoins des artistes et des designers
Les techniques verrières sont peu enseignées dans les écoles d’art et de design. Ce sont pourtant ces
futurs artistes qui seront amenés à concevoir les objets qui devront être réalisés par ailleurs.
Deux cas de figures sont fréquemment observés par les professionnels du verre:
344. Soit, les artisans et designers ne connaissent pas les limites et contraintes d’emploi du verre
dans la fabrication d’objets et proposent des projets irréalisables;
345. Soit, ils ignorent l’étendue des possibilités techniques de travail du verre (les décors
colorés, les effets de matières, le rôle de la lumière, de la couleur et de la transparence qui
sont difficiles à appréhender) et les produits conçus ne présentent de pertinence que par leur
forme mais rarement par leurs décors.
275
Ils ont donc besoin d’outils de connaissances qui leur permettront de comprendre les techniques et leur
processus de mise en œuvre à des fins de conception de nouveaux produits verriers.
Les besoins des écoles d’art et de design
Elles ont besoin de supports visuels et didactiques pour enrichir leurs enseignements et préparer les
artistes et les designers appréhender le jeu des possibles de la filière des arts et techniques du verre.
Une réponse adaptée
En réponse à ces besoins, le projet VITRA propose la création du premier centre virtuel de formation
aux arts et techniques du verre en Europe. Cet outil e-learning se structure autour de modules de
formation à ces techniques conçues pour un apprentissage en autonomie. Des vidéos didactiques, qui
décrivent les gestes et les savoir-faire, sont au cœur de cet enseignement. Elles sont complétées par des
informations multimédias:
346. Un guide pédagogique;
347. Des conseils synchronisés à la video;
348. Une liste d’équipement et d’outillage;
349. Une bibliographie et une webographie;
350. Une Foire aux Questions;
351. Des photos des œuvres réalisées à partir de chaque technique;
352. Une présentation historique des savoir-faire;
353. Un traducteur des termes techniques.
Table 1. 12 techniques traditionnelles y sont actuellement proposées
4 pays
partenaires
FRANCE
REPUBLIQUE
TCHEQUE
SUÈDE
ITALIE
12 techniques
référencées
Peintures de styles en grisaille
Pâte de verre
Perles au chalumeau
Gravure à la roue
Peinture en Haut émail
Soufflage à la tchèque
Graal
Ariel
Sandcasting
Sculpture à chaud
Incalmo
Gobelets vénitiens avec reticello
14 maîtres verriers
mobilisés
Josette TRUBLARD
Olivier LEONARD
Emmanuel SZTUKA
Milan BATKA
Silva KARLOVSKA
Pavel TILLE, Frantisek EIS
Wilke ADOLFSSON, Micke
JOHANSSON, Astrid GATE
Bertil VALLIEN
Dino et Diego ROSIN
Livio SERENA
Livio SERENA
Le projet répond aux besoins exprimés par les publics destinataires de la manière suivante:
Pour les artisans:
Le projet VITRA, à travers les modules d’enseignement accessibles à tous, à tout moment et en tout
lieu, répond totalement à leurs contraintes. Il leur apportera les moyens d’élargir leurs compétences et
la possibilité d’une expérimentation directe et personnelle dans leur propre atelier. Ils pourront
également s’en servir pour former en interne leurs propres collaborateurs.
Pour les stagiaires, les apprentis et les étudiants:
Le projet VITRA facilitera l’acquisition des connaissances qui leur font défaut, leur permettra de
nouer des liens à l’international via le réseau de partenaires du projet et facilitera leur mobilité à
travers l’Europe.
Pour les centres de formation:
Le projet VITRA, qui présente d’une manière pédagogique une palette des techniques utilisées en
Europe, leur fournira les supports visuels nécessaires pour compléter les formations dispensées.
276
Certains savoir-faire nécessitent un matériel de réalisation spécifique mais difficilement rentabilisable
pour les centres de formation. L’outil VITRA proposera donc une solution alternative virtuelle aux
structures ne disposant pas des infrastructures techniques indispensables.
Pour les artistes et les designers:
Le projet VITRA, grâce aux outils pédagogiques visuels qui montrent les principales techniques
existantes et leur processus de mise en œuvre, servira de référence pour élargir et faire comprendre le
champ des possibles en matière de création et de conception de nouveaux produits verriers. Le
catalogue des objets d’art, réalisés sur la base des techniques présentées, enrichira leur perception, les
informera des tendances de chaque pays comme source d’inspiration.
Pour les écoles d’art et de design:
Le projet VITRA leur apportera une source de documentation et d’exemples concrets pour préparer
leurs étudiants à concevoir des produits verriers non seulement réalisables mais qui sauront aussi
véritablement tirer profit des techniques verrières existantes.
Les objectifs du projet
Mutualiser les savoir-faire propres à chaque pays, membre du partenariat
Chaque pays partenaire a identifié 3 techniques essentielles et spécifiques de sa région, porteuses de
développement économique, afin de les proposer aux autres collègues européens. Ces techniques ont
été filmées, détaillées et présentées accompagnées de supports didactiques, afin d’être reproduites et
développées.
Définir des modalités pédagogiques communes d’enseignement de ces savoir-faire
L’offre de formation VITRA se fonde sur un modèle pédagogique commun et sur une définition
précise de l’encadrement pédagogique et administratif de cette offre. Le modèle pédagogique commun
est construit sur la base d’un enseignement modulaire découpé en étapes. Ce modèle s’attache à définir
la structure pédagogique de ces modules ( en terme de compétences à acquérir, de pré-requis, de
critères d’évaluation, etc.), l’approche pédagogique des vidéos et des documents de soutien à la vidéo,
l’approche pédagogique des ressources multimédias mises en ligne pour enrichir la formation.
Cette démarche pédagogique va permettre de stimuler la création de référentiels communs dans le
domaine des techniques et des arts du verre. Le recensement des techniques, les critères d’évaluation
permettant d’identifier la réussite ou non de chaque geste et donc le niveau technique de l’apprenant
sont des étapes qui conduisent à cette notion de référentiel. Néanmoins le recensement, puis la
définition de paliers de qualifications sont difficiles à établir dans une période et un secteur où les
métiers sont en train de se restructurer sous l’influence des profondes ré-organisations du travail. De
plus, l’évolution des échanges internationaux apportera également des données importantes pour
mener, à terme cette réflexion. C’est pourquoi, le projet VITRA, s’est limité à recueillir des
informations en vu de la création de ces référentiels sans prétendre cependant à leur constitution finale.
Créer un observatoire européen des pratiques et des expériences en matière de créations verrières
Chaque partenaire a identifié l’évolution des pièces réalisées à partir des techniques. Ces données
regroupées sous forme de catalogues-produits, associées aux modules techniques fournissent des
références utiles aux apprenants qui peuvent ainsi faire le parallèle avec leurs propres références. Ces
catalogues leur permettent d’appréhender les tendances artistiques des différents pays, des différentes
pratiques. C’est en ce sens que VITRA se positionne comme un observatoire de ce qui se passe et se
fait en Europe.
Mettre en place un lieu d’échanges entre les artistes et artisans
En faisant cohabiter sur un même site, à la fois les techniques traditionnelles verrières et les objets
design réalisés à partir de ces techniques, le projet VITRA à l’ambition de rapprocher les métiers du
verre de leurs prescripteurs. Ce rapprochement invite à appréhender les contraintes des uns et des
autres, leur spécificité professionnelle, leur vocabulaire technique, etc. L’intention est de progresser
vers une culture de l’échange au-delà des habituelles frontières.
277
Créer un réseau de partenaires européens dans le domaine de la filière verre
Les centres de formation spécialisés et compétents dans les techniques présentes dans leur région
expriment le besoin de s’ouvrir à celles exercées par leurs voisins. Le dernier symposium du verre
(juin 2004) organisé par l’école de Novy Bor (République Tchèque) correspondait parfaitement à ce
besoin. L’école s’est ouverte et a offert tous ses moyens en équipements, formateurs, matières d’œuvre
aux autres écoles européennes à la fois pour faire la promotion des arts verriers auprès des jeunes et
pour provoquer l’échange et la confrontation des points de vue « techniques » et des points de vue «
design et créativité ». Le site VITRA procède ce cette logique.
Impulser l’utilisation des nouvelles technologies dans les pratiques de formation existantes
L’échange qui se met en place se construit sur la base de l’expérience de chaque centre de formation.
Il se fonde sur l’implication des professionnels dans la démarche d’enseignement. Les artisans d’art
détiennent les savoir-faire pointus qui nous préoccupent; il est important qu’ils les transmettent ; il est
important également qu’ils s’ouvrent aux techniques et connaissances de leurs voisins. Cet échange se
fonde également sur la diffusion des données pédagogiques au plus grand nombre par l’intermédiaire
du web et surtout sur l’intégration de ces enseignements virtuels aux pratiques des centres de
formation. En ce sens les partenaires se sont engagés, non seulement, à utiliser les modules et les
informations du site pour enrichir leurs formations, mais aussi, à inciter leur utilisation auprès de leurs
réseaux.
L’impact du projet sur le public cible
En mutualisant des modules d’enseignement à distance, sur les savoir-faire et les techniques
traditionnels verriers, rares en Europe, VITRA dote ses publics cibles d’outils pédagogiques qui
permettront:
354. d’améliorer la formation professionnelle continue dans le secteur de l’artisanat d’art;
355. de favoriser l’acquisition d’aptitudes et de compétences des artisans et des apprentis tout au
long de leur vie;
356. d’accroître leur capacité d’adaptation pour accompagner les changements technologiques
et organisationnels de la filière verre;
357. de promouvoir et renforcer la contribution de la formation au processus d’innovation;
358. d’améliorer la compétitivité et l’esprit d’entreprise;
359. de créer de nouvelles possibilités d’emplois dans le secteur verrier;
360. de renforcer la coopération entre les centres de formations européens aux arts et techniques
verrières.
L’e-learning est un outil pertinent pour répondre à ces objectifs.
Sa dimension « multimédia » permet d’utiliser le média le mieux adapté au message à faire passer et
au public à qui ce message est destiné. Le recours à la vidéo donne la possibilité d’aborder tous les
éléments constitutifs d’une technique comme s’il s’agissait d’une situation réelle. Elle montre pour
chaque savoir-faire les outils et les équipements, les consommables et les matières d’œuvre, le
séquencement précis des gestes et tours de mains. La vidéo est découpée en unités d’informations pour
un visionnement séquentiel ; les techniques de rich média permettant l’affichage, dans une fenêtre,
d’éléments complémentaires synchrones
Sa dimension « ouverte et à distance » correspond tout à fait à la difficulté d’accès aux connaissances
des publics cibles, difficultés qui s’expriment, soit parce que les formations à ces techniques n’existent
pas dans leurs pays, soit parce qu’ils n’ont pas la possibilité d’y accéder compte-tenu de leur
organisation de travail. La logique d’une formation ouverte à tous, disponible à tout moment, de
n’importe quel endroit revêt un intérêt certain pour les professionnels verriers.
Remarques: Le e-learning peut paraître limité dans le domaine du verre et peut être plus globalement
dans le domaine des métiers d’art où l’activité de formation repose sur la pratique de tours de main et
donc sur une formation en présentiel. Mais quand le visuel s’appuie sur un modèle structuré donnant à
l’utilisateur tous les moyens de reproduire par lui-même l’évolution du geste, il s’avère tout à fait
efficace. La possibilité d’accéder à d’autres médias permet de renforcer l’information diffusée en
répondant au plus près aux besoins des utilisateurs.
278
Le site VITRA est consultable à partir d’un ordinateur bureautique, relié à Internet (connexion ADSL
préconisée).
Pour les artisans qui ne sont pas encore équipés, l’investissement informatique pour accéder aux
informations est faible.
En ce qui concerne les centres de formation et les écoles d’enseignement, ils sont équipés
d’ordinateurs qui fonctionnent en réseau. Ils ont tous un site web et utilisent régulièrement les outils de
communication à distance. Ils disposent donc de l’infrastructure nécessaire pour utiliser les modules
du projet VITRA.
L’impact du projet dans les systèmes nationaux de formation professionnelle
Il n’existe dans les pays partenaires, pas plus que dans les pays européens, de politiques nationales
spécifiques en matière de formation aux métiers d’art en général et encore moins aux arts et techniques
du verre en particulier. Les pratiques nationales fonctionnent sans organisation, ni concertation
particulière. L’une des raisons est probablement que ce secteur est peu ou mal défini: il se situe entre «
art » et « technique » sans délimitation particulière.
L’activité des professionnels oscille entre les 2 pôles, artisan d’un côté et artiste de l’autre, suivant leur
démarche ou la nature de leur production (objets utilitaires et reproductibles, pièces uniques, objets
décoratifs etc.) et suivant leur marché. Le positionnement des branches professionnelles n’étant pas
clair, les systèmes d’enseignement ne le sont pas non plus.
L’industrie quant à elle, par la segmentation des tâches, a induit des filières de formation de
techniciens et parallèlement les formations artistiques qui se sont développées l’ont toujours été selon
la volonté affirmer de rejeter le travail des matériaux pour ne former que des concepteurs et des
créateurs.
En France nous bénéficions de l’appui d’Ateliers d’arts de France, chambre syndicale attentive à la
valorisation des métiers d’art . Malheureusement il n’existe pas de représentation équivalente sur
laquelle s’appuyer dans les pays partenaires, pour les raisons similaires à celles que nous venons
d’évoquer plus haut. Les seules représentations existantes sont celles structurées par les
représentations syndicales liées à l’industrie. Aussi devons-nous montrer l’intérêt de démarches
nouvelles et de contenus de formations innovants qui pourront provoquer un travail conduisant à
l’élaboration de référentiels. Notre démarche en est le préalable et toute autre méthode sera vouée à
l’échec.
En résumé, le projet VITRA va permettre de recenser une série de techniques à enseigner. Il va doter
les écoles européennes d’un solide ensemble de modules et de leçons. Il va donner l’occasion de
rencontres et provoquer la constitution de réseaux qui appuieront leurs programmes de formations sur
des bases communes. Cette démarche acceptée facilitera par la suite l’élaboration de référentiels. De
surcroît les acteurs de la formation pourront donner les indications utiles aux branches
professionnelles et aux décideurs en matière d’éducation et de formation afin de lancer des travaux sur
l’élaboration de référentiels communs.
L’innovation du projet
L’innovation, apportée par le projet VITRA, concerne:
361. un nouveau produit en réponse aux problèmes existants;
362. de nouvelles approches pédagogiques générées par ce nouveau produit;
363. de nouvelles formes de collaboration et de travail en réseau entre les organismes
partenaires.
Un nouveau produit en réponse à des problèmes existants
L’innovation du produit VITRA s’observe à deux niveaux : non seulement dans la spécificité et
l’originalité des contenus pédagogiques qu’il propose (le fond) mais aussi dans le mode de diffusion
choisi pour transmettre ces contenus (la forme).
279
En ce qui concerne « ces contenus » (le fond):
Il n’existe pas actuellement, en Europe, d’outils qui mutualisent les savoir-faire traditionnels anciens
(contenu) comme le propose le projet VITRA. Ces savoir-faire, qui sont porteurs de développement
économique, doivent être identifiés et maîtrisés pour être utilisés dans le secteur de l’artisanat d’art
verrier, en Europe. Ils ne doivent plus rester « confidentiels » aux seuls régions des pays dont ils sont
issus mais doivent être mutualisés à une communauté professionnelle européenne.
En ce qui concerne « le mode de diffusion de ces contenus » (la forme):
Le recours au multimédia et à l’enseignement à distance n’est pas innovant en soi si ce n’est dans ce
secteur particulier où la formation est restée très traditionnelle et basée sur la pratique et
l’expérimentation en direct. Pour les raisons déjà évoquées, cette expérimentation « en direct » n’est
pas toujours possible en raison des contraintes d’équipement ou tout simplement d’une
méconnaissance d’un savoir-faire rare ou difficile à mettre en œuvre.
VITRA propose alors d’aborder d’une manière différente ces techniques grâce à un environnement
virtuel fondé sur:
364. l’observation et à l’analyse de gestes;
365. la possibilité de compléter cette observation en consultant des informations multimédias
complémentaires;
366. un retour d’expérience des professionnelles qui utilisent ces techniques.
De nouvelles approches pédagogiques générées par ce nouveau produit
Ce nouveau produit va générer de nouveaux enseignements et de nouvelles pratiques dans
l’enseignement verrier. Les formateurs pourront utiliser les outils proposés pour une préparation
préalable à la démarche en atelier. Cette préparation permettra d’optimiser l’expérimentation, de
travailler avec plusieurs groupes sur des thématiques différentes et d’enrichir les formations existantes
par des approches plus globales portant tout autant sur des notions d’histoire de l’art, de design par
pays que de technique.
De nouvelles formes de coopération et de travail en réseau entre les organismes partenaires
La mise en commun des savoirs et des compétences techniques rares constitue une première dans le
monde très fermé de l’artisanat d’art verrier. Par l’intermédiaire du projet VITRA, un premier pôle
d’échange et de travail en réseau est en train de se mettre en place. Il concerne principalement la
mutualisation des savoirs de quelques pays dans une démarche d’intérêt commun. La présence, sur le
site VITRA, d’outils de communication et de dialogue favorisera la dynamique de collaborations
diverses. Elle mettra en évidence également des besoins nouveaux et une connaissance élargie des
possibilités de formation au plan européen.
Les résultats obtenus
La mobilisation de professionnels verriers
VITRA n’aurait pu exister sans la contribution d’un travail transnational qui est au cœur du projet. En
effet, le projet portant sur des techniques verrières dont seules sont dépositaires les grandes places
verrières européennes, la qualité de l’outil était donc intimement liée à leur participation.
Le choix des partenaires VITRA a été, dès le départ du projet, raisonné selon plusieurs critères:
367. La notoriété de la région verrière sollicitée;
368. Les compétences et la qualité de l'école partenaire;
369. L'intérêt des savoir-faire : spécificité, particularité, difficulté de mise en œuvre, rareté, etc.;
370. La volonté de s’engager dans une logique de mutualisation.
La capacité de chaque partenaire à mobiliser des maîtres verriers de renom était également un élément
indissociable du projet VITRA. L'accès à ces professionnels n'aurait pu être établi autrement. Les
maîtres verriers concernés sont très difficiles à identifier et particulièrement réticents à l’idée
d’accueillir des visiteurs inconnus et encore moins à révéler les techniques de tradition qu'ils
perpétuent. Les relations de proximité et de confiance qu’entretiennent les écoles, avec ces
professionnels, étaient donc de première importance.
280
Au final, chaque partenaire européen a donc su mobiliser 2 à 3 maîtres verriers dont certains comptent
parmi les rares professionnels capables de révéler et de détailler une technique d’excellence. Leur
participation dans le projet a été totale. En amont des tournages, ils ont analysé leurs pratiques afin de
décomposer les différentes étapes de réalisation d’une pièce, d’en préciser les moments clés et les
points forts. Au moment des tournages, ils ont ralenti leurs gestes pour les rendre plus explicites
acceptant ainsi de faire preuve de moins de dextérité, au risque de paraître moins habiles. A l’issue des
tournages, ils ont travaillé sur les documents de synchronisation pour compléter l’information diffusée
par les vidéos.
Une analyse socio-économique partagée
Au-delà des intuitions, les rencontres transnationales ont permis de bâtir une analyse socioéconomique de l'activité verrière en Europe et de ses enjeux. Les partenaires ont pris conscience de la
nécessité de sauvegarder les savoir-faire et d’innover dans les processus de formation afin de doter les
verriers des compétences qui leur permettront de créer des produits aptes à supporter la compétition
internationale et notamment celle des pays du Sud Est asiatique. A chaque rencontre, les partenaires
ont associé les collectivités territoriales et les représentants du secteur verrier pour montrer l’intérêt de
diffuser les techniques et d’échanger au plan européen grâce au dispositif VITRA.
Vers des référentiels métiers européens
L'élaboration des modules de formation sur ces savoir-faire ancestraux a conduit les partenaires à
découvrir les systèmes éducatifs des différents pays en ce qui concerne le secteur verrier, leurs limites
et leurs carences. La problématique des référentiels communs de formation est un sujet qui a été
abordé ainsi que la recherche d'équivalences de diplômes comme moyen de faciliter la mobilité. Sans
traiter cette question, le travail transnational qui a été fait, autour de VITRA et du réseau de
partenaires qui se constitue, lance les prémices de cette réflexion. En tout état de cause, les outils
pédagogiques VITRA constituent un excellent levier pour progresser dans ce sens.
Une communication renforcée
Pendant toute la durée de réalisation du projet, la communauté européenne du verre a été tenue
informée de la mise en œuvre du projet grâce au site de communication VITRA (ww.idverre.net/vitra).
Ce site a proposé plus de 50 pages d’informations textuelles, en français et en anglais, sur le projet et
près de 250 photos. Durant cette même période, chaque partenaire a également diffusé l’information
auprès de ses réseaux à l’aide de ses propres outils de communication et en participant à des
manifestations où ils ont présenté le projet et sa finalité. 150 000 connections sur le site de
communication VITRA ont été enregistrées, 134 e-mail de demandes d’informations de 20 pays
différents ont été reçues, 30 participations à des colloques (20 déplacements) pour parler du projet ont
été réalisés.
Un symposium en clôture du projet
Lors de la dernière semaine de septembre, un symposium du verre a été organisé à Nancy autour du
projet VITRA. 33 écoles ou établissements provenant de 17 pays différents ont répondu présents
manifestant ainsi leur fort intérêt à moderniser leurs approches pédagogiques et à se fédérer en
réseaux. Près de 200 personnes ont assisté aux conférences et aux ateliers de démonstration des
techniques VITRA et à l’issue du symposium, 170 personnes de 18 pays étrangers se sont inscrits sur
le site VITRA. Avec le symposium VITRA, les promoteurs du projet ont invité toutes les écoles
verrières européennes à une présentation du site et de la démarche.
Conclusion
Le passage d’une culture de l’oral à une culture de l’écrit
Sauvegarder les savoir-faire traditionnels avant qu’ils ne disparaissent, les mutualiser pour que chacun
puisse se les approprier quelle que soit sa nationalité, les enseigner à l’aide d’outils multimédias : tels
étaient les objectifs du projet.
L’enseignement de ces techniques, dans les organismes de formation européens, se fait en présentiel
sans support écrit et dans un dispositif de formation où la communication orale et l’observation
visuelle sont prépondérantes. Ils se font au gré des expérimentations et selon les problèmes rencontrés.
281
La mise en œuvre du projet a nécessité d’engager une véritable mutation dans les approches
pédagogiques afin de passer d’une culture de l’oral à une culture de l’écrit. Une importante démarche
de structuration et de formalisation des pratiques a donc été engagée à cette fin, ce qui a représenté un
véritable challenge pour l’ensemble des partenaires et maîtres verriers associés du projet.
L’évaluation du produit en situation de formation
Le produit a été évalué en situation de formation. Il s’agissait, pour les formateurs du projet, d’assurer
une formation sur une technique étrangère qu’ils ne connaissaient pas mais qui soit proche de celles
qu’ils maîtrisent et enseignent habituellement, en utilisant les outils VITRA. Cette expérimentation a
fait ressortir l’intérêt du dispositif pour les différents publics concernés.
Pour les formateurs:
La richesse des vidéos et leur découpage en étapes chronologiques de mise en œuvre fut une source
d’information essentielle pour la compréhension des processus et l’expérimentation en atelier. Ne
possédant pas la connaissance technique du savoir-faire à enseigner, ils ont du préparer en amont leurs
cours, analyser le découpage des gestes qu’ils allaient devoir reproduire, repérer les points critiques et
les temps forts de réalisation. Ce travail préparatoire a été fait à l’aide des vidéos et les formateurs ont
pu valider la qualité pédagogique des images et des informations de synchronisation. Ils se sont servis
également des documents complémentaires pour approfondir leurs présentations et atteindre leurs
objectifs.
Cette expérimentation a fait ressortir un avantage inattendu du produit : celui d’impulser la création de
nouvelles techniques issues de la combinaison de plusieurs savoir-faire. A titre d’exemple, la
formatrice du CERFAV (France), qui a enseigné la technique tchèque haut émail, a insisté sur la
manière dont cette technique pouvait lui permettre d’enrichir et de modifier la formation et la pratique
du vitrail, d’explorer avec les stagiaires d’autres axes de création et de créer, même, une technique
nouvelle sur la base de ces deux savoirs.
Pour les apprenants:
La possibilité de revoir les gestes sur le site VITRA, après l’expérimentation en atelier a été
particulièrement applaudie par les stagiaires. Les formateurs ont constaté que les visites sur le site
avaient été nombreuses après la formation et que les questions ultérieures qui furent posées montraient
un souci, rarement observé, d’approfondir les connaissances et de compléter l’enseignement dispensé.
Le transfert du dispositif et de l’approche pédagogique dans d’autres secteurs d’activités
Le dispositif, qui a été mis en place, permet d’un point de vue pédagogique mais également d’un point
de vue technique, un transfert vers d’autres secteurs d’activités (la lutherie, la céramique, la broderie,
etc.) et vers d’autres métiers pour lesquels il est nécessaire de sauvegarder et d’enseigner les gestes
avant qu’ils ne disparaissent. Le développement informatique réalisé peut générer automatiquement
via une interface administrateur de nouveaux sites dans de nouvelles langues et sur de nouvelles
thématiques. Les contenus devront être créés spécifiquement mais la démarche pédagogique et le
développement informatique restent capitalisables.
Préparer l’enrichissement de cet outil de formation unique en Europe et l’extension du réseau au-delà
du partenariat actuel, permettre à d’autres secteurs d’activité de profiter de cette réflexion et du travail
fait sur l’enseignement à distance des métiers rares, telle est aujourd’hui notre ambition.
Auteurs:
Catherine, Claus-Demangeon, Mme,
Université Nancy 2, Vidéoscop
9 rue Maréchal Ney BP 722 54064 Nancy Cedex
E-mail : [email protected]
282
Denis, Garcia
Cerfav
rue de la liberté 54112 Vannes-le-Châtel
E-mail : [email protected]
Nathalie, Vaglio, Mle,
Université Nancy 2, Vidéoscop
9 rue Maréchal Ney BP 722 54064 Nancy Cedex
E-mial : [email protected]
283

iLearning Forum 2008 iLearning Forum 2008

Transcription

Similar documents

Mise en page 1 - Solutions Ressources Humaines Lyon

Dr. Fadlo Khuri IC - International College

Issue 6: May 2014 - International College

IBS NEWS Déc 2014

Université de Reims Champagne

L`école Raymond fermera ses portes

French teachers kit (PDF - 1.5 MB)

CANADVENTURE EDUCATION ÉDUCATION CANADVENTURE

STUDII ŞI CERCETĂRI ŞTIINłIFICE - Universitatea "Vasile Alecsandri"

a New approach to PD CurrICuLa