Development of an Effective Quality Assessment Model for Electronic Learning on Connectivism in Thailand University
Rajamangala University of Technology, Thailand
ABSTRACT
The advancement in the Internet and information technology (IT) has contributed to the development of novel instructional methods unconfined by the physical classroom and at the same time providing greater educational opportunity. An increasing number of tertiary educational institutions in Thailand have thus availed themselves of the technologies by substituting the conventional physical classrooms with virtual ones. Specifically, this research aims to propose a connectivism-based E-learning scheme designed for a virtual university setting. The development of the E scheme has taken into account the IT infrastructure, students’ and instructors’ computer literacy, self-learning culture and determination as well as economic consideration (i.e. cost-saving). The E learning scheme is expected to transform the way in which knowledge is imparted from the conventional brick- and-mortar classroom to a virtual environment whereby the resources requirement (i.e. commute time and finances) is minimal. In addition, the proposed scheme has been oriented toward the student-centered learning concept with which the E-based learners are empowered with selections of location, time and pace of their learning. The scheme also allows for the delivery of instruction and class materials as plain texts, graphics, audio and video; and for the instantaneous interactions between the instructors and learners. A total of 100 first-year university students were statistically divided into the experimental (36) and control (64) groups. The experimental group learned the subject and participated through the Internet-based (i.e. E) channels, while the participants in the control group were physically present in the classroom. In the experiments, both groups sat a test pertinent to the subject on the first day and retook the test on the final day of the course. In measurement of attitude and levels of satisfaction, both 100 participating students and a total of 66 instructors were asked to quantify their attitude and satisfaction by answering a set of questions on a scale of 1 to 5. The findings validate the effectiveness of the proposed E learning scheme as a viable learning mode with the achievement scores (E1/E2) of 81.53/80.10 and a positive correlation between the E implementation and the post-E achievement score (p=.05), while the control group’s E1/E2 are 79.06/80.03. The mean satisfaction scores of the experimental and control groups are respectively 4.72 and 4.46, which are statistically significant (p=.05).
KEYWORDS
E-Learning, asynchronous, e-evaluation, connectivism, blended learning, quality assessment