Regional E-Learning Pilot around Distributed E-Learning 'ESWAP' Synthesis Report
Six mini projects were created to achieve the aims and objectives of the overarching project. The mini projects were run by various colleges and universities. The projects were based mainly on researching the use of ICT to improve and facilitate teaching and learning across HE and FE institutions by means of sharing reusable learning objects and exploring the use of personal development planning. Although these projects were diverse, they also shared a number of commonalities upon which the key goals of the overarching pilot project could be effectively met.
The ‘ESWAP’ mini projects achieved a significant amount of work within a fairly short lifespan of approximately eighteen months. The ‘ESWAP’ project provided the opportunities for six mini projects to work independently and for some partner colleges to collaborate on common themes. Some of the mini projects were directed at supporting and facilitating the teaching practitioner and other projects were aimed towards the students.
Investigations of how e-Learning systems, tools and resources can be used has been wide ranging and diverse. ‘ESWAP’ worked with various e-learning systems, tools and resources and some of its mini projects had engaged fully with other institutions in the region to see how materials could be used across different institutions. Some of the mini projects had also successfully shared materials and resources via different learning platforms. For example, Anglia Ruskin University pooled their own e-learning teaching modules with other institutions in the region and City College Norwich managed to enable those using WebCT to access materials which they had built in Blackboard.
‘ESWAP’ produced some practical guidelines to support widening participation and regional partnerships. This was particularly well achieved by Anglia Ruskin University and Ultralab.
There were a number of barriers which had impeded on some of the processes of implementation and sharing of e-learning contents with other regional partners to facilitate the support of widening participation and regional partnerships. These were mainly related to differences in systems-based activities such as student administration and organisational e-strategy and less linked with technological issues.
The mini projects worked to their own models and there was no overall approach within the collaboration of the project partnership at the outset. Insufficient time and resources meant that some of the projects did not have the opportunity to look at developing alternative models to show how different systems would work together to provide coherent access to e-learning resources.
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