The Ministry’s role in tertiary e-Learning
The Ministry of Education's role has been primarily to assist educators, organisational leaders, students and Government agencies in their decision-making and practice about e-Learning. This has been driven by a conscious ‘customer focus’ in which key stakeholders and sector experts identified a need for evidence-based knowledge on e-Learning to inform their decision-making and practice.
This customer focus has been achieved through the creation of resources underpinned by robust research. The Ministry is assisted in this work by Tertiary Education Organisations (TEOs) and other Government agencies such as the Tertiary Education Commission. The Ministry also works closely with Ako Aotearoa (the National Centre for Tertiary Teaching Excellence) in the area of tertiary e-Learning.
Strategic context
Introduction
With educational technology maturing, e-Learning is becoming a more integral feature of tertiary education. However, with a few notable exceptions, most of this has been "grass-roots" developments driven by individuals or groups of enthusiasts. It is not generally part of cohesive organisational strategies.
This means that e-Learning related work has tended to be fragmented. It is often driven by technical considerations rather than the needs of learners, educators and organisations. Alongside the opportunities it provides, the provision of e-Learning presents some major challenges including cost, what technology(s) to use and acceptability to both educators and learners.
International
e-Learning is becoming increasingly prominent in tertiary education internationally, with institutions increasing provision and more students signing up. But is it actually changing the way organisations teach and students learn, or is it simply a case of students typing up their essays on computers and professors sending them course reading lists or work assignments by e-mail?
To try to answer some of the questions raised the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in partnership with the UK-based Observatory on Borderless Higher Education (OBHE), carried out a survey of e-Learning in 19 tertiary education institutions in 13 countries. The qualitative findings of the project were complemented by an OBHE survey of online learning in Commonwealth universities undertaken in 2004.
This Policy Brief looks at the results of these surveys, and likely future trends in e-Learning in tertiary education and is available through the following link: OECD (2005). Policy Brief December 2005 - e-Learning in Tertiary Education. Partis: OECD [PDF, v1.4; 193kb].
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New Zealand
The Ministry of Education worked with the National Library, other Government agencies, and representatives from the tertiary education sector to develop the Interim Tertiary e-Learning Framework. The Framework, which sets a strategic direction for tertiary e-Learning in New Zealand, has helped to coordinate effort and maximise benefits for all stakeholders involved in e-Learning in New Zealand’s tertiary sector.
The abridged and unabridged versions are available through the following links: