Project

Now that I am at the end of my MSc project in applied elearning I have learnt a lot about elearning and more importantly learning in general, please see the evaluation post for the course.

To enable the research for this project I had to manage the installation of Moodle into the Department. There were a few initial issues with the managed internet browser in the Department but these were overcome.

My research question was

Can Moodle be used to help support new entrants into a Central Government Department?

To implement elearning I had to design and deploy an elearning module to show the management features of Moodle. In consultation with my manager it was decided that the elearning module should focus on Induction Training.

Journal

Part of the criteria for assessment is to prepare a paper for publication. The Journal I chose was the European Journal of Training and Development, please click here for the post relating to that choice.

Literature Review

The literature I reviewed for the project focused on six major themes;

the adult leaner,
social constructivism,
instructional design,
socialisation,
cognitive load theory
the use of a Learning Management System.

Although the literature covers many different aspects of each area the paper will focus on how they could be used in a training and development environment.

Methodology

The epistemological stance for this research was a constructionist one with an interpretive theoretical perspective. It uses an interpretative non-positive social constructionist model which allowed an examination of the how & why the Department operates and the reasons that govern behaviour. The methodology used was a qualitative one presented as a case study.

Methods

The methods employed for the research were online surveys, focus groups and analysis of Moodle reports. Before the elearning module was designed there was one on-line survey and two focus groups to identify what was to be included in it, there was also one post-module survey for evaluation.

Data Analysis

Any piece of research has to be rigorously designed to ensure the research data is valid and reliable. To improve validity the researcher used coding and triangulation to analyse the data.

Conclusion

Through the research required for this project I have successfully implemented an elearning resource for elearning, see screen cast, that will help support new entrants into the Department until such time they can complete the full induction training course.

Moodle was successfully installed and can not manage the elearning in the Department.