Designing Online Learning Management System

Designing Online Learning Management System

In defining an online learning management system framework, considerations of how to enable a very high level of collaboration between students themselves and between individual students and instructors is essential for long-term learning to take place. Diametrically opposed to the concept of "drill and kill" as a teaching strategy is the development and continual refinement of learning frameworks. As this literature review illustrates, the combining of pragmatic and proven theoretical concepts that lead to long-term retention of knowledge are possible through the use of learning management systems frameworks. Learning frameworks have grown from relatively simplistic causal models to more complex approaches to defining entire online learning ecosystems, as exemplified by Dr. Badrul Khan's models ((Kahn, 2003). Dr. Kahn's models capitalize on the growth of empirical and pragmatic research related to the Computer Supported Collaborative Learning Model (Bannon, 1989) (Kanfer, 2001). One of the most promising areas of development on the CSCL framework is the creation of student-tailored scaffolding (Yang, Yu, Chen, Tsai, 2005) where learning strategies are selectively defined on a per-student basis to create a customized learning strategy enabling higher overall levels of student learning to occur.

One of the basic requirements for education in the future is to prepare learners for participation in a networked, information society in which knowledge will be the most critical resource for social and economic development. Educational institutions are being forced to find better pedagogical methods to cope with these new challenges, beginning with the vision of creating a generation of critical thinkers who can assess, analyze, interpret and respond to changing global dynamics that affect them and their careers. In this development it is expected that computers could play an important role in restructuring teaching and learning processes to be better prepared for future challenges. Computer-supported collaborative learning is one of the promising tools to improve teaching and learning with the help of modern information and communication technology according to Lehtinen et al., (2004). Research on cognitive peer interaction gives indication that socio-cognitive conflicts emerging in interaction situations facilitate cognitive performances superior to those of the individual (Li, 2002). Furthermore evidence exists to support the claim that certain environments are more likely to facilitate adaptation through development of new cognitive competencies and higher-level expertise according to Bereiter & Scardamalia (1993). First order environments are static and changing while the second order environment is characterized by conditions to which an agent has to adapt change dynamically as a function of other people's progress in the environment according to Bereiter & Scardamalia (1993).CSCL appears to engage students to participate in-depth inquiry over substantial periods of time and to provide socially distributed cognitive resources for comprehension monitoring and other metacognitive activities. Active participation in comprehensive activity may support not only advanced conceptual understanding, but also the emergency of new metacognitive beliefs about knowing, and particularly about the importance of understanding Hatano & Inagaki (1992); as cited by Lehtinen, et al., (2004). The typical classroom does not have the resources needed for successful collaboration because there are not enough available anchor points at which action and attention can be coordinated, "however computers and the accompanying capabilities of computers present an opportunity for mediation tools that assist students in focusing their attention on objects that are mutually shared." Jarvela, Bonk, Lehtinen; as cited by Lehtinen et al., (2004).

Effects of CSCL on learning and achievement have been studied through a large meta-analyses specifically on the effectiveness of computers with results stating that the use of technology has markedly improved learning outcomes e.g. Khaili & Shgashaani, (1994), Kulik, Kulik & Cohen, (1998); as cited by Lehtinen, et al. (2004). The conclusions that CSCL-based learning frameworks enable higher levels of learning both for in-class and distance taught courses (Macdonald, 2003) further underscores the need for an online learning management system that is tailorable to support both instruction strategies. The concepts of Khan (2003) and others (Bannon, 1989) (Kanfer, 2001) highlight the need for an agile yet foundationally solid learning network that can respond to the changing needs of students.

Research Design and Methodology