Elspeth McKay

The Scope of e-Learning: Expanded Horizons for Life-Long Learning

The purpose of this paper is to open a discourse on the broad scope of e-Learning. The authors provide an overview of a much larger debate—mindful that the consequential topics are far reaching. The discussion first deals with the need to utilize meta-knowledge within the context of Web-based learning providing the background for the process of scoping e-Learning. The e-Learning phenomenon we experience today provides courseware designers with an opportunity to revisit all the fundamentals of instructional science involving learning theories and human performance. In setting the scene for the reader, it is useful to drill into the background issues of the digital learning context. It will be shown that the scope of e-Learning is more comprehensive than the commonly accepted issue of electronic delivery of instructional/learning materials. Wise use of the technologies can provide the leverage human beings require at this point for expanding their horizons for life-long learning.

Cognitive Skill Acquisition Through a Meta-Knowledge Processing Model

The emerging trend for taking a more collaborative approach to life-long learning is picking up pace. So, too, is the rate at which online learning systems are implemented by novice courseware designers. Nevertheless, if we want to sustain the momentum, we must understand more about how to manage the computer–human interaction (CHI) and, henceforth, the cognitive skills acquisition process involved in E-learning systems (McKay & Garner, 1999). Once we understand the CHI phenomenon, learn how to manage the E-learning environment successfully, manage media in an efficient and effective manner, conquer collaborative online communication and knowledge-sharing, we may be able to claim that context-mediated learning has arrived. This paper discusses an examination of the contextual issues involved in understanding the interactivity of instructional conditions and cognitive style as a metaknowledge acquisition process. Meta-knowledge is used here to convey knowledge about knowledge. This distinction is necessary to differentiate between the more common usage of the term, whereby knowledge is generated by an individual presented with various pieces of information. Further work is needed to substantiate the speculated mechanisms relating to the relationship between specific learning domains, and notational transfer (internal/external exchange process) in an online learning context.

Managing the Interactivity of Instructional Format and Cognitive Style Construct in Web-Mediated Learning Environments

The management of Web-mediated learning environments is complex. There are many ontological facets to account for in defining the interacting variables. Instructional designers need to be ready to correctly identify and unravel each variable [1]. A meta-knowledge processing model has been proposed to facilitate the courseware design process to enhance performance outcomes [2]. Research has already been carried out on each component, however very little is known about the interactivity of these components in a Web-mediated learning environment. While multi-sensory instruction is known to improve a student’s capacity to learn effectively, the overarching role of knowledge-mediated human-computer interaction (HCI) has been poorly understood [3]. The purpose of this paper is to discuss this meta-knowledge processing model and its usefulness for Web-mediated learning platform design in general and in particular to identify the interactive effects of the cognitive style construct and instructional format on performance outcomes.

Planning effective HCI to enhance access to educational applications

Information and communications technologies (ICT) are widely believed to offer new options for Web-mediated courseware design. Multimedia and online courseware development accentuates a belief that highly graphical (or visual) delivery media will meet the individualised instructional requirements of diverse student cohorts. While most electronic courseware may allow the user to proceed at their own pace, two assumptions are commonly made by courseware designers. Firstly, to facilitate learning, all users are assumed capable of assimilating the graphical content with their current experiential knowledge. There is little or no consideration of different cognitive styles. Understanding learner attributes is essential to increasing accessibility to computerised information. Secondly, learning is assumed rather than demonstrated. To deal with this issue, data analysis techniques can be used to differentiate between what an individual knows from what they do not. This paper presents two research projects that demonstrate the importance of awareness for the human-dimension of human-computer interaction (HCI) in designing effective online experiential learning for special education.

Seamless Web-Mediated Training Courseware Design Model: Innovating Adaptive Educational-Learning Systems

We present an innovative Web-mediated training system design architecture that encourages novice courseware developers to deliver their own adaptive (user-centered) educational-learning systems (AELS) by utilizing achievable and cost effective online training modules. We propose a seamless Web-mediated training system design architecture that includes a choice of intelligent agents (personal Avatars) to guide the trainee through their knowledge acquisition. We cut through the more usual information systems (IS) development rhetoric. Instead of cloaking the courseware design process in highly technical mystery, we argue that educational technology experts should encourage non-technical developers to believe that the possibility of customizing their own Web-mediated training programs falls within their grasp. The preliminary findings from a pilot study conducted to test our AELS as an in-house courseware development tool indicate that it will be most suitable for corporate and government training courseware creators.

Big data management skills: accurate measurement

Some say that big data is transforming business and society. This can mean wide-reaching disruption for commerce, health and world governance. Few authors agree on what constitutes big data, depending on the philosophical stance taken. Our propensity for keeping data archived is posing major issues globally, with retrieval and application of such data crossing ethical boundaries. However, one of the more pressing issues is the growing need for confirming whether those working with such big data have the required digital skills to cope. This paper presents one effective and efficient way to identify such digital skill acquisition. We show the progression from the earlier approach used for measuring proficiency between novice and experienced programmers using traditional statistical measures, to adopting a more comprehensive unidimensional scale that empowers comprehension of human performance and test-item performance relative to each other. This methodology offers an effective tool for understanding of individual differences in digital skill development.

Planning Effective HCI Courseware Design to Enhance Online Education and Training

To maintain knowledgeable, well skilled employees and sustain their competitive advantage, Government agencies and the corporate sector adopt online courseware designed for education and training. The instructional design of resulting human-computer interaction (HCI), which occurs during a training session, is left as an afterthought. No attention is given to the emergent socialized work-place where on the job training often involves collaborative partnerships. There are no measurable accounts of the effectiveness of sharing such knowledge and expertise with new employees. To this end, an experimental research study was designed to investigate the interactive effect of instructional strategies augmented with either a digital instructional assistant or a traditional class-room tutor, and participants’ preference for training-mode on the acquisition of introductory ethics knowledge. Participants were given the Object-Spatial Imagery and Verbal Questionnaire (OSIVQ) to establish their cognitive style [1]. The QUEST Interactive Test Analysis System provided the cognitive performance measuring tool [2], to define the learning analytics and to ensure there were no measurement errors in the introductory ethics knowledge testing instruments. Therefore, reliability of the testing tools was secured through the QUEST calibration techniques, thereby safeguarding the predictability of the research design. The methodology embraced by this experimental research links HCI with the disciplines of instructional science, cognitive psychology and objective measurement to authenticate valuable mechanisms for adoption by the education, training and skills development sectors.

Measuring the Effects of Cognitive Preference to Enhance Online Instruction through Sound ePedagogy Design

Researchers are keen to know whether online instruction is effective and whether people learn anything while undertaking an online course. To this end, a research programme was devised to evaluate an ePedagogy, which involves the interactive effects of online instructional strategies enhanced with text-plus-textual metaphors or text-plus-graphical metaphors, and cognitive preference for learning basic programming concepts. The QUEST Interactive Test Analysis System was used to measure cognitive performance, ensuring an absence of error measurement in the programming knowledge testing instruments. Reliability of these instruments was therefore assured through the calibration afforded by the QUEST estimate that provided predictability of the research design. A means analysis of the QUEST data, using the approach to size effect and statistical power, further quantified the significance of the findings.

Bias, Misinformation and Disinformation: Mental Health, Employment and Human Computer Interaction

This paper explores the design and application of information communication technologies and human computer interaction for people recovering from severe mental illness wishing to gain employment. It is argued bias, misinformation and disinformation limit opportunities for people recovering from mental illness who are seeking employment. Issues of bias are explored in relation to systems design as well as dominant socially constructed paradigms of ‘mental health’ and ‘mental illness’ and employment. Misinformation is discussed according to the contemporary dominant paradigm of ‘recovery’ as well as web resources, discrimination and employment. Disinformation is considered in terms of media myths and stereotypes and vocational rehabilitation. Multidisciplinary collaboration is required to meet the ICT needs of this diverse group.

Correction to: Big data management skills: accurate measurement

Owing to an unfortunate mistake in typesetting, in the original publication of this article (McKay & Mohamad, 2018), the citation and legend of some figures were incorrectly displayed.