Assessing E-learning Readiness of Instructors in Turkey

Yıl 2015, Cilt: 1 Sayı: 3, 13 - 28, 24.12.2015

Sushil.K Sharma Sevinç Gülseçen , Zeki Özen , Elif Kartal

Öz

As more and more universities worldwide have been offering e-learning environments for their course and program delivery, researches in e-learning subjects are interested to examine whether instructors are ready for the new e-learning environment. E-learning readiness (e-readiness) is a critical component in evaluating the effectiveness of online course delivery at the institutional and the instructor level. E-readiness is already well covered in the literature and several models are suggested. This study aims to measure e-learning readiness of instructors in Turkey. Based on the existing e-learning readiness assessment models in literature, the authors designed e-learning readiness measurement instrument. This research study adopted a survey method to conduct the study of e-learning readiness of instructors in various universities in Turkey. A questionnaire was sent to 144 instructors during January 2014 – March 2014. All items were measured on a five-point Likert scale, with 5 as strongly agree and 1 as strongly disagree. 144 were completed and returned are found valid. Descriptive statistics, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Independent-Samples T Test, and multinomial logistic regression will be applied to analyze the data. Data has been collected from 144 instructors across several universities in Turkey using a questionnaire survey instrument. The preliminary findings suggest that although instructors have been using electronic gadgets for their day-to-day activities and have been comfortable in using technology, however, they have a lack of awareness in using various technology tools that can help the instructor improve engagement and learning. Although universities have made investments in e-learning environment of one or the other kinds, however, majority of instructors are still at the initial stage of employing e-learning in their daily teaching and learning activities. The instructors also lack the requisite formal training for e-learning thus affecting their e-readiness. It seems that universities needs to invest more in training instructors on a continuous basis so that instructors are well versed with state-of-art instructional tools to bring pedagogical innovations in their e-learning instructions. The low e-readiness of instructors in Turkey could impact the quality of delivery of online programs.

Anahtar Kelimeler

E-learning, e-learning readiness, e-readiness, instructors, learning style

Kaynakça

• Agboola, A. K. (2006). Assessing the awareness and perceptions of academic staff in using e-learning tools for instructional delivery in a post-secondary institution: A case study. The Innovation Journal: The Public Sector Innovation Journal, 11(3), 2–12.
• Akaslan, D., & Law, E. L. (2011). Measuring teachers’ readiness for e-learning in higher education institutions associated with the subject of electricity in Turkey. In 2011 IEEE Global Engineering Education Conference (EDUCON) (pp. 481–490). doi:10.1109/EDUCON.2011.5773180
• Aydın, C. H., & Tasci, D. (2005). Measuring readiness for e-Learning: Reflections from an emerging country. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 8(4).
• Çobanoğlu, İ., Ateş, A., İliç, U., & Yılmaz, E. (2009). Investigating prospective computer teachers’ perceptions on e-learning. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 1(1), 1460–1463. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2009.01.257
• Docebo. (2014). E-Learning Market Trends & Forecast 2014 - 2016 Report. Retrieved from http://www.docebo.com/landing/contactform/elearning-market-trends-andforecast-2014-2016-docebo-report.pdf
• Haney, D. (2002). Assessing organizational readiness for E-learning: 70 questions to ask. Performance Improvement, 41(4), 10–15.
• Keramati, A., Afshari-Mofrad, M., & Kamrani, A. (2011). The role of readiness factors in E-learning outcomes: An empirical study. Computers & Education, 57(3), 1919–1929. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2011.04.005
• Lopes, C. T. (2007). Evaluating e-learning readiness in a health sciences higher education institution. In Proceedings of IADIS International Conference of E-learning, Porto.
• Sadik, A. (2007). The readiness of faculty members to develop and implement e-learning: The case of an Egyptian university. International Journal on E-Learning, 6(3), 433–453.
• Saekow, A., & Samson, D. (2011). A study of e-learning readiness of Thailand’s higher education comparing to the United States of America (USA)’s case. In 2011 3rd International Conference on Computer Research and Development (ICCRD) (Vol. 2,pp. 287–291). doi:10.1109/ICCRD.2011.5764134 So, K. K. T., & Swatman, P. M. C. (2006). e-Learning readiness in the classroom: A study of Hong Kong primary and secondary teachers. CollECTeR Europe 2006, 223–237.
• Soydal, I., Alır, G., & Ünal, Y. (2011). Are Turkish universities ready for e-learning: A case of Hacettepe University Faculty of Letters. Information Services and Use, 31(3),281–291.
• Unit, E. I. (2009). E-readiness rankings 2009: The usage imperative. The Economist. A Report from the Economist Intelligence Unit Written in Cooperation with the IBM Institute for Business Value. Retrieved from http://graphics.eiu.com/pdf/Ereadiness% 20rankings.pdf Wan, Z., Wang, Y., & Haggerty, N. (2008). Why people benefit from e-learning differently: The effects of psychological processes on e-learning outcomes. Information & Management, 45(8), 513–521. doi:10.1016/j.im.2008.08.003
• Watkins, R., Leigh, D., & Triner, D. (2004). Assessing readiness for e-learning. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 17(4), 66–79.