pre-conference workshop reasearch on e-learning at berlins universities at online educa 2007 on the...

Pre-Conference Workshop „reasearch on e-learning at Berlin‘s universities“

at Online Educa 2007 on the 28th of November

Christian Pfeffer-Hoffmann

E-Learning for Disadvantaged Target Groups

An economical and didactical analysis of German e-learning projects

Christian Pfeffer-Hoffmann – Online Educa 28.11.2007


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research question

What are the development conditions for e-learning products on the German e-learning-market for target groups with - social disadvantages, - learning problems, - disabilities; - for migrants and - elderly people?



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method

Economical and didactical analysis based on a basic model of the e-learning-market

– Market environment: qualitative analysis of the political and economical influences

– Demand side: qualitative analysis of consumers and learners

– Supply side: quantitative analysis of economical and didactical aspects of 102 projects that have produced e-learning for disadvantaged groups



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findings

Market environment– Politics and society

• Most impact from public funding policies• No special public funding of e-learning-

production for disadvantaged target groups

– Neighbour markets• Changeable development of the e-

learning market in general has strong influence of the sector for disadvantaged target groups



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findings

Demand side– Consumers

Three factors are relevant for advantage or disadvantage of target groups on the e-learning market: purchasing power, e-learning interest and expense of production

– LearnersThree aspects of using digital media are relevant for the target group:

– Learning with digital media– Learning about digital media– Train problem solving by using digital

media



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findings

Supply side – Project organization

Distribution of projects and target groups

64

42

18

32 social disadvantaged

learning problems

disabilities

migrants

elderly people



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findings

Supply side – Project organization

Start of the projects

0

5

10

15

20

25

1985-1986

1987-1988

1989-1990

1991-1992

1993-1994

1995-1996

1997-1998

1999-2000

2001-2002

2003-2004

nu

mb

er

of

pro

ject

s

social disadvantaged learning problems disabilities migrants elderly people



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findings

Supply side - Project organizationThere is no economical development on the e-learning market sector for disadvantaged target groups:– Only 20% ongoing projects– In most cases e-learning production is only a part of the project aims– Most of the projects are non-commercial pilot projects



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findings

Supply side – Project organizationmain sources of financing

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

1985-1986

1987-1988

1989-1990

1991-1992

1993-1994

1995-1996

1997-1998

1999-2000

2001-2002

2003-2004

nu

mb

er

of p

roje

cts

public R&D funding long-term public funding short-term public funding

private Funding sales



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findings

Supply side – Didactical approaches– Didactical approaches of the projects match only partly the needs of the disadvantaged target groups– Learning forms used by the projects are more determined by the general discussion in media didactics than by the needs of the learners



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findings

Supply side – Didactical approaches

extent of self-directed learning

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

1985-1986

1987-1988

1989-1990

1991-1992

1993-1994

1995-1996

1997-1998

1999-2000

2001-2002

2003-2004

num

ber

of p

roje

cts self-directed

self-directed andexternally directed

externally directed



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findings

Supply side – Product concepts– Concepts of the products follow the development of the core market with delay

• More content products than service and technology

• Number of internet-based products is growing slowly

– Product concepts are more pilot concepts than professional production

• One of three projects produce only one product

• More than 80% of the products are totally new developed



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findings

Supply side – Marketing

Marketing of e-learning-products

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

1985-1986

1987-1988

1989-1990

1991-1992

1993-1994

1995-1996

1997-1998

1999-2000

2001-2002

2003-2004

num

ber

of p

roje

cts

Marketing without Marketing



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conclusions

• existing e-learning solutions for disadvantaged target groups are nearly in total financed by the public sector

• most of the e-learning projects for disadvantaged people don’t have an economic perspective

• the didactical solutions of the existing e-learning products cover only partly the needs of users

• the technological and didactical concepts of e-learning products for disadvantaged learners are often years behind the state of the art



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questions to discuss

• Is there a chance to improve the quality and quantity of e-learning products for disadvantaged target groups by using concepts of modularisation and reusability of learning objects?

• What is the situation of disadvantaged target groups in other national e-learning markets?

pre-conference workshop reasearch on e-learning at berlins universities at online educa 2007 on the...

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