A student's perspective on eLearning

I have just finished an eLearning course that I had never thought I would enrol into but I did. I was running my own small business and decided to complete a Diploma of Business Administration online. The Diploma enabled me to complete the course in my own time - as long as it was completed within three years.

Initially, I was excited about the proposition of completing a course in my own time, particularly that the subject matter was relevant and could be applied in the "real-world." However, there was also a little reluctance as, having only experienced academic learning within the traditional sphere (i.e. inside buildings with teachers and other students), I thought that the learning experience would be difficult as I would have no one to share my ideas with or troubleshoot with through difficult tasks.  What I found surprised me.

I didn't experience the loneliness that I expected, as I was able to share my ideas with my business partner and friends.  What was disconcerting was some of the subject materials and assessment tasks.  Each subject came with a booklet, about 150 pages, and with topical subject matter.  However, more often than not, the subject matter was incomplete. This wouldn't have posed such a problem if the missing information was not relevant to the assessment task.  It was.  At the beginning of the course, I thought it was a "once off" and something that was only particular to the nature of the task (using MS Excel to complete company accounts).  But after completing several others, I contiually found that the textbooks (or booklets would be more accurate) were lacking.  Then came the assessment tasks.

What caused frustration, most of all in the final subject, "Evaluating Administration Systems," was the vague description of what was required.  The task would be written like a "blanket statement," a statement that could be interpreted in a number of ways.  This wouldn't have posed such a problem if the assessment tasks were accompanied by documents that explained what was required in the assessment task.  Admittingly, in two subjects, accompanying documents did thoroughly explain what was required.  This, I think, was due to the complexity of the tasks as they involved MYOB and other complicated software.  

What this experience has taught me is that assessment task sheets should be written more like legal documents.  I studied law in my first year of university and what the subject taught me was the importance of leaving no room for personal interpretation.  When I asked friends and colleagues to read the description outlined in the assessment task, they were unsure, as I was. I had not told them my opinion but wanted clarification.  On each occasion, I was told that they did not understand exactly what was required.  Thankfully, I was able to seek clarification by emailing subject tutors and they were always prompt in returning advice.

Completing a diploma was a valuable experience, not only for the knowledge and skills that I acquired, but also the knowledge of what issues can arise in course design and what could possibly be done to improve it.