CHAPTER FIVE Analysis and Discussion
5.9 E-Learning Correlations
As detailed the literature review, e-Learning has successfully embedded itself as effective online method of pedagogy in both developed and even developing countries around the world. Relating to this, it was also found in this study that almost 90% of the leading African universities sampled were utilising e-Learning as a pedagogical tool (as shown in 4.7.9). The table below demonstrates some of the key e-Learning correlations.
5.9.1 Use of e-Learning as a pedagogical tool vs. the enhancement of academic teaching and learning via e-Learning
Variables Constructs Correlation
Does your institution use e-Learning as a pedagogical tool?
Knowledge creation
Knowledge
Transfer (0.577,
p<0.05) The use of e-Learning has ‘Enhanced academic
teaching and learning at your institution’
Efficient Firms / Competitive Advantage
Table 32: Use of e-Learning as a pedagogical tool vs. the enhancement of academic teaching and learning via e-Learning
This is a key finding which indicates a significant positive relationship between the use of e- Learning and the enhancement of pedagogy at the institutions. The descriptive statistics (4.8.2) has shown that 93.3% of the respondents agreed that the use of e-Learning has enhanced academic teaching and learning at the respective institution with 60% strongly agreeing. The literature review depicts how e-Learning is seen as a strategic digital advent in the Higher Education realm which is effectively and successfully enabling the creation and dissemination of knowledge across the barriers of time and space (Zazaleena, et al., 2011).
Furthermore, both private and public around the world are embracing e-Learning as a strategy
155 to enhance their teaching and learning processes and promote effective knowledge transfer (Kuntoro and Al-Hawamdeh, 2003). This correlation therefore concurs with an abundance of studies that show how e-Learning has enhanced academic teaching and learning at institutions in both developed and developing countries. These studies include Marshall, et al.
(2003), Leem and Lim (2007), Desai, Hart and Richards (2009), Krajcso (2009), Boling, et al. (2012) and Xiangqian and Fuqing (2012) among many more.
5.9.2 The use of e-Learning to break geographical barriers in terms of teaching and learning vs. the use of e-Learning to make education more affordable for students
Variables Constructs Correlation
The main reason/s for the use of e-Learning at your institution is to ‘break geographical barriers in terms of teaching and learning’
Efficient Firms / Competitive
Advantage (0.749,
p<0.01) The main reason/s for the use of e-Learning at
your institution is to ‘make education more affordable for students’
Efficient Firms / Competitive Advantage
Table 33: Use of e-Learning to break geographical barriers for teaching and learning vs. the use of e-Learning to make education more affordable for students
This was a key finding which not only indicates a positive correlation, but also a strong relationship between the use of e-Learning to break geographical barriers in terms of teaching and learning and the use of e-Learning to make education more affordable for students.
As mentioned in Chapter 4, Africa is home to some of the poorest nations and countries in the world. Therefore, education should be seen as a critical tool for the empowerment and upliftment of African society. Universities in Africa face various challenges both from a student and institutional perspective and this includes challenges such as infrastructure, economic, staffing, financial, political, poverty and many more (Thiaw, 2007; Mwapachu, 2010; Nyerere, Gravenir and Mse, 2012). Hence, students in Africa encounter these challenges in terms of financial and other economic challenges, which prevent them from physically attending lectures. The rising costs of daily living expenses can often overshadow the ability to purchase books and the utilisation of money for daily transportation to lectures, food, clothing and other logistical costs. E-Learning provides a means of combatting these
156 challenges by allowing the student to access learning content (notes, podcasts) from almost any location that has access to a computer and internet such as a public library, internet café and places with wireless access. This can allow a student to spend more time with the actual learning content and only attend lectures for practical learning exercises, problem areas and examinations. E-Learning must not be seen as a replacement for traditional learning, but rather as a means of making education accessible and affordable for students.
This is supported by other studies such as Mason and Rennie (2004), Holmes and Gardner (2006) and Boling, et al. (2012) that showed how e-Learning went beyond borders to deliver education and, thereby addressing logistical, infrastructural and financial constraints and cutting costs and expenses at the same time for both institution and student. As conveyed by Boling, et al. (2012), a good e-Learning strategy focuses on ‘bringing the campus to the students’, while Holmes and Gardner (2006) conveyed that e-Learning must be seen as an innovative means to go beyond distance and be a strategic enabler to education.
5.9.3 The use of e-Learning to make education more affordable for students vs. the use of e-Learning to make the institution a more effective knowledge provider to students
Variables Constructs Correlation
The use of e-Learning at your institution is to
‘to make the institution a more effective knowledge provider to students.’
Efficient Firms / Competitive
Advantage (0.702,
p<0.05) The use of e-Learning at your institution is to
‘make education more affordable for students’
Efficient Firms / Competitive Advantage
Table 34: Use of e-Learning to make education more affordable for students vs. the use of e-Learning to make the institution a more effective knowledge provider to students
This was also key finding which relates to the preceding argument (5.9.2). The use of e- Learning to make the institution a more effective knowledge provider to students is positively correlated to the use of e-Learning to make education more affordable for students. Students may not have to incur physical expenses (as shown in 5.9.2) if e-Learning can be used effectively for knowledge provision. This concurs with Mason and Rennie (2004), Holmes and Gardner (2006) and Boling, et al. (2012). This finding also concurs with Kende, Noszkay
157 and Seres (2007), Maier and Schmidt (2007) and Krajcso (2009), whereby it is indicated that the strategic use of e-Learning will in turn make the institution a more effective knowledge provider to the learning community, namely the students. The authors Leem and Lim (2007) found that e-Learning could produce high quality academic programs and turn universities into high quality learner-centered educational entities and knowledge providers.