Continuing+Development+of+New+Zealand+E-Learning

 Clayton and Elliot (2007) found that despite an intensive of available literature in books, journals in educational digital databases and on the internet, it is evident there is a paucity of publications on the subject of E-Learning in industry and vocational organizations in New Zealand. The Government’s Ultra Fast Broadband programme has made E-Learning a much more viable option. By making use of the [|E-Learning Maturity Model] whose function is “benchmarking explicitly intended to improve the quality of e-learning for the benefit of students, staff and institutions.” (Marshall 2006:6) It concludes that“ Within the New Zealand sector, anecdotal feedback from the participating institutions suggests that the analysis provided by the eMM has been accepted and is starting to support a systematic and strategic improvement in the quality of e-learning provided to students. “(Marshall 2006:6)

media type="youtube" key="7KMM387HNQk?version=3" height="349" width="560" align="center" While the Ministry of Education has been extremely proactive in providing policy, guidelines, extensive professional development and generous funding to promote the use of technology in education there appears to be the feeling that perhaps they have missed the mark. Unfortunately the focus of professional development has been somewhat linear and the need to concentrate on professional learning of new pedagogies. The idea that technology is a tool that will become the holy grail of teaching and learning is false and misleading. There have been assumptions that exposure to technology and the provision of equipment would translate into implementation and development. Implementation of something new requires that pedagogy be restructured. This suggests that the role of teacher and student needs to be changed i.e. learner centred. There is a need for teachers to develop a policy of reflection in and on action. As Caine and Caine (1997,as cited in Clarke 2002) state “one part of every day self-reliance is reflection on action. Reflection on action means that after a person acts feedback is supplied, usually by an external source and can then be used by the person to self-monitor and improve.” (2006:134) [|The 1877 Education Act]had a strong egalitarian ethic which was eroded by the Picot Report of 1988 which led the Ministry of Education (1990). to state for schools in particular, emphasis moved from equality of opportunity to equality of outcomes. E-Learning policy is in the hands of those who make the policy. As policy makers are primarily concerned with power and social control a potentially divisive situation can arise. When policy is thus compromised the concept of hegemony takes over and the technology becomes the tool of the policy makers rather than as [|Brown (2005)]believes “enable progress towards the elusive goal of creating a more democratic knowledge society.” (2005:19) include component="comments" page="Continuing Development of New Zealand E-Learning" limit="10"