Research on Affecting Factors of Knowledge Management for E-learning

Research on Affecting Factors of Knowledge Management for
E-learning
LI Cuijuan, XU Bo
Management School, Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade, Shanghai, P. R. China, 201620
[email protected]
Abstract: In today’s world, knowledge management for e-learning systems has become a hot topic. But
there is a question that which factors can affect knowledge management outcomes in the distant learning
forms. The paper first introduces the information about knowledge management for e-learning, then, it
analyzes four affecting factors in the process of knowledge flow and management for e-learning, such as
teacher’s resource, technology-media, learning contents and students characteristics. It provides a good
method to enhance knowledge management efficiency for e-learning.
Key words: Knowledge management, Factor Analysis, E-learning, Efficiency
1 Introduction
Due to continued technological advancements, the Web offers diverse opportunities for e-learning.
Many researchers around the world are experimenting with technology change and its implementation in
education while many others are using it in their daily teaching activities[1]. However, in practice, many
times technological development is considered synonymous with improved education efficiency[2].
This does not take into account the appropriate use of systems and the importance of promoting systems
for proper selection, delivery and construction of information, which allow for knowledge management.
To support the topic of knowledge management for e-learning, it is critical that we take into account the
efficiency of knowledge management in development world [3]. E-learning has one advantage of using
information technology and knowledge in education is that students are introduced to and take
advantage of the modern technologies that businesses are using to gain competitive advantage[4].
Business schools are under increased pressure to graduate students with experience with these emerging
technologies [5]. At the same time, in a study conducted in Finland on the student research environment,
a model is presented in which high external pressures are alleged to produce a ‘degenerative’ research
climate [6].Thus, it is important to develop a fuller understanding of these technologies within education
today. And so, to improve knowledge management for e-learning is become very important.
2 Knowledge Management Activity for E-learning
Today, world knowledge management is one of the most important sources of power in our society.
People need to make right decisions and act in an appropriate way. Knowledge management and
e-learning are closely related because e-learning users need a suitable knowledge management that can
help them to obtain the kind of content they need together with as correct and complete information as
possible.
However, knowledge management concept is not easy to define because it is fairly wide. In a enterprise
context, this concept is defined as “some actions intended for enterprises to organize and structure
process, mechanisms and infrastructures with the proposes to create, save and reuse organization’s
knowledge”. In another way, emphasize people participation in a knowledge management process.
According to this we define this concept as “a process to support creation, storing and sharing of value
information as well as experience and perceptiveness inside or through people and organizations
communities with similar interest and necessities”. Taking into account both definitions, we think
knowledge management for e-learning systems must support all the issues that involve the teaching and
learning process, specially knowledge management because it is one of the most important issue in
distance learning.
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The possibility of managing knowledge through e-learning systems has an additional value. Knowledge
is a source of power that needs to be shared and acquired, e-learning systems mean the possibility of
managing knowledge taking into consideration people that can contribute with their experience and
enrich the knowledge independent of time and place limits. However, many organizations have created
their own e-learning platform solutions for knowledge management. As a consequence they have had
interoperability problems at the moment their content is shared with other e-learning platforms or at the
moment it is updated.
For reusing learning material in many educational levels and contexts, it must include a principal or a
few related ideas, in this way, teachers are free to decide in which learning context they must be used. It
is possible because learning material is not necessarily related to any time, methodology or instructional
design. Independent learning material characterized by one or few related ideas means the possibility to
teach some topic by itself avoiding reusability problems. Accessible through metadata capabilities is
very important because metadata through their categories deliver, the learning material characteristics
providing different kind of information. Finally, learning material reusability means the possibility that
learning material could be reused many times independent of software and platforms changes. This issue
reflects their interoperability and durability characteristics.
Because of reusable units of learning and standards for their treatment, knowledge management
efficiency for e-learning becomes more necessaries and important.
3 Factor Analysis of Effecting Knowledge Management for E-learning
According to the knowledge flow of the model (Figure.1), we examined four categories of influences for
e-learning: teacher resource, technology media, learning content and student characteristics.
3.1 Teacher resource characteristic
“Teaching resources” include all kinds of teaching data, audiovisual aids, and social resources that can
vivify, enrich, and facilitate the teaching process. A good teaching resource, when ideally applied by
teacher, is expected to induce student’s earning motivation. Deepen impression and increase memory.
Expand the scope of student’s experiences. Establish association between learning and life can cultivate
self-learning ability, Cultivate correct thinking and problem solving abilities. It can also enhance
teacher’s teaching effectiveness. We can propose that teacher’s attitudes toward technology, teaching
styles, and control over the technology will affect knowledge management outcomes.
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TEACTHER
RESOURCE
TECHNOLOGY-MEDIA
LEARNING CONTENT
STUDENT
STUDENT
STUDENT
Fig. 1. Process of knowledge flow for e-learning
Firstly, teachers' attitudes toward technology for e-learning systems should be included in evaluations of
their works. Organization members are expected to develop coordinated patterns of behavior based on
observations of each others' behaviors, the consequences of behaviors, and emotional reactions. The
social influence model finds that attitudes toward and use of e-mail were affected by social influences
from co-workers and supervisors. So, we propose that the same influences to knowledge management
will occur in e-learning. Secondly, the teaching style of a teacher can affect
encouraging student interactions. Without significant interaction, students may become easily distracted,
making side comments to one another and giving part of their attention to other activities, because
distance learning requires more concentration than a face-to-face meeting. Therefore, interactive
teaching styles become crucial to success for knowledge management for e-learning. And thirdly,
distractions can result from the use of the equipment, and students become impatient when teachers
encounter technical problems. Therefore, if it appears that instructors have little control over the
communication technology used in distance learning, students may view them as being less competent
overall.
Thus, we can get hypothesis1: Knowledge management activities become more easier and students will
experience more positive learning effectiveness from e-learning with that teachers have positive
attitudes, exhibit more interactive teaching styles and more control over the technology.
3.2 Technology-media characteristic
Technology reliability and quality are important attributes of task-technology fit, and they will be
especially important for a newer technology such as multimedia. In particular, participants in desktop
videoconferencing presentations and e-learning courses often complain about poor video quality and
audio-video synchronization. Reliability of the technology used is especially important when teaching
action is centered on the technology: without the technology, there is no instruction to the remote sites.
Students interact more passively with interactive video than they do with face-to-face instruction; this
may be the result of a cultural association between interactive video and broadcast television.
We also propose that students at remote locations will perceive the technology to be leaner than those at
origination locations, because those at the origination points have the benefit of both the face-to-face
instruction and the technology. The perceived richness of multimedia technology should also influence
learning outcomes. In medium richness theory, a rich medium is one that conveys multiple verbal and
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nonverbal cues, allows for immediate feedback, uses natural language, and allows personal focus. Daft
and Lengel created a hierarchy of medium richness, with face-to-face communication at the top,
followed by telephone, electronic mail, and print communications. There has been some debate about
whether richness is an inherent, objective property of media or whether it should be considered a
perceptual phenomenon. According to the latter perspective, which has been suggested by social
influence theories, different people in different social contexts perceive media differently. Also,
e-learning often incorporates interactive video.
Thus, we can get hypothesis2: the reliability and quality of the technology used in distance learning
should relate positively to knowledge management and learning outcomes.
3.3 Learning content characteristic
More student fields will also result in more administrative tasks for teachers, such as checking each field
for questions. More tasks translate into less time for the discussion of learning content. Further, it is
difficult to build discussion into distance learning contents that have three or more learning fields,
because of the time it takes to switch between learning fields, interruptions, and the lack of
more-than-two-way video, so teacher effectiveness declines.
Therefore, we can get hypothesis3: Knowledge management will be more efficiency and students will
experience more positive learning outcomes in e-learning with a certain student learning fields.
3.4 Students’ characteristics
Students may feel more self-conscious in distance learning situations, and going on-camera may inhibit
them. For instance, teachers have noted that some students are reluctant to sit within the range of a
camera. When students' images are displayed on a monitor, the salience of oneself increases, and
students may feel that they are "on television" and thus participate less than they would in traditional
learning situations. Speaking in front of a camera may be a high-anxiety activity, and some students will
be uncomfortable and intimidated. Thus, students who are more comfortable when their images are
displayed on a screen will experience more positive learning outcomes from e-learning. Of course,
peoples’ attitudes will affect learning outcomes.
Thus, we can get hypothesis4: The more comfortable students feel, the more efficiency knowledge
management activities are.
4 Conclusion
Knowledge management is a concept widely used for enterprises. For e-learning systems, knowledge
management is suggested to emphasize on learning content management. E-learning users need a
suitable knowledge management that can help them to obtain the kind of content they need. This paper
has analyzed four factors affecting knowledge management of e-learning, such as teacher’s resource,
technology-media, learning contents and students characteristics. It also provides a good method to
enhance knowledge management outcomes for e-learning.
One important issue for practice and research include the design of knowledge management
environments in a distant learning, emerging technologies supporting distance education, and
cross-cultural implications of e-learning for underserved areas of the world. Further, administrators may
want to consider improving knowledge management to distance learning technologies for other
applications, such as delivering better training and courses directly to corporations, conducting
multi-campus faculty and committee meetings, and publicizing and marketing their universities. These
initiatives will help propel schools of business into the sociality.
References
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[2] G. Brown and M. Atkins. Effective Teaching in Higher Education. Methuen, London and New
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[3] Erla Morales etc. knowledge management for e-learning based on learning objects: a qualitative
focus. ITHET 6th Annual International Conference, Session F4B:12~17
[4] Leidner. D. E., & Jarvenpaa, S. L. The information age confronts education: Case studies on
electronic classrooms. Information Systems Research, 1993, 4 :24~54
[5] Alavi. M., Wheeter. B. C, & Valacich, J. S. Using IT to reengineer business education: An
exploratory investigation of collaborative telelearning. MIS Quarterly, 1995, 19:293~312
[6] Chiang, K-H. Relationship between research and teaching in doctoral education in UK universities.
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Acknowledgments
This research achievement belongs to Shanghai Association of Higher Education, Project Number:
GJZC05-08. It is supported by Leading Academic Discipline Project of Shanghai Municipal Education
Commission, Project Number J51202. And also, it is supported by Innovation Program and Excellent
College Young Teacher Special Research Fund of Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, Project
Number: 08YS148, 22027.
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