eLearning concept

The latest expansion of the internet is having an extraordinary impact on the educational processes worldwide, which is transforming training contents, instructional design as well as educational curricula. Specifically, because of the main characteristics of the internet: enhanced interactivity and connectivity, it has allowed the internet to be described as a global educational platform. The internet enables students of different countries and employees of different industries to receive and interact with educational materials online, as well as to engage with tutors and peers in ways that has never been previously possible. According to McGreal and Elliot (2004, p.143), “education is one of the fastest-growing economic and social sectors in the world, and the use of new technologies is an integral and driving component of that growth”.

The importance of training in the new information economy has been highlighted in the academic literature as well as in the industry reports. In the new economy, the value of intellectual capital, employees’ skills, their competencies and knowledge, is greater than any other form of business capital, and can help to drive crucially competitive advantage of any company or industry globally (Bell & Federman, 2013; Daniele & Mistilis, 1999;

Sigala et al., 2001).

Furthermore, eLearning has been adopted and is being used by various sectors in order to update the knowledge of the employees of the companies and inform their customers.

Companies that have large and spread distribution chains use online trainings to educate their sales teams on the latest product developments without an actual need of organizing in-presence training sessions. Banks, insurances, pharmaceutical corporations, IT companies and governmental agencies (Karadimas & Rigopoulos, 2006; Schweizer, 2004; Welk et al., 2006) are using eLearning platforms in order to keep their current staff updated or to give initial training to those who are just joining the company.

Due to the development of modern technological innovations, including broadband internet, digital videos and personal computers, as well as mobile devices and tablets used for educational purposes, eLearning is becoming a commonplace. The worldwide eLearning industry market is estimated to be worth over US$100 billion, and is due to reach US$107 billion by 2015 (PRweb, 2012). According to recent industrial reports, eLearning accounts for a significant proportion of corporate investments globally (SkillSoft, 2010).

The eLearning market has been described as a complex system, which involves academic, corporate and consumer fields, and integrates a variety of segments that include consultancy, training courses content and services development, technology support providers, as well as technology sellers and promoters (Baum & Sigala, 2001;

Cantoni & Succi, 2008; Piccoli et al., 2001).

For the first time the term “eLearning” has been used in late 1990’ as an abbreviation from “electronic learning” (Oxford English Dictionary, 2007). A number of other terms were used in the academic literature in the last twenty years in order to define the process of ICTs integration within learning and training activities. For instance, “online or distance learning”, “virtual learning environment”, “computer-based training”,

“computer mediated training”, “electronically enabled learning”, “technology-enhanced learning”.

The description of the European Union (CEC, 2001, p.2), will be used as a background term within this study:

“eLearning is the use of new multimedia technologies and the internet to improve the quality of learning by facilitating access to resources and services as well as remote exchanges and collaboration”.

eLearning involves all technology-enabled learning activities, which include the delivery and management of training options and all the types of support via desktop computers, mobile and tablets, networked and web-based technology. Educational service providers offer online lessons and webinars, online tests and video-tutorials, as well as educational consulting to meet the diverse demands of their customers.

All those are used in order to help an individual or an organization to improve performance and aid development (Haven & Botteril, 2003; Brown, et al., 2012).

Depending on the viewpoint of the researcher (Cantoni et al., 2007), eLearning can include:

(i) internet (online) education and training;

(ii) the use of ICTs in education and training;

(iii) the capacity to transform education and training through the use of ICT.

As the definition of eLearning varies significantly, similarly the academic research that study this concept varies. It should be pointed out that eLearning is not a discipline in itself, and it is studied by researchers from other subjects, such as education, technology, psychology, sociology, communication sciences, economics, etc. Furthermore, the research paradigm of the eLearning field is strongly affected by the diverse academic communities working on it. According to Bates (1999) it is complicated to recognize similar approaches and methodologies used in order to have a general understanding on the comprehensive models and theories to be adopted while analysing eLearning applications and practices.

Neglecting fragmented academic research on the subject, due to the potential benefits, eLearning has drawn significant attention from educational institutions, educational software developers, and business organizations. The benefits of eLearning have been widely discussed including reduced educational cost, consistency, timely content, convenience and the effectiveness of a training delivery (Cantoni et al., 2007; Lorenzetti, 2005; Rosenberg, 2001; Strother, 2002). eLearning is believed to be one of many methods of the training and learning procedure which allows flexible learner-centred education (Lee & Lee, 2008). According to Johnsson (2005), eLearning moves traditional instructional paradigm to learning paradigm, which gives more control over selection of the training materials and training delivery methods to the users – current or potential learners. According to Clark (2006), the use of technologies for training provides consistency of both learning and teaching can be faster than traditional learning, and can be tailored to the individual needs of the users.

Non-profit and for-profit organizations globally are increasingly replacing offline on-the-job training with eLearning programs. They also combine them within the blended mode, when some parts of the training activities are happening online and the rest in a classroom environment. It is claimed that online training saves training costs and enhances learning effectiveness by delivering high-quality training services with fewer staff and in a shorter time frame.

Within formal educational settings, several researchers (e.g. Cantoni et al., 2007; Sigala, 2002b) suggested that online collaborative eLearning has the capability to overcome several problems associated with the distant student’s out-of-campus placement, for instance:

 isolation felt by the student;

 fear related to the involvement into the academic conversation and dialogue;

 time and place constraints for students who are dependent on the employment;

 trouble of building a common understanding amongst students’ coming from different cultural and social backgrounds and for students located in different cultures.

With its beneficial features, such as cost-effectiveness, delivery-efficiency, self-management of learning, on-demand training, anytime and anywhere availability, eLearning is to a greater extent acknowledged as an important supportive structure for both formal and informal learning at the working place (Rosenberg, 2006). According to Zornada (2005, p.14), eLearning from the company point of view, is a “revolutionary way to empower workforce with the skills and knowledge the company needs to keep a balanced performance within a rapidly changing international market”. As organizations

globally are trying to enhance their competitiveness by regular promotion of continuous (or lifelong) learning and enhanced training culture, eLearning continues to grow in popularity as its helping organizations to meet their strategic goals and needs for a flexible, well-trained and well-educated working force (Kosarzycki et al., 2002; Bowl, &

Tobias, 2012; Fourage, et al., 2010; Longworth, 2013). In fact, eLearning can be more effective in improving knowledge and skills due of its more personalized nature.

Even if potential benefits of eLearning may be significant, there are a number limitations and challenges within the implementation and support of eLearning practices. eLearning generally requires a high upfront cost, new pedagogical skills, good level of bandwidth connection and learners’ self-discipline and motivation (Cantoni et al., 2007).

Additionally, security issues such as cyber-attacks and hacking to eLearning systems may become a concern to the learners and service providers especially in the on-the-job training context (Ramim & Levy, 2006). Another key barrier to the success of the training initiatives that involve the use of ICTs is general absence of attention from the management side to the enhancement of the employees’ engagement and motivation to participate in the eLearning activities, which are happening at the workplace (Admiraal

& Lockhorst, 2009). Additionally, due to the low level of motivations, often employees don’t start eLearning activities, even if they are compulsory, as well as the high dropout rates are registered (Levy, 2007; Succi & Cantoni, 2008).

In fact, all those perspectives, advantages and disadvantages, eLearning can be applied in the field of hospitality and tourism, an industry in which ICT and the internet have had dominant impact at all operational levels, and where acquiring new knowledge and skills is of high importance for all involved stakeholders. The discussion of the use of eLearning applications within the hospitality and tourism industry will follow and will be presented in the sub-chapter 1.4.