Designing Learnability in Online Learning Platforms

This article was published in India Development Review on 14 Oct 2021

The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted regular life in a myriad of ways. As in-person interaction came to a halt, entire offices went online. Those who had a roof over their heads, access to jobs, and to technology, had to start working from home. The pandemic also changed the course of education, forcing the instructor-to-student interaction to shift from within physical structures, to virtual classrooms. Since this transition to digital classrooms, there has been sufficient debate on the deepening digital divide, and the psychological and sociological aspects of online learning. However, the quality of the current models for integration of technology in education, remains untested.

Learning in a classroom is the outcome of a teacher’s understanding of the theory of learning — how students receive, process and retain knowledge — and the very act of teaching, also referred to as pedagogy. Traditional classroom teaching and assessment is based on various pedagogical models, which are implemented by the education authorities after sufficient deliberation and evaluation.

Online learning, on the other hand, is a relatively new method of learning, and one that has become integral to education today, as schools and universities shut in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. At present, there isn’t sufficient research and evidence on the efficacy of the systems for online instruction; and the consequences of this on learning outcomes can be disastrous in the long run.

For instance, a simple curriculum framework for evaluation of secondary students by the Central Board of Senior Education, in India, can take up to five years of discussion by multiple experts in the field, detailed research references, and voluminous reports submission before it is even considered for implementation. Currently, no such process is being followed for any online deployment of education.

Lessons from online education in the USA

Many countries like the USA have a more mature approach to online learning, and enabling policy to support it. For instance, the Department of Education, USA has an EdTech policy that is updated periodically, as well as community implementation guidelines. These national standards cover six broad topic areas: course content, instructional design, student assessment, technology, course evaluation and management, and 21st-century skills.

The department also produced a report that reviewed and analysed various evidence-based practices in online learning. Here are some key insights from that report:

1. Elements such as video or online quizzes do not appear to influence the amount that students learn in online classes. The practice of providing online quizzes does not seem to be more effective than other tactics such as assigning homework.
2. Online learning can be enhanced by giving learners control of their interactions with media and prompting learner reflection.
3. As a standalone instruction medium, online learning appears to be as effective as conventional classroom instruction, but not more so.
4. Although standards for online course and program effectiveness have been identified, data-driven yardsticks for measuring against those standards are not generally agreed upon or in use.

Many other countries like the UK and Nordic countries have also well-structured policies for online learning.

Online education in India

In India, the pandemic has accelerated the rollout of online education. The number of EdTech platforms has also been growing at a rapid pace. According to a report by RedSeer and Omidyar Network India, the online education market for grades 1–12 is projected to increase 6.3 times in the next one year and create a USD 1.7 billion market.

However, the lack of basic infrastructure, access, and inequity remain causes for major concern. According to the 2020 Remote Learning Reachability report issued by UNICEF, only 24 percent of Indian households had internet connections to access e-education. Furthermore, the current application of online learning in India posits a range of other challenges. These include:

1. Lack of policy interventions and guidelines:

Since the early nineties, certain models[1] have been proposed by researchers for e-learning and online learning. However, when an online platform is built, developers do not mention or publish the models that they have incorporated in its design, or if any model has even been considered. It is very difficult for any educationist to validate the design as there are no statutory mandates or guidelines. A few education departments have ICT guidelines which cover the hardware and software equipment required for implementation, but almost none address the qualitative aspects of online education.

2. Insufficient research: There is no significant body of validated research by the government, academicians or private sector in pedagogical aspects of online learning. A search on the pedagogical and qualitative aspects of most online platforms provides very basic anecdotal information about number of users and growth. The DIKSHA platform, launched in 2017 in India, now managed by the The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), is an excellent content hosting repository with impressive usage in the last year due to pandemic, but there is not sufficient analysis about the quality of the content.

1. No checks in place: The EdTech players have aggressively captured the market due to the pandemic but there is really no third-party validation of the effectiveness of their approaches or methodologies. Take for example, WhatsApp based teaching and assessment, that is being provided by a large number of organizations. There are no guidelines on how the content is to be structured, consumed, evaluated and analysed by students and teachers. Often the decisions on design approach are taken by software engineers who focus on implementation effectiveness, rather than the pedagogical significance of the approach.
2. Rigid structures that impede adaptability and innovation: Online education software is primarily driven by proprietary architecture — owned and controlled by a particular entity — which makes customization difficult as the technology improves. In an ideal scenario, the systems should have open-source architecture, like DIKSHA, so that any changes in technology can easily be incorporated by other players working in the field. Learning Management Systems built on rigid structures are finding it difficult to adapt to emerging technologies.
3. Lack of transparency: In the pre-pandemic era, most online solutions were targeted at the students and professionals appearing for competitive exams or higher education. The requirements, approach and motivation of those focusing on competitive exams is different from students taking regular classes. However, the very same platforms are now being used today for students’ basic education. There are no reported assessment available publicly on how the adult learning ( andrology) approach was modified for child learning (pedagogy) on any platform.

The approach in India seems to be as Dr. Robert Pianta, the dean of University of Virginia described the state of efficacy research in EdTech in the US, “At best, we’re throwing spaghetti against the wall and hoping that it sticks. Except that we don’t even know what it means to stick.”

Measuring Quality

Quality outcomes in online learning are a challenge both for pedagogy and technology.

There has however, been significant interest by educational researchers to define quality in tech-based education for the last two decades. Kimmons and Hall have proposed six criteria for determining quality of education technology integration in a model: clarity, compatibility, student focus, fruitfulness, technology role, and scope.

In a country like India where infrastructure and access are a challenge, every online learning model should be designed with options of simple lightweight learning modules, which can be further upgraded to advanced versions as the local infrastructure improves.

Way forward: Learnability by design

In the post pandemic world, online learning will continue to play a significant role in the roadmap of learning. Over the last two decades, it has been conclusively proven that online learning can be as effective as classroom learning when designed properly. Blended learning too, has shown better outcomes than classroom learning in many evaluations. The National Education Policy 2020 also advocates a blended learning route for the future.

The learning of vocational and STEM subjects, for instance, needs lab-based and hands-on activities. While some of these may be difficult to replicate online, a significant part of it can be delivered virtually with proper design. Basis the report published by the Department of Education, USA, mentioned earlier, there is enough evidence on the how the many components of such training that are more impactful when taught in a blended learning mode than in only in person classroom teaching.

A primary concern in this burgeoning EdTech space — apart from the absent policy framework — is the lack of data driven standards of measurement. It is incumbent on all the stakeholders of education that any learning model developed should be designed with reference to an underlying pedagogical model and standards of measurement. While this may not resolve all the challenges, it would provide a good benchmark for the educators in reasonable evaluation of the online platform and modifying it to the emerging guidelines.

Recently, the Ministry of Education has proposed National Education Digital Architecture (NDEAR) with a vision to create a national digital infrastructure to energise and catalyse the education ecosystem. NDEAR provides common building blocks in a federated manner, which can be used by stakeholders for the creation of new tools and solutions for the education system. This is a welcome step in aligning the goal of NEP. However, this is more of a technical blueprint, and the pedagogical aspects of EdTech are still not a part of the conversation.

[1] Some models for online learning include: TPACK; Koehler & Mishra,2009, SAMR; Puentedura,2003, TIM; Hermes, PICRAT ;Kimmons,Graham & West.