Resumen de eLearners, A Special Breed of Learners with Implicit Learning Characteristics
Chao Boon Teo, Robert Kheng leng Gay
This paper looks at the emergence of eLearning in the knowledge economy and the implications this has for the theory and practice of learning. New technologies have transformed the way we live and the way we work. This coupled with eLearning is now transforming the way we learn, along with our needs for learning. However, while some learners, be they academic or corporate, are already reaping dividends from eLearning, many still do not learn. As government, business and educational sectors respond to the demands of the new learning technologies, most students and even teachers are caught up in this turbulence. Our research has shown that the eLearning transaction, characterized by the absence of a teacher mentor, has imposed certain responsibilities on the part of the learners. In order for the learners to reap the benefits from eLearning, they must conform to a special breed of learners with implicit learning characteristics. While many learners see such learning responsibilities or characteristics as undue burdens, we believe that such learning responsibilities are consistent with what we know to be essential for the prevailing education philosophy. However, while this type of transition is essential, the evolution is too abrupt. Hence, this paper sets out to explicit the learning responsibilities and investigates how we can mitigate such learning transition. Through the employment of proven pedagogical approaches and learning theories, we propose a powerful way that adds real value to transforming eLearning.
