The VLE Conundrum

Q: When is a VLE not a VLE?
A: When it is used as a online content warehouse.

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It is interesting to see how VLE software such as Blackboard, Moodle and WebCT is actually being used within the world of education. As with any content free software, there are a wide range of different applications and uses. Nontheless, one of the popular applications of VLE software appears to be as a mechanism for marshalling content in the form of e-documents and hyperlinks to various resources available on the internet.

There is little doubt that VLE software in its various incarations is easy to use, especially for managing resources such as uploading, accessing and keeping secure key documents for example. This approach, together with the social-software tools provided, appear to be popular features of many of the "open" VLEs on the internet where a guest may enter.

Such approaches are valid and are valuable - but whatever happened to applying a pedagogy?

In reality, designing and producing a teaching and learning package within a VLE is a much more challenging task than simply collating information on various URLs (with the help of Google) and uploading documents.

• First you have the task of planning a structure for the course.
  
• Then, within in each section, you must define learning objectives for the anticpated audience (unless developed for specific, known groups this is much harder than it might at first appear and requires skilful use of optional branches).
  
• From the plethora of options and available techniques, you decide on the most effective way to present the learning material, activities, tasks and associated assessments.
  
• Finally, you need to summarise the section and provide some feedback or evaluative loop for the course.

Does this seem familiar? These are certainly the kind of "building blocks" used by educators in developing, planning and executing most teaching and learning programmes. Incorporating these elements within a VLE is a much more daunting and certainly requires a large investment in time to ensure good quality experiences for learners.

Then there is a question of how to gain a proper return on such investment. The answer to this question will depend on the context, whether the course is a commercial product or targeted at members of an organisation such as a school, college or group of educational professionals.

The VLE is no "quick fix" to presenting good quality teaching and learning materials. Like most educational activity, there is always the need to establish a pedagogy for effective e-learning in practice.

Perhaps that is why there are more implementations of a VLE as forms of an "online content warehouse".