1. THE FUTURE OF VIRTUAL
LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
(VLES)
Learning Set 4
Sheila, Ayman, Gion, Priya, and Nafeth

2. Current Problems with Traditional VLEs in Education
Traditional VLEs….
▪ depend on the competency and motivation of teachers
▪ are often used simply as repository for course materials
▪ are often cumbersome in terms of ‘exchang[ing] content despite their claims of
interoperability’ (Weller, 2006)
▪ do not always meet the needs of different subject areas (Weller, 2006)
▪ tend to be inflexible and fail to meet the needs of teaching (Weller, 2006)
▪ are restricted by a number of other limitations (Weller, 2006).

3. How can VLEs be developed to support the needs of learners
Developments required to support the needs of learners:
▪ As suggested by Ofsted (2009), staff motivation is a key factor in making VLEs more effective. The
common factor in effective VLEs was the enthusiasm of the subject teacher in terms of….
▪ Enthusiasm for the subject
▪ Enthusiasm for and teaching and learning
▪ Educators’ competence in computing (Ofsted, 2009).
▪ Sharpe, Beetham, and De Freitas (2010) state that the learner’s voice in designing learning is stronger
than ever. This must be taken into account when designing the future VLEs.
▪ Sharpe et al (2010) also believe that there is a need to emphasize more on the social dimensions of
learning between peers. They trust that students tend to create their own interacting learning arenas’ or
spaces where they learn and absorb new kinds of knowledge.
▪ ‘Learning activities mediated through VLEs did enhance learner participation, performance and
motivation’ confirming that students skills are enhanced through VLE use (Sharpe, Beetham, & De
Freitas, 2010, p. 215).

4. How can VLEs be developed to support the entire population in
an education setting
Different users can benefit from the advantages of the future VLEs through….
▪ Educational Institution management:
They can use the VLE as a portal where they can work collaboratively on school policy documents, raising agendas for
next meeting, hold important discussions on strategic decisions and just recently, and plan the school’s budget.
▪ Parents:
In a school setting, parents have a very important role to play on a VLE. They can be allowed access to NOT ONLY the
Parent Portal for Parental Online Reporting but for them to be able to access the teaching and learning materials that
their kids have access to. Access to their homework and the resources is more constructive.
▪ Educational institution’s administrative staff:
The VLE has the potential to help the administrators and support staff carry out their work more effectively. Daily reports
are posted for others to see; these include important announcements, absences, school event, duties time table,
highlighting achievements, taking care of students needs,..etc
▪ The wider community:
VLE can also be used in context for community outreach programmes, local businesses and community learning. An
educational institution can run local community newsletter with students and staff working together to contributing,
interviewing, reporting and editing using what they already know best, the VLE.

5. Points to consider when designing the Future VLEs
Following are some of the points that must be considered to ensure success when designing
the future VLEs:
▪ A clear strategy at senior management level to ensuring that the VLE is used to ‘enhance learning’ rather than
as a ‘storage facility’
▪ Monitoring the VLE systems’ use and impact on learning are key in ensuring success (Ofsted, 2009).
▪ Extending the use and design of VLEs through the use of plug-ins to support teaching and learning. For
example:
▪ Many projects are looking at extending the function of the VLE to include: administrative functions, links to library
and to social networking.
▪ At Teesside University the VLE is being used to include a specially designed widget which tries to meet the needs
of learners with disabilities who may require the VLE to be adapted to meet their own learning needs
▪ Supporting student-centered learning and allowing content and resources held outside the VLE system to be
held within it.
▪ Integrating data from a range of sources, and providing an intelligently, personalized view to both the learner
and the educator.
▪ Providing a more personalized learning model, based around the learners needs and desires

6. What Features Must Future VLEs Have?
▪ Future VLEs:
▪ Should be very user-friendly and easy to use. This can increase the enthusiasm and motivation of educators to
use them.
▪ Should be designed to ‘enhance learning’ rather than as a ‘storage facility’
▪ Should have built-in capabilities to monitor its use and impact on learning.
▪ Should be designed to support student-centered learning and to allow content and resources held outside the
VLE system to be held within it.
▪ Should use plug-ins to support teaching and learning. Some of these plug-ins are administrative functions, links
to library and to social networking. Others can be special plug-ins to meet the needs of learners with disabilities
who may require the VLE to be adapted to meet their own learning needs.
▪ Should integrate data from a range of sources,
▪ Should provide a more personalized learning model based around the learner’s needs and desires
▪ Not only should it benefit the teachers and the learners, it should also be designed to serve the entire population
in an education setting. This includes: educational institution management, parents, administrators, and the
wider community.

7. Further Research Needs (Cognitive Features of VLEs)
▪ Web Users Have Come of Age!
▪ Web 2.0 is on the Block! What’s in Store for VLEs?
▪ Instructional Quality
▪ Acquisition
▪ Participation
▪ Administrative Quality
▪ Mobility
▪ Transparency & Integrability
▪ Institutional Quality
▪ Accreditation
▪ Personalization and e-Portfolios
▪ Competence Management & Monitoring

8. Further Research Needs (VLEs as Social Networks)
▪ Students are more comfortable with open-sourced and collaborative information sharing
like those found in Social Networks (Pugliese, 2012; Wadman, n.d.)
▪ A new-breed of VLEs have sprung up to address this need, for example, Edmodo,
Schoology, Lore, and Canvas. They claim to address better student-centered learning,
content management, interoperability, and ease-of-use.
▪ These VLEs are driven by non-linear learning; broad content creation, sourcing, and
reuse; open architecture and interactions, and intelligent analytical capabilities.
▪ It is unclear if these VLEs operating under a new paradigm defined by Wadman as a
VLE 3.0, fulfill the needs of future students, faculty, and administrators.

9. References
▪ Collis, B., & Moonen, J. (2008, January 27). Web 2.0 tools and processes in higher education:
quality perspectives. Taylor & Francis. Retrieved October 12, 2014, from
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/095
▪ Dondi, C., Mancinelli, E., & Moretti, M. (n.d.). ADAPTING EXISTING COMPETENCE
FRAMEWORKS TO HIGHER . x. Retrieved October 12, 2014, from
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/24
▪ JISC. (2010). Projects, Programmes and Services. Retrieved December 30, 2012, from JISC:
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/elearning/distributedvle.aspx
▪ Lopez-Fernandez, O., & Rodriguez-Illerab, J. (2009, April 3). Download PDFs. Investigating
university students' adaptation to a digital learner course portfolio. Retrieved October 12, 2014,
from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article
▪ Ofsted. (2009). Virtual Learning Environments: an evaluation of their development in a sample
of educational settings. London: Crown.

10. References - Cont.
▪ Pugliese, L. (2012). A Post-LMS World. Retrieved October 8 from
http://www.educause.edu/ero/article/post-lms-world.
▪ Sharpe, R., Beetham, H., & De Freitas, S. (2010). Rethinking Learning for a Digital Age. New
York: Routledge.
▪ Wagman, B. (n.d.). Revealing Students’ Perceptions of VLEs. Retrieved October 10, 2014, from
https://www.academia.edu/3563716/Edmodo_versus_Moodle_-
_The_Future_of_Virtual_Learning_Environments_in_Thailand
▪ Weller, M. (2006). VLE 2.0 and future directions in learning environments. In R. Philip, A.
Voerman, & J. Dalziel (Ed.), Proceedings of The First International LAMS Conference 2006:
designing the future of learning (pp. 99-106). Sydney: Lams Foundation.
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