The document outlines a strategic approach to formulating and implementing e-learning programs, focusing on the essential questions of why, when, what, for whom, and how technology-enhanced learning (TEL) will be utilized. It provides insights on the benefits of e-learning for students, faculty, and administrators while addressing potential barriers and resource allocation. Key tips include starting with existing educational materials, developing a hyperlinked repository for content reuse, and emphasizing the importance of high-quality, accessible digital resources.

1. Practical tips in formulating an e-Learning
strategy and developing an e-learning
program
Dr Goh Poh Sun
Associate Professor and Senior Consultant
Department of Diagnostic Radiology
National University Hospital
National University of Singapore

2. The essence of strategy is to focus
on “what is important” to do (areas
of effort and concentration), and
what not to do

3. The 5 “Ws” and 1 “H”
Why do you want to use eLearning? (or
Technology enhanced learning/TeL)
When and Where (will TeL be used),
What (content will shared by TeL), for
Who (is your audience), and How (will
TeL be used) ?
How should one proceed? What barriers
can be anticipated? What resources
should be devoted to this effort?

4. Why do you want to use eLearning? (or Technology
enhanced learning/TeL)
Benefits students - access (time, place and pace
which suits them), best content (most useful, most
engaging)
Benefits staff - scale up, expands reach, wider
audience, beyond classroom/scheduled class time,
consistent content, facilitates peer review (displays
scholarly teaching and educational scholarship)
Benefits administrators - peer review, demonstrates
quality (see what you actually teach with, and
assess on), facilitates evaluation of teaching
sessions and programs

5. When and Where (will TeL be used)
In class - to support
Before class - to prepare,
“Flipping the classroom”
After class - to reinforce

6. What (content will shared by TeL)?
Lecture slides
Text
Multimedia
Assessment items/exercises/
simulations

7. Who (is your audience)?
Undergraduate - build foundation,
illustrate
Postgraduate - train for
competency, proficiency, expert
performance, mastery
CME/CPD/Lifelong learning -
review, revise, reinforce, (re)build -
new knowledge and skills

8. How (will TeL be used)?
Formal learning (classroom or online),
Informal learning (seeking advice from
network), Just in time learning/
performance support (looking up
something, key information, guidelines
and guides)
Websites, Mobile applications, Sharing
digital documents and references
electronically
Access real-time, asynchronously

9. How should one proceed? What barriers can be
anticipated? What resources should be devoted to this
effort?
Start with what you have, and what you currently use
for teaching and training
Attitudes (traditional teaching and training is the
best - but what about students and trainees who
cannot attend, teachers with variable or subpar
performance on a particular day or who are not
available?), Lack of time/protected time, Not
knowing how to start/skill set (faculty development)
Leadership, support from key stakeholders, buy-in,
early adopter/pilot project-prototype development
teams, iterative review and improvement cycles
(develop, use, evaluate/feedback, repeat)

11. Everything I have learnt about eLearning
1.its the learning in (e)Learning that is the most important
2.the quality of the content counts
3.technology promotes access and broadens reach
4.the most successful strategy is to blend digital with face to face
5.digital content can and should be continuously refined, and customised to an
individual learner’s needs
6.create or curate
7.an indexed hyperlinked repository promotes use, re-use, and re-purposing
8.digital teaching facilitates peer review, co-creation and curation of content
9.a digital platform can promote and facilitate active and collaborative learning
10.know the pedagogy and have technical know how, apply educational theory
and instructional design principles
11.be prepared for lots of work, much much more than the preparation required
for a regular face to face class, symposium or workshop (at least 10 times
more); the trade-off is that digital content once created or curated can be re-
used and re-purposed if accessible via a hyperlinked indexed content repository
12.focus on creating and curating content in the most granular and reusable
format

12. How to start
1.Do you (your department, your division, your institution) have a list of all educational
presentations and teaching sessions given to undergraduates, postgraduates, and for CME/
CPD over the last year?
2.Have you (your department, division and institution) kept a copy of all educational
presentations?
3.Is the list of presentations AND copy of the educational presentations available and accessible?
4.If no to any of the questions above, consider starting to do this prospectively, and then
retrospectively
5.Then start selectively hyperlinking specific elements of the presentations, and making this
available, first internally on an intranet, then progressively on the internet
6.Starting with a list of presentations, and key take home or practice points is a useful, and safe
way to start
7.You can then share recent and authoritative articles and research papers, as well as practice
guidelines; and then progressively, key diagrams and illustrations (at all times maintaining
confidentiality, protecting privacy, respecting intellectual property, and following professional and
institutional standards and guidelines - i.e. always respect your patients, your students and your
colleagues)
8.This process makes teaching (activities) visible, available for peer review, and scholarly (as well
as potentially scholarship - for other educators and scholars to critique, and build upon)
9.Teaching and educational activities can be more easily assessed, evaluated and audited - by
students, peers, and external educational training and accreditation bodies
10.This provides evidence for educational quality - not only following best practices and
guidelines on paper, but by “showing what you actually teach with, and assess on”