This document summarizes a study on students' experiences with virtual learning environments (VLEs) when learning French at a university in London. The study examined how beginner and post-beginner French students used the VLE, their attitudes towards it, and whether factors like level of French, student status, or lecturer impacted their experience. Data was collected through questionnaires and interviews with 96 students and analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. The findings showed students had a positive attitude towards the VLE and were generally satisfied with their experience. Significant connections were found between which lecturer students had and their responses about using aspects of the VLE. The study provided insights that could help improve e-learning provision and staff development at the university.

1. S T U D E N T S ’ E X P E R I E N C E O F V I R T U A L
L E A R N I N G E N V I R O N M E N T S A M O N G B E G I N N E R S
A N D P O S T - B E G I N N E R S O F F R E N C H
N A T H A L I E T I C H E L E R
L O N D O N M E T R O P O L I T A N U N I V E R S I T Y
n . t i c h e l e r @ l o n d o n m e t . a c . u k
h t t p : / / t i c h e l e r . b l o g s p o t . c o m
O n T w i t t e r : n v t i c h e l e r
Institution-Wide Language
Programmes, Higher Education and
Blended Learning

3. Context, rationale and research questions
 “New” university and widening participation
 Blended Learning policy at institutional
level, use of the Virtual Learning
Environment (Weblearn)
 Quality of the students’ learning
experience
 No formal mechanism to collect students’
feedback on the VLE, apart from standard
university module questionnaires
 Getting extra feedback from students,
improvising the e-learning provision,
implications for staff development
 Possibility, with minor modifications, to
expand the study to other languages and
levels of the programme
 How do beginners and post-beginners of
French use the VLE at the targeted
institution?
 What is their attitude towards it?
 Do their level (beginners of post-beginners),
status (undergraduate, post-graduate,
external student etc...) or lecturer have an
impact on their experience of the VLE?
 Other subject descriptors (age, gender
etc...)

4. Background information on the targeted institution
 Institution-Wide Language Programme
 Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese and Spanish
 1 module = 1 semester = 15 credits at undergraduate level
 3 hours per week for 12 weeks, supplemented by self-study on the VLE)
 Institutional policies: blended Learning approach, use of the VLE

5. Theoretical perspective
 Hermeneutical phenomenology
 Post-positivism
 Interpretivism
 Socio-constructivism
 Combined quantitative and qualitative treatment of data

6. Data collection tools and analysis
 Sampling
All the beginners and post-beginners of
French, minus absentees and those who may
opt out (96 students)
 Data collection tools
End-of-module university questionnaires
Self-completion questionnaires
(closed and open questions)
Follow-up interviews
 What worked / did not work
 A clear focus on students
 A mixed approach to research, with a
combined quantitative and qualitative
treatment of data
 SPSS
 Analysis of open questions and interview
data

7. Emerging themes
 Positive attitude towards Weblearn
 High level of reported satisfaction and
confidence
 Necessity to obtain data based on various
questions, not just one
 Statistical treatment of data
Many significant connections between lecturers
and answers to closed questions in self-completion
questionnaire:
- satisfaction with their experience of Weblearn
- time spent on Weblearn
- use of communication tools (participation in
blogs, consultation of online announcements)
- reported need for guidance/tips
- satisfaction with and completion of work
on web links (including BBC links)
...
 Student-centred learning
 Socio-constructivism
 Implications for teaching and
learning
 Lecturers’ role / pedagogical
approach
 Students’ role and skills

9. And finally ...
 Ideas?
 Suggestions?
 Criticism?
 Feedback?
Slides are available on
http://ticheler.blogspot.com
Thank you for attending
this presentation!