Virtual learning environments (VLE) have recently emerged as an important topic in education theory and practice (Weller, 2007). In theory, a well-maintained VLE should enable students of all learning styles to receive the best possible education, in a way that they may not in an exclusively lecture-based environment which tends to be focused on auditory learners only (i.e. those who learn best by listening (Williams and Fardon, 2005; Vigentini, 2009)). If the resources on a VLE do not cater to the needs of the students - both in terms of their format (text files, audio files, videos etc.) and their content - the VLE is effectively rendered useless as it does not add to the students’ learning experience. Ideally (for co-located students rather than distance learners) it should contain just enough information to allow students to reinforce their work in lectures and gain a broader and deeper understanding of the subject (Ofsted, 2009), preferably through a range of presentational styles (such as video or audio).
A student’s experience in the classroom or lecture theatre depends on how well the teaching style fits with their individual learning style. The same issues exist with virtual systems and a variety of resources is needed in order to provide adequately for all learning styles. Many higher education institutions are increasingly fragmented and lacking in cohesion or unity (Whitworth, 2005) and regard VLEs as a way to help overcome the problems introduced by the national increase in the number of students coming to university and the higher workload that this entails for lecturing and support staff (Richardson, 2001). There is, however, a danger that, if the resources available online are too comprehensive, students could cease attending lectures (Bromage, 2003), preferring instead to access lecture materials online and to carry out their studies from the comfort of their homes (Boyle et al., 2008). It can therefore be said that there are three types of VLE: those with too much information (which discourage students from attending lectures), those with too little (rendering the VLE largely useless), and those with just enough to allow students to reinforce their work in lectures and gain a broader understanding of the subject (Ofsted, 2009).
This paper aims to link students’ academic performance data with VLE usage logs. Although direct causality may not be inferred between VLE use and academic performance, any correlations between VLE use and academic performance for different classes of students or different types of modules can yield insights into the effective use of VLEs. Two modules from the final year of the BEng Civil Engineering programme at Loughborough University were studied: the Design Project and Geotechnics 3. Using students’ VLE usage logs and their corresponding final grades for the modules (both coursework and examinations), evidence was sought for the existence of a link between their use of the VLE and their academic performance in each module. Two interviews with current students were also conducted in order to ascertain whether the quantitative data aligns with student views.
i hope this was helpfull
