A. Look at the following picture. What objects do you see in the picture? How are they related? Discuss with your partner and say what these are.
B. Work in pairs. Discuss the following questions.
• Have you ever experienced any digital education programmes in multimedia or CD/DVD?
• Have you ever used any digitized educational resources such as Oxford Dictionary, Banglapedia or Wikipedia?
• Have you ever heard of any online education course?
• Have you ever seen a classroom teaching programme on TV?
C. Read the text and answer the following questions.
Can you think of a classroom where there is no blackboard or desks? Do you believe that you can be a student without a printed book or a writing pad or even pen/pencil? Are you not thrilled to imagine that you have asked a question and your tutor is answering it while flying in a Boeing from Dubai to Dhaka? These are all possible in a 'virtual campus' in the system of e-learning. No kidding! For quite a long time, educationists have been utilizing the advantages of computer technology.
The social networking services have a huge potential to help educationists in this sector. They have access to millions of people worldwide. Educationists have noticed that a large number of social network users come from young generation who especially belong to student community. So side by side with computer assisted teaching-learning software, online education programmes are evolving fairly rapidly to assist conventional education system. Is that e-learning?
We may confuse distant education or computer-based learning or computer-assisted training or even online education programmes with e-learning. But we should be cautious about the mix-up. What happens in an online education programme? Maybe you get some materials online from your tutor. Maybe you submit your assignment through email. Or even you may take your test online. But there must be some conventional campus, a department/institute from where your certificate will come.
But in e-learning, as said by global e-learning guru Dr Badrul H Khan*, every step, such as registration, admission, classroom entry and exit, class work, attendance, discussion with course mates, feedback, exams and finally certification must take place electronically through computer and the Internet technology in a virtual campus.
Everything is digitized and conducted by a system called Learning Management System (LMS). So online education programmes blend various components of e-learning.
The revolutionary concept of e-leaming is already in its practice phase in many parts of the world. Professor Khan has developed a framework and important literatures on e-learning which have been praised by pundits worldwide including from Bangladesh. Professor Khan is especially enthusiastic about the prospect of e-learning in Bangladesh.
How would you feel if Bangladesh contemplates establishing South Asia's first virtual university? Won't it be a pioneering step for us in the world of e-learning? Let's keep our fingers crossed.
*Born and graduated in Bangladesh, Dr Badrul H Khan was a Professor at George Washington University and the University of Texas, USA. He is one of the celebrated theorists in the field of e-learning.
D. Write an e-mail to your teacher expressing your feelings and opinion regarding the next mode of education — e-learning. Also ask your teacher to clarify if anything in the text is unclear to you.
E. Suppose Dr. Badrul Huda Khan has come to visit your school and intends to meet students for a presentation on e-learning. Write a text message to invite your friend to attend the presentation.
F. Complete the following sentences with suitable words.
1 Education experts ----------------- utilizing the advantages of computer technology----------------- a long time.
2 In e-learning, everything from admission to certification must ---------------------------------- electronically through computer and the Internet technology in a virtual campus.
3 In some online courses, you----------------- your test online.
4 In case of online programmes, there----------------- some conventional campus from where-----------------.
5 In e-learning, all activities----------------- by a system called Learning Management System (LMS).
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