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Notebook PCs Help to Develop Information and Communications Technology Training

October 28, 2008 | 2 comment

Ultra-portable PCs, also known as “Notebooks”, are the latest trend in technology and the new students in our schools. These new laptop PCs are mobile, flexible and reliable and enable users to set up a multimedia space in a school setting in a matter of seconds.

What exactly is an ultra-portable PC or Notebook?
The main characteristic of Notebook PCs is their very small size: they are flat and lightweight - a nine-inch model can weigh under a kilo. They have all the technical features of an ordinary laptop and can run under Linux or Windows.

Deployment in schools
Ultra-portables come in a special computer case that is used for transporting, protecting and powering them. They can be set up instantly in a classroom and connect to the Internet via an integrated Wifi terminal.

All this means that you no longer have to have a special room dedicated exclusively to the teaching of information and communications technologies. Everything you need is provided: a Wifi terminal, an extension cord, a headset, a pre-installed e-learning software programme, a USB key…The training software is provided on a CD-Rom and loaded onto the teachers’ computers, enabling them to monitor their students’ progress, choose the appropriate content, and share their resources with others.

The advantages of this “all-in-one” solution
Thanks to this new increasingly mobile equipment, it is now possible to computerize schools at a very low cost. The equipment can be easily shared within any given school.
In France, this new turnkey PC solution, which is available at a price accessible to the vast majority of local school authorities, means that student progress can be measured at the end of each cycle of the B2I programme (Internet and Computer Science certificate).

For more:
Laptop Multimedia Laboratory
French Ministry of Education / B2I

Post by : ILT | under Trends, soltend-accueil 

Assessing the Skills of a New Employee: What Testing and e-Learning Solution Should You Choose?

October 28, 2008 | Leave a comment

Temporary work and job placement agencies, major companies and small / medium-sized businesses all face the same challenge when they recruit new talents for their teams: that of matching up the right person with the right job.

When you evaluate office-related computer skills, you must take into account a number of factors so that you can implement an effective long-term skills assessment strategy. E-learning is a solution that is particularly well adapted to developing an assessment strategy of this kind. However, in order to make an informed decision concerning the choice an e-learning service provider, you must start by asking yourself several questions.

Will the staff testing and training programmes take place in a given geographical location or will they be deployed on numerous sites?

In the latter case, an e-learning programme support system is requisite for success: the training of relay tutors, the creation of e-learning courses to facilitate the adoption of the tool. In addition, the IT department must be an active partner in the project.

About the support itself: should it be in the form of a CD-Rom or a full web solution?    
A training programme deployed via an online platform offers many advantages: it is easier to up-date, and allows you to avoid problems of incompatibility between heterogeneous technology platforms. The catalogue includes modular programmes that can be adapted to the level of the audience to be tested. Furthermore, the results are objective and are immediately available.

What is the best solution for e-learning programmes involving office-related computer skills: testing in a real environment or in a simulated environment?  
Testing in a real environment means that it can be performed on office software, under real working conditions, even if the software is not installed on the computer itself. The tests to be carried out can be deployed on all the workstations, even those that do have maximal office configuration. The real environment method allows you to avoid the frustrations inherent to software in a simulated environment, which does not offer the full set of options. With e-learning in a real environment, users can choose how they reply – nothing is imposed on them. In addition, all of the software features are taken into consideration.

Post by : ILT | under Trends, soltend-accueil 

E-learning Solutions: The Role of a LMS Platform (or Learning Management System)

October 28, 2008 | 1 comment

LMS is an e-learning software tool that enables users to manage online training programmes remotely. There are two types of LMS platforms: LMS and LCMS. Both are essential to the deployment and management of e-learning programmes. LMS platforms are installed on Internet or Intranet networks and are used for either distant or presential online training.

What is the difference between a LMS and LCMS platform?
A LMS platform, or Learning Management System, offers numerous features. The tool is installed on a server and provides students with a website from which they can access the e-learning programmes set up by their teachers. In turn, LMS platforms offer teachers the opportunity to monitor the results of their students and manage courses of study online.

LCMS platform
A LCMS platform, or Learning Content Management System, offers users not only the features mentioned above, but also the possibility of creating and managing content for e-learning programmes. Right now, most LCMS must be installed on the programme creator’s workstation as well as on the server. In spite of growing bandwidths, full web production remains problematical.

The features:
Administrative management:
Technical configuration; ergonomics; website user rights and access management.

Programme and cursus management:
The platform enables the teachers to distribute their programmes online, assign different courses to their students and to track performance via the retrieval of scores.

Virtual classroom management:
Virtual classrooms permit teachers to organize learners into different groups according to their level and to schedule and lead classes online. The tool is offered as an option on LMS e-learning platforms.

Communication tools management:
Forum: Organisation of online discussions between learners and teachers
Library: Online resources provided by teachers, which can then be accessed by learners
Collaborative space: The posting and revision of resources by teachers and learners
E-mail: Sending/receiving of electronic mail
Agenda: Organisation of the e-learning programme schedules

The AICC and SCORM Standards
LMS platforms operate under AICC and SCORM standards, which enable e-learning systems to store learners’ actions. As a result, they offer teachers very rich data about their students: time spent per e-learning unit, number of visits, date of the last visit, reports on their progress. The standards most frequently used are SCORM 1.2, AICC 3.5 and SCORM 2004 (in descending order).

Post by : ILT | under Trends, soltend-accueil 

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