A New Standardisation and Certification Initiative in E-Learning The Qualification Standard Certified European E-Tutor

Eberhard Heuel, Birgit Feldmann Distance University of Hagen (FernUniversitt in Hagen) Hagen, Germany eberhard.heuel@fernuni-hagen.de birgit.feldmann@fernuni-hagen.de
Abstract In almost all educational fields methods and tools of e-learning have become widespread in all European countries in the last two decades. However, there are still relevant differences in terms of the extent and quality of their implementation and the dedicated qualification of teachers and trainers. Especially in the field of vocational education and training (VET) the quality of e-learning varies widely at European level as surveys by CEDEFOP, the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, reveal. An important lever to promote the use of e-learning in VET and to improve its quality is the targeted and systematic training of teachers and trainers according to uniform quality standards. This is the main goal of the project Certified European ETutor (CET) funded by the European Commission. The project defines a comprehensive quality standard for the further education of VET teachers and trainers to becoming e-tutors and introduces a certification procedure which supports the validation and recognition of e-learning qualifications in a transparent way at European level. This paper will describe the background of the project and discuss the state of the art in research on e-learning quality standards and reference frameworks. It then presents the projects goals and results, especially the specification of the quality standard for e-tutors. The paper finishes with information on the project impact. Keywords - vocational education and training, e-learning, elearning standards, certification, e-trainer, e-tutor .

"chalk and talk" is still the dominant form of teaching in VET, but the teaching personnel has realised that they do not teach only knowledge, but also accompany a learning process. In this context, e-learning tools offer a huge range of solutions to accompany the learning process in a very stimulating learning environment and setting. Against this backdrop, new media, learning materials and learning settings require continuous further training and qualification of staff. Some teachers are lacking in acceptance or in the necessary know-how to use e-learning successfully for themselves and their learners. Mostly dedicated teachers with different prior knowledge get involved with e-learning, develop an e-learning setting and use it for lessons. Because of the highly fragmented education and training market, characterised by a large number of different private and public actors, it is a future challenge to implement a consistent and systematic use of e-learning in the field of VET. Vocational educational training is different to academic teaching and learning as mostly practical skills for direct use in the daily work should be taught. Also, the knowledge level and the learning skills of the VET learners are highly different (it starts from high school to university level). Therefore, it is very difficult for trainers to match the needs of this target group. E-learning is one way to do it. Another aspect is the different educational traditions and cultural predispositions. These play a significant role when it comes to the question of how the acceptance of e-learning can be increased. This is where the European project "Certified European e-Tutor" (CET) steps in. The CET project addressed the strategic European priority to support the initial and continuous training of VET teachers, trainers, tutors and VET institution managers. It has been funded by the European Commission under the Lifelong Learning Program. The overall aim was to develop

I.

BACKGROUND

In general, the euphoria on e-learning in the 1990s has given way to an efficient use of e-learning and has particularly led to an increasing trend of using e-learning in vocational schools and training institutions in the European countries. The quality of e-learning based teaching in vocational education and training (VET), however, varies widely, depending among others on the personal competence of the teacher or trainer. There is no doubt that

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a European e-Tutor qualification scheme, which defines binding competence standards for VET teachers and ensures a widely accepted and recognised quality standard in European countries. This will significantly improve the quality of e-learning based teaching in VET schools and educational institutions in general. The partners are organisations in Germany, the Czech Republic, Finland, Spain and Great Britain. The partners have different roles in the project: The Finnish and the Czech partners role is to evaluate the program with national participants, the British partner is responsible for the dissemination of the results, the Spanish partner does the corporate design, the role of the three German partners is the management of project, the research on e-learning standards and the management of the test of the program with Finnish and Czech participants. II. RESEARCH ON E-LEARNING QUALITY STANDARDS AND REFERENCE INITIATIVES

II.1 International Standardisation Initiatives in the Field of E-Learning In the past 20 years a variety of standards in the field of learning, education and training has been developed or adopted from other standardisation initiatives. According to Ehlers/ Pawlowski [2], these standards can be split into three categories: Quality standards support quality development in organisations and improve among others transparency and comparability. They may be classified into standards, products, and competencies. Learning technology standards support the interoperability of (technical) learning environments and their components, e.g. learning management systems, learning resources and services. They may be subdivided into standards for content, management, actors, and didactics. Related standards from other domains are integrated into the quality and technology standards for learning, e.g. generic technical or legal standards.

Prior to the definition of qualification schemes for the standardisation of the Certified European e-Tutor, extensive research has been conducted about initiatives and projects concerning quality standards as well as e-tutoring concepts, methods and curricula. These issues and initiatives were used as reference points for the work on the CET standard. Among others, research was conducted with regard to the following criteria: Identification and evaluation of established VET qualification frameworks at European level: investigation of descriptions of qualifications in the context of VET as well as procedures for their recognition and certification according to uniform, transparent standards (EQF, ECVET) Identification and evaluation of recognised international standards and norms in the domain of e-learning and eteaching which can be applied to activities in CET (e.g. ISO standards) Identification and evaluation of national and international projects and public as well as commercial educational offers from the last decade which pursue similar aims and deal with comparable questions as the CET project Identification and evaluation of models for the sustainable establishment and further development of a certification standard at European level. Out of the many investigated initiatives and projects, we will describe and discuss the following two in detail as typical examples:

Following this classification, the CET approach can be assigned to the quality standards, especially the cluster of competency-orientation [5]. Other standardisation activities, which have received a lot of attention in the discussion about e-learning in the last few years [6], do not have any direct significance for the development of the standard Certified European e-Tutor. This especially applies to standards which deal with the interoperability of learning platforms and learning objects, such as SCORM [11] or LOM [10]. Furthermore, it applies to general didactic process models such as EML/IMS [7]. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the international standard setting body, has also been active in the development of norms for e-learning for some time. Its activities in this field have been bundled by the committee ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 36 [9] since 2000: Information Technology for Learning, Education and Training. The committee is organised in seven working groups which, at the same time, make the priorities of standardisation activities apparent: vocabulary; collaborative technology; participant information; management and delivery of learning, education, and training; quality assurance and descriptive frameworks; supportive technology; culture, language, humanfunctioning activities. One of the few standards which have been published for the field of e-learning is ISO/IEC 19796-1:2005 [8] which is a framework to guide organisations through processes of quality development and assurance in the field of e-learning. Actually, this and other ISO standards which have been published until now are of no direct significance for the standardisation of e-training and e-tutoring qualifications.

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Their goals, conceptual orientation and level of abstraction do not match with the positioning of CET within the previously outlined classification scheme for standardisation of e-learning. The cluster competency-orientation to which CET can be assigned has not yet been supported by specific ISO standards. II.2 European Qualification Frameworks The European Qualification Framework for Lifelong Learning (EQF) is a common European reference framework which acts as a translation device across the different national qualifications systems in Europe. It has two principal aims: to promote citizens mobility across Europe and to facilitate lifelong learning [3, 4]. The reference framework encompasses all kinds of qualifications, acquired in general as well as in vocational and academic education and training. It defines eight reference levels which span from basic (level 1) to advanced (level 8) levels. CET has incorporated the basic terminology and categories of the EQF and applied the 8-level framework to its qualification scheme. The qualifications are described in terms of learning outcomes, i.e. statements of what a learner knows, understands and is able to do on completion of a learning process [4]. Learning outcomes are specified in three categories: knowledge, skills and competences. Only the assessed individual learning outcomes on completion of a learning process, not the learning process itself or the learning contents, constitute credit and credit accumulation. It is of no importance in which learning setting, mode of delivery or context the assessed qualifications have been acquired [4] [1]. Thus the processes of assessment, validation and recognition which are used to accredit qualifications leave individual pathways unconsidered. In consequence, learning outcomes may be acquired through a variety of learning pathways and in different institutional settings (schoolbased, in-company, workplace training etc.), modes of delivery (teacher vs. self-paced learning; presence vs. distance learning, etc.), learning paradigms (formal, nonformal and informal), media formats (textbook, web-based training, practical, etc.) as well as in different cultural and education policy settings (national or regional education and training systems). A qualification scheme which is oriented towards the concept of learning outcomes describes the results of learning processes merely in terms of the acquired individual qualifications. The orientation towards learning outcomes as promoted by the European Qualification Framework constitutes an appropriate and productive approach to the development of a qualification scheme which standardises all necessary

qualifications for a Certified European e-Tutor. This standard, which will function as a compulsory point of reference for future certification processes, can only entail acquired and assessed qualifications in the categories knowledge, skills and competencies as only those are relevant to the performance of activities and tasks in vocational domains. Furthermore, when the huge diversity in institutional learning settings in various countries and individual learning modes and preferences are taken into consideration, it appears that only the focus on learning outcomes can offer a realistic chance to make requirements as defined in the CET standard comparable and transferable. III. THE E-LEARNING STANDARD CERTIFIED EUROPEAN E-TUTOR (CET)

The qualification CET and its specifications are suggested as a de-facto-standard at European level for the further education of VET trainers and teachers as e-Tutors as well as their certification based on proven qualifications and according to the learning outcomes and assessment criteria as specified in the CET qualification scheme. The assessment and certification body currently is FernUniversitt in Hagen, the renowned German distance university. The qualification profile of the standard is defined as follows: The qualification Certified European e-Tutor enables VET trainers, teachers, lecturers and other educational professionals to competently design and realise entire electronically supported learning processes as well as teaching sessions on the state-of-the-art level of the development of learning technology and media-didactics. Partial qualifications comprise knowledge, skills and competences in the areas of learning technology, development of learning content, didactics-methodology and training organisation. The qualification as specified in comprehensive qualification schemes is an additional qualification for VET trainers and teachers who have already gained basic qualifications in learning and teaching theories and didactics-methodology and who have solid practical experience. The target groups for the qualification Certified European e-Tutor (CET) are educational professionals who usually have long-term practice in traditional contexts of teaching and training as well as consolidated basic didacticmethodological knowledge. Thus, as the CET is a specific, additional qualification, it does not include the assessment of basic pedagogic competences and proficiency in traditional training settings. The designation of the qualification as e-Tutor can only roughly represent the actual extent of qualifications which are summarised under this label. Because of the general terminological fuzziness in everyday use as well as professional use, the concept and qualification of e-Tutor

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also contains semantic items of the terms e-Trainer, eTeacher, e-Coach and e-Moderator. What is meant by the qualification e-Tutor in the concept of CET becomes clear through the general description as well as through its specification in the qualification scheme itself. As the general description of the qualification as well as its specifications are delineated in terms of learning outcomes - according to the recommendations of the European Qualification Framework for Lifelong Learning (EQF) -, the function and content of the CET qualification scheme is clearly distinct from the curriculum of a training program which leads to the certification CET. Consequently, learners can acquire the described qualifications via different ways: by taking a dedicated training program, by studying suitable text books and other learning materials or, for example, by informal learning. Furthermore, the institutional context, in which the qualifications have been achieved, as well as the cultural and education policy setting do not play any role in the certification of the CET qualification. Besides the paradigm of learning outcomes from the EQF recommendations, the specifications of the CET qualification also include a categorisation into eight reference levels of qualification as well as the fundamental division of learning outcomes into the categories knowledge, skills and competences. All in all, the CET initiative views the EQF as a reference point to ensure transparency, comparison and transfer of the CET qualification across national borders. In the qualification scheme CET learning outcomes are structured in a systematic way according to qualification clusters in modules, units and sub-units. The modular structure at the same time also pragmatically represents a didactic progression: Module 1 covers basic qualifications, Module 2 deals with in-depths qualifications and Module 3 describes the full integration of partial qualifications into individual, comprehensive training concepts. However, the sequencing of modules, units and sub-units do not imply a compulsory structuring of curricula and training programs which lead to the CET qualification. With regard to the differentiation of central aspects, units are divided into sub-units which provide information about learning outcomes and related assessment criteria. Furthermore, the following specifications are described on the level of sub-units: o o o o sub-unit: reference number sub-unit: EQF level sub-unit: status compulsory or optional Learning outcomes with reference numbers each divided into: o Knowledge o Skill o Competence

o assessment criteria with references to the respective learning outcomes The description of the learning outcomes informs candidates as well as providers of preparatory training programs and certification assessors about the qualification demands that candidates need to meet for the CET certification. The definition of the assessment criteria informs certification assessors how to assess and validate the acquired qualifications. To evaluate the program we currently run a test with Finnish and Czech participants. The analysis of this test is running. We will present first results shortly. A first impression is the different ways Germans and Finns are working. An example: For the Finnish participants the German tutors are too polite, they want no thank you and please but short and clear instructions. The Czech participants have problems with fixed deadlines; all participants evaluate the international aspect of the program as very high. IV. IMPACT AND OUTLOOK

Professionalisation of teachers and trainers, not only in the area of VET, is of utmost importance for the use of ICT and e-learning methods and tools in teaching and training in general. The qualification CET and its specifications shall be used as a de-facto-standard at European level for the further education of trainers and teachers as e-tutors/etrainers as well as their certification based on proven skills and competencies. The quality standard CET represents a common reference for the area-specific qualification of VET teachers and trainers across Europe. The certification according to this standard and awarded by accredited institutions provides individuals as well as organisations in the VET field with reliable guidelines for the fulfilment of the necessary qualification requirements in the planning and implementation of e-learning settings at the latest state of the technical and didactic-methodological developments. Against this background training providers can design and offer targeted and comparable training courses for the further education of teachers and trainers. At European level the standard and the qualification of educational professionals according to the CET standard contribute to an improved transparency of qualification profiles and to an increased mobility across national borders. More information about the project can be found at the projects website: http://www.cetutor.eu/

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