CD training tool
In September 2004, DVA was commissioned by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) to undertake a research project focusing on the e-learning activities of museums, libraries and archives in England.
The aim was to:
- Gain an insight into the current level of engagement with e-learning, within the sector;
- Generate an indicative overview of any key issues;
- Assess the impact of sector’s elearning materials on the learners themselves
The project took an unusual approach. In the first instance, we contacted all nine regional Councils for help in identifying current and past e-learning projects developed by museums, libraries and archives in each of the regions. Once identified, the project owners were contacted using a detailed questionnaire designed to capture information about each project including pedagogical approach, design approach and intended learning outcomes. This information was stored in a specially created database, which subsequently proved invaluable in managing and accessing the data.
The next task for the research team was to identify and contact learners (groups or individuals) who had experienced each of the e-learning initiatives. They were invited to complete an online questionnaire, hosted on the MLA web server.
This questionnaire consisted of a bank of questions sub-divided into a number of themes, based on the MLA’s Generic Learning Outcomes: Knowledge, Skills, Enjoyment, Attitude and Activity. These are central to the MLA’s 'Inspiring Through Learning' initiative. The same questionnaire was used for all projects to facilitate comparative analysis. In this way, the assessments made by the learners themselves could be directly mapped against the intended learning outcomes expressed by the project owners. The questionnaire was one element of what became known as the e- Pentagram tool. This was the unusual feature of our approach to the project. This tool dynamically generated a five-sided pentagram shape, with each side representing one of the Generic Learning Outcomes. Learners’ answers, aggregated to age groups, were displayed on the Pentagram based on scores. The analysis of the evaluations made by the learners was performed automatically, providing a 2D colour image, which could be easily compared with the learning outcomes originally envisaged for each project.
The MLA plan to use the e-Pentagram tool widely within the sector for e-learning assessment and evaluation exercises, and consider it to be a powerful and effective tool.
Download this case study as a PDF
Media