E-learning use patterns in the workplace – Web logs from interaction with a web based lecture

When designing for e-learning the objective is to design for learning i.e. the technology supporting the learning activity should aid and support the learning process and be an arena where learning is likely to occur. To obtain this when designing e-learning for the workplace the author argue that it is important to have knowledge on how users actually access and use e-learning systems. In order to gain this knowledge web logs from a web lecture developed for a Scandinavian public body has been analyzed. During a period of two and a half months 15 learners visited the web lecture 74 times. The web lecture consisted of streaming video with exercises and additional links to resources on the WWW to provide an opportunity to investigate the topic from multiple perspectives. The web lecture took approximately one hour to finish. Using web usage mining for the analysis seven groups or interaction patterns emerged: peaking, one go, partial order, partial unordered, single module, mixed modules, non-video modules. Furthermore the web logs paint a picture of the learning activities being interrupted. This suggests that modules needs to be fine-grained (e.g. less than 8 minutes per video clip) so learners’ do not need to waste time having to watch parts of a video clip while waiting for the part of interest to appear or having to fast forward. A clear and logical structure is also important to help the learner find their way back accurately and fast.