DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF E-LEARNING (A Case Study of the Department of Computer Science)

ABSTRACT

The tremendous impact of electronic technology (like computer and computer embedded devices,
computer networking, artificial intelligence, multimedia among others) on the human psychological
capabilities productivity, intellectuality and other human related activities are very obvious. The quest
and virtual implementation of computer in all the fields of human endeavor increases with its inevitable
impact, these impacts are on its increase due to the need for high quality and timely response.
Therefore, this project titled, “Design and implementation of e-learning platforms for an introduction to
C++ programming language”, is aimed at exploring and incorporating some of these sophisticated
technologies for the development of electronic tutorial materials. This work examines and explains the
step-by-step procedure for accomplishing the development of the proposed software products, the
attainment of the goals and necessary requirement for their implementation. It considers and discusses
the impact of the proposed products on the targeted end-users. This project is implemented using
HTML, Microsoft asp.net and SQL Server for the online learning platform tutorial application package,
and an e-book.

CHAPTER ONE

1.1 Background to the study

Learning is one of the very vital human activities that require concentration blended with interactivity,
clear and distinct understanding of the facts been stated or discussed, high communication skills and
techniques, attractive learning qualities such as colorful pictorial presentations of information among
others. Nevertheless, all not learning process is considered to be effective. Effective could be assumed to
had been achieved if about hundred percent (100%), of the population lectured assimilate the
knowledge and/or ideas across; this is quite different when the population size is very high and there is
existences of certain un-conducive learning conditions such as noise, poor ventilation, and extreme
temperatures.

For effective learning to take place, it is dependent on many factors. In most cases, these factors arise
from the teachers, the students, the teaching and learning media or materials, and the learning
environment with its structures. For instance, if a teacher lacks communication skills and techniques, the
students, will find it difficult to comprehend, if the necessary media or materials required for teaching
and learning is not provided or if the provision is inadequate, the understanding of the subject topic or
issue been discussed might be impaired. In addition, the duration for teaching and learning, the rate of
understanding and individual learning style effect the assimilation of knowledge by the students; and
may have impact on the extent to which the teacher covers the teaching scheme. These factors will,
certainly, hamper the effective teaching and learning by the teacher and by the students respectively.
Most especially, the factors affecting effective learning is pronounced in learning aspects where
intensive or much practical approach is required for the impacting of knowledge to the students. For
example, in computer science much practical knowledge is required especially in computer networking,
computer programming, and computer maintenance.

The practical equipping of students are been affected by certain factors such as the duration for
practical teaching and learning, inadequate computers, availability of computer laboratories, and poor
power supply among others. As a result it is generally observed that most computer science students
with little or no practical knowledge engages the service of the road side “computer training institute”
due to the fact that it is not financially intensive and there is great need for the services, this approach,
by such student has high tendency of impacting wrong knowledge on students especially on the terms
and explanation of concept s found or used in the computer science world. Therefore, there is the need
to reduce this different situation and ensure that the practical standard required of the students is
attained.

The progress made in the computer world through the development of sophisticated hardware,
software, and other technologies could be employed for the remedy of the situation. Exploring the
powerful capabilities of multimedia and implementing it on teaching and learning processes via the
production of learning material and products such as e-book, computer assisted learning (CAI),
computer aided instruction(CAT), computer based training(CBT), internet based training among others
would go a long way towards improving the advancement of the practical and theoretical knowledge of
the students. With high quality content value of the e-learning products and the captivating multimedia
features embedded in them, a student can easily, assimilate such knowledge (even in the absence of a
teacher and the required physical environment) through repetitive. Accessing of the e-learning materials
and following the animated instructions contained therein. Finally, the case study computer science
department, Federal college of Agriculture Ishiagu is selected due to its proximity.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

It is very obvious that it is required of the computer science students to be practically and theoretically
sound so as to face the challenges to be encountered in the labor market. Disappointingly, most of the
computer science students are not equipped as expected before lunching them into the labor market.
Often time, the students are found to be the highest set of customers patronizing most of the side
“computer training institute” and in turn, might not get the value of services they requested. This
situation had been ascribed to many claims, in most occasions, had been made by both students and
teachers on the pattern of teaching and learning respectively .for instance, the students claim the
greater percentage of the teachers have poor teaching communication skills, and likewise the teachers
blame the inadequate teaching and learning facilities and/ or infrastructure as the reason for ineffective
learning. Hence, the problem centers on effective teaching and learning processes for the impacting and
the advancement of the students’ theoretical and practical knowledge.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

owing to the difficulties experienced during teaching and learning processes, this project is aimed at
implementing e-learning through the development of a web site expected to be published over the
internet, a CAL application package that will be installed in a computer, and on e-book in portal
document format (PDF); this is to provide different remedy platforms for the shortcoming found in the
traditional teaching and learning procedures. Focusing on the above, the objectives of the study are to
develop e-learning applications that are capable of:

I. providing coherent instruction for the selected subject topics

II. Accommodating individual learning style.

III. Encouraging learning and mastering of the individual topic contained therein.

IV. Enhancing the students practical knowledge and broaden their theoretical knowledge.
V. Creating a more interacting learning process.

VI. Overcoming most factors affecting effecting learning such as noise.

VII. Promoting students concentration during learning.

VIII. Accommodation learner’s unrestricted learning schedule.

IX. Promoting quick assimilation of information.

X. Providing accurate and high quality content value.

1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This project uses the combination of multimedia features, little artificial intelligence features, and
human –computer interaction principles for the development of a web site for an online and
implementation offline implementation of e-learning. Both of the e-learning are designed for the
learning of computer science courses at its introductory level. These proposed e-learning avenues are
deviations from the traditional teaching and learning procedure, and as a result have their main
importance as follows:

i. Effective learning of the subject topic by the students- the traditional classroom methods have high
tendencies of responding to the many factors affecting effecting learning (see table 1 in the appendix for
more information). But with the adoption of e-learning, these factors may exist with little or no impact
on the learner. Hence, this project is focused on developing e-learning application that will be
captivating through the provision of different learning platforms and skillful use of multimedia which will
lead to the enhancing of effective learning and reduction of teachers teaching work load. ii. Cost of
learning materials-could be reduced significantly when compared to the cost of traditional learning
materials or the cost of conventional instructional system. This is, however, accomplished in this project
by providing free access with limited content value to the user.
iii. Reduction in the duration of teaching and learning, and strengthening of teachers effort-according to
some research, the training time could be reduced up to sixty percent (60%) as against the traditional
classroom method using e-learning products. (khoo, 1994). These, in turn, increase the rate of
knowledge assimilation and allow the teachers to direct more effort on other areas where the students
are deficient. This is basically achieved in this project the use of certain technological features such as
the multimedia features. Apart from these main importance of the study, other reasons like protecting
the students from assimilating wrong information passed on by the quack, the inadequate learning and
teaching materials, difficulties to have access to information on time, and the general factors affecting
effective learning could take care of.

1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The proposed e-learning products are targeted for the attainment of effective learning through the use
of interactive presentations. Further, the products are expected to be used by computer science
students. The product contents are structured to accommodate novice in computer courses and their
usage are not limited to computer science students alone but to students of other disciplines who wish
to have basic fundamental knowledge. In the development of the proposed products, certain security
consciousness likes piracy where moderately considered while some security measures like password
were implemented. Each of the proposed e-learning products have different security requirement. On
the side of the e-learning application package, password usage was implemented for discriminating the
premium users from the free users. The internet application is designed to have an open unrestricted
accessibility; this is to boost products awareness and marketing. The e-book is created in portal
document format (PDF) so as to ensure content authenticity. Nonetheless, the three e-learning products
do not implement any strong piracy security due to the fact that day after day more sophisticated
hardware and software are developed which, in the contrary reason for their development and usage,
used for computer product piracy. Finally, the physiological and cognitive impact of the proposed e-
learning products on their users have their scope for achieving them limited to the use of multimedia
features and interface design. This is one of the most important tasks required to be embedded in the
products. In this learning application package, this is accomplished through the use of help menu and
help animations, the internet application accomplishes the same task through the use of hyperlinks,
flash animations, and still images while the e-book made use of hyperlinks and still images.

1.6 LIMITATION AND DELIMITATION OF THE STUDY

Apart from the usual risk and limitation present in every project due to time, scope, quality and
financing, a major limitation arises from the gathering of information or data from the concerned
individuals with fair and un-bias judgment of the proposed e-learning products. Many of the individual,
especially the expected users, were unwilling to give feedback on the impact of the proposed products
on them while some other will prefer to give haphazard information which tantamount dirty data. In
addition, the tendency of receiving unfair and bias information and materials (which ranges from
reference materials to development support devices) required for actualizing the proposed e-learning
products specifications posed a great impediment to the study. Nevertheless, in the attempt to
overcome these impediments, the research work of other scholars and practitioners were used in
conjunction with the result of my project research evacuation and analysis. This approach is adopted to
ensure accurate and good developmental practices Considering the multi-tasking nature of the project,
much time and financial resources are required. Owing to this fact, specifications of the proposed e-
learning products were adjusted to suit the available financial budget allocated to it and which is
obtainable. However, efforts were made, towards retaining the e-learning products quality,
accomplishing of the projects objectives and completion of the project within the specified period of
time.

1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Software – a set of logical related program modules that are given to the computer for the
accomplishment of a specific task or asset of task.

Program module – this is made up of one or more program procedure, routine, function, or events that
handle a definite task or set of task.

Program procedure – a set of program codes that response to a particular action such as click or could
be called for execution from another program procedure depending on its scope.

Program routine – see program procedure.

Program function – this is of ascribe to program procedure that is used for accomplishing a specific task,
especially mathematical operations, whenever call for execution.

World Wide Web: World Wide Wed simply called www is the most important tool of the Internet. It was
created ion the late 1980s in Europe and was used limitedly in academic
File Transfer: Any kind of computer file can be sent via the Internet from one Internet user to another.
Table of accounts on

1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study

The aim of the study is to design and implement a Computerized Lecture Reminder System that will
notify students and lecturer about the scheduled lecture date. In achieving this aim, the specific
objectives were set out as follows:

1. To develop a Computerized Lecture Reminder System application software that will be compatible in
any browser accessible devices,

2. To implement a system that will facilitate early notification / reminder of scheduled lecture date,

3. To design a system that will flexible in terms of serving as a reminder toward rescheduling of an
impromptu lecture by course lecturer, thereby notifying students about the new venue and time of
lecture.

1.5 Significance of Study

Computerized Lecture Reminder System has many features that are very helpful to the user. The first
that can be described is calendar system. Calendar will be used as a reference to the dates and the days
that users are going to set. The user can view the current date and month or the previous and next
month calendar. The system will also help to arrange the lecture with furtherance to their order of
priority.

Finally, this research work will be of immense importance to the researchers, since it is a practical
requirement for the award of Ordinary National Diploma (OND) in Science Technology of the Institute of
Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu. Besides, the study will serve as reference material for
subsequent researcher in the field or related topics.

1.6 Scope of Study

The study focuses on the development of lecture reminder application software that will notify students
and lecturer about the scheduled lecture date and also reschedules lecture as instructed by the course
lecturer.

1.7 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

1. Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school
academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement
some necessary features.

2. Establishment Policies: Establishment policies posed a serious limitation as most staffs are not ready
to release information needed for this project work. There were lots of information needed from the
staffs of this institution to enhance the study which took them time to release or they did not release at
all for security purposes, hence the scope was reduced.

3. Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.

4. Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable
power.

1.8 Definition of Terms

Online Classes: These are classes conducted via electronic media, especially via the Internet.

World Wide Web: World Wide Web simply called www is the most important tool of the Internet.

Web Site: A website is a collection of many interconnected web pages organized by a specific college,
organization company etc, containing web pages (goods and commodities) on the Internet.

Hyperlinks: Hyperlinks are highlighted words and phrases you find on web documents that you can click
on to jump to some other documents or Internet services.