For the process of implementing E-Learning in the area of university education it is not enough just to make digital infrastructure available. Offer does not automatically generate demand and lively usage by students.
To establish a digital learning culture a widespread strategy is needed, that guarantees introducing and getting students used to virtual learning environments as soon as possible.
But the first contact of freshmen with university and its virtual learning environment should not take place at the first day while the university is in session, but already in the scope of the Departmental Student Commissions’ offer for freshmen.
(The Departmental Student Commission is a commission that consists of students of a certain department. The members are elected by the students of this certain department. The Departmental Student Commission has few rights to participate in political decisions at its department. Participating in Departmental Student Commission and its offers is voluntary.)
This circumstance is to be used as means to create the digital learning culture in question.
Therefore an own freshman-course was created for the Departmental Student Commission of the Department of Sport and Exercise Science at the University of Stuttgart in the virtual learning environment “Moodle” (for winter semester 2007/ 2008).
(Using Moodle is obligatory for lecturers and students at the Department of Sport and Exercise Science at the University of Stuttgart.)
All activities for freshmen organized by the Departmental Student Commission were supported by Moodle and its provided E-Learning-activities.
The offer consisted of:
a) online discussion forums for study and examination regulations
b) an online news forum for relevant information and announcements (Every course member is automatically subscribed for it and gets all threads per E-Mail.)
c) online consultation hours in form of an online chat
d) a Wiki for the organization and postprocessing of the freshman weekend
e) an online test during the freshmen breakfast that introduces the Department of Sport and Exercise Science in a humorous way.
The use of Moodle was evaluated with an online questionnaire.
Categories asked: previous experiences with (digital) media; rating of using moodle for the freshman weekend, the freshman breakfast, the online consultation hours; the online news forum; the Departmental Student Commission’s homepage; and the benefit of using Moodle for the Departmental Student Commissions’ offer for freshmen according to further studies.
The sample contains 27 freshmen. (80 freshmen matriculated.)
Selected results:
- Practically everyone of the freshmen uses online chats in leisure time and did not use a virtual online environment before matriculation.
- Most of the freshman participating in the freshman breakfast, the freshmen weekend, and the online consultation hours consider the particular use of Moodle sensible.
- Most of the freshman consider the online consultation hours as a sensible offer and would advise forthcoming freshman to participate in the online consultation hours. (1228 entries were made by 20 participants.)
- ca. half of the freshmen state to be prepared for using Moodle in regular university courses.
- Most of the freshmen consider the use of Moodle for freshmen as sensible and a virtual learning environment as indispensable for university education.