Euro-Telework
www.euro-telework.org
Telework and Vocational Training:
Distance or e-Learning for Remote
Workers
Nicole Turbé-Suetens
This report has been produced with the support of the European Commission, DG Employment and Social Affairs,
under the European Social Fund (article 6). Views expressed within the report are those of the author and do not
reflect the views of the European Commission.
Euro-Telework
Nicole Turbé-Suetens © November 2000
http://www.euro-telework.org
CONTENTS
0.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
VOCATIONAL TRAINING IN THE KNOWLEDGE SOCIETY
THE E-LEARNING PROCESS
E-LEARNING PLATFORMS
3.1
Products and suppliers
3.1.1 Ariadne
3.1.2 Campus Virtuel
3.1.3 CourseInfo
3.1.4 DOCENT
3.1.5 Ingenium
3.1.6 Lotus (LearningSpace)
3.1.7 LUVIT
3.1.8 Top Class
3.1.9 VirtualU
3.1.10 WebCT
3.2
Characteristics of a platform
3.3
Pricing
E-PEDAGOGY
E-COURSES
VOCATIONAL TRAINING FOR TELE-ACTIVITIES
6.1
Belgium
6.2
Denmark
6.3
Finland
6.4
France
6.5
Germany
6.6
Ireland
6.7
Italy
6.8
Portugal
6.9
Spain
6.10 United Kingdom
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1
0.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Rapid growth in the use of the Internet over the last few years has had a considerable
impact on economies. It is not simply a matter of the 'new economy', but of a
transformation of all enterprise processes, new employer-employee relationships deriving
from new ways of organising work, and the necessary link with knowledge which is
becoming vital. Knowledge is now a recognised element of competitiveness, and that in
turn means it must be easily accessible to everyone at all times. In the field of vocational
training, this has brought about nothing short of a revolution, with most training packages
still organised according to models that are quickly becoming archaic – in other words,
with people obliged to go to a particular place on a particular time to undergo training
delivered by 'a person who knows', and therefore in receiving mode rather than in one of
ongoing or regular exchange. Apart from being tedious, this traditional formula tends to
promote segregated access to knowledge, and in particular takes no account of something
that has become a key factor in the business world: time and speed in the context of
globalisation.
This summarised report on vocational training for tele-activities in Europe reports on some
current training programmes, and also seeks to draw up a list of needs, and of the
pedagogical tools that are in use and available. The research that went into producing this
report has revealed a fact of the highest significance: that tele-training is an extremely
volatile issue that is being constructed in a constantly changing environment. For example,
products and producers are difficult to identify because the plethora of disappearances,
mergers/absorptions, partnerships and new companies means one has to be permanently on
the alert if one wants to sufficiently well informed to choose tools and adapt to those that
derive most benefit from the use of new technology. It is worth noting that an exhaustive
study of the comparative analysis of e-learning platforms conducted by French researchers
in 1999-2000 largely identified different products from year to year because of these
movements. Clearly, e-learning and distance learning involving intensive use of
technology, including the Internet, constitute a new, fast-growing activity. The reason for
that is simple. One the one hand, there has been a fairly collective, growing awareness of
the importance of knowledge; on the other hand, more and more people need to be able to
train up quickly as the need arises, and, if possible without having to travel too far, in order
to become more efficient at their jobs.
If one considers the kind of training designed to enable teleworkers of the future, whether
they are employed or entrepreneurs, to offer tele-service activities, clearly one's first
thought is the fact that some training should – at least in part – be available on a
distance-learning basis through the use of existing technological resources. Sadly, this is
not the case. For one thing, there are very few training packages specifically on the subject,
and those that do exist are often based on very traditional teaching methods. Things are
moving quickly and products on the market are changing fast, but there are still parts of
Europe where it is hard to train up for teleworking. However, it is also becoming easier to
put together a telework training package based on e-learning simply by 'shopping around'.
Training programmes of this sort frequently have a significant technological component:
indeed, e-learning packages based on IT (e.g. materials, office technology, presentation,
publication, communications and the Internet) are in plentiful supply on all markets. The
phenomenon took shape in a single year. It is now quite easy, if you are prepared to go to
some trouble, to train up for a very reasonable sum of money.
2
The report provides a summary of the various components of e-learning, namely platforms,
teaching methods and curricula. It also contains a long, but not exhaustive, list of the main
websites designed to help readers to find their way about, and choose some to add to their
lists of 'favourites'. It stands to reason that such a list does not remain up-to-date for long.
That is why there are plans to update the www.euro-telework.org website regularly until
the end of the year, and then another site yet to be determined, and whose address will be
communicated in due course.
The summary reveals that products have been developed in academic institutions both in
the United States and in Europe. It is important to acknowledge the energy with which the
academic community the world over is setting up virtual universities and virtual campuses.
This return to university study has been accompanied by the development of new diplomas
for which students can prepare via distance learning and in ways that involve quite different
teaching methods and relationships. Disciplines of all kinds – from technical subjects at
engineering school and in commerce to management and law – are affected. When the
children now at school, college or high school (where they are growing increasingly
familiar with computers, multimedia and communications media and cooperative working)
get to university, they will find it perfectly natural to work on a virtual campus.
All of this – and it is where the report concludes – forces us to think very seriously about the
extraordinary transformation that is taking place, and which will result in a radical change
in the relationships and organisation of work in the coming years. It follows that today's
enterprises and employees must carry out an urgent review of their in-house training
programmes and courses, and enable as many as possible to learn how to use technological
tools, and to access the training modules they need to maintain and improve the level of
their competences. Many large enterprises have already acknowledged this and have set up,
or are in the process of setting up, in-house virtual campuses for their staff. The number of
company universities in the United States has risen from 400 to 1,600 in the last ten years,
and they are forecast to overtake academic universities by 2010. According to an IDC
study, the amount of e-learning is expected to increase no less spectacularly from €64m in
2000 to €244m in 2004.
3
1.
VOCATIONAL TRAINING IN THE KNOWLEDGE SOCIETY
The Information Society is becoming increasingly known as the Knowledge Society in
which knowledge is becoming a real asset for corporations and, of course, for individuals
too. Knowledge is being capitalised amongst groups who share values and objectives;
knowledge is becoming a sharable value; and knowledge is evolving continuously. It is
turning the learning/training phenomenon into a central issue of society.
In the traditional 'industrial society', people were trained when needed to adapt to tools, or
to prepare for hierarchical progression. In the 'information society', more and more workers
are concentrated on data refining, transformation and distribution. This can be increasingly
done from anywhere thanks to ICT, and there is rapid, constant change. This means that
more and more workers (and the same is true of citizens) need to be able to adapt
themselves very quickly when they need to, and at their own pace when they choose to.
This means that education/training materials must become increasingly available at any
time from any place.
One example that illustrates this new behaviour is the 'knowledge team' established by the
Finnish Ministry of Labour in 1997: it produced an intermediary report, and has continued
to study the issue with a new team since June 1999 (Finnish Ministry of Labour, 1997). The
learning process and the access to knowledge is key: '… methods of lifelong learning and
the organisation of learning can be applied at workplace level, not only to manage work but
also to achieve continuous improvement and implement qualitative progressive steps.'
Interestingly enough, this document also establishes the relationship between learning,
education and creativity, and clearly sets out the roles of standard education and vocational
knowledge. Altogether this shows how important it is to an individual to have access to the
various levels of knowledge at any time during his/her life in order to be able to decide
alone how to develop and how to adapt to the new constraints of society. No one starts life
equal. It should be possible for anyone to catch up at any time, as it will increasingly
become the result of an individual decision.
Distance learning has been around for many years, and it must be conceded that it has not
necessarily been very successful even though providers have offered a better mix of media
to make courses more attractive. Globally speaking, after the poor showing of the emerging
computer-aided learning in the 1980s, many people thought that video and sound would
make all the difference. However, courses based on CD-Roms have not created the huge
market that was anticipated. In fact, in many cases, the CD-Rom simply replaced paper +
audio, or paper + video, and this new pedagogical approach made little headway. Things
are now changing with the Internet offering real interactivity at an affordable cost, and
more and more people being computer-literate and having equipment at home and/or in the
office. This phenomenon is very new and is expanding fast. Unfortunately, Europe is
coming to it late, and the USA is taking advantage. Europe will have to react quickly to
avoid being in the position of simply using translated American materials.
Some figures may give a sharper insight into this situation. A report published by Arthur
Andersen France in April 2000 (Arthur Andersen, 2000) and a subsequent one published
by the three French specialist bodies (Aska, Le Préau, Klr.fr, 2000), are some of the most
recent documents on the subject.
The figures quoted in their research are impressive:
4

web-training will account for 50% of the training market by 2005

ICT training covers 60% of training in 2000, and should be less than 50% around
2003, according to the US-based research organisation, IDC

Master's degrees will be increasingly delivered online

the American e-learning market represented $92 million in 1996 (IDC) and $197
million in 1997 (US Bureau of Census); in 2002, 60% of training expenses in the
USA will go on e-learning, and revenue is likely to top $10 billion in 2002 (IDC)

New Media Think Tank expects all American corporations to use e-learning,
principally those with complex products and remote workers

corporate universities will become corporate e-campuses

there is a direct link between the 'explosion' of the e-learning market and the
number of computers and Internet connections in homes and offices: to compare
with the situation in the USA and estimate the measures that Europe will have to
take to close the gap, it is worth bearing in mind that 60% of US households will
have a computer in the home by 2002, 92% of secondary school students have
access to a computer, 55% of students have a personal computer, and 1 computer
was available to 1.6 employees in early 1999. In this context, it is important to
remember that 57% of Internet users at the end of 1998 were Americans. Of
course, this is changing at a dramatic pace, but Europe will have to change really
quickly to catch up, principally in the use field
We will conclude this section with Table 1, clearly showing how the use of training
provision will start to change in 2001, and that by 2005 the trend will have finally reversed
in favour of distance or e-learning solutions.
Table 1: Growth in revenues from training provision, $ billion. (Source: Aska, Le
Préau. Klr.fr, 2000)
Year: '94 '95 '96 '97 '98 '99 '00 '01 '02 '03 '04 '05
Total
50.6 52.2 55.7 58.6 60.7 63.1 65.7 68.3 71.0 73.9 76.8 79.1
E-learning 0.02 0.05 0.1 0.23 0.5
1
2
3.6 6.3 11
19
34
Traditional 50.6 52.2 55.6 58.4 60.2 62.1 63.7 64.7 64.7 62.8 57.5 45.3
5
2.
THE E-LEARNING PROCESS
Most vocational training these days is still delivered in a very traditional classroom format
despite the fact that Computer Aided Systems and authoring tools have been around for
over 20 years. It has to be admitted that most courses were unappealing and usually quite
expensive. They were unappealing mainly for two reasons: poor display quality on most
computers until the graphical interface became standard on PCs, and the fact that few
trainers understood that they had to fundamentally change their teaching methods model
and their role. In fact, most courses were designed for the trainee to be alone, and in most of
the cases (i.e. about 80% of the time) people dropped out.
Things changed radically with the spread of networks within organisations (intranets) and
the increased use of the Internet, but the main change was that it was now possible to create
attractive material and handle an interactive relationship between trainer and trainee.
However, there have been few really good examples. Most large corporations are testing
systems and conducting pilot projects because they realise that they need to completely
change the way training is delivered to workers who are increasingly becoming e-workers.
In this field, the process of change is slow, but this can be easily explained. Implementing
e-learning in an organisation requires:

the availability of good quality secured networks

the acceptance of new tools by users

a choice between an educational platform, providers and ASPs

the definition and development (or acquisition) of contents

the existence of trainers who become 'tutors', 'mentors' or 'coaches'

the possibility of capitalising the knowledge of the organisation

and, of course, the fact that everybody is familiar with the use of a PC, e-mail etc.
This cannot be done in a month or two, and it also requires a strategic decision within the
organisation as well as investment and time – not forgetting a credible sponsor to foster the
process of change. Experience shows that this takes at least a year from the point when it is
decided to implement an e-learning facility in the organisation to the point when workers
use it spontaneously. This is the best case, when communications and pilot testing have
been successfully addressed within the organisation.
However, as e-learning becomes one of the organisation's competitive tools, as if they were
new methods of work, it is sure to develop, and hopefully best practices will become
available.
In April, Arthur Andersen published a study in France reporting that only 12% of the
companies interviewed (74 companies in all) used the Internet for training purposes, and
that 22% used their intranet. By comparison, the USA spends 60% of its training budget on
e-learning alone! Still a long way to go. However, an IDC study published earlier this year
6
gives a very optimistic forecast for the development of online training in Europe, predicting
a 42% growth in the market each year: in figures, this means a turnover generated by online
education of €64 million in 2000 to a turnover of €244 million in 2004.
Table 2: Prioritising needs for 'industrialising' distance learning. (Source: Aska, Le
Préau, Klr.fr, 2000)
Need
Organise the
training
facility
Reasons for industrialising
Centralise and disseminate
information in the training
catalogue for teams and
potential users
Organise
pedagogical
resources
Capitalise resources and
uses, keep up-to-date
Manage
enrolments
Individualised and
customised training paths
needed as and when
Deliver
Develop responsibility,
decentralise and establish
relationships between the
people and their resources
Optimise technical resources
Administer
Constraints/Dilemmas
Reconcile jobs, the training offer and
delivery of the training
Manage the various responsibilities and
roles of a range of actors (e.g. trainers,
training managers and managers)
Reconcile the approach based on standard
pedagogical cost killers and the number of
authors, formats and new pedagogical
approaches
Reconcile a personalised and decentralised
approach, taking into account the
characteristics of the trainees and the
efficiency resulting from automatic and
batch treatment
Reconcile the use of a range of resources,
the visibility of training paths, their
dynamics and economics, and the
efficiency of communication
Distribute all kinds of resources, rich
media (e.g. sound, images and video) and
guarantee satisfactory access times
With this information and with some certainty of growth, the main issue is how to identify
the success criteria for implementing e-learning. Most corporations are willing to erect real
distance-learning platforms in order to manage the whole training process.
The chart below attempts to identify and classify an organisation's needs and priorities.
Available products vary considerably, and in order to carry out the 'industrialisation' of the
distance learning process, it is important to prioritise needs clearly (see Table 2).
The challenge faced by corporations will most probably be the re-engineering of the whole
training process: they have to make choices that involve links between the new tools and
the organisation, technical choices and priorities, and putting in place the right resources
and HR management as well as the pedagogy itself. All these choices will incorporate three
actions or decisions that are far beyond the price issue of the product itself:

implement customised, distributed training 'industrially'
7

rationalise the training process from information to evaluation of the results

invest upfront in order to reduce operational expenses
Globally speaking, the structure of the new process, which represents the basic functions of
a platform, will most probably resemble the diagram shown in Figure 1.
Fig.1: The structure of the training process. (Source: Aska, Le Préau, Klr.fr, 2000)
INFORMATION
about users,
about resources
HR system (eg.SAP)
TOOLS
pedagogical
documents
professional
tools
PROCEDURES
registration,
evaluation
importation
Database
tracking
RESOURCES
coaches
authors
managers…
Registration
Learning path
Communication
Follow-up…etc.
NETWORK
capabilities
constraints
8
USERS
learners
trainers
instructors
coaches
administrators
managers
3.
E-LEARNING PLATFORMS
The first platforms appeared in the 1990s (mostly in the second half), and were mainly
aimed at helping course developers and trainers in the major pedagogical functions of
distance learning. For the most part, this meant:

production and integration of pedagogical resources

presentation of training programmes

dissemination and access to resources

building individual customised training paths

management and follow-up of training paths

coaching

financial and technical administration
In ten years, the various functions of a platform have become increasingly integrated, and
now represent a real benefit (in terms of finance and effectiveness) in the management of
training. The above scheme represents the main functions of the available platforms. The
offer has changed dramatically over the years, particularly last year. The rapid evolution of
Internet use has also generated the phenomena of portals.
Portals represent a totally different approach based on marketing and service. They aim to
be 'one-stop shops' where the potential customer or user will find all the information about
what is available on the market. They are also a way of capturing targeted audiences for
providers. The concept can be compared to a shopping mall where the customer can decide
how much to buy from available services. It is briefly summarised in Figure 2.
Fig. 2: The portal/mall model. (Source: Aska, Le Préau, Klr.fr, 2000)
OFFERING
Organisations
Universities
Publishers
Suppliers
CBT
1 supplier
1. Shopping mall
sale, registration etc.
2. Platform(s)
Path, communication,
follow-up etc.
CUSTOMERS
Corporations
Organisations
Users
1 customer
This new way of selling training has existed in the USA for about two years, and is just
starting up in Europe. Enterprises that chose this approach were mostly companies selling
CBT. Moving to the portal technology enables them to present a global offering where
customers will buy exactly what they need, and find out about what is available on the
market.
9
Major players on this market include SmartForce, which had the highest receipts in 1999,
FT Knowledge, Smart Planet from Ziff Davis and Studi.com. Most still have problems in
making any profit, and in some cases still need to position themselves to be in the BtoB or
BtoC world.
Most portals were created in 1999 even where the original company was already in
existence. This is part of reinventing a business to fit in with a new market trend. For
example, Asymetrix became Click2learn; SmartForce was created out of CBT Systems,
itself set up in 1984; FT Knowledge comes from Financial Time Management; and
Studi.com was originally Cyberion + Tag Interactive. So far, most have been trying to
position their offer on the BtoB market; only SmartPlanet deliberately chose BtoC.
Let us now concentrate on the platforms, as they represent a strategic decision for
corporations; they also represent the most advanced technology, and facilitate total
management of distance training in a given organisation, or for a given training company.
The aforementioned French study published by Aska, Le Préau (Paris Chamber of
Commerce), and Klr.fr at the end of 1999 (updated in August 2000) is one of the few
available documents that attempt to compare existing platforms. It was based on data made
available by the suppliers, and on the knowledge of the authors of practical examples using
those platforms. Most of the products are recent, and are still regularly updated and adapted
to the evolving technologies, mainly the Internet. It is interesting to note that of the nine
platforms presented in 1999, most were no longer in existence in 2000, and that major
'moves' have occurred over the last few months:

ORACLE abandoned OLA

IBM abandoned DLS

Macromedia sold Pathware to Lotus

Citcom is no longer selling WebTutor

Sybase is no longer selling NGL

Asymetrix replaced Librarian with Ingenium

Lotus integrated Pathware into LearningSpace
Products like CourseInfo, WebCT, TopClass, and VirtualU have evolved on a regular
basis, and two new French platforms have become available and are included in the
comparison chart presented in this report: they are Sylfide and Plei@d.
A brief presentation of these platforms and their major characteristics is probably helpful
before putting them into a comparative chart. The chart might become a practical tool for
readers who wish to keep the information up-to-date in the near future.
3.1
Products and suppliers
This brief overview of the available offer is based on the August 2000 version of the report
produced by Aska, Le Préau, and Klr.fr. The intention is not to present a fully exhaustive
10
comparison, but only to present some of the most popular platforms and, where possible,
indicate if European language versions are on the market.
3.1.1 ARIADNE: ariadne.unil.ch
The name stands for Alliance of Remote Instructional Authoring and Distribution
Networks for Europe; it has 15 servers throughout Europe with pedagogical material made
available to the members of the Association. Pricing varies according to use. A consortium
is being set up to sell and distribute the platform.
3.1.2 Campus Virtuel: www.archimed.fr
This French product has been on the market since July 2000; it was jointly developed by
the Archimed company (specialists in workflow technology) and the University of Lille. It
enables genuine cooperative work among students, and includes a virtual desk.
3.1.3 CourseInfo: www.blackboard.com
This platform was created in 1997 by the Blackboard company, a Washington-based
software publisher. They have had a European subsidiary based in Amsterdam since March
2000. Version 5 has been available since June 2000.
3.1.4 DOCENT: www.docent.com
The DOCENT platform is published by Mountain View (Stanford, USA), a company that
initially specialised in evaluation tools. A European subsidiary was set up in March 2000,
and a Paris office was opened in September 2000. DOCENT covers the whole training
process from the learner's competences assessment to full integration of the content and
measurement of the impact of the training on company performance. A mobile version is
available for learners on the move.
3.1.5 Ingenium: www.x-perteam.com
The American publisher Asymetrix dropped Librarian in favour of Ingenium with large
corporations as target market. The Ingenium platform organises training from the point of
view of competences, resources and administration.
3.1.6. Lotus (LearningSpace): www.lotus.com/learningspace
Lotus is an IBM subsidiary owner of Lotus Notes and Domino. IBM got rid of its own
platform DLS a few months ago and Lotus acquired Pathware from Macromedia, which is
becoming the core of LearningSpace. LearningSpace should be available in 15 languages
by the end of 2000. One of the product's main developments is that it is now based on a
relational database (SGBD SQL server, Oracle or IBM DB2) and no longer requires the use
of Domino or Lotus software.
3.1.7 LUVIT: www.luvit.com
Initially developed by the University of Lund (Sweden), this platform is now a commercial
product sold by the LUVIT company. It is used by one of the major Swedish unions (SIF),
and is already available in the major European languages (English, French, German and
Spanish in addition to the Scandinavian languages).
3.1.8
TopClass: www.wbtsystems.com
11
This platform has been marketed since 1995 by WBTSystems with major partners like Sun
and Oracle. It is compatible with many contents available on the market, and there is no
intention to set up subsidiaries in other countries. It has a distribution policy through
partners like HyperOffice in France.
3.1.9 VirtualU: www.vlei.com/vu_overview.html
Another Canadian platform available in English, Spanish, Portuguese and French, and
distributed by Virtual Learning Environments based in Vancouver (Canada). No
subsidiaries in Europe, but a presence in Mexico and China. A robust and easy-to-use
platform; also employed in the academic world and in corporations.
3.1.10 WebCT: www.webct.com
Developed by the University of British Columbia (Canada), WebCT has been marketed
since 1999 by ULT (Universal Learning Technology). It is one of the most widely used
platforms in the academic world (120,000 courses to 5m learners in 51 countries). It is
being translated.
The offering changes every day and the subject is becoming fashionable. A few other
names one might encounter while shopping are Saba (the second biggest Californian
supplier), Syfadis, Sylfide and Plei@d (new French offerings).
More and more products are, of course, web-enabled, and in some cases it is even possible
to test the product online for a few weeks before deciding whether to buy.
Before presenting the summary chart of the different platforms, let us first summarise the
main characteristics of an e-learning platform, given that the platform is the complete
toolbox for managing, creating and distributing distance learning training. It is therefore
necessary to break the characteristics down into management, administrative and
pedagogical capacities.
3.2.
Characteristics of a platform
Management characteristics:

needs analysis

registration

forecast and budget

validation of prerequisites

knowledge validation

updating of the offering

online availability of training modules
12
Administrative characteristics:

catalogue

data streaming (e.g. registrations, billing and payments)

dynamic statistic
Pedagogical characteristics:

multimedia architecture (sound, images, 3D and video)

interactivity

variety of pedagogical approaches (e.g. individual, small groups and teams)

tutoring or mentoring management

access to external data bases and links to external resources

optimal compatibility with available software

creation and production tools

follow-up of learner's path
3.3
Pricing
The objective here is not to provide a detailed comparison platform by platform, as this
would be very complicated due to the fact that pricing strategies are in some cases
fundamentally different. A few examples will give an indication, although each case is
likely to be different because of the specific environment and number of learners.
Generally speaking, e-learning is cheaper than traditional training, and that is one of the
reasons why so many large corporations are seriously thinking of using it, bearing in mind
that it additionally offers the flexibility and tracking tools needed to manage the training.
VirtualU and WebCT are very similar in price: approximately €3,100 per year for a
campus, and double that for corporations. CourseInfo is slightly cheaper for corporations
and free for academics. Ingenium is about 10 times that price for 10 workstations, and
Luvit starts at €4,820.
13
Table 3: Comparison of distance learning platforms. (Source: Aska, Le Préau, Klr.fr,
2000)
Product
Publisher
ARIADNE
Association
Campus Virtuel
Launch Version Current
References
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Archimed
Jul 00
1
N/A
CUEEP, INSA,
University of Lille, EDF
CourseInfo
BlackBoard
1997
4/5
Jun 00
Bell, Intel, Dell
DOCENT
DOCENT
1997
4.5.1
N/A
N/A
Ingenium
Clic2learn,
Asymetrix
Mar 00
4
N/A
Groupe Accord
LearningSpace
BM Lotus
Jun 96
4
N/A
ASF, FT, Lycée du
Vercors, Hermann Miller
LUVIT
LUVIT AB
1997
3.0
Sep 00
Skandia, K-world, Lernia
Plei@ad
CNAM PdL
Sep 98
4
N/A
Social Security, IFPME
(Belgium)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Ford, Cisco, HP, Procter
& Gamble, Wells Fargo
SABA
Syfadis
ANTALIS
Nov 99
1.1
Oct 00
Vivendi, Groupama
Sylfide
Initiative
développement
1997
2.2
Sep 00
Crédit Mutuel, CCI
TopClass
WBT
1995
N/A
N/A
Oracle
VirtualU
VLE
1997
2.5
3
30 universities, 6 major
corporations (Banque de
Montréal…)
WebCT
Universal
Learning
Technology
1997
2.1
3
14
5 million users in
academia
4.
E-PEDAGOGY
This is the key issue! Forecasts are generally optimistic, and products exist and are
increasingly robust and powerful, and meet even sophisticated needs while remaining
affordable. However, most trainers have still not realised that they have to change and
adopt totally new pedagogical approaches. Unfortunately, the introduction of e-learning in
a group or a corporation is often done by newcomers who understood how to mix the
different media and how to remain available for coaching trainees.
Those who are still in the classroom format with the trainer 'who knows' will quickly
disappear: training in the near future will be managed according to a completely new
process whereby the trainer is the customer and also has some knowledge. The top-down
approach, which is still a common method, has to be replaced by a communicative,
collaborative approach in which the trainer interactively organises the trainee's progress.
In addition to this new relationship between trainer and trainee, working conditions are
evolving very fast and more and more people work from 'anywhere' and train 'when they
need to'. This means that courses and trainers need to be available and that new concerns
have to be considered. Depending on the learner's situation and the tools used, the situation
will vary and an attempt must be made to optimise the best technology adapted to each
individual situation.
Figure 3 is an attempt to synthesise what is possible in each case, and priorities in using the
best adapted technology. Moving from top to bottom, technology becomes more
'traditional', and moving from left to right the learner becomes more isolated. The figure
indicates that the major differentiation factor in the pedagogy remains the new interactivity
between actors.
When choosing a course or a training solution, it is important to bear the following factors
in mind and find out how they interact on this graph:

subject to be taught

speed at which the new knowledge must be acquired

is it a conceptual or a technical training subject?

how does the trainer work and learn?

what are the physical conditions in which the training will take place?

how much time can be spent on the training?

is it individual training or group training?

is it 'on the job' training?
Those are 'on the spot' questions that one should always have in mind when choosing the
best mix of media to suit the trainee's particular situation, while taking into account his/her
15
working conditions. It is only by answering such questions that the best adapted media and
tools can be chosen for an effective combination and efficient training.
Fig. 3: Learning technologies: Technological complexity, asynchronous,
synchronous? (Source: L'Atelier , 2000)
Learning technologies
Satellite
transmission
Learning group
(synchronous)
CD-Rom
multimedia
interactive
applications
Computer-aid
ed learning
Video/web
conference
Internet/
intranet
Electronic
performance
support
system
Traditional
courses
Books
Coaching
Lonely learner
(asynchronous)
Basic technology
The people in charge of training should also involve trainers in choosing the media to make
sure they are agreed and used.
You can select the best course and with the best combination of media, but if it is not
accepted by trainees it will gather dust in a drawer; that means that time and money are
wasted and the trainers' credibility is lost because they were not able to offer appropriate
and adapted materials to fit people's needs. 'Shopping' for courses on the Internet is
becoming quite easy, and workers will become hard to please if they are not involved in the
process.
That said, it makes sense to be more precise about what distinguishes e-pedagogy from
traditional pedagogy. The major differences are that:

trainers and trainees are not necessarily in the same room any more

trainers and trainees do not necessarily work at the same time or at the time decided
by the trainer

asynchronous interactivity is a fact

synchronous communication has to be agreed upon
16

the coach must really deliver added value

the training path must be clearly designed and agreed

the measurement of results has to be defined.
There are more issues to be considered, but those above on their own will impact heavily on
e-pedagogy compared with the traditional classroom.
17
5.
E-COURSES
Provision is flourishing, and as the PC becomes a utility in more and more households, it
will be natural for anybody looking to improve his/her knowledge to go shopping on the
Internet.
We should also keep in mind that an increasing number of children will be familiar with the
idea that 'a computer is a learning tool', and that the number of students obtaining Master's
degrees using a virtual university will also grow quite quickly. In addition, virtual
universities will probably appear more accessible to adults who are keen to get a degree,
but not to attend courses on university premises. We are at the beginning of a huge change
in accessibility to knowledge, where the individual will be able to chose and manage
his/her knowledge and feel responsible for it. If, for one reason or another, the employer
does not want to give the workforce access to some training, they will be able to obtain it
for themselves - and (why not?) even chose another employer. It is probably not yet very
clear how far this can affect social relationships, and how independent citizens can become
just because they can be trained whenever they want to at an affordable price.
Today, about 60% of available courses are clearly related to computers and software as
well as to languages. The direct impact of the large number of universities that are going
virtual will be the availability of a large number of courses in other subjects. They will most
probably form the basic materials for the development of vocational training modules, and
the open question here is: Will they be delivered by the academic world or by training
companies? It may be that fewer training companies will probably exist in a few years'
time, and that there will be more extensive cooperation between the academic and the
corporate world. But, that is no more than a guess.
Why mention the corporate world here? Only because the virtual campus of a corporation
will become a real asset for corporations, and that in the USA the number of corporate
universities has increased over the last 10 years from 400 to 1600. It is forecast that by
2010, there will be more corporate universities in the USA than academic universities. And
of course, most corporate universities are transforming into virtual campuses.
Another interesting statistic to come out of the USA is the number of corporate portals
being developed in the coming years. A Delphi survey (www.delphi.com) reports that 50%
of the 300 corporations in Fortune 500 are in the process of developing a portal, and
another 25% intend to do so in the next two years. The direct impact will be that these
corporations will be able to deliver their corporate courses to people who will have access
to their portals (e.g. customers, suppliers and partners), and that means that they will also
compete in the field of knowledge.
By way of illustration, let us look at a recent announcement from Hewlett Packard. HP
knows how much training costs, and has developed an internal e-learning solution. This
solution, which has been open to anybody since May 2000, offers customised training
courses over the Internet. The offering is called 'e-learning on tap', and mainly concentrates
on technical subjects like Unix, Linux and Windows. It costs about €1,000 a month for
unlimited use. To find more, visit: www.hp.com/e-learning
To find more about available courses, it is probably worth spending some time surfing
some of the websites referenced at the end of this report, bearing in mind that things change
18
very quickly, and that new offerings appear every day. Some specialist newsletters are also
emerging; they are really helpful for people responsible for watching the market and
making choices when developing a corporate offering or launching a pilot experience. A
practical example in France is the free newsletter from Edubyweb at www.edubyweb.com
19
6.
VOCATIONAL TRAINING FOR TELE-ACTIVITIES
As this report makes clear at the beginning, telework is seen as a way or organising work in
a company, and not as a specific employment status. A teleworker is a worker with a
working contract from an employer and working in an organisation where telework is an
accepted organisational mode. This clearly means that teleworkers act in an agreed
environment, and that training is made available to help them cope with all situations in
which they need to improve their:

technical skills

behavioural skills

professional skills
Indeed, teleworkers need more skills than the traditional worker in the workplace. This is
due to the fact that they work remotely from the organisation, their colleagues and their
managers. They need to have good technical skills in order to be as autonomous as possible
with the system they use to perform their job, and they need different behavioural skills as
their working environment is not the same as an office.
We definitely would like to avoid tackling the case of the teleworker who works constantly
from home as this is not the way social partners recommend telework to be implemented. In
order to continue to be part of the working team, the teleworker will work from time to time
in an alternate office or place. The frequency will be defined by agreement with the
manager: it can be several days a week, and the alternate location will also be agreed with
the employer. The most common alternative workplaces are the home, telecentres and
telecottages (we are tempted to consider the two words as being synonymous), or simply
another building belonging to the company they work for that is closer to the teleworker's
home.
Clearly teleworkers will want to have access where they are to the training modules that
they need, and they will want to avoid commuting just to attend a class because some of
their training needs will be specific and will require quick, if not immediate, answer.
This report will not look at vocational training needed to improve vocational skills, as this
is the same for all the workers of the organisation, and deciding to make it remotely
available using ICT is a strategic decision for the corporation that is related to its
competitiveness.
It is different for technical and behavioural skills: these can be specific to individual
teleworkers, and enable them to perform their job remotely in good conditions. The
technical skills needed to be perfectly comfortable include:

all office-related software

a systems environment

remote access specifics
20

communication software

intensive use of the intranet

the Internet

software specific to the job

e-mail

other
For behavioural aspects, it is desirable for teleworkers to have access to training modules to
enable them, if necessary, to improve the following skills:

time management

personal organisation

communication skills

negotiation skills

empathy
The situation is slightly different for the remote worker who is an entrepreneur and sells
his/her services remotely. Practical experience shows that such people are generally
computer-literate but have severe shortcomings in entrepreneurship, business-plan
approach, communications, marketing and sales, and administration. Business plans will of
course define what the entrepreneurs who sell their services remotely will do themselves,
and what they will be subcontracting or outsourcing. However, entrepreneurs have to do
almost everything themselves at the beginning because of lack of resources. This classical
issue of SOHOs (Small Office/Home Office) and very small companies can largely be
solved, or at least helped, by quality training modules made available remotely.
A glance at what is available in Europe (EU members plus Norway) shows that we still
have a long way to go, and that very little is available under 'telework offering'. It also
confirms that a real effort has to be made to compete with American products in the field of
distance training and e-learning. This is probably a good right time to start as most
European countries are getting better equipped, and new ways of working are developing.
The Internet phenomenon has also fostered entrepreneurship in many countries, and more
and more people want to acquire new knowledge and access training through a PC at home
or in the office.
21
The information that follows is an initial attempt to find out what is available in European
countries, but it is not comprehensive. More input will hopefully be provided by people
reading this report, and thanks to the feedback loop, the content will be enhanced for the
report's online version.
6.1
Belgium
The Walloon Office for Professional Training and Employment FOREM has launched a
new training experience called 'collaborative distance work' for both trainees and trainers
(www.forem.be) in the framework of European projects. Another example has been
developed by ICHEC (www.ichec.be) under an ADAPT project. The Belgium network for
open and distance learning established in 1999 will most probably generate more examples
in the coming years, and the results will hopefully be available at www.be-odl.org
6.2
Denmark
The 'home-PC-concept', which was introduced in 1998 with an obligation to take the
EU-driver licence to learn how to use a PC, boosted the learning process in the use of
technology and telework. The ODIAL project (a retraining scheme for the unemployed to
become teleworkers) has developed some distance learning. The most important element,
though, is the Danish e-Learning LAB which aims to make Danish people and society
aware of new technologies for education purposes.
6.3
Finland
The first e-learning experiments on telework probably started in Finland a few years ago,
and an additional step was taken by one of the major unions (SAK) with the 'you in the
movement – trade union school of the new time' project: this is a new way of training trade
union staff in subjects like 'values and cooperation' and more technical subjects related to
trade union organisation.
The 'Member-PC' programme with more than 13,000 PCs installed has also been a boost to
the interactive relationship between the union and its members. This is a first step, and
information and/or educational material can now be made available.
6.4
France
Even if telework has been very slow to take off in France, there is some experience of
specific training. The government training agency AFPA has developed six pilot training
experiments throughout the country, and two of them are being updated with new groups of
trainers. They are mainly aimed at people who want to set up their own tele-service
companies. A full report on those experiments is available in French on the website of the
French Telework Association www.aftt.net
22
The INTERFOR SIA in Amiens (interfor.dyadel.net) has also trained more than 100 people
on tele-activities with a view to helping them start their own business. ADAPT has also
developed specific modules, including some distance courses to train disabled people to
become teleworkers. Large corporations heavily involved in teleworking programmes like
France Telecom and EDF/GDF have developed internal training for their employees and
managers.
6.5
Germany
The WABE project awards a qualification called 'information assistant' to women who
have stopped work to bring up children; it uses e-learning facilities and teleworking
techniques. The project is supported by IBM. Another interesting initiative is the
qualification training to become a distance tutor organised by the employers' association in
Bremen; the association set up the Tele-Akademie Bremen, which can be visited at
www.wisoak.de/mmlshop/index.htm
6.6
Ireland
Aer Rianta, the Irish Airport Authority, has provided a day-long orientation session for
staff interested in volunteering for a telework pilot programme. Details can be found at
www.cork-teleworking.com
The KITE Telecottage in Enniskillen has build a successful model for rural ICT training
aimed at women returners. This programme has attracted over 1500 women into training
during the last five years, with the result that over 40% go directly into work, some of them
into teleworking. More examples are available in Ireland: they may be found in The
Teleworking Handbook, references for which may be found at the end of this report.
6.7
Italy
An interesting experiment took place following implementation of the new law enabling
public servants to be teleworkers. The CIPA project, which provides a complete
educational path to become a teleworker, will be available on the CIPA website, thereby
supplying the programme to a large number of people. This is intended to link up with the
(Public Sector Minister) 'Bassanini plan' which aims to give 30 hours' training to 400,000
public servants in the next few months and match the country's ambitious e-government
plan.
European projects (e.g. APOGEO 2000) and national public initiatives (e.g. NETTUNO
and ITALICA: www.agora.stm.it and www.italica.rai.it) are having a positive impact on
the introduction of new pedagogical methods in Italy. The medical community, which is
already familiar with distance learning and the working environment, and the public sector
are moving quickly towards new methods of work. ATENA is the most widely used Italian
multi-language platform, and is recognised by the Italian Labour Ministry as a tool for
reporting distance learning projects under the European Social Fund. It has been fully
developed by DIDA-EL and also delivers the European Computer Driving Licence
(www.didael.it).
23
6.8
Portugal
A telework training course has been developed by the Associação Nacional das
Empresarias in a traditional classroom format for entrepreneurs. This is part of the Vida
Nova European project.
6.9
Spain
The Asociación CEDERNA GARALUR Elkartea has developed a CD-Rom in English and
Spanish for training teleworkers in 'personal development' and 'communication skills'. This
project has been completed under the ADAPT project called the Joint Dona Project.
Another interesting experience in Spain, and not specifically dedicated to telework, is one
developed by FOREM Miguel Escalera and the CC.OO (Workers' Commissions) union
with assistance from two funded European projects (TRAINS and ETUE-net). The content
of the modules is related to an introduction to the information society, union education and
professional orientation.
6.10 United Kingdom
Probably one of the best examples is the Scottish Professional Development Award in
Teleworking, which aims to provide people who have already a marketable skill with a
basic level of competency in IT skills. It helps them rethink their businesses and take
advantage of teleworking opportunities. London City University has developed an
18-module training package called 'Managing change in the workplace – teleworking' with
funding from the European Social Fund. Each module takes 4-10 hours to complete: some
modules are specifically for the teleworker, others are for the manager, and some are for
both. There are also two teleworking NVQs: one is 'Using IT for teleworking'; the other is
'Managing IT for teleworking'. More details can be found in The Teleworking Handbook
from TCA in association with HP. And of course, we must not forget the corporate-level
pioneer British Telecom, which has a complete training offering for employees, managers
and customers.
24
7.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Europe obviously has a long way to go before homogeneously remote training in
tele-activities is available for teleworkers and entrepreneurs. However, this brief, initial
inventory is encouraging, and shows that a number of countries have started to experiment
in new ways of training. Interestingly enough, it appears that this has often happened
thanks to European projects: this has the advantage of involving more than one country,
and will speed up the dissemination process. However, more will have to be done – and
quickly – to develop a keen competitive edge.
We have seen that the academic world is moving fast into new ways of developing and
distributing courses, and substantial investment is planned in most countries for the
development of virtual universities. Large corporations are moving even faster because
they need to be able to develop knowledge at any time and keep track of it. The corporate
virtual campus is also becoming one of the elements that will attract new talent, or help
keep them in-house. In the knowledge society, competition is based on new tools, and
just-in-time training will be one of them.
Training that is available anywhere will also help to avoid the digital divide between
generations, as the younger generation will have been educated with the use of computers
and have increasing access to remote training. People who are now in their 30s and 40s, and
still following the traditional model, will have to evolve and adapt to survive. This brings
the management issue to the fore, as management techniques are also changing very
quickly, and managers need to have the ability to train in order to change. The knowledge
society is a society of speed with a request for quality of life. This reinforces the need to be
able to be trained and to learn in chosen conditions and time. E-learning is one answer to
that request.
25
8.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Arthur Andersen, L'irrésistible ascension du e-learning ou comment former dans la
Nouvelle Économie, Paris, April 2000
Aska, Le Préau, Klr.fr, Choisir une solution de téléformation: l'offre de plates-formes et
portails de téléformation, Étude 2000 (see: www.aska.fr, www.preau.asso.fr,
www.village-formation.com)
Dieuzeide, Henri & Nathan, Pédagogie Les Nouvelles Technologies: outil d'enseignement,
Paris, 1994
EC, Communication from the Commission: e-learning – designing tomorrow's education,
Commission of the European Communities, Brussels, May 2000
Finnish Ministry of Labour, From Information Society to Knowledge-based Society:
Employment by innovation, Helsinki, 1997 (see: www.mol.fi)
La formation online, Le Journal de l'Atelier No 66, January 2000 (see: www.atelier.fr)
Jakupec, Viktor and Garrick, John, Flexible learning, human resource and organisational
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direction de Jean-Claude Ruano-Borbalan, Les Éditions DEMOS, 2000
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Association, 2000 (see: www.tca.org.uk)
Trentin, G, Insegnare e apprendere in rete, Zanichelli, Bologna 1998
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www.learn2.com
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www.pconlineuniversity.com
www.smartplanet.com
www.smartforce.com
www.doli.com
www.pconlineuniversity.com
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www.wgu.edu/wgu
online.uophx.edu
stanford-online.stanford.edu
scis.nova.edu
26
onlinecsu.ctstateu.edu
www.kumc.edu/instruction/Vir_Clas/vir_clsrm.html
www3.umassd.edu
www.wcb.vcu.edu/wcb/intro/wcbintro.html
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weber.u.washington.edu/~lspace
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homebrew1.cs.ubc.ca/webct
emma.comm.arizona.edu/polis/demo/POLIS.cgi
www.uophx.edu
www.click2learn.com
www.trainingnet.com
www.how2.com
www.uol.com
www.geolearning.com
www.headlight.com
www.learn2.com
www.corpu.com
www.hungryminds.com
www.fatbrain.com
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www.yipinet.com
www.smartforce.com
welcome.zdu.com
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www.youachieve.com
apsis.telecampus.edu
www.brandonhall.com
www.microsot.com
www.edsurf.net
www.tregistry.com
www.digitalthink.com
www.intuitionpublishing.com
www.nticforet.qc.ca
www.hp.com/e-learning
www.edubyweb.com
www.aftt.net
www.cork-teleworking.com
www.tca.org.uk
www.forem.be
www.ichec.be
www.be-odl.org
www.uta.fi/telework/english/
www.distancearbejde.dk
www.hkdigital.dk
www.beltel.it
27