E-Learning in Malaysia: Success Factors in Implementing E-Learning Program

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to identify successful factors in implementing an e-learning program. Existing literature has identified several successful factors in implementing an e-learning program. These factors include program content, web page accessibility, learners ’ participation and involvement, web site security and support, institution commitment, interactive learning environment, instructor competency, and presentation and design. All these factors were tested together with other related criteria which are important for e-learning program implementation. The samples were collected based on quantitative methods, specifically, self-administrated questionnaires. All the criteria that were tested to see if they were important in an e-learning program implementation. E-learning, a method which evolved from distance education, has received special attention from public universities in implementing distance learning courses. In November 2005, the Sloan Consortium published a report on e-learning and defined “online learning ” or “e-learning ” as learning in which the Internet is used in delivering 80-100% of the content (Charmonman, 2006). E-learning is the most recent evolution of distance learning that creates, fosters, delivers, and facilitates learning, anytime and anywhere, with the use of interactive network technologies. E-learning is the latest evolution in corporate education and training. The first electronic supplement to traditional instructor-led classroom training was computer-based training (CBT), delivered via CD-ROM to individual PCs or local-area networks (LANs.) Then, the rise of the web led to web-based training (WBT), courseware developed specifically for delivery via the Internet or intranets. Then, the ubiquitous “e ” was applied, signaling a shift from the “islands ” of learning going on at the departmental or line-of-business level, to enterprise e-learning (Frye, 2002). Table 1 shows the comparison between traditional distance learning and present day e-learning (see Choi, Kim, & Kim,