CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.0 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Online learning are web-based classrooms. According to Musbah and Mohammed (2013), e-learning is rapidly evolving with the use of online learning.
They enable educators and learners to have continous access to course materials, broadcast announcement, submit and receive feedback on assignment and network. (Lonn & Teasley, 2009).
Advance in e-learning are opening new opportunities for distance learning. The use of e-learning in delivery of education has a major implication for learners in institutions. It is widely accepted that advances in e-learning and new development in learning science, provide opportunities to create well-designed, learners-centered, interactive affordable, efficient, flexible online learning environment,higher education institutions in developing countries such as Nigeria. The term e-learning embraces a variety of electronic delivery media, for example: web-based multimedia, interactive television, virtual classrooms, video conferencing etc.
However, the degree of sophistication in education through the use of computer has become more pronounced than ever before, all over the world. Since the world is now a global village, Nigeria cannot afford to ignore the role which e-learning plays in achieving the national goal in technology development.
In this project, e-learning is defined as teaching and learning that are deliverd, supported and enhanced through other use of digital technologies and media. We consider it mostly off campus learning through synchronous or asynchronous method which may encompass a few face-to-face meeting, but the default mode occured by distance.
e-learning in Nigeria is still on its infancy stages and there are only a few on line programs. During the last two decades, the use of internet has been a major problem to the teaching and learning activities. Students have misuse the use of internet for learning to a fun and distraction media. These made researchers to disagree with the use of e-learning and desire to adopt the traditional method of teaching and learning.
Nowadays, E-learning has a competitive advantage over traditional method of teaching mathematical concepts. Often students choose to use this method because they can work at their own pace, they can take as many or as few classes as they wish, they can study when they have the time, and because e-learning provides 24hours 7days accessibility to course materials, enables student centered teaching approaches, instructors accessibility, and helps instructors save time. Support is usually provided from the teachers or professors that mark the student’s course work, and they can be contacted in person, over the phone, or through e-mail. Online learning enables each student to view another student’s answers and learn through the exposure to different perspectives through tools like blackboard’s discussion Board and Chat (Sharing of ideas).
The internet can be used as a supplement to traditional instructional methods, to complement a lecture; instructors may ask students to find specified web sites to gain more in-depth knowledge about a particular topic. An instructor may also ask students to search the internet for information on services offered in a particular location. In preparation for a class topic, students may be asked to search the internet to learn about different organization groups or populations of a particular aspect.
The internet facilities may also be used to replace the traditional calssroom lecture. A number of courses are being developed in which portions of the course or the entire courseware are offered via the internet. The instructor may place course notes on web pages, may create a video recording of a live lecture for viewing on the internet, or use combinations of these ideas. Foryth (2008) discussed several methods of preparing courses for the internet including facilitating the use of video clips on web pages as the use of forms and other graphics on web pages.