Gro Frølund

Globally, in both the public and private sectors, a growing proportion of educational activity takes place in virtual learning environments; armed forces education and training is no exception. Yet when evaluating the strategies, methods and media we employ to teach in these new learning spaces: how much do we know about their effects on students and cadets? What are the factors that create increased learning benefit? Which combinations of technology and didactics increase student motivation?

Researchers have made significant headway in this field of research and meta-analyses from the US suggest that the integration of technology into learning spaces has the potential for increased benefit for learners compared with traditional instruction. However, there are two issues with the largest studies presently available. Firstly, they conclude that learning in a virtual environment has potential; but due to their quantitative approach, they are unable to explore the pedagogical and didactic mechanisms that create this potential. Secondly, such studies have not been orientated towards military institutions.

Hence, we need a deeper understanding of how e-learning, blended learning and other forms of virtual or networked learning affect students – especially in a military context.
For this reason, the current study has mapped the learning experiences of cadets and students from the Royal Danish Defence College through a series of qualitative interviews. The data suggests that to a profound extent student perception of their learning experience is linked to – and hence dependent on – experiences of organisational change, job security, working conditions and home life. As a result, the didactics behind virtual learning environments at the Royal Danish Defence College, and other armed forces institutions like it, need to be especially context-sensitive when it comes to teaching methods and strategies. This study discusses a range of such methods and strategies and makes recommendations for course design.

By shifting the focus from quantifiable test score improvement to the qualitative mapping of the experiences of learners, this study has produced new data with direct applicability for instructional design and pedagogical development within the field of technology and education. The study will be of particular relevance for academies and universities offering armed forces officer training.

E-læring er i rivende udvikling globalt men også lokalt her ved Forsvarsakademiet. Direktivet som specificerede at 50% af vores uddannelser skulle indeholde en grad af e-læring har skubbet os i gang med en proces, som vi som organisation ikke er helt forberedt på. Fordelen er, at vi får lov til at eksperimentere, teste og udvikle nye undervisningsmetoder i fællesskab. Ulemperne er dog ganske betydelige; ved vi, hvordan vores e-læringsdidaktik påvirker vores kursister og studerende? Ved vi, hvilke læringsmuligheder de nye medier kan skabe? Er vi bevidste om de faldgruber brugen af medier måtte have?
Forskningsprojektet E-learning at the Royal Danish Defence College: learner prototypes har til formål at sammenfatte forskningsresultater fra internationale studier på området med indgående, kvalitative undersøgelser af Forsvarsakademiets studerende og kursisters oplevelser af e-læring i deres uddannelser.