A comparison of e-learning in Scotland's colleges and secondary schools: the case of National Qualifications in ‘Core Skills’.

This paper investigates and compares the utilization of online resources to support teaching and learning in two different educational sectors with overlapping student groups in Scotland: secondary schools and further education (FE) colleges. The online ‘Core Skills’ materials included Numeracy, Communication, Information Technology (IT), Problem Solving and Working With Others. The research involved two large-scale national surveys with representative samples of staff drawn from secondary schools and FE colleges, and four qualitative case studies purposively selected to represent a range of geographic locations. The most popular resources were for Numeracy. In the majority of colleges, respondents' attitudes to the materials were positive and the e-resources were used in conjunction with other teaching approaches. The evidence suggested that less motivated learners benefited from the materials when they were contextualized. Among secondary teacher respondents, however, the resources were virtually unknown. The majority of secondary teachers reported that they needed time to evaluate the materials and that they would benefit from specific training related to curriculum-linked e-resources. In conclusion, as the Numeracy materials have been found useful, e-learning in mathematics warrants further investigation among less motivated students who are currently not achieving their potential in secondary schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]