VLE, student perceptions, LMS, academic development
Because virtual learning environments (VLEs) are amongst the most widely adopted
technologies in higher education, and to justify the widespread investment in VLE
technology, it is important to study patterns of actual student VLE use and student
satisfaction (Naveh et al., 2010). This chapter presents the work of a multi-institutional
group of educational developers who have collaborated since 2008 to gather students’
views on the use of VLEs across higher education in Ireland. The project has now developed
into a longitudinal study, open to participation by any educational institution, and is
currently integrated in the research strategy of the Irish Learning Technology Association
(ILTA). Surveys of students have been undertaken since 2008 using a common set of
questions. Participating institutions, on condition of anonymity, pooled their results for
comparison. The survey data provided each institution with useful information on how
VLE uptake and usage patterns compared with other institutions, in a framework which
prevented abuse of the findings for marketing or public benchmarking. The institutions
who have participated, thus far, represent a diversity of organisational histories and VLE
systems, and results to date include the responses of more than 15,000 students. The
resulting database constitutes the largest collection of information on student experience
related to technology enhanced learning in Ireland. We have presented and published
our methods and some of our earlier results (Cosgrave et al., 2008; Cosgrave et al., 2009;
Cosgrave et al., 2011). In this chapter, we will give an overview of the research methods
and findings, but will focus on the implications for academic professional development
and capacity building. We also describe our working processes as a self-sustaining
collaborative group. Like other chapters in this publication, where the collective voice
influences pedagogical practice, our contribution is driven by the desire to allow the
student voice to inform the continuous improvement of their learning experiences.