Abstract:
The University of Pretoria (UP) implemented an upgraded version of the
institutional learning management system (LMS) (called “new clickUP”) from June
2011 to December 2012. The purpose of the study is to determine the levels of
use (LoU), stages of concern (SoC), and perceived expressed needs of health
professional educators (HPEs) in the Faculty of Health Sciences as they adopt
and implement the new LMS in their teaching.
The rapid development of educational technology for teaching and learning is a
cause of constant change in higher education institutions. In particular, regular
upgrades to an LMS put pressure on lecturers, forcing them to learn to implement
upgraded versions. Although LMSs are viewed as an essential part of
technology-enhanced learning, the literature seems to be silent about widespread
fidelity of use and how this may be achieved, particularly in a medical education
context.
The study follows an eclectic research design utilising the Concerns Based
Adoption Model (CBAM) with its diagnostic tools (SoC and LoU) to evaluate both
the concerns of HPEs and the extent of implementation of the LMS. The
perceived expressed needs of HPEs in this context were explored further through
interviews. The rationale for the study is that the levels of implementation of the
LMS could be improved if professional staff development interventions address
specific training and support needs of lecturers.
The results of the study show that HPEs at UP have not yet completed the
journey across the bridge of implementation. Based on the results of the SoC and
LoU instruments, HPEs consistently rated concerns at the Unconcerned stage as
the highest, and Management concerns as second highest. Informational and
Personal stage concerns were rated not much lower than Management concerns.
Detailed information regarding the context-specific needs of HPEs was collected
from the perceived expressed needs interview, to supplement the needs obtained
through the SoC questionnaire. The results reveal some variation from the SoC,
as well as additional needs HPEs have with regard to the implementation of an
LMS.
Four core needs of the HPEs were identified: (i) to know the reason for the
change to the new LMS; (ii) to have time available to learn, practice and
implement the system; (iii) to have access to training and support resources; and
(iv) to understand the functionalities available and associated possibilities for
application in their teaching practice.
By integrating the results of research question 1 (SoC) and research question 2
(LoU), the fidelity of implementation was ascertained, utilising a fidelity matrix
based on the highest SoC and LoU achieved by HPEs.
To accomplish the stated rationale (i.e. to facilitate the journey across the
implementation bridge) the study recommends that attention should be paid to
the Unconcerned and Management stages of concern. Specific training and
support interventions should address these concerns, without neglecting
Informational and Personal concerns that are still prevalent.
