e-learning readiness - Asia Pacific Region - Open University Malaysia

difference, however, can be observed in the levels of environmentalreadiness, where 27.5 percent of the organisations indicate a low level ofreadiness, and only 8.7 percent are in the high-level category. This trendwas consistent with the views expressed by policy makers, who, in theirwritten responses, indicate that they are disconcerted by hindrances to theimplementation of E-learning. Hindrances were perceived to be in theform of of bureaucratic constraints and the lack of community awarenessabout the benefits of E-learning.TABLE 10. Mean Scores of Overall Readiness among Policy MakersArea of ReadinessMean Standard Deviation(N=102)1. Management Readiness 5.98 2.4742. Personnel Readiness 5.87 2.3073. Technical Readiness 6.14 2.3214. Environmental Readiness 4.76 1.9255. Cultural Readiness 6.02 2.1116. Financial Readiness 5.26 2.5522.4 SummaryThe findings indicate that in general, policy makers are financially readyand willing to equip their institutions with the necessary facilities toharness the potential of E-learning. They appeared to be most preparedtechnically and felt ready to employ E-learning as the mode of learningand instruction. Policy makers also feel that they are ready to put in placepolicies and mission statements in support of E-learning initiatives.However, at this point in time, these aspirations have not yet beenadequately translated into concrete action or implementation of E-learning also initiatives. For example, organisations still need to establisheffective central units for developing high-quality content that wouldmaterialise these aspirations. In addition, there is a lack of qualifiedinstructional designers who can dedicate their time, expertise and effort tohelp develop customised content for the organisation. The biggeststumbling block at the moment seems to be a lack of environmentalreadiness in that the organisations, despite their readiness to embark onthe route to E-learning, are not being sufficiently supported by sound E-learning policies, an effective central E-learning agency, and properlyformulated intellectual property regulations appropriate for Malaysia.Joint Study by MEWC and OUM 22