REQUIRED COMPETENCIES OF SUPPORTING STAFFS FOR ELEARNING DEVELOPMENT IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Rapid progresses of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) have been leading a drastically change of learning environments. The intrusion of technology affects most of higher educational practices, and make the word of “eLearning” that is teaching and learning with ICT entrenched in higher education. Digital tools and the INTERNET are almost a necessity today for students in a classroom. They can access academic resources by using their cell phones, and accumulate their learning experiences in online storages.

For a decade we have organized a supporting team of eLearning development of our university. The team assists both faculties and administrative staffs, hereafter clients, when they wish to develop online learning materials, or hope to take ICT into a course/workshop for efficient learning. And also, if the clients cannot treat newly introduced technologies during the course/workshop, the team supports their course management. The staffs of the team are demanded not only to deliver desired products, but also to provide both expected services and appropriate information that can improve clients’ teaching and/or learning with use of technique of eLearning/digital technologies. Within the history of our institution we have employed more than a total of 30 people engaged in a different type of profession and background in their career. Then we recognize there are some key competencies required to the member of the team for which they can work actively and give essential support or advice to the faculties and administrative staffs. We consider the competencies combine those of a project manager, a consultant, a designer, an IT operator, an instructor, and so to make a style all theirs own.

We show the competencies and related skills we have empirically learned through implementation on university-wide eLearning strategies of our university. We expect it to become useful for managers and instructors to cultivate human resources capable of suitably supporting clients' requests in eLearning/ICT support services of higher education.