With today’s deluge of information, and the growth of knowledge at a fast rate resulting in the information revolution in which we live now, the world has witnessed a new scientific and technological revolution that has had an impact on various aspects of life.

The education sector has taken advantage of this progress by developing new educational means, and establishing integrated educational methodology based on techniques, known as e-learning, which is one of the modern methods in the field of education and training, that assist the learner to obtain knowledge and skills at learner’s prefered time and place, through interactive content-based multimedia (graphics, audio, video...), advanced search mechanisms, digital libraries, and Internet portals, whether remotely or in the classroom.

The goal of e-learning is to use all kinds of technology in the delivery of knowledge to the learner at the shortest time, with least effort and greatest interest in order to achieve the learning objectives effectively The e-learning and distance education act as a key component of the higher education and continuing education. The need for this type of education has increased with the increasing number-of potential learners who wish to be enrolled in university education, but whose number has exceeded the capacity of universities. Therefore, it has become necessary to create a unit that takes care of the development of e-learning systems and standards at the university level, develops e-learning programs, and coordinates with other relevant units of the university.

Given the desire of the university to improve the educational process and the academic courses and to apply quality standards and accreditation to academic programs in a way that results in a better outcomes, and given the need for facilitating e-learning effectively in teaching, a decision was made to form a deanship of e-learning at the King Saud University as an important step to keep pace with the developing technology in the field of education. After making huge advances in this area, more decisions were made to establish units of e-learning at the college level to provide e-learning services in cooperation with the Deanship of e-learning and distance learning as a strategic and executive plans that have been layed out by specialists from within the deanship.

The College of Computer and Information Sciences aspires, through the establishment of this unit, to make a quantum leap in education, and moving from employment of traditional teaching methods to being a modern college that looks forward to progress and excel in using teaching methods, facilitating technology in education to reach high levels of quality of development.

The importance of establishing this unit can be understood, as well, when it comes to the issue of improvement and development of the educational process using the strategies and methods supported by modern technology to allow distance learning for students who are not able to attend classes.

The e-learning unit is responsible for e-learning and distance education related aspects at the college, including providing e-learning resources and systems, offering all necessary training to staff and faculty, managing and supervising technical support for distance learning programs. In addition, the e-learning unit will supervise planning and introduction of interactive education systems, which provides direct interaction between students and their teachers, and software necessary for the preparation and development of educational materials, besides advanced systems for recording lectures including all of their activities and making them available to students to browse and re-display using the Internet anytime and anywhere, and move forward towards an integrated learning environment for CCIS students.

Vision

Elevate the level of educational services and access to knowledge and scientific research, according to the highest international standards of excellence, perfection and quality.

Mission

Improve and develop the educational process and the academic curricula at the college through the establishment of an integrated learning environment that uses the e-learning technologies in teaching, and manages e-learning at the college level in a way that complies with policies of deanship of e-learning, to support its scientific and academic communities, and contribute to developing the skills of the faculty and students in using modern technologies in education, to reach a level of graduates who are self-reliant, capable of communicating, cooperating, planning, analysing and solving various problems towards a strong knowledge-based economy.

Objectives

The e-learning unit aims to improve and enhance the educational process in CCIS using the strategies and methods supported by modern technology, especially in computer and information technology. The learners are provided with education and knowledge by using technology, continuously, regardless of their time and location, through offering educational materials and organizing interactive electronic lectures to enable the learner to review and learn from them remotely, and in a way that allows students, who are incapable of attending regular classes due to extraordinary circumstances, to study at the college. It also seeks coordination with the relevant authorities to achieve the following objectives:

• Leveraging the quality of the educational process by offering means of education that employs e-learning techniques.
• Redesigning courses and shifting from traditional style to interactive e-courses that encourages students to think, express opinions, ask questions, debate and dialogue to support the independence of the students in learning and make them the center of the educational process.
• Providing a variety of educational resources to help in reducing individual differences among learners.
• Developing the current e-learning systems in the college and their impacts on the learning environment.
• Establishing, disseminating and promoting a production line of e-content, in the overall development of electronic courses of high quality.
• Helping faculty and staff to activate education through the provision of scientific content in ways that depend on information technology and modern communication.
• Adding the technological dimension to educational materials.
• Encouraging faculty and staff to participate in e-learning training held by the unit and sponsored by deanship of e-Learning.
• Establishing the principle of self-learning and training for life and enhance the skills of e-learning of college staff to invest in lifelong learning.
• Encouraging cooperation and coordination between the community educational institutions and the private sector in the field of e-learning and e-training.
• Benefiting from the global experience and trends in the application of modern e-learning system in the college.
• Contributing to raising the cultural, scientific and social awareness among community members.
• Creating an e-learning environment that motivates off campus students and students from all over the Kingdom to study at the college.

Tasks and Future Projects

• Preparing the strategic plan of the unit.
• Coordination with the Deanship of e-learning and distance learning with regard to e-learning projects in CCIS.
• Organizing training programs in the field of e-learning and related programs.
• Organizing seminars and lectures to spread the culture of e-learning.
• Continuous assessment of the e-learning process and activities in the college community.
• Carry out the functions of coordination and follow-up to train CCIS faculty and staff on e-learning applications.
• Follow-up seminars and lectures that interest the CCIS community, recording them, and supplying copies to Deanship of e-learning and distance learning.

Target Groups at CCIS

The unit mainly targets three main categories:

Students: the outcome that CCIS supplies community with, and through which it acquires its reputation. The Unit will focus on this category in:

• electronic training,
• interactive lectures,
• electronic courses and recorded lectures,
• and distance education.

Faculty members: the producers and manufacturers who use their creativity and the tools provided to them by the college and e-learning technologies and systems for the production of educational materials of high quality commensurate with the reputation of the college and its scientific relations with students and community members:

• training,
• developing courses,
• means of teaching,
• recording lectures and e-learning,
• developing the skills of using technology.

Community: through the development of educational programs based on the technology and providing training programs in order to achieve the community mission of the university in addition to providing technical and administrative consultancy in this area:

• adding the technological dimension to the programs offered by the University for the community,
• publishing materials and online educational programs, supporting them by technology and making them available through CCIS website,
• offering consulting and training courses.