This study explored the effects of web-enabled pedagogies on students' involvement in learning. A series of quasi-experiments were conducted to investigate whether students' involvement increases over time if intervened, respectively, by problem-based learning (PBL), self-regulated learning (SRL), and their combinations. Two classes of 102 first-year students at a vocational school in a onesemester course were chosen for this empirical study. The results were generally supportive. The authors further discuss the implications for schools, scholars, and teachers engaged in e-learning.

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A design experiment was conducted applying Web-based problem-based learning (PBL), self-regulated learning (SRL), or their combination to help low-achieving students improve their skills of deploying application software in a compulsory course at a vocational school in Taiwan. The effects were encouraging and mostly positive. However, students' inertia to change routines of learning inherited from a culture of taking standard tests found in e-learning practice is quite common. A teacher's awareness of these changes and associated resistance may increase likelihood of e-learning success for future trials. Some modifications of the design are thus suggested for the next round of the experiment.

Many private vocational schools in Taiwan have taken to enrolling students with lower levels of academic achievement. The authors re-designed a course and conducted a series of quasi-experiments to develop students' long-term computing skills, and examined the longitudinal effects of web-enabled, problem-based learning (PBL) and self-regulated learning (SRL) on vocational students' computing skills. Two classes of 76 students in a one-semester course were chosen for this empirical study. These low-achieving students were re-examined for their long-term computing skills 36 months after the course started. The results indicate that students who received web-enabled PBL and SRL had significantly better computing skills in the 36th month than those who received traditional didactic lectures. The authors discuss the implications for schools, and for scholars and teachers engaged in e-learning.

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