A systematic mapping study on business process-oriented e-Learning

Current research in e-learning is actively looking beyond traditional content-oriented methodologies in search for more effective techniques, especially for workers. On the other side, Business Processes are extensively used for capturing and improving organizational workflow. Some recent projects have investigated the potential of using Business Process for workplace learning. Process-oriented learning describes a set of coordinated learning tasks with the aim of aligning the educational contents with the working tasks. However, research in process-oriented learning has been sporadic and uncoordinated. Thus it becomes difficult for a new researcher to figure out the state of art and the research challenges. The need emerges for a systematic study that identifies and correlates the existing work. In this paper, we present the first systematic mapping study on process-oriented e-learning. Our study answers the research question: How are Business Process techniques exploited into e-learning techniques, and how has their intersection benefited either domain? We identified 41 primary studies and classified them along various dimensions answering several sub-questions that have been derived bottom-up, applying coding, memoing and constant comparison techniques. Among other observations, we found that there exists a continuous yet limited interest in the intersection of business process and e-learning. Most works target academic learning, while only few research efforts, mostly within European projects, address workplace learning. We conclude that there is still a need and a great potential for exploitation of the mature tools and techniques developed within Business Process management systems for workplace learning.