E-learning

Introduction

A passage from eLearn Magazine perhaps says it best:

"E-learning is becoming a dominant delivery method in workplace-learning settings across organizations of various sectors and of varying sizes. Although many organizations are recognizing the potential of e-learning to bring learning closer to employees, there appears to be some issues to be addressed in delivering e-learning. Learners still face some barriers to e-learning, such as situational, organizational, and technical barriers. Managers are also concerned about cost and technology requirements for implementing e-learning. Moreover, there is a plethora of emerging technologies that have implications for workplace learning. Clearly, e-learning presents training professionals with both potentials and challenges, thereby creating a perfect e-storm with countless emerging technologies, enormous learner demand for training when needed, and ever present erased or significantly reduced budgets through which one has to navigate to deliver e-learning that truly impacts our work and lives.

"When asked about instructional approaches or strategies for e-learning in training settings, respondents answered that authentic cases and scenario learning, simulations or gaming, virtual team collaboration and problem solving, and problem-based learning would be used more widely in the coming decade. Our survey respondents were also asked how future advances in Internet technologies (e.g., extended bandwidth, wireless Internet) could affect instructional strategies for e-learning. Not too surprisingly, they predicted that use of interactive simulations would increase the most during the coming decade due to advances in Internet technologies, followed by multimedia presentations, authentic learning experiences, and global collaboration and perspective-sharing. Of course, respondents felt that effective and authentic content must be created, then delivered and finally evaluated.

from Kim, K., Bonk, C., and Zeng, T.
E-learning: The rise of Blending, Interactivity, and Authentic Learning.
In eLearn Magazine, online at www.elearnmag.org

Application

In present use e-learning is a summarizing concept applied mainly to online courseware, as distinct from more highly focused training applications. In either case, learning strategies need to be employed to facilitate effective outcomes. Not that this is really anything new, but it does serve to wrap it all into a package.