E-learning is commonly referred to the intentional use of networked information and communications technology in teaching and learning. A number of other terms are also used to describe this mode of teaching and learning. They include online learning, virtual learning, distributed learning, network and web based learning. Fundamentally, they all refer to educational processes that utilize information and communications technology to mediate asynchronous as well as synchronous learning and teaching activities. On closer scrutiny, however, it will be clear that these labels refer to slightly different educational processes and as such they cannot be used synonymously with the term e-learning. The term e-learning comprises a lot more than online learning, virtual learning, distributed learning, networked or web-based learning. As the letter "E" in E-Learning stands for the word "electronic", E-Learning would incorporate all educational activities that are carried out by individuals or groups working online or offline, and synchronously or asynchronously via networked or standalone computers and other electronic devices.
Individualized self-paced e-learning online refers to situations where an individual learner is accessing learning resources such as a database or course content online via an Intranet or the Internet. A typical example of this is a learner studying alone or conducting some research on the Internet or a local network. Individualized self-paced e-learning offline refers to situations where an individual learner is using learning resources such as a database or a computer-assisted learning package offline (i.e., while not connected to an Intranet or the Internet). An example of this is a learner working alone off a hard drive, a CD or DVD. Group-based e-learning synchronously refers to situations where groups of learners are working together in real time via an Intranet or the Internet. It may include text-based conferencing, and one or two-way audio and videoconferencing. Examples of this include learners engaged in a real-time chat or an audio-videoconference. Group-based e-learning asynchronously refers to situations where groups of learners are working over an Intranet or the Internet where exchanges among participants occur with a time delay (i.e., not in real time). Typical examples of this kind of activity include on-line discussions via electronic mailing lists and text-based conferencing within learning managements systems.
Contemporary trends in E-learning
The growing interest in e-learning seems to be coming from several directions. These include organizations that have traditionally offered distance education programs either in a single, dual or mixed mode setting. They see the incorporation of online learning in their repertoire as a logical extension of their distance education activities. The corporate sector, on the other hand, is interested in e-learning as a way of rationalizing the costs of their in-house staff training activities. E-learning is of interest to residential campus-based educational organizations as well. They see e-learning as a way of improving access to their programs and also as a way of tapping into growing niche markets. The growth of e-learning is directly related to the increasing access to information and communications technology, as well it's decreasing cost. The capacity of information and communications technology to support multimedia resource-based learning and teaching is also relevant to the growing interest in e-learning. Growing numbers of teachers are increasingly using information and communications technology to support their teaching. The contemporary student population (often called the "Net Generation", or "Millennials") who have grown up using information and communications technology also expect to see it being used in their educational experiences (Brown, 2000; Oblinger, 2003; Oblinger and Oblinger, 2005). Educational organizations see advantages in making their programs accessible via a range of distributed locations, including on-campus, home and other community learning or resource centres. Despite this level of interest in e-learning, it is not without constraints and limitations. The fundamental obstacle to the growth of e-learning is lack of access to the necessary technology infrastructure, for without it there can be no e-learning. Poor or insufficient technology infrastructure is just as bad, as it can lead to unsavoury experiences that can cause more damage than good to teachers, students and the learning experience. While the costs of the hardware and software are falling, often there are other costs that have often not been factored into the deployment of e-learning ventures. The most important of these include the costs of infrastructure support and its maintenance, and appropriate training of staff to enable them to make the most of the technology.
The flexibility that e-learning technology affords
A key attribute of information and communications technology is its ability to enable flexible access to information and resources. Flexible access refers to access and use of information and resources at a time, place and pace that is suitable and convenient to individual learners rather than the teacher and/or the educational organization. The concept of distance education was founded on the principles of flexible access (Willems, 2005). It aimed to allow distance learners, who were generally adult learners in full or part-time employment to be able to study at a time, place, and pace that suited their convenience. The goal of distance education was to free these learners from the constraints of conventional residential educational settings. They would not be required to live or attend lectures in locations away from where they may be living and working. The printed distance study materials, which each distance learner received, would carry the core subject matter content they would need including all their learning activities and assessment tasks. Students would be required to complete these tasks, submit their assignments and take their examinations within a set time frame. While these printed study materials allowed distance learners a great deal of freedom from time, place and pace of study, it had its limitations. For one thing, non-printed subject matter content and simulations etc. could not be easily represented in print form.
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Access to information and communications technology changed all that as it offered a range of possibilities for capturing and delivering all types of subject matter content to learners and teachers in distributed educational settings. This meant access to subject matter content and learning resources via networked information and communications technologies across a range of settings such as conventional classrooms, workplaces, homes, and various forms of community centres. Contemporary educational institutions, including conventional distance education providers, often pride themselves in being able to meet the learning needs of their students and staff at a time, place and pace that is most convenient to them. They have been able to do this with the help of information and communications technologies which afford learners access to upto-date information as and when they need them, and also the opportunity to discuss this information with their peers and teachers at their convenience. This is becoming increasingly affordable and palatable with a wide range of software applications and computer conferencing technologies for collaborative inquiry among students and asynchronous discussion. These applications enable learners and teachers to engage in synchronous as well as asynchronous interaction across space, time, and pace.
Electronic access to hypermedia and multimedia based
Resources
Information and communications technology also enables the capture and storage of information of various types including print, audio, and video. Networked information and communications technologies enable access to this content in a manner that is not possible within the spatial and temporal constraints of conventional educational settings such as the classroom or the print mode (Dede, 2000). In the context of this distributed setting, users have access to a wide variety of educational resources in a format that is amenable to individual approaches to learning (Spiro, Feltovich, Jacobson & Coulson,1991), and accessible at a time, place and pace that is convenient to them (Pea, 1994). Typically, these educational resources could include hyper-linked material, incorporating text, pictures, graphics, animation, multimedia elements such as videos and simulations and also links to electronic databases, search engines, and online libraries.
Opportunities and affordances of e-learning
A growing body of literature on learning and teaching is suggesting that learning is greatly enhanced when it is anchored or situated in meaningful and authentic problem-solving activities.
This approach to learning and teaching is founded on the principles of learning by doing and experiencing. It places or confronts learners with authentic situations and scenarios which are motivating and which require learners to carry out tasks or solve problems and reflect upon their actions. While such learning designs are suited for any learning and teaching context or media, their effectiveness and efficiency can be somewhat constrained by the fixed time, space and pace limitations of learning and teaching in conventional campus-based classroom settings. Similarly, printed study materials, while they afford transportability, are limited by their inability to capture and carry much else other than text, pictures, and illustrations. Information and communications technologies, on the other hand, afford us a wide range of opportunities to capture, store and distribute information and resources of all types and formats. Along with text, pictures and illustrations, these include multimedia-based simulations of complex processes from all sorts of domains such as the biological and medical sciences, agriculture, engineering and educational practice which are not easily or cheaply accessible in real time and settings.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Renaissance eLearning: Creating Dramatic and Unconventional Learning Experiences
By Samantha Chapnick and Jimm Meloy
"Attractive objects are rated as easier to use than less attractive objects. This holds true across all media, materials, and cultures."
-- Samantha Chapnick and Jimm Meloy
Excerpts from the book:
"We have moved into an economic era where implemented creativity is a widely
acknowledged success factor. What we see is the increasing recognition of the contribution made by traditionally less valued forms of creativity and creative people."
"Better business results are achieved when learning opportunities and leisure activities are barely distinguishable. Programs developed for delivery online that have been the most effective have typically been modified versions of leisure activities that have become popular through a groundswell of grassroots support. These activities grow organically and, therefore, are highly successful."
"Creative thinkers in domains outside human resources can significantly enhance the effectiveness of eLearning. Effective eLearning design has to rest on solid theoretical underpinnings and also take advantage of the wealth of disciplines beyond the realm of education."
Introduction:
Renaissance eLearning: Creating Dramatic and Unconventional Learning Experiences provides a creative look at the development of eLearning. The book contains information from over 100 people and examples from a review of over 400 e-learning programs to infuse your eLearning with the same magnetism and addictive powers of the typical video game, song, movie or other form of entertainment.
The 16 chapters in Renaissance eLearning cover topics ranging from creating convincing dialogue to good graphical styles as well as explaining how to use metaphors and figures of speech. The book design is unconventional but provides the reader with all the information needed to break out of the typical eLearning course design box.
Summary:
There is a tendency to avoid colourful language in eLearning. Perhaps it is driven by the same fear that has precluded heavy use of emotion in eLearning: the fear of not being taken seriously or of being ostracized by those who don't feel emotion has a valid place in the workplace.
Intelligent use of metaphors and colourful language makes eLearning programs more interesting, dramatic and memorable.
Metaphors have a profound impact on eLearning because they can structure the way concepts are integrated into people's minds and the subsequent actions they take based on those mindsets.
When you are seeking to add to or modify participants' concepts, as you will almost always be doing in deep learning, recognizing the metaphors others are currently working from and constructing new ones is required.
One of the main reasons why many of today's eLearning programs are ineffective is poor dialogue.
Watch a favorite television program or movie and notice how an entire conversation might consist of ten sentences for each character. You still you feel as if you are in the room overhearing the others speaking.
Part of the science of writing dialogue is making sure each phrase serves a purpose.
Some interesting ideas about how to make dramatic eLearning more interactive:
Free Form Experimentation. The best learning allows participants to experiment with different cause-and-effect situations. As they experience the outcomes of their actions their judgment skills are strengthened.
Hurdle. A participant should be given a task (Hurdle) that has a wide variety of ways to accomplish the task. Forcing the person to analyze their actions, applying hindsight and looking at what was done through trial and error.
Hurdle with Debrief. Provide a debriefing session with a facilitator or other participants where actions and choices are analyzed.
Immersive Structure. This is the environment within which content is placed. Immersive structure is the combination of all elements that come together to transport a person, at least mentally, into a physical rendition of a metaphorical world.
Dialogue. This is the use of metaphors when characters are speaking to each other or when the program is speaking to the learner. Using metaphors in this context helps foster recognition of connections between previously unconnected concepts.
Visual Metaphors. The metaphor must match the message. The irony is that poor graphic design actually distracts the learner. People's attention wanders least partially because of the graphics
Real people. The actual conversation of people should be used as the dialogue in program. This improves the realism of e-learning.
Check points. Opportunities should be provided to learners to check their assumptions and knowledge they have gained through e-learning.
Increasing Difficulty. There should be adjusting levels of difficulty while creating e-learning.
Beyond E-Learning: Approaches and Technologies to Enhance Organizational Knowledge, Learning and Performance
By Marc J. Rosenberg
"… [e-learning] must move beyond courseware and classrooms and into work. To reinvent e-learning is, in many ways, to reinvent learning itself."
-- Marc Rosenberg
Excerpts from the book:
"Technology-based learning is here to stay."
"Believing that face-to face classroom training is going away is both misguided and wrong."
"Justifying the expense of learning is no longer a cakewalk."
"Organizational learning and performance are facilitated through strategies and techniques that go far beyond training."
"The workplace has fundamentally changed."
"For communities or "communities of practice" to succeed, the community must offer sufficient value for members to become engaged and people must participate in order to create value. You need to find a way to motivate people to participate."
Introduction:
Beyond E-Learning: Approaches and Technologies to Enhance Organizational Knowledge, Learning and Performance takes a deep look at the entire e-learning landscape and beyond. Rosenberg provides insights into the best practices in the areas of knowledge management, online collaboration and other essential learning elements within an organization. It is a valuable tool in any training professional's toolkit. The 10 chapters in Beyond E-Learning provide guidance, advice, and insight on how to best prepare and manage the use of technology to facilitate learning from the strategic level. The book highlights strategies working in organizations today and that can be implemented in your organization with a little forethought and effort as explained by Rosenberg.
The book does an excellent job of framing e-learning and discussing some of the problems learning and training professionals have made because of some mis-beliefs about e-learning. Here are the myths and mis-beliefs:
Everyone Understands What E-learning is- this is simply not true. There is confusion about the term E-Learning with other terms like online trading, Web based training, computer based training etc. Without an agreed-upon definition and a common framework for thinking and talking about e-learning, confusion reigns.
2. E-Learning is Easy-E-Learning is a hard work. Better tools do not mean better skills. Building and deploying great e-learning that is both effective and efficient takes real effort, discipline, and experience in the fields such as design, information design, communications, psychology, project management, and psychometrics, not to mention a healthy consideration of needs assessment and evaluation.
3. Success is Getting E-Learning To Work-For too many, this means getting the technology to work. It is far more than that. True success of E-Learning depends on how well it strengthens performance and the business.
4. Only Certain Content Can Be Taught Online-This argument, often raised by sponsors as a reason not to support E-Learning, is untrue. With the right instructional design approach, almost any type of knowledge or skill can be developed and delivered online.
5. E-Learning's Value Proposition Is Based on Lowering the Cost of Training Delivered-What should really be the focus is the substantial benefits e-learning can generate in worker productivity, speed of learning deployment, and shortened times to competence.
Summary:
1. We have over relied on technology.
2. We have spent too much time in the training center.
3. We have often spoken a foreign language.
4. We tend to think this is easy.
5. We want immediate results.
Moving beyond current thinking and perception of e-learning will likely require you to reinvent the way you talk about and practice e-learning. You must reflect the need for speed and greater efficiencies, and the emergence of new thinking about learning and performance. Getting there involves adherence to four main principles:
Head the Warning Signs- Don't be complacent. Embrace your strengths, but don't ignore our weaknesses. The warning signs are as follows-
Minimal E-Learning expertise- Insufficient skills in e-learning design , management can slow the progress.
Weak assessment- In most cases, concentration is on technology issues and content presentation rather than on performance assessment.
No focus on informal, workplace learning- Focus is on providing knowledge sharing, collaboration and support to workers in context of their jobs limits the role to a much smaller sphere of influence than is necessary.
2) Reinvent What You Do- If you have existing programs that are not meeting their goals, fix them. Reinvention is not always about trashing what exists; rather, it is about improving what you are doing and moving on from there.
3) Redefine Your World - Expand the parameters of what learning can be. Don't be held back by traditional views.
4) Put yourself in the Bigger Game- Rethink and expand your role. Get into the workplace and become a valuable partner in solving real business problems with the least disruption to work as possible.
Acting upon these principles will enable you and your organization to be positioned to take advantage of new and upcoming technologies while keeping a solid grip on the purpose of any training activity which is to ultimately improve the bottom line of the organization.
The Benefits and Drawbacks of e-Learning
By Kevin Kruse
"The pro's and con's of e-learning vary depending on program goals, target audience and organizational infrastructure and culture. But it is unarguable that e-learning is rapidly growing as form of training delivery and most are finding that the clear benefits to e-learning will guarantee it a role in their overall learning strategy."
Kevin Kruse
Excerpt from the book:
"The vast movement towards e-learning is clearly motivated by the many benefits it offers. However much e-learning is praised and innovated, computers will never completely eliminate human instructors and other forms of educational delivery. What is important is to know exactly what e-learning advantages exist and when these outweigh the limitations of the medium."
Introduction:
Like no other training form, e-learning promises to provide a single experience that accommodates the three distinct learning styles of auditory learners, visual learners, and kinesthetic learners. Other unique opportunities created by the advent and development of e-learning are more efficient training of a globally dispersed audience; and reduced publishing and distribution costs as Web-based training becomes a standard.
E-learning also offers individualized instruction, which print media cannot provide, and instructor-led courses allow clumsily and at great cost. In conjunction with assessing needs, e-learning can target specific needs. And by using learning style tests, e-learning can locate and target individual learning preferences.
Additionally, synchronous e-learning is self-paced. Advanced learners are allowed to speed through or bypass instruction that is redundant while novices slow their own progress through content, eliminating frustration with themselves, their fellow learners, and the course.
In these ways, e-learning is inclusive of a maximum number of participants with a maximum range of learning styles, preferences, and needs.
All collaborative learning theory contends that human interaction is a vital ingredient to learning. Consideration of this is particularly crucial when designing e-learning, realizing the potential for the medium to isolate learners. With well-delivered synchronous distance education, and technology like message boards, chats, e-mail, and tele-conferencing, this potential drawback is reduced. However, e-learning detractors still argue that the magical classroom bond between teacher and student, and among the students themselves, cannot be replicated through communications technology.
Summary:
Advantages of e-Learning to the Trainer or Organization
Some of the most outstanding advantages to the trainer or organization are:
Reduced overall cost is the single most influential factor in adopting e-learning. The elimination of costs associated with instructor's salaries, meeting room rentals, and student travel, lodging, and meals are directly quantifiable. The reduction of time spent away from the job by employees may be the most positive offshoot.
Learning times reduced
Increased retention and application to the job averages an increase of 25 percent over traditional methods.
Consistent delivery of content is possible with asynchronous, self-paced e-learning.
Expert knowledge is communicated, but more importantly captured, with good e-learning and knowledge management systems.
Proof of completion and certification, essential elements of training initiatives, can be automated.
Advantages to the Learner
Along with the increased retention, reduced learning time, and other aforementioned benefits to students, particular advantages of e-learning include:
On-demand availability enables students to complete training conveniently at off-hours or from home.
Self-pacing for slow or quick learners reduces stress and increases satisfaction.
Interactivity engages users, pushing them rather than pulling them through training.
Confidence that refresher or quick reference materials are available reduces burden of responsibility of mastery.
Disadvantages to the Trainer or Organization
E-Learning is not, however, the be all and end all to every training need. It does have limitations, among them:
Up-front investment required of an e-learning solution is larger due to development costs. Budgets and cash flows will need to be negotiated.
Technology issues that play a factor include whether the existing technology infrastructure can accomplish the training goals, whether additional tech expenditures can be justified, and whether compatibility of all software and hardware can be achieved.
Inappropriate content for e-learning may exist according to some experts, though are limited in number. Even the acquisition of skills that involve complex physical/motor or emotional components (for example, juggling or mediation) can be augmented with e-learning.
Cultural acceptance is an issue in organizations where student demographics and psychographics may predispose them against using computers at all, let alone for e-learning.
Disadvantages to the Learner
The ways in which e-learning may not excel over other training include:
Technology issues of the learners are most commonly technophobia and unavailability of required technologies.
Portability of training has become strength of e-learning with the proliferation of network linking points, notebook computers, PDAs, and mobile phones, but still does not rival that of printed workbooks or reference material.
Reduced social and cultural interaction can be a drawback. The impersonality, suppression of communication mechanisms such as body language, and elimination of peer-to-peer learning that are part of this potential disadvantage are lessening with advances in communications technologies.
The future of learning: From eLearning to mLearning
By Desmond Keegan
This project is supported by the Leonardo da Vinci programme of the European Union
The Leonardo da Vinci project From eLearning to mLearning is a harbinger of the future of learning. The project sets out to design a learning environment for wireless technologies and provides this model of the environment. The project seeks to put in place a new virtual learning environment which might be represented thus by Wireless Virtual Learning Environment of Tomorrow. The project will do this by trialling and evaluating the didactic dimensions of three technologies, already developed, which are the harbingers of the wireless society of tomorrow.
It also set out to develop course materials for a range of devices in this learning environment and to trial the courses with real students in real learning situations.
At the dawn of the third millennium Ericsson and Nokia announced that there would be 1.000.000.000 mobile telephones in the world by 2002. The world population would be just over 6.000.000.000.
With the successful development of Bluetooth, WAP (Wireless Application Protocol), GPRS (General Packet Radio System) and UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), the technological structures for wireless telephony and wireless computing are now firmly in place.
THE CATEGORIES OF E-LEARNING
Database E-Learning: Online database are a form of e-Learning that is used today. With online databases, users can browse through different topics to look for an answer or an explanation to various questions. Online databases can also provide step-by-step instructions on how to do things like installation of an additional component to a computer or activation of a certain product.
Online Support: Online support is a more interactive form of e-Learning as it gives the user an opportunity to interact with real people when he or she is looking for an explanation or answer to a problem. These online support systems can be in the form of chat rooms, forums, bulletin boards, instant messaging applications, and others that can better help the user resolve his or her question by providing more specific or tailored answers.
Asynchronous training: Asynchronous training is a combination of the two forms of e-Learning mentioned above. With asynchronous training, students learn through internet-based, network-based or storage disk-based modules. Moreover, students can also interact with other students or instructors through e-mail, online discussion groups and online bulletin boards. As with the preceding types of e-Learning, asynchronous training is also self-paced and interactive.
Synchronous training: Synchronous training is a real-time method of e-Learning with live interaction between the instructors and the students. It is called such because students have to log in at a specified time and the classes will be held for a specified period of time. Lessons can take the form of single sessions to several sessions over a few years. Synchronous training is the e-Learning method that is nearest to classroom-style learning as students can raise their electronic hands, view a common blackboard and interact with each other. Synchronized training sessions are usually held in AV conferencing media, websites or internet telephony media.
TYPES OF E-LEARNING
In the past couple of years there has been a lot of change in e-learning techniques. Traditional forms, including computer-based and web-based learning, are rapidly evolving into integrated e-learning programs.
Many companies look for a variety of vehicles to use for learning. Some have implemented online learning solutions and still send staff to outside courses, or bring in instructors. If staff are required to learn a new product, for example, a company may consider instructor-led courses to start, supplemented by online learning for reference or advanced training purposes. The term blended delivery is often used to describe such integrated solutions.
Computer-based Training (CBT)
Computer-based courses are presented most often on CD-ROM, accessible any time for use at the desired pace of the user. CBT's is like reading an online book or manual.
Benefits of computer-based training:
Users can approach the material in a way that best suits them, skipping familiar sections or spending additional time on the difficult ones.
Courses are portable and accessible without need for a network.
Generally high quality of graphics and presentation.
Challenges of CBT's :
Effective CBT's require enormous resources.
Software for developing CBT's is very complex.
Lack of human interaction limits type of content and type of assessment.
Web-based Training (WBT)
Web based training are presented through the internet using a web browser. Web-based courses permit your employees access at any time to the training they require. Employees log into an online training system with a user name and password to begin an interactive course. Costs are similar to computer-based training, but many web-based programs go further, permitting interaction with an instructor and an online community of fellow students.
Benefits of web-based training:
Just-in-time training
Suits all learning styles
Higher retention of information/skills
Continuous updating of materials and access to further resources
KEY CHALLENGES: TOWARDS AN E-LEARNING PROGRAMME
􀂾 Increased co-operation and networking - with so many activities now taking place in
Europe, there is an increasing need for support to bring the actors together, to share experiences, to exploit synergies between projects and to foster the development of best practice.
􀂾 Promotion, Dissemination and exploitation ('valorisation') of Community actions - the Commission has invested and continues to invest considerable sums in European research projects, pilot projects, support actions and studies. More needs to be done to leverage the effect of these catalyst activities, through dissemination of the outcomes and exploitation of the results.
􀂾 Continuous teacher/trainer training - training remains a key concern for member states and more needs to be done to support the continuous development of essential skills and competencies for e-learning, such as innovative pedagogical practice.
􀂾 Breaking down physical and mental barriers - e-learning offers real possibilities for improved lifelong learning opportunities, as the boundaries between education, training and adult learning become blurred. And yet many barriers still exist and few innovative solutions have emerged that take real advantage of the possibilities for seamless, lifelong learning.
􀂾 Sustainable development - the ongoing changes taking place in our education and training systems will only provide long-term benefit if they become sustainable and are supported by appropriate changes to the organisations themselves.
􀂾 Expansion of the European Union - much progress has been made with infrastructure and connectivity in the existing member states, however the situation is not as well advanced in the countries that about to join the Union. Effort is required to bring them up to speed as soon as possible if we are not to face a digital divide between the old and the new members.
􀂾 Focusing of Community investment - Community resources are limited and funding needs to be focused on areas of clear priority. The discussions on the proposed eLearning Programme have reinforced the central role that schools and universities play and the need for increased teacher development
ADVANTAGES
Reduces travel cost and time to and from school.
Learners may have the option to select learning materials that meets their level of knowledge and interest.
Learners can study wherever they have access to a computer and Internet
Self-paced learning modules allow learners to work at their own pace.
Flexibility to join discussions in the bulletin board threaded discussion areas at any hour, or visit with classmates and instructors remotely in chat rooms.
Different learning styles are addressed and facilitation of learning occurs through varied activities.
Development of computer and Internet skills that are transferable to other facets of learner's lives.
Successfully completing online or computer-based courses builds self-knowledge and self-confidence and encourages students to take responsibility for their learning
Just in- time access to timely information.
Higher retention of content through personalized learning.
Improved collaboration and interactivity among students.
Expert knowledge is captured with good E- Learning.
Convenience is one of the major advantages of E-Learning. It allows students to work and learn at their own pace without the unyielding time restrictions of traditional learning. Students enter a risk free environment in which they try new things and make mistakes without exposing themselves. Because E-Learning provides access to learning materials at any time, students have the flexibility to schedule around families, jobs and other activities. Another major benefit of e-learning is the accessibility it provides. Students can learn from anywhere in the world. This is an especially important consideration for students who wish to study in a different country. In addition, because e-learning can be done from home, students have less clothing and driving expenses than with traditional learning.
CONCLUSION
The world is shrinking rapidly. The Internet has brought the world together in ways that nobody would have expected. Now it is possible to attend classes with the help of internet.
Knowledge is expanding at a tremendous rate. The class graduating H.S. in the year 2000 will be exposed to more new information in one year then their grandparents were in a lifetime. Memorizing facts will have a much lower value, while utilizing information for analysis and decisions will be a critical skill.
The typical worker will have many distinct careers in his or her lifetime. Each of these careers will require new knowledge and skills. Lifelong learning will be something that any successful person must do to compete. It will no longer be worthwhile to learn something with the hope that it will be useful at some time. Just-In-Time learning that meets the needs of individuals as they occur, makes learning more meaningful and effective.
The companies and careers of the future will utilize technologies that have not even been conceived of today. These technologies will require a whole new set of skills from the workforce. Learning to use the new technology will be important, and so will using those technologies to learn.
