Wednesday, September 30, 2009

What Is eLearning Today?

The concept of eLearning has expanded a great deal since colleges and universities started to adopt it in earnest three to five years ago. Ideas are constantly evolving, as technology, pedagogy, and student needs change.

It is useful ask the question, "What is eLearning today?"

Let's approach the answer in steps. It makes analyzing the question a bit easier, because it helps us see where changes are taking place and why ideas are evolving.

eLearning is more than a delivery method. It is an approach to learning. This is fundamental. What eLearning stresses is its adaptability to the learners' lives, needs, and experience.

eLearning works because it is now possible to make it universal. Universality does not simply refer to the fact that eLearning is available for people all around the globe from all walks of life, backgrounds, and goals. It also means that the technology used to deliver eLearning is available in standard, uniform yet flexible ways so that eLearning can take place by means of many types of computers and mobile devices.

Learning preferences and styles find maximum accommodation with e-learning. Of course, to achieve the maximum amount of flexibility, one has to include mobile learning and incorporate interaction, whether face to face or with technology.

New possibilities for interaction. With mobile learning, there are numerous ways to interact with students and to have meaningful interactions. While interactions used to occur only within the space of the learning management system, mobile learning and Internet telephony have changed all of that. There are new approaches. I've mentioned a few specific examples, but there are numerous, and the providers do not have to be the ones I'm mentioning here. These are just recognizable ones which are so ubiquitous as to be almost generic.

* Discussion board (asynchronous posting of text, images, video, and audio)
* Video conferencing using iChat, Skype (with video), AIM (video enabled), etc. (synchronous)
* Webinar / teleconference using iChat, Skype, netmeeting, AIM, etc. (synchronous)
* Text messaging with smartphones
* Instant messaging & video-messaging with smartphones
* Podcasting (using audioblogger from a smartphone)

Any time, any place. Any time, any place is something of an exaggeration. Clearly, it is not possible to interact with classmates, or to send or receive coursework if one does not have a connection to the Internet. However, it is possible to download content in anticipation of curtailed access and to read the course material, write papers, and to do review activities later.

Faculty roles grow and shape themselves to be guides and encouraging mentors. The instructor is able to provide focused and clear guidance for the student, especially when the work requires writing, research, and making connections with the contemporary world.

Situated learning can be taken to a new level. The mobility and flexibility allow students to bring content and context together. The learning experiences can be in the past, or they could be incorporated into the instructional activities. For example, a course in botany could require students to take their smartphones to a park and to take photographs of leaves in the trees, and to challenge fellow classmates to identify the trees.

Research resources expand exponentially. Because online courses involve access to the virtual libraries, the eLearner has more access to articles than the student who must rely on a traditional library.

Perhaps the most ethical approach, in terms of inclusion -- if designed correctly. If an eLearning program is designed well, it will accommodate diverse learning styles, be culturally inclusive, encourage the exchange of ideas, have flexible technical requirements with few barriers to access and entry.

Because of the potential of eLearning and mobile learning to be so inclusive and flexible, it does have potentially the highest potential for distribution and dissemination. Open source experiments are making that a reality for many. However, ethical issues abound if the content and flexibility are used to provide shoddy content or to push politics or a certain ideological stance.

eLearning is still in its nascent stages. We really don't know what will happen in the future, but we do have an idea of its potential. Now the challenge is to make a high-quality education available for everyone.
==========By Susan Smith Nash, Ph.D.==========
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5700301195596543011&q=elearning+u&hl=en

E Learning: Why Choose Online Education?


The Internet boom is far from over, although it has been taking
a slightly different slant in the past few years; hardly
surprising as technologies advance and trends change. The World
Wide Web is the largest resource of information in the whole
world and whatever your needs the Internet can provide. What
started as a bubble has soon become a massive tidal wave and
online education is one of the areas that is still increasing,
probably more than ever before.

You can shop online, you can watch TV online, and you can even
book your holidays online or work online and now you can
complete perfectly legitimate and recognised educational
courses online. Far from being the alternative form of
education used solely by working parents it is becoming just as
popular with teenagers and professionals all around the world.
There are no boundaries to learning when using the Internet.
You can study a course that local colleges and educational
institutions in your area don't offer and you can do so without
having to quite your job and leave home.

You don't need to take three years to complete a course; you
can often work at your own pace, fitting in around your
commitments and according to your spare time.

What courses are on offer?

As well as courses designed primarily for completion on the
Internet, many educational institutions are now leaning towards
offering the major courses to be completed in the comfort of
your own home. College degrees and graduate degrees are
available in almost any subject you could imagine with many
benefits over the traditional 'classroom' approach.

E-learning offers a vast array of topics too, from American
History to Zoology and everything in between. Perhaps you are
in full time employment and want a change in career. Not many
of us can afford to just give up work and go back to college so
online education could be the perfect answer.

Maybe you are unemployed and can't find work suitable for you
or the qualifications and experience you have. Online education
can offer you the opportunity to gain more qualifications
without the expenses of travelling or accommodation.

Why should I choose an online education course?

There are many advantages to online education. The courses are
usually tailored to meet the different demands that are
entailed within an online learning community. You are usually
free to study at your own time and pace, so you have the
opportunity to complete your chosen course quickly or as slowly
as you want.

There are no travel costs involved with online education and no
travel time whatsoever. The only time you will need to dedicate
to your learning will be the time you spend studying and any
trips to the library or other institution you may need.

Many jobs and careers demand a good working knowledge of the
Internet, and by completing your course online you are already
many steps closer to that end. You will have excellent
knowledge on Internet research; always being able to find the
information that is useful to you.

There are some factors you should consider when deciding
whether to opt for online education or a more traditional
classroom education. You will need a reasonably up to date PC,
together with an Internet Connection. Fortunately, computer
prices have dropped in recent years, so you can get a capable
PC for little more than $300. If you consider using Ebay or
buying a refurbished PC then you can reduce this price even
more. Don't forget, you will need a printer, operating
software, word processing software and an Internet connection
but again the price of these has dropped dramatically.

If you don't have much working knowledge of a computer or the
Internet you will need to find your way around at first and
this can seem a daunting task for the beginner. Don't panic,
just stick with it and buy yourself (or borrow from friends or
the library) books on how to use the software you are going to
need. Once online the Internet has all of this information at
hand, and the world becomes your playground.

A summary of online education

Online education can help all people from all walks of like
gain the education they want to better themselves or to advance
in the career they already have. Whether you are a working
parent or an unemployed bachelor, there are courses available
for you to complete through online education.

Online education offers many benefits and few pitfalls when
compared to the more traditional 'classroom' approach but you
should carefully consider your options before jumping in.

There are costs associated with virtually all online education
courses but these are usually little more than the costs to
study at a college and when you consider that there are no
travelling expenses and no extra living costs, you may find
online education to be a much more financially viable option.

*********By John Thompson************