Introduction to Courseware Design and Digital Technology
Welcome to the wonderful world of e- learning! You’ ve joined an industry that’ s changing in exciting ways all the time, which makes it both fascinating and daunting.
When people started using the term“ e- learning” in the 1990s, most e-learning consisted of Flash versions of PowerPoint presentations. In many cases, these were the same PowerPoint presentations that trainers and teachers delivered in traditional classrooms. But now, employees and students could view them online.
While rudimentary, these PowerPoint-to- Flash courses planted important seeds for the industry. And when bandwidth availability grew and technology matured, the e-learning industry exploded. Now a complex industry with a dizzying number of tools, technologies, players, and terms, it can be hard to navigate.
3 Main Categories of E-Learning
Self- _______
One of the most convenient characteristics of e-learning is that it’ s self- paced and asynchronous. This means there’ s no set time for the learning to take place. Unlike traditional learning, where students must learn at a set time and pace of the instructor’ s choosing, e-learning can happen at any time, at any speed.
Note that while there’ s typically some degree of freedom to learn at one’ s own pace, some organizations will set
deadlines for completing e-learning. For instance, salespeople might be required to complete sales training for new products before a product launch, or a student might have to finish a course before the end of the school term. And while e-learning is typically asynchronous, it can also be a synchronous activity, such as a web conference or internet chat.
Interactive
Typically, the most engaging e-learning is interactive.
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