Technological development and the internet have changed people’s lives on different scales including for instance teaching and learning. The web has become one of the channels of learning that opens the door for people around the world to access education for free, or for fewer costs. The IT booming and the internet have opened the door to largely access knowledge, high quality education and training. This easy access using information systems and the web can improve people’s skills for fewer costs. Knowledge delivering to some people would have never been possible without the opportunities offered by technology and the web (FSN, 2015). Hence, e-learning has come to stay in contemporary times for different reasons.
Let’s quickly discuss the relationship between e-learning the modern education system. With online education courses fast mushrooming across the internet, more and more children and adults looking for skills advancement are turning to eLearning. It is also interesting to note that the major academic institutions of the world including the Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Yale, and Stanford to name a few are now offering students the option of getting an education by signing up for online courses and earning the necessary credits. These courses are available free of cost or for a charge. This factor holds true especially in the case of students in underdeveloped and third-world countries who can use the education to further their prospects of getting good jobs and living better lives (Palan, 2018).
E-learning is not only important and useful for the educational sector alone. In fact, I wouldn’t have been talking about the usefulness of the concept if everything about is only limited to the academic world. E-learning plays a huge role in business development. Both employers and employees can benefit from taking online courses. The choice of courses is almost limitless (Supino, 2015).
E-learning benefits employers in the contemporary world in so many ways. Even if employers don’t enroll in e-learning courses themselves, their businesses will benefit when employees are motivated enough to take e-learning courses. Also, employers can greatly enhance their talent resources when they encourage and reward employees for taking e-learning courses (Supino, 2015).
Employers of labor can always motivate their employees to take up e-learning courses by making such a course relatable to their job success. It is in this way that employers can really benefit from helping all their employees to do better in their job performance. Any industry can benefit from employees who are more educated in terms of dealing with the issues that come up in their job. For example, a factory worker would benefit from courses that teach about automation. A salesperson would benefit from courses about purchasing behavior. A retail clerk would benefit from courses regarding preventing shoplifting (Supino, 2015).
Further, employers can motivate employees to enroll in e-learning by offering rewards based on measurable goals. When employees see that they can be promoted or earn more money by taking e-learning courses, everyone benefits (Supino, 2015). Employers must make the course enticing in all ways in order to make the employees fully committed to it and benefit greatly which will also translate to a win situation for the organization.
There are numerous benefits of e-learning in the contemporary world. Online learning accommodates everyone’s needs. The online method of learning is best suited for everyone. This digital revolution has led to remarkable changes in how the content is accessed, consumed, discussed, and shared. Online educational courses can be taken up by office goers and housewives too, at the time that suits them. Depending on their availability and comfort, many people choose to learn at weekends or evenings. This has perfectly conformed to the 21st century realities of the world where people are indescribably busy and yet, still thirst for knowledge. Furthermore, courses can be taken any number of times. Unlike classroom teaching, with online learning you can access the content an unlimited number of times. This is especially required at the time of revision when preparing for an exam. In traditional form of learning, if you cannot attend the lecture, then you have to prepare for that topic on your own; in eLearning, you can attend the lectures whenever you want with ease (Gupta, 2017).
In addition, e-learning offers access to updated content. A prime benefit of learning online is that it makes sure that you are in synchronization with modern learners. This enables the learner to access updated content whenever they want it. Another great benefit of this form of learning is that it offers quick delivery of lessons. E-learning is a way to provide quick delivery of lessons. As compared to traditional classroom teaching method, this mode has relatively quick delivery cycles. This indicates that the time required to learn is reduced to 25%-60% of what is required in traditional learning. There are some of the reasons why the learning time is reduced by eLearning:
- Lessons starts quickly and also wrapped up in a single learning session. This enables training programs to easily roll out within a few weeks, or sometime even days.
- Learners can define their own speed of learning instead of following the speed of the whole group.
- Saves time as a student does not need to travel to the training venue. You can learn at the comfort of your own place.
- Students can choose to study specific and relevant areas of the learning material without focusing on each and every area. For example, they can skip certain areas they do not want to learn (Gupta, 2017).
Also, eLearning helps in creating and communicating new training, policies, concepts, and ideas. Whether it is for formal education or entertainment, eLearning is very quick way of learning! In conclusion, eLearning enables educators to get a higher degree of coverage to communicate the message in a consistent way for their target audience. This ensures that all learners receive the same type of training with this learning mode. Unlike the traditional method where inconsistency is usually noticed in the manner of delivery of lessons, e-learning guides against this malady (Gupta, 2017).
References
FSN (2015). Importance and Effectiveness of E-learning. Retrieved from https://higheredrevolution.com/importance-and-effectiveness-of-e-learning-9513046ed46c
Gupta, S (2017). 9 Benefits of eLearning for Students. Retrieved from https://elearningindustry.com/9-benefits-of-elearning-for-students
Palan, V (2018). How eLearning will Feature in the Modern Education System. Retrieved from https://elearningindustry.com/elearning-and-the-modern-education-system-feature
Supino, K (2015). Educate Yourself On Importance Of E-learning For Business. Retrieved from https://www.successful-blog.com/1/educate-importance-elearning-business/
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