Hi!

First, I do not believe that ”e-learning” constitutes any separate kind of learning as ”book learning”, “classroom learning” or “social learning” are not separate types af learning either. Honestly, we know very little about how people learn. In every situation, a person uses the tools that are available and that the person thinks can be of good use for the task. However, we know that learning comes by experiences, sorting information, problem solving, collaboration, construction etc.

Digital tools enlarges the tool boxes of both the teacher and the student in learning processes. Some people would still lack the possibility of becoming or being students at all, because they cannot attend any nearby campus due to distance, job and family. So the greater possibility to access education that comes with digital tools is a clear benefit, and enables more people to become students in the first place.

Furthermore, also campus-based traditional full time students can benefit by the bigger area of options for learning that digital tools enable. If a student does not understand a teachers explanations, he or she can find other resources for help.

In the next step of “adaptive learning” supported by “learning analytics”, both the student and the teacher can get help to adapt the course of learning after each individuals previous knowledge and problematic gaps in that knowledge.

So asking “what benefits” concerning digital tools is a little like asking about the benefits with writing or book printing, which also were controversial at start, but today are so integrated parts of any learning process that it is impossible to ignore them.

Hi again! I see that this is not a hot topic. Interesting. 10 years ago I think that there would have been many enthusiastic answers about students learning so much better and faster and with so much more pleasure with ”e-.

Remember Bernard Luskin 2010: “The “e” in e-learning means much more than “electronic” when applied to e-learning — think instead of a big “E” for “exciting, energetic, engaging, extended” learning.”

Eric Parks suggested that the "e" should refer to "everything, everyone, engaging,

today, when the digital is no news any longer, we have a new question of describing the benefits of the digital. I think there are many, but perhaps not so much the ones we initially imagined.

Dear Khansaa Azeez Obayes Al-Husseini,

In my point of view, e-learning has a lot of benefits.

Benefits are as following

• earning can be more targeted, focused, delivered bite-size, just-in-time;
• learners can interact with the tutor;
• learners can interact with their peers;
• learning materials are readily accessible;
• a variety of techniques can be utilized by maximizing different technologies;
• it can build on other off-the-job provision.

(Thorn, 2003. Rafferty, Munday, Buchan, 2013. Carman 2005.)

I hope I have been of some help.

Best,

Andrija