Modern dynamic society needs continuous education of a new type, which would ensure the mobility of participants in the educational process. Solving this problem involves the active introduction of new pedagogical technologies, which are based on the use of the powerful potential of computer and telecommunication systems. This ensures fast and cost-effective transmission of large amounts of information over any distance. Thus, access to global information resources is provided to every person, regardless of location and material wealth.
Electronic learning is becoming one of the tools for the development of modern society. It contributes to updating the forms, means, technologies, and methods of teaching disciplines, expanding access to knowledge for all levels of the population, etc. In this regard, quality eLearning software development services from proven educational software development companies like jatapp are becoming more relevant today than ever before. Read the material of this article and learn more about the importance of e-learning and the advantages of its implementation in modern conditions.
Definition of E-learning and Basic Types of Elearning Software Development
The concept of e-learning has been used in the professional environment for a long time. This term usually means education built with the use of information and telecommunication technologies. This is exactly the interpretation recorded in the UNESCO definition: “E-Learning – learning based on the Internet and multimedia”.
E-learning requires the use of various components and methods of presenting educational material. It can include many types of media that provide text, audio, images, animations, and streaming video, as well as technological programs and processes such as video and audio tapes, satellite television, CD-ROM, computer training, web-based training, etc.
According to the experts of educational software development company Jatapp, e-learning includes all types of educational technologies using electronic learning tools, in particular:
- Multimedia training;
- Technologies of development and training;
- Automatically generated instructions;
- Internet Learning;
- Web-based training;
- Virtual education through virtual learning environments;
- Mobile learning and digital educational projects, etc.
E-learning can take place both in the classroom and outside of it. It can be asynchronous or synchronous, self-directed or instructor-led learning. You can find numerous training courses, such as an AML course online. Asynchronous and synchronous learning are among modern educational strategies recognized by the Educational Technology and Mobile Learning publication as relevant today and promising for the coming years:
Asynchronous electronic learning is distance learning, which involves the work of the student and the teacher at different times according to their own schedule. E-mail, audio, video recordings, etc. are used for communication between the student and the teacher and the transfer of information. Direct contact is not constant;
Synchronous training – training in which users are geographically distant from each other, enrolled in groups with certain time intervals of training. They can be present or undergo training according to a set schedule.
Advantages of Using the Services of Elearning Software Companies
Cooperation with a reliable e-learning software development company is considered promising today since educational software development provides a number of important advantages:
- Freedom of access. The student has the opportunity to access electronic courses, textbooks, and assignments via the Internet from any place where there is access to the Global Information Network;
- The possibility of studying according to an individual plan, own capabilities, and needs;
- The possibility of consultation with the teacher when completing the task;
- An objective methodology of assessing the knowledge acquired in the learning process. Technologies of the e-learning system make it possible to set clear criteria by which the knowledge gained in the learning process is evaluated;
- The flexibility of learning. The duration and sequence of studying a topic, section, etc., are chosen by the student himself. The learning process is adapted to one’s own capabilities;
- Opportunities for professional and intellectual development for both students and teachers, because they develop skills and knowledge in accordance with the latest modern technologies;
- Timeliness of updating educational materials provided in electronic courses;
- Education competence, since e-courses are most often created by a whole team of e-learning software development specialists;
- Targeted cost savings for educational and methodological support, which is a relevant feature of the e-learning system in today’s conditions.
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Disadvantages of E-Learning
In addition to the advantages of e-learning, there are also psychological and technological disadvantages. Psychological shortcomings include:
- Network education does not provide for personal communication with the teacher or communication between other students;
- The main thing for the successful completion of the network training program is the presence of the strongest motivation. If a person cannot learn without the constant supervision of teachers, then e-learning may not be effective;
- Lack of e-learning experience or poor computer literacy of the teacher and student can become a barrier to gaining knowledge.
Disadvantages associated with the imperfection of technology:
- Having the necessary technological equipment, it is not always possible to study remotely. These may be problems with the Internet connection, the lack of any basic skills in handling equipment, and the ability to navigate the Internet;
- Most of the various educational programs designed for e-learning offer face-to-face examination sessions. This is due to the fact that it is impossible to find out who is sitting at the computer on the other side. There are still no optimal solutions to this kind of problem;
- There are certain restrictions when choosing a profession with online training because you cannot study to be a doctor or an actor at a distance. There are a number of practical skills that can only be obtained by doing real practical and laboratory work.
Popular E-Learning Platforms
Today, there are many different e-learning platforms. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages over the others. But there are 5 platforms that are the most widely used today. These are Moodle, Blackboard Learn, Canvas, Sakai, and Schoology. Learn briefly about them in the paragraphs below.
Moodle
Moodle is a free, open-source e-learning management system. It allows using a wide range of tools for the educational interaction of teachers, students, and the administration of an educational institution.
Blackboard Learn
Blackboard Learn is a unified interactive environment for learning, interaction, and information exchange between the learner and educator. It automates the main educational processes:
- Preparation of training materials;
- Implementation of e-learning;
- Joint research activities;
- Accounting and control of personal criteria of the educational process;
- Maintenance of regulatory and reference information;
- Collaboration of remote members of educational projects.
The big advantage of Blackboard Learn is the presence of a built-in formula editor, as well as the presence of a chat that provides communication between students within the study group and the teacher in real time.
Canvas
Canvas is a popular e-learning platform used to create an open learning environment, establish remote work of learning subjects, and conduct effective monitoring, evaluation, and mutual assessment of knowledge. It provides subjects of the educational process with distributed access to educational material, means of communication, and feedback.
Sakai
Sakai is an Open Source platform for organizing elearning. This is a project of several American universities, including MIT, which started in 2004. The system is used in more than 200 universities around the world and every day more than a million people study with its help. Sakai allows the creation of course programs, schedules, and assignments; displays events on the calendar; organizes communication in chat and forums; conducts file sharing, etc.
Schoology
Schoology is a technology that combines LMS and cloud technologies, designed for universities and schools. Schoology allows students and teachers to communicate and learn not only within the same university but also around the world. It helps the teacher track student progress. Teachers are also provided with such tools that quickly individualize the team, and develop and implement strategies for retention and rationalization of accreditation reporting procedures.
Conclusion
E-learning is an innovative technology aimed at professionalizing and increasing the mobility of learners. At the current stage of the development of information and communication technologies, it can be considered as a technological basis for the fundamentalization of education. Therefore, quality eLearning software development services are becoming more and more in demand today and allow the implementation of various software solutions.