What are your thoughts about the move towards greater online learning?

A few guiding thoughts about the move towards greater online learning?

As a provider of online English language services, ESS took the decision to make the maximum use of Web2.0 and everything that it has to offer.

Such an approach offers ESS and its customer base a great deal of flexibility in how and when those services are delivered. Consistency in the level of quality was also important, along with the ability to offer the extra 'added value' long missing with the more 'traditional' form of business model offered by English language service providers.

Whilst this is good news for the company who uses such services, there is even more scope in the provision of online training, both from the variety of learning packages that are potentially available, but also from the wealth of information the Internet.

Admittedly, when ESS looked at the range of learning management systems (LMS), from 'Moodle' to many others the end user, the learner, had to be able to use it with the same ease as 'plug and play' when attaching an external disc drive. I've no doubts that Moodle is a well thought out LMS, but I experienced nothing but problems in trying to set it up. ESS finally adopted the European Union's LMS, Web2.0ERC for its simplicity for all concerned.

The whole point about online learning is that it should be easily available to all those who access it. It should be about choice, and nowhere is this more evident in the ESS Basic and Premium online learning packages. The ESS - Basic package allows for the traditional form of a 45 minute lesson, whilst the Premium  package gives the learner access to a wealth of learning tools. ESS allows the customer to choose what they need.