Online and Distance Learning. What’s the difference between Online and Distance Learning?

Tech Tools Used in Online Learning

Web-based or online distance coursese may employ many different technologies. E-mail, asynchronous computer conferencing (bulletin boards) and live chat are core technologies.

As Americans have embraced cable and DSL, streaming video has surged to the forefront as a delivery method. Today, YouTube is being used to deliver videotaped college lectures to students’ computers.

A distance education student also can “see” their virtual classrooms and actual professors through the increasing use of virtual environments, like Second Life. Second Life is an example of a multi-user virtual environment (MUVE) system, where students create animated versions of themselves, called avatars, and are able to move through campuses, classrooms, libraries and other locations created by virtual universities and an elearning advantage.

Second Life is being used to teach skills—ranging from nursing care to fashion design, and more—through “immersion” or “live modeling.” Students in Second Life are sometimes asked to “act out” specific situations, such as mock job interviews or medical procedures.