School districts can no longer afford to ignore the reality that the number of students who are now taking courses on line is growing by leaps and bounds.  Statistics and trends clearly show that e-learning is becoming a major component of students’ education everywhere.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a32eDsxDfjY] As a Continuing Education Principal in charge of on-line learning I have seen the number of students who opt to take courses on-line as an alternative to traditional schooling triple in just a few years.

Some sources predict that by the year 2030 all learning will be online. http://tiny.cc/Ab60s

Many on line courses deliver content through web based infrastructures known as CMS (Content Management Systems) or LMS (Learning Management Systems).  The idea behind these “depositories of knowledge” or content tanks is that the courses are already on-line.  The teachers can use these courses as they are or easily modify them as they need and deliver them to the students.   Textbooks are most often not necessary and sometimes just quoted for reference purposes only and all work is exchanged electronically.

Assignments, research, threaded discussions, chats and problem sets are all done online.  Some courses make use of audio labs and others have simulations and demonstrations built right into the LMS.

Are we moving towards a totally paperless delivery of content?