E-learning versus traditional classrooms

There is a great deal of published material that describes the fundamental shift in the nation's education practices that is taking place as a result of the synergy and economies of scale inherent in web-based training.
Web Based Training is more convenient for students, administrators, and instructors.
Web-based training uses the internet for delivery of training content and allows studentsto access course materials, reference information, and exams anywhere and anytime their schedule permits. The student uses her own computer at home or at work. Students often correspond and share ideas with other students taking the same course via e-mail and correspond with instructor/mentors for clarification of concepts. Group discussions can be mediated by the instructor and facilitated in realtime via any of several chat services. Online training allows instructors to concentrate on clarifying specific concepts one-on-one rather that delivering lecture to an audience. Online training allows administrators to focus on delivering a broader range of educational products and consistently high-quality educational experiences for students rather than the burdens of scheduling and allocatingresources.
Web Based Training is much more affordable than traditional instructor-led classroom training.
Classroom training is a very costly business venture particularly for IT training courses. It requires a staff of highly paid instructors, fully equipped labs, and full-time staff to co-ordinate scheduling of students, instructors, and lab facilities. No-shows (students that don't show upfor class) are very common and create additional scheduling overhead and inefficient resource allocation. Printed course materials (textbooks, lab manuals, etc.) are very expensive, often representing 10-30% of the course cost. These costs must be passed along in the form of tuition or taxes depending on whether the training organization is privately or publicly funded.
What is the difference incost between Web-based and traditional classroom training? Generally, the more people interactive (student to student chats and email, student to instructor chats and e-mail, whiteboard/application sharing) the greater the cost. However even the highly interactive courses are generally only 25-40% of the cost of the same classroom course. Highly motivated students that don't need a great deal ofinteraction can find courses for as little as 2 to 3% or less of the cost of classroom based counterparts. One example of this is our MCSE (Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer) program. The basic web based course of study costs less than $100 for a one year subscription. A comparable classroom program would involve four to six weeks in the classroom in 3-5 day chunks at a cost of $8,000 to $15,000.If the training facility is out of town and you factor in student salary, travel, and lodging, the cost can be in excess of $25,000. This is an example of the extreme ends of the spectrum, but it is accurate.
Elearning is more effective than traditional classroom training.
There are a lot of factors that contribute to the disparity of results achieved with online training vs classroomtraining. First and foremost is; Learning is not a passive experience! In many classroom environments, students walk in on the first day of class, open the textbook for the first time, and wait for the instructor to take out the magic key that unlocks the brain so that the course material can be poured in. This is not how learning happens. Instructors do not teach. They help people learn. The primaryresponsibility for the learning experience rests with the student who must be motivated (have a reason that is important to him/her) to be an effective learner. There are certainly exceptional dedicated dynamic teachers who work hard and are successful at inspiring unmotivated students, but they are few and far between and work in junior high schools, not in information technology training centers....