Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Virtual Learning Environments

With the coming of the internet, communication techniques have been modernized greatly and this has had a very positive impact on education. Online learning, also referred to as e-learning is today a very prominent means of exchanging knowledge and information for educating students. It has been revealed that in the united states of America, a whopping amount of about 3.5 million students today subscribe to online learning programs. This has also facilitated the growth of various online educational institutions which offer a variety of courses to the interested students and at the conclusion of the course, online degrees are available. There are several software programs which have been devised specifically for the purpose of aiding the imparting of information and encouraging education online.

A very significant software tool in this respect is known as the Virtual Learning Environment or VLE. The software is a prominent software and while it has been designed for use in case of online education, it is also at times used in traditional classroom environments. This software is extremely beneficial for the teachers and students alike as apart form aiding in tackling course management, it also allows the teachers to check the progress and performance of the students and keep track of it from time to time. The software functions on servers communicating information or even in web pages.

The VLE makes widespread use of the internet and computers and is very vital for the course coordinator and aids considerably in providing the course design to the interested students. There are certain basic requisites of the virtual environment software tool. It is more in the form of an online prospectus providing details regarding the various nuances of the course, its topics and syllabus, the duration of the course, sessions, notice boards, help desks, student's registration facilities.

A very important component of the virtual environment is that it provides the introductory study materials and also states an elaborate account on the course. In addition to these, the software also undertakes the responsibility to notify the necessary links to important internet sites and libraries which would be required by the student. It is also necessary to note that the software must be efficient and capable of handling more than one course so that it is possible for the students and tutors to make an easy transition from one course to another.

No comments: