Michael Allen's Guide to e-Learning, 2nd Edition

Chapter 8The Serious e-Learning Manifesto

In the 1960s, it seemed that emerging instructional technology would truly change the world for the better—or at least the world of education. It wasn't a complicated vision. It was simply the belief that we could provide learning experiences that were:

1. Consistent and Impartial Instead of learning opportunities varying widely in quality, depending on the abilities, health, and even the mood of instructors, they would be consistent, impartial, and developed by the world's best talent.
2. Individualized The programs would continuously assess each learner's individual needs and adapt accordingly.
3. Free National governments would make access to libraries of educational programs free to all citizens, with or without enrollment in educational institutions, to create a wiser public and a more compassionate and connected world.
4. Competitive Improvement Instructional programs would improve continuously through competition, public and expert assessment, and an open market for commercial offerings.

More than 50 years later, we haven't made nearly the progress expected. The vision is still alive, at least with me, and significant progress has been made in some aspects. Clearly, e-learning is widely accepted, even with its many shortcomings. But it's disappointing that so much of the progress has been made on the technology side, offering greater and ...