Get Smart: The Pluses and Minuses of E-Learning

Linda Grubbs

Spotlight

Jean Paul Balajadia, senior engineer with the San Francisco consulting firm Alfa Tech, wanted to update his project management skills, but like most of us, he's a busy guy. "I didn't have time to juggle an instructor-led class into my schedule, so I looked at e-learning." A friend suggested the training site Headlight.com. Balajadia found a free course offered there, so he enrolled. He was impressed with the training he received from the class and recommended the site to his company as a way to train employees. "We are looking for innovative ways, including Web-based learning, to provide continuing education to our staff," he says.

Busy, cost-conscious managers like Balajadia have good reason to be excited about e-learning. Online classes are easier than regular off-site courses to fit into a packed schedule, and some sites offer inexpensive or free tutorials in such useful topics as business software. But like most hot technologies--and most course topics--e-learning is more complicated than what you might expect.

E-Learning Defined

E-learning--also known as online learning, Web-based training, computer-based training, and distance learning--comes to you via the Internet, and it's a booming business. In the past few years, a flurry of sites aimed at large and small companies have appeared, offering instruction on everything from software applications to project management training.

Proponents of e-learning tout its cost-effectiveness and convenience and point out that the course materials can be delivered in various ways directly to your desktop. For example, you can take a course led by a live instructor, where you can pose questions and participate in a discussion with the teacher in real time. Or you can choose to navigate a self-paced course at your own convenience.

But do online classes adequately substitute for on-site courses? To find out what all the cheerleading is about, I surveyed several e-learning sites. I sorted out the different types of training sites available, scrutinized some of the classes these sites offer, and isolated the pros and cons of the most popular sites (see the features chart). To help you choose from the daunting multitude of courses on the Web, I point out what to look for when picking an online class.

I discovered several things about e-learning. For one, course materials and prices for a class on the same subject can vary widely. A complete Excel 2000 course at one site may cost $267; but at another site, the Excel 2000 class may be divided into smaller components, and each lesson may cost as little as $20. Compared to a traditional instructor-led class priced at $385 in the San Francisco Bay Area, e-learning looks like a bargain.

I found scores of e-learning sites on the Internet, most of which fall into two basic categories: service providers and content providers. Service providers (sometimes referred to as portals) partner with businesses and provide a locus where students can find an array of training-related resources. Content providers, on the other hand, develop and sell custom-designed training courses in response to specific information the customer provides. Customized packages may include provisions for student assessments, such as performance tracking and progress reports. Businesses use this information to measure whether their training investment increases productivity and/or profits.

Which kind of course fits which business? If you seek specialized training for your employees on company-specific information such as sales and marketing procedures, a content provider will suit you best. On the other hand, if you need stand-alone, general-interest courses in areas such as word processing, spreadsheets, or Web-page design, you need a service provider. Keep in mind though, that the line between the two categories is becoming increasingly blurred, and some sites offer both types of training.

Hungry Minds is a good example of a service provider. Like most portals, Hungry Minds (recently purchased by IDG, PC World's parent company) takes an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach to e-learning. Through Hungry Minds' partnership with businesses like Amazon.com and schools like the University of California at Berkeley Extension, you can pursue your entire e-learning experience via this one Web site. The site offers 17,000 courses categorized into three broad topic areas. Hungry Minds also lets you order textbooks, interact with classmates via threaded discussions or real-time chats on Blackboard.com, and get help studying for university entrance exams with Examweb.com. The cost of taking a Microsoft Word course ranges from free up to $100.

Of Course, There's a Course

Many e-learning classes are designed to let you learn at your own pace, and many offer classes in almost any subject you can think of, from plumbing to gardening to business software applications. Learn2.com--a site that's both educational and fun--added for-pay classes to its repertoire of free courses last year. Its instructional format includes engaging graphic illustrations that help clarify the subject matter. The site also offers courses for kids. Classes in such business apps as word processing programs, spreadsheets, and presentations cost as little as $20.

But while Learn2.com offers a huge array of classes, finding them can be difficult. Channel headings along the top navigation bar identify the free classes, but you must go to the Learn2 Store to find a complete list of courses. You'll also need to download a proprietary plug-in before taking some classes, a slight inconvenience that many e-learning sites have abandoned. (To read about a PC World editor's experience taking a Learn2.com Excel class, see "How One Student Fared With Online Learning.")

DigitalThink customizes content for Adobe, Charles Schwab, and other Fortune 1000 companies. In addition, the site offers a library of courses it designs itself, such as Microsoft 2000 Certification. Though more expensive than some other content providers, DigitalThink is intelligently designed and well organized. Finding a particular course among its 200 or so offerings was a cinch thanks to easy-to-follow links. Most of the classes are for information technology professionals, but (as with Learn2.com), you can also find a small selection of classes about using desktop applications. Expect to pay $99 to $1000 for a class, depending on the topic and your starting skill level.

Headlight.com offers 3000 online training classes targeting small to medium-size businesses. Peter Mellen, a cofounder of Headlight.com, explains how the site helps you decide which course to take: "Users are given the opportunity to take a Skills Assessment test prior to taking certain classes to help identify gaps in learning. Course recommendations are made based on the test results, and are kept in a password-protected user profile. Users can access their profile, and take quizzes as often as they wish." Jean-Paul Balajadia, the Alfa Tech engineer who took a course with Headlight.com, found this feature helpful. In addition to its handy preassessment tests, Headlight.com presents an interface that's easy to navigate. I had no trouble using the handy search bar at the top of the home page to locate classes. Prices range from a low of $11 all the way up to $250.

Like Hungry Minds, EduPoint.com offers some classes that have an academic focus. Its clean, handsome design features a searchable database of 1.5 million classes, including 100,000 online options. The on-site classes are available through 4000 schools such as Northwestern University and California Polytechnic State University; you can search for local classes by entering your zip code. Most classes listed at EduPoint.com are academic, but the site also offers training in typical office applications such as Word and Excel. Unlike other e-learning sites that partner with schools, EduPoint.com helps you determine whether the credits you will earn by completing a class are transferrable to other accredited schools.

EduPoint.com's prices for classes vary depending on whether or not an instructor is present and on the level of interaction between the student and the instructor. Expect to pay university prices if you take a class for credit. If you are learning on your own time--without an instructor--you can expect to pay as little as $10 per class.

Not all Web-based classes are equal. Barry Schnell, vice president of technology-enabled solutions for the International Institute for Learning, which specializes in project management training, warns that consumers should beware of "shovelware"--course content taken from CD-ROMs, manuals, and other printed materials and dumped on the Web. These classes tend to be text-based, with a minimal number of graphics and with interactivity limited to pointing and clicking the mouse to answer questions. The best of the online classes provide opportunities for students to participate actively in what they're learning by applying the skills that they're being taught.

In addition to these paid sites, a slew of free training sites are worth checking out. One place to look for free online classes is PC manufacturers' Web sites. For example, EducateU, Dell Computer's virtual campus, offers complementary classes like "IE 5.0: Getting Started" if you register on its Web site. If you own a Dell computer or use one at work, you can select three free courses after you register and provide your service tag number (located on the bottom of your system) and customer number. Even if you don't own a Dell, registering on the company's Web site entitles you to take a free class.

EducateU has 1200 classes to choose from. Though the site is well organized and easy to navigate, you can't obtain pricing information until after you register. Prices are on a par with those at other e-learning sites--they start at $30 and go as high as $1300. Other computer companies, including Compaq, Gateway, and Micron, offer classes too.

Finding the Right Fit

Given the number of e-learning sites and online classes, trying to find the right one can be a daunting task. Luckily, many sites let you take a free or sample lesson before paying for the class, and both Learn2.com and Headlight.com throw in skill assessment as part of the free course. Depending on the topic, most free classes take no more than an hour to complete, and they can be a quick and helpful way to comparison-shop.

As you shop around, look to see whether you'll need special equipment to take the class, such as a plug-in, a special type of graphics card, or a high-speed modem. Some classes work better with a certain browser. DigitalThink, for example, includes a Setup page detailing minimum system requirements.

The Final Grade

Despite its growing popularity, e-learning does not always make the grade. Elliot Masie, founder of the Masie Center, an educational think tank in Saratoga Springs, New York, says that e-learning has yet to reach its potential. "Right now, the hype, pressure, and anxiety are ahead of where the technology is," he says. Masie doubts that e-learning will compete with the richness of experience that the traditional classroom provides for at least another five to ten years. He believes that successful e-learning must present three features to users: "Well-structured content, the ability to do more than read, and a place to go when you're confused or have questions. Currently, only a few of the products do this fully, though we are seeing a trend towards this in newer offerings."

Other experts focus on high-quality content as the key to worthwhile online training. Peter Squier, president of the board of directors for the Information Technology Training Association, a trade association for IT professionals, says, "As e-learning becomes more mainstream, we'll start seeing the advent of enough good content to get the attention of the general public." If the class is not interactive, however, the users are unlikely to stick around for very long. On top of that, notes Squier, "It has to be available as just-in-time content, not scheduled. It has to be 'chunkable' into 5-to-10-minute segments that allow users to stay on task. They have to be able to get in and get out."

Improvements in interactivity and the quality of course content will play major roles in how e-learning shakes out in the future. Organizations are beginning to recognize that Web-based classes present a viable alternative to traditional training, and as bandwidth continues to improve, the number of home users who take online courses is expected to increase.

Even in its current hit-or-miss state, e-learning is probably worth looking into. If you need a quick skill upgrade and you don't have time available to attend a class in person, the convenience of taking classes online can't be beat.

How One Student Fared With Online Learning

As an editor in PC World's reviews department, I work with complex Excel formulas that help us compile the rankings you see in our Top 100 charts. Though I work with the program every day, I suspected I could do my job more efficiently if I dug deeper into the program's formulas. To learn this skill, I enrolled in a virtual class at Learn2.com: Excel 2000: Formulas and Functions.

I took the preassessment quiz to determine whether my Excel skill was indeed at the "intermediate" level. Taking the quiz made me feel like I was sitting through the GRE again. I found myself guessing at some (okay--a lot of) answers I didn't know. My score: a humbling 65 percent accurate at the intermediate level. Undaunted, I paid the $20 course fee and began my first class online.

The class consisted of five bite-size lessons, a good fit for my erratic schedule. I could choose to have both text and audio turned on or off. Each lesson carried over and expanded on previous lessons, a standard method that helped me retain what I learned from section to section. First grade: A for lesson plan.

Failure Was Not an Option

Smooth as this sounds, however, the course posed enough frustrations to tempt me to drop out before I finished clicking through my first lesson. After downloading the necessary plug-in to run the course on my PC, I couldn't locate the training files the automated voice told me to view at the start of the lesson. I spent nearly an hour trying to find them. Finally, I called tech support and spoke with a patient fellow who helped me. As it turned out, the system neither alerted me to download the course materials nor directed me to where I might find them. Second grade: D for setup.

Once I began the course, my frustrations ebbed a bit. I took five lessons over several days and enjoyed being able to take each lesson when it fit my schedule. The lessons sometimes went too fast for me to follow, but the Pause button helped provide the extra time I needed. I completed the entire class in about 4 hours--the same amount of time you might expect to spend in a brick-and-mortar school, but with more convenience and at a lower cost. Third grade: B for course delivery.

Lessons Learned

To sum up, I felt a bit like Charlie Chaplin in Modern Times, wrenched inside technology's grinding gears. On top of the sign-up glitches, I had to weather minor snafus in the course delivery, as when I hit the Stop button and the program reverted to the beginning of the lesson. But, the class taught me to construct formulas more smoothly. If you have a little patience and choose a highly specific subject, a class online is worth the effort. Final grade: B+

--Mick Lockey

Linda Grubbs is a staff editor and Mick Lockey is an associate editor for PC World.

E-Learning Sites Features Comparison (chart)

Site	Comments           	Target audience	Number of classes     	Cost (per class)	Class duration
Dell www.educateu.com	PRO: Animated Web tour of virtual university. CON: Can see prices only after you register on the site.	Individuals and businesses	1200	$30 to $1300	Self-paced, or live, instructor-led online courses
DigitalThink www.digitalthink.com	PRO: Custom courses and clean Web site design make navigating the site a cinch. CON: Small selection of desktop and business classes.	Individuals and Fortune 1000 companies	200 off-the-shelf courses, and various custom courseware packages	$99 to $1000 (discounts available depending on volume)	8 to 15 hours per course
EduPoint.com www.edupoint.com	PRO: Lots of academic and business-related classes to choose from. CON: Difficult to distinguish between business and academic classes.	Individuals and Fortune 1000 companies	1.5 million, of which 100,000 are delivered online	$10 to $2500	Self-paced
Headlight.com www.headlight.com	PRO: Wide selection of classes; preassessment quizzes available. CON: None.	Small to medium-size businesses	3000	$11 to $250	2 to 8 hours per course
Hungry Minds www.hungryminds.com	PRO: Organized course categories, easy searches. CON: Search yields irrelevant topics.	Individuals and small businesses	17,000	Free to $1499	30 minutes to one semester
Learn2.com www.learn2.com	PRO: Preassessment available; business and leisure classes offered; users have one year of access to class. CON: Multitude of business classes get lost in the clutter; must use proprietary plug-in.	Individuals and small businesses	2000	$20 to $100 (volume discounts available)	Self-paced