Are Distance learning and e-learning really the same thing?

While looking for e-learning news on search engines recently I noticed something quite strange, mixed in with the results was a prominent number of distance learning results.

This got me thinking about the past, how we got to where we are, and the limitless possibilities technology has brought us for the future of education. Now distance learning is nothing new, with The Open University style courses being the norm for a long time now, but rather e-learning is an obvious evolution of distance learning. It's a delivery tool that allows us to not only send document via the post and give the occasional phone call to check everything is going ok, but instead allows us to send things instantly via email. Gone are the days when lectures were only shown at 2:00am (thankfully along with 70's fashion) and instead we have interactive websites and video accessible 24/7, via a learning management system that not only lets you watch it but simultaneously tells your tutor that you've completed this piece of the course; and why stop there, with virtual classrooms and screen sharing it's possible for one tutor to be in touch with multiple groups of learners at the same time anywhere in the world.

With rising tuition fees being a hot topic of the moment we're likely to see shifts in the way our scientists and doctors of tomorrow approach their costs, with many being simply unable to afford living expenses if it involves moving away from home, and constantly rising transport costs don't help. Heard about that amazing course on Bio-engineering in Land's End but you live in John O'Groats? Well now you can sign on and get the same treatment as everyone else.

So if current e-learning is this good already, what does the future hold? It’s only a matter of time before the augmented reality allows us to play with the holograms seen in so many movies or imagine taking a scalpel and working on a robot body that features enough real working parts to replicate a human, and as your working tutors can throw in common complications that really force you to think on your feet by downloading them straight into a wi-fi connected ‘brain’. Of course, it’s unrealistic to think that e-learning might completely take over, with many courses depending on physical examinations and the very nature of learning making some people prefer that face to face contact, but by making delivery and marking of training easier and more efficient, it’s certainly not going to disappear; As for whether there is a difference between e-learning and Distance learning, in definition, maybe, but in practice, it's essential that modern distance courses contain e-learning within its delivery.

30 November 2011