The Web works under a hypertext metaphor, i.e. it operates via a series of nodes and links. If a lecturer tries this in class there is a tendency that all but the brightest student will come confused. By browsing through the multimedia, incidental learning is potentially greater than if the learner were just reading a text or listening to a tape. Therefore, when using the Web for instructive purposes the academic has to focus the student on the specific area of learning. It is not a simple matter of presenting the student with AltaVista and telling them to get on with it.
Serendipity is wonderful, but confusion is damaging.
Nevertheless the Web, or more accurately Web browsers, do come complete with good navigational aids. There are standard navigational buttons, History lists, Backtrack facilities, and Bookmarks. The Web offers various opportunities for the academic who wishes to mount pedagogical material via the Internet. The following lists the type of things that have been done but should in no way be seen as a definitive list. An example of this is Jim O'Donnell's home page at the University of Pennsylvania which details the classics courses he runs there.