We long ago forgot that teaching, a medieval invention, provides a virtual learning experience. Computer networks, on the other hand, can provide access to primary sources and resources, making learning experiences direct and real. But conventional schooling imposes on all learners and all learning the quality and access constraints of an artifact of conditions 700 years ago. No wonder we are often unhappy with the results and with the costs. Thus, networks provide an educational environment of enormous resources and great flexibility at a fraction of the cost of conventional environments.
Students can learn while working or caregiving.
Instruction can use multiple media without special classrooms and draw on resources wherever they are stored. The gateway to learning productivity is the computer network. Contrary to popular myth, networked education is neither expensive nor difficult to use. Many institutions have developed methods to permit even the most novice students to be fully participating members of network classes with little or no formal training. Those who have tried the increasingly powerful presentation programs or newer simplified authoring programs know that preparing mediated presentations is becoming as easy as word processing.