Hi Litmos blog readers, I’m Jacqueline and I’ll be joining the Litmos team! I’m excited to announce that from here on out I’ll be assisting and brainstorming with the team to provide insight and support to our customers. I look forward to the New Year! For my first blog post, I’d like to take a moment to reflect on my personal experience with online learning in college.

It is 7 o’clock in the morning and I jump out of bed and reach for my smart phone to log into my college’s online web portal to check my grades. I had studied religiously all week and had taken my exam the previous day. Although I felt confident and on top of the world yesterday, I now sit anxiously biting my nails as I punch in my user ID and password.

Several months ago this was my reality, a very determined college student wanting to excel in all of her coursework. As a person who has grown up in the millennial generation, I had the opportunity to experience eLearning firsthand throughout college.  With today’s culture of people always wanting immediate results and quick turn arounds, I too wanted to be efficient in my courses. Thus, throughout my college career I enrolled in numerous online courses and used eLearning websites. With eLearning I was able to immerse myself in additional courses on top of my regular load and study at my convenience.  Additionally, online courses do not require time or money spent on commuting and are typically less costly.  I was also able to discuss assignments, future exams, and ask for help with my professors and fellow classmates all with a click of a button. The eLearning websites are formatted in an organized manner with assignments and tasks filed and labeled under each course heading, making it user friendly to any new student. As a user or creator of eLearning I am also doing my part in contributing to reducing my carbon footprint by submitting and receiving documents electronically.

Although eLearning has its perks, it also comes with disadvantages.  For any user, eLearning can be useful when helping one to achieve their goals; however, as a user it lacks face-to-face communication like traditional courses.  This will require individuals to work and solve problems more independently, have self discipline, and maintain self-motivation. However, I believe that is a very small price to pay to be successful!

All in all, from my personal experience, I can conclude that the benefits from using eLearning outweigh any slightest hesitations one may have when getting started. eLearning websites are easy to navigate and environmentally friendly, while also allowing the individual the opportunity to maintain a balance of work, school, and life!

– Jacqueline Barnes