ELearning Evolution The Past 10 Years

By: Justin Ferriman • June 10, 2014
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It is hard to believe that 2004 was a decade ago. ELearning was really starting to take-off at this point, especially given the overhaul of the former SCORM protocol that used to dominate elearning.

As we all know, a lot can happen in a span of 10 years, especially in regards to technology. New trends have come and gone during this time, while others are just starting to pick-up some momentum (Tin Can API in particular).

One of the most significant developments over the past 10 years to elearning was the influence of mobile technology around 2009. Smartphones, tablets, and similar devices flooded the market opening up new possibilities for how we learn on the go. In fact, it was this shift that ultimately brought about Tin Can API in the first place.

There have been other advancements worth noting though, and that is what the infographic below depicts (originally provided by Inside Academic Technology).

What I find most interesting with the progress over the years are how the technology is just now starting to impact methodology of content delivery.

By this I mean that the technology has allowed us to think more creatively about how we deliver learning material to a group of individuals. Flipped classrooms and blended learning approaches are being implemented in early education and university settings all over the world now that the technology is available to make it possible.

The growth of the industry is poised to continue as new ideas become possible now that the infrastructure (and knowledge capital) is at a point to support them. The next few years will be somewhat of a golden era for elearning as the market is flooded with these concepts.

Justin Ferriman

Justin started LearnDash, the WordPress LMS trusted by Fortune 500 companies, major universities, training organizations, and entrepreneurs worldwide. He is currently founder & CEO of GapScout. Justin’s Homepage | GapScout | Twitter