Using educational websites, edublogs, and other online pedagogical resources are all examples of E-learning. E-learning includes numerous types of media that deliver text, audio, images, animation, and streaming video, and technology applications and processes that include web-based learning.
E-learning can be used in both in-person and online, i.e. distance, classrooms. For many years, E-learning and education technology (including hardware and software) have been implemented in schools without much input from educators or students. However, with the rise of mobile computing technologies, educational websites, social media, and other resources on the web, teachers have a wealth of resources and possibilities to utilize education technology in various ways.
There are a variety of websites for teachers that are designed to be implemented as education tools. Edublogs, for example, are ways for teachers and students to communicate through a classroom website. Edublogs provide a virtual space for discussion, podcasts, videos, and photos and can often be accessed through multiple computing devices, while still allowing the educator to moderate and control online interaction among students. Edublogs function as a tool that allow students to access a forum for articulating thoughts, ideas, and assignments and encourage group comments, projects, and reflections. Blogs allow students to work together to create single projects and share ideas in a collaborative setting and encourage the development of digital citizenship skills. Edublogs, a popular educational blogging service used by many large universities, is a good place to start exploring the world of blogging.
Teachers can also utilize Learning Management Systems (LMS) such as Edmodo, Google Classrooms, and Moodle to supplement their classrooms. These sites allow teachers to directly connect with students outside the classroom and to provide them resources that they can access remotely. They also function as communities for educators to connect and share resources and ideas electronically. These websites promote connectivity and allow students, parents and teachers to interact more easily.Teachers and incorporate various other online media into the classroom. Resources such as YouTube,, online public library resources (such as the New York Public Library online collection), Twitter, Pinterest, Google Maps, and Google Earth are just a sample of possibilities that educators can draw on to create exciting lesson plans and generate dynamic discussions with students in and out of the classroom. For more ideas on how to incorporate some of these educational resources, see the following websites for teachers:
- The American Association of School Librarians, which has a great section on websites for teaching and learning
- Edudemic, a blog focused on the intersection of education and technology
- Ted Ed, a resource for creating lessons around YouTube videos.