Why use e-learning?

Advantages for teaching, research, and research development

E-learning has many advantages, acting as an addition or support to regular classes. It is not intended to replace traditional teaching but to enhance and support certain aspects, improving the overall quality of university teaching.

E-learning includes integration of media into teaching and uses a central platform for organizing communication processes. E-learning also runs test trials, implements innovative technology (for example Web 2.0), as well as diagnoses education problems that e-learning can also help solve.

E-Learning allows for:

• Provision of learning materials irrespective of time and location via a learning platform, such as ILIAS
• Trying alternative assignments, for example, through blogs or wikis
• Activating learning in groups as well as self-learning
• Supports construction of knowledge and competence through communicative and collaborative assignments
• Active study methods instead of one-way presentation of material
• Offering efficient teaching methods to allow for a modern and flexible way of learning that adapts to an individual‘s situational circumstances. 
• Problem-solving for scheduling complications, such as overlaps between majors and minors, or lack of classroom space
• Visualization of complex collection of facts through multimedia presentations or simulation processes
• Cooperation and collaboration in research, teaching and learning across institutional and regional borders. Exchanges with students and experts worldwide (e.g. through the virtual classroom)
• Establishment of future carreer opportunities by using web elements to connect students with everyday work activities (for example via online master programs)
• Reducing barriers to study for those with a job, a handicap, chronic illness, foreign students, etc.