title: E-learning: is there anything special about the "E"?
abstract: E-learning has been widely utilized in medical education and suggested by some proponents to represent a fundamental advance in educational methodology. We challenge this conclusion by examining e-learning in the context of broader learning theories, specifically as they relate to instructional design and methods. Core tenets of educational design are applied to e-learning in a unified model for instructional design, and examples of e-learning technologies are examined in the context of medical education, with reflections on research questions generated by these new modalities. Throughout, we argue that e-learning is a tool that, when designed appropriately, can be used to meet worthy educational goals.
authors.affiliation: Division of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, MN 55905, USA.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.forename: Furman S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: McDonald
mesh_terms: D003071:Cognition; D003198:Computer Simulation; D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction / Q000379:methods*; D003479:Curriculum; D020375:Education, Distance / Q000379:methods*; D004501:Education, Medical / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D007858:Learning; D017145:Models, Educational