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E-Learning’s Unique Capability by Will Thalheimer answers a great question: What can you do with eLearning that you can’t do by other means?

Thalheimer begins with a precious metaphor, “Sensible people don?t pound nails with paintbrushes, turn screws with hammers, or paint walls with screwdrivers,” and then asks what the eLearning tool is good for. Part of the answer is “Among all the learning media, e-learning is the only one that has the potential to have meaningful and renewable contact with learners over time.”

He goes on to explain how proper timing can increase retention 112% (with spacing, repetition, delayed feedback, and shorter retention intervals.) Neither LMS nor learning objects nor current corporate practice take advantage of these techniques for improving learning.

His “Percentage Improvements that are likely when Key Learning Factors are utilized” should be pinned above instructional designers’ desks for ready reference.