E-Courses Explained | Everything you need to know

In a recent blog we announced that Claims Class will launch a series of e-courses in 2017. If you don’t know what e-courses are, have never taken one before and have no idea why we’re so excited about launching them, then read on, this blog is for you…

What is an e-course?

Simply put, e-courses are online training courses where you access the content electronically, via an online learning system, or you receive it via email.

How is an e-course delivered?

There are a variety of ways e-courses are delivered and plenty of tools to help course providers deliver the content in an engaging and interactive way. There are some common delivery methods though and those include:

• live webinar sessions, where you attend a live session online delivered by the course tutor;
• recorded videos, usually a PowerPoint presentation with a voiceover by the course tutor.
• Non-video content such as course assignments, documents, support resources, etc. will usually either be emailed to you or you will be able to access them via the online learning system.

How is an e-course structured?

The e-course content is usually broken down into a series of modules and once you’ve signed up, the course provider will tell you how to access them.

Depending on the structure of the e-course, you may be able to access all the course content immediately or, if the e-course has a defined timeframe, the content may be released to you at specific times. For example, if an e-course comprised of 6 modules, you may be given access to all 6 modules immediately, or, one module may be released to you each week, over a 6-week period.

How is your work assessed when studying an e-course?

Your work can be assessed in a variety of ways. It could be via written assignments which you would submit to the course tutor for comment and grading or, given the technology available with online learning systems these days, it could be via an online quiz or a timed multiple choice exam.

What type of support can I expect when I sign up to an e-course?

In the world of professional e-courses, where the reason for signing up is usually to increase your skill set to progress in your career, support will usually be via a personal tutor who would be available to discuss the course content with you and offer help and advice where required. It’s also not uncommon to have access to a private online community group where you will be able to pose questions, raise discussions and get help when needed.

What additional resources can I expect when I sign up to an e-course?

In addition to the core module content, there may be a combination of the following that shapes and broadens your overall learning experience:

• Downloadable articles and papers related to the subject matter
• Links to useful websites, blog articles related to the subject matter
• Checklists
• Practical tasks
• Live webinars with the course tutor

And that’s it, everything you need to know about e-courses! Look out for a future blog where I’ll explore some of the advantages e-courses offer over traditional learning methods.

Claims Class will launch its first e-course on Construction Claims soon. Want to be the first to get the details? Sign up to our mailing list.