The demand-driven learning model as a standard for web-based learning

The advent of the Web and its rapid development from a text-only medium to an expanding multimedia communication system has offered new and diverse opportunities for learning at anytime and in any place. The technological revolution is challenging the common conceptions of the teaching-learning process as more and more training is being made available online. Given the ever-expanding range of possibilities presented with new technologies, educators must be proactive in the development and use of technology in the teaching-learning process. Educators should be the individuals who are dictating the technological needs required to facilitate the attainment of learning goals; they must become involved in the development process to ensure that it is the educational needs that are driving the development of technology, rather than the technology driving the educational process. Sadly, educators often have little experience and limited support when it comes to designing Web-based learning (WBL). Furthermore, extant models developed to guide this process often fail to address the specific needs of the adult learner. Unquestionably, for WBL to become a universally accepted and effective method of learning there must be standards and guidelines for its design, development, delivery, and evaluation. Moreover, these standards and guidelines need to align with specific learner needs and program goals.