In “Lead Balloons, Stone Canoes, and Learning Styles” (published in Learning Circuits), Frank L. Greenagel argues that eLearning designs should focus less on developing online environments to accommodate different learning styles and more on preparing environments that situate the learner in a community of practice. He’s right, but as designers, our challenge should remain building learning environments where we can tell the community members, “you can have it all.”

Files and folders, drop-boxes, and bulletin boards. Claims by “e-Universities” offering a learning experience that is “active, engaged, and community-based” aside, a close examination of the majority of eLearning designs and their enabling technology platforms belie a sad truth: the eLearning industry has yet to take full advantage of the contexual experiential opportunities afforded by modern day, database-backed, networked technologies. Instead, even the most progressive constructivist-based learning designs are mired in an online collection of feature-based technology buckets. The “bucket-based education” that results falls far short of what could be, and worse, what should be.