From a lecturer's point-of-view, e-learning can:

• Help you to manage and organise your course materials more effectively and efficiently
• Reduce the need for certain administrative tasks (for example, making paper copies, marking tests, giving out course reminders)
• Enable you to monitor student participation and progress, ensuring that you can offer directed support and advice quickly and can make more effective use of staff-student contact time
• Widen communication opportunities with your students
• Help to change your role from "knowledge provider" to "learning facilitator", promoting self-directed learning
• Reduce large-group teaching and increase time spent with small groups or individuals
• Encourage the development of flexible learning materials.

From a student's point-of-view, e-learning can:

• Encourage anytime-anyplace access to course materials
• Provide self-directed and self-paced learning, allowing students to keep track of their own progress
• Increase opportunities for student participation, encouraging less confident students to take part
• Support different learning styles (using flexible learning materials)
• Promote student engagement (using interactive learning materials), improving learner motivation and satisfaction
• Give direct access to relevant and up-to-date information
• Alternate and complementary ways of learning often help to facilitate understanding
• Enhance opportunities for collaborative group work
• Improve communication with course tutor and teaching assistants
• Facilitate communication between students, promoting peer group support
• Aid preparation of future topics, and revision of previous topics
• Improve organisation of course materials
• Increase the accessibility of information and course materials to students with disabilities.

Like any form of teaching, e-learning requires various resources to be developed successfully. Things to keep in mind

• e-learning doesn't have to be the only way your course is delivered - often e-learning is delivered through "blended learning", in which e-learning is used to complement traditional educational methods.
• e-learning could be a large or small part of your course - you may already have materials that can be converted into e-learning. It might be you're developing new course hand outs or extra material anyways, and could bring e-learning into this process.
• There are guides and tutorials through el@n designed to help you get started with any e-learning query you might have.
• Any use of technology to support teaching and learning could arguably be described as e-learning, and consequently you may already be using technology (or e-learning) to support your students.
• The University also has dedicated e-learning staff who can help you with your work.