History of virtual learning environments facts for kids

A Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) is like an online classroom where teachers can manage courses for their students. It uses computers and software to help people learn from far away. In North America, this is often called a "Learning Management System" (LMS).

How We Talk About Online Learning

The words we use for computer-based learning have changed over time. Here are some terms you might hear:

• Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI): Computers helping with lessons.
• Computer Based Training (CBT): Learning using computer programs.
• Course Management System (CMS): A system to manage school courses.
• Learning Management System (LMS): A system to manage learning.
• Massive Open Online Course (MOOC): Huge online courses open to many people.
• Web Based Training (WBT): Learning through the internet.

Early Ideas (Before 1940s)

Pressey Testing Machine (outside view)

Pressey Testing Machine (inside view)

• 1728: An ad in a Boston newspaper offered to teach shorthand by sending lessons weekly through the mail. This was an early form of distance learning!
• 1840: Isaac Pitman taught shorthand using Great Britain's Penny Post mail service.
• 1874: The first official distance education in the United States started at Illinois Wesleyan University.
• 1892: The term "distance education" was first used in America by the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
• 1909: A short story called The Machine Stops imagined an audio/visual network delivering lectures to people far away.
• 1920s: Sidney Pressey created the first "teaching machine." It gave students practice questions and multiple-choice tests.
• 1929: M.E. LaZerte developed devices like the "problem cylinder" to help students learn and check their answers.

New Ideas in the 1940s

• 1945: Vannevar Bush described a "memex," a device that could link information together, similar to how we use hypertext today.
• 1948: Norbert Wiener wrote about how humans and machines could communicate in his book "Cybernetics." This was a big step for understanding how computers could interact with us.

Learning in the 1950s

• 1953: The University of Houston offered the first college classes on TV! Students could watch courses from home.
• 1953–1956: B. F. Skinner improved the "teaching machine" and developed "programmed instruction." This meant lessons were broken into small steps.
• 1956: Gordon Pask and Robin McKinnon-Wood created SAKI, the first system that could adapt to how a student learned. It helped people learn to type faster by changing the difficulty based on their progress.
• 1956–1958: Harvey White, a physics professor, broadcast high school physics lessons on TV. These lessons reached over 100,000 students across the country.
• 1957: Frank Rosenblatt invented the "perceptron," which was an early step towards machine learning.
• 1959: The University of Chicago started "Sunrise Semester," offering courses through broadcast television.

Computers Enter Education (1960s)

• 1960: The PLATO system was developed at the University of Illinois. It allowed students to study lessons, teachers to check progress, and even authors to create new lessons.
• 1960: Project Xanadu was the first attempt to create a hypertext system, linking information together.
• 1962: Douglas Engelbart suggested using computers to improve learning. He later helped create the oNLine System (NLS) and invented the computer mouse!
• 1962: J.C.R. Licklider had the idea for a global information network, which was a very early concept of the internet.
• 1963: The first computer for teaching was installed at Orange Coast College in California.
• 1964: CATO, the first "authoring system," was created for PLATO. It helped people design lessons for computers.
• 1965: A study on PLATO showed it could teach thousands of students at once. It had features like an "electronic book" and a "perfect workbook" to track student answers.
• 1968: Telesecundaria was set up in Mexico, using satellite TV to teach secondary students in rural areas. It still helps over a million students today!
• 1969: The US Department of Defense started ARPANET, which was the beginning of the internet as we know it.

Online Learning Grows (1970s)

• 1970: The Havering Computer Managed Learning System was developed in London. It helped over 10,000 students and 100 teachers.
• 1971: The MITRE Corporation began showing off its TICCIT system, which offered interactive TV services for learning.
• 1971: Ivan Illich wrote about "learning webs," which were ideas for computer-based networks to help people learn and connect with others.
• 1972: Patrick Suppes at Stanford University developed computer-based courses in Logic and Set Theory.
• 1972: Alan Kay and his team at Xerox PARC worked on a "KiddiKomputer" for teaching and learning, using a new language called Smalltalk.
• 1974: Murray Turoff started the Computerized Conferencing and Communications Center. He did a lot of research on Computer-mediated communication (CMC), which led to the idea of the "Virtual Classroom."
• 1975: The TICCIT Project started testing English and algebra courses using modified TV sets with keyboards. It was designed to let learners control their own learning.
• 1976: Coastline Community College became the first "Virtual College" in the United States, with no physical campus.
• 1979: Prestel launched in London, claiming to be the "world's first public viewdata service." It was an early online information system.

The Rise of Personal Computers (1980s)

• 1980: Successmaker, a learning management system for K-12, began being used in schools.
• 1980: Seymour Papert published "Mindstorms," a book that inspired many ideas about how children could learn with computers.
• 1981: The Cyclops whiteboard system began trials. It allowed people in different places to share a screen, write, and talk together.
• 1981: BITNET was founded, connecting universities for educational communication and email.
• 1982: The Andrew Project at Carnegie Mellon University aimed to create a platform for "computer-aided instruction" using networked computers.
• 1983: Project Athena at MIT started exploring new ways to use computers for teaching across the university.
• 1984: Asymetrix was founded and created ToolBook, a tool for making learning content.
• 1985: Nova Southeastern University started offering accredited graduate degrees entirely online.
• 1985: Patrick Suppes at Stanford University developed computer-based calculus courses, which led to the Education Program for Gifted Youth (EPGY).
• 1986: LISTSERV, a program for electronic mailing lists, was created.
• 1987: NKI Distance Education in Norway started its first online courses using EKKO, their own Learning Management System.
• 1987: Glenn Jones created Mind Extension University, which beamed telecourses by satellite. Students could interact using email over the internet.
• 1988: The Open University UK launched a large course called Introduction to Information Technology with 1000 students using computer conferencing.
• 1989: Tim Berners-Lee proposed a "web of notes with links," which became the World Wide Web. This changed online learning forever!
• 1989: Lancaster University (UK) launched a Masters program taught using virtual learning methods, one of the longest-running.
• 1989: The book Mindweave was published, which was very important for computer conferencing and distance education.

The Web Changes Everything (1990s)

• 1991: The Smart Board was introduced. It's a large touchscreen that allows people to work with information and collaborate actively.
• 1992: Gyrus Systems launched Training Administrator, one of the first HR products for Microsoft Windows to automate training.
• 1993: Convene International worked with the University of Phoenix to create the first full online distance education model.
• 1994: TeleEducation NB in Canada implemented an early learning management system.
• 1995: Many new online learning systems and courses appeared:

* WeBWorK for math homework. * Ziff Davis University for tech training. * InterQuest and CalculusQuest at Oregon State University. * WOLF (Wolverhampton Online Learning Framework) in the UK. * WebCT began development at the University of British Columbia. * CECIL launched at the University of Auckland Business School. * The first fully online, for-credit university course was taught at the University of Waterloo. * Microsoft launched MOLI (Microsoft Online Institute) as an experimental learning platform.

• 1996: Jones International University became the first accredited fully web-based university.
• 1996: CourseInfo LLC was founded and developed the "Interactive Learning Network" (ILN), one of the first e-learning systems to use a database.
• 1997: "The Manhattan Project" software was introduced at Western New England College, allowing teachers to post files and have discussions online.
• 1997: Blackboard Inc was founded, becoming a major player in online learning.
• 1998: The SPIDER VLE system was created at the University of Strathclyde.
• 1999: Desire2Learn learning system was created by John Baker (entrepreneur) at the University of Waterloo.

Modern Online Learning (2000s and 2010s)

• 2000: Many new online learning platforms emerged, including:

* CourseNotes.com (later ClassMap) at the University of Texas at Austin. * ILIAS became open-source software. * ePath Learning launched one of the first online LMS platforms. * .LRN was developed at MIT. * Blackboard Inc. acquired "Web Course in a Box." * ETUDES was demonstrated with features like online assignments and assessments. * OLAT won an award for its teaching concept. * ANGEL Learning was founded. * Claroline project was started in Belgium.

• 2001: Moodle was published, becoming a popular open-source VLE.
• 2002: ATutor and Moodle version 1.0 were released as open-source.
• 2003: WebCT announced over 6 million student users worldwide.
• 2004: The Sakai Project was founded to create an open-source learning environment for higher education.
• 2005: Microsoft released Class Server 4.0.
• 2006: Blackboard Inc. acquired WebCT, combining two major VLE providers.
• 2007: The Software Freedom Law Center successfully challenged Blackboard's patent, helping open-source VLEs like Sakai, Moodle, and ATutor.
• 2009: Schoology was launched.
• 2012: Instructure launched Canvas K–12.
• 2014: Google launched Google Classroom.

See also

• E-Learning
• History of automated adaptive instruction in computer applications
• History of personal learning environments