ABSTRACT
This chapter identifies some of the issues which are specific to e-learning services in an academic context and offers ideas for identifying and delivering such services to an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) population—both learners and teachers of English—with a focus on remote e-learners who are not on a traditional campus or physical school site. Academic e-services may include but are not necessarily limited to application; registration; technical information; privacy and confidentiality; orientation; the formation of study buddies or study cohorts; tracking and recordkeeping; retention and persistence; appeal processes; and, academic support tools. This chapter will provide an overview of the following key concepts and practices.
Understand the support services that your population requires in order to be successful participants in your e-learning environment, from start to finish and beyond.
Stay abreast of trends in the development of support systems and tools for delivering e-learning and its associated services.
Keep in mind that the e-learning process is dynamic and recursive and that services must take this into account over time.
Be a keen judge and make judicious allocation of budget, institutional capacity and resources that may be available to support both your learners and you (your instructional and administrative needs).
