ABSTRACT
E-learning is now a major player in all areas of the educational system. Most governments are addressing themselves to the issue of how to take advantage of new technologies in education, and how to implement e-learning. As one example of this, the UK Government has established several important initiatives in e-learning across all sectors of the educational system, aimed at promoting and supporting teachers in e-learning (for example, see DfES 2003b). In the European Union, the status of e-learning has grown enormously in the past few years. It now forms an important element of the practice of transnational institutional collaboration within Europe (Hodgson 2002). A major concern is the establishment of ‘best practice’ in the field of education, training and distance learning so as to ensure that citizens of the European Union can play an active role in the knowledge economy (Zenios and Steeples 2003). The incorporation of e-learning into education is clearly seen as a fundamental prerequisite in the construction of a dynamic, competitive and economically powerful society (Commission of the European Communities 2000).
