Barriers to the use of web-based learning in nurse education

Amongst the themes that emerge and recur in the recent educational literature on the subject of web-based learning and teaching are how socio-economic factors and gender might influence the use of information technology (IT) by students. Writers often enthuse about how web-based learning will somehow reduce inequalities in student's access to education. However, in this paper it will be argued that most of the accounts in the literature of the potential of web-based learning take too little account of the potential problems and limitations of the medium. It could be argued that web-based learning underscores and may in fact increase inequalities rather than eliminate them. The aim of this paper is therefore twofold. First, it will examine the development of web-based learning and the potential ways it can be used. It will however be argued that the adoption of the medium has inherent difficulties, which are often overlooked or played down. Secondly, this paper will focus on those variables that could influence or inhibit student usage of web-based learning materials, in particular the influence of socio-economic factors and gender.