ONLINE EDUCATION AND ITS OPPORTUNITIES

Аннотация

The article discusses the content, functions, benefits, and drawbacks of virtual learning management systems in distance education, as well as their practical opportunities in higher education institutions. Key words: Distance Education, Distance Teaching, Distance Education in Higher Education, Learning Management System (LMS), Distance Learning System, Online Education, Online Courses, E-learning, Innovative Education, Distance Education, Technologies. Introduction. Distance Education (DE) is a type of learning in which the teacher and student are separated by distance or time, utilizing information technologies. There are several models of this type of education, which differ depending on the circumstances that led to the organization of distance education: Geographic reasons (the country’s size, existence of geographically remote regions from the centers). The level of computerization and informatization in the country. The development of transportation and communication. Availability of specialists for distance education. The degree of use of information and communication technologies in the education sector. National customs in the field of education. Distance education, also known as e-learning or online education, is characterized by physical separation between teachers and students during the teaching process, and includes the use of various technologies to facilitate communication between students and teachers, and between students themselves. Distance education traditionally targets non-traditional students, such as working professionals, military personnel, non-residents, or people in remote areas who cannot attend in-person lectures. However, as distance education has become a key component of global education, trends indicate its continuous growth. In recent years, new reforms have been launched in Uzbekistan’s national education system. Education management has been subject to severe criticism from government leaders. Normative-legal documents aimed at improving mechanisms for managing the national education system were developed with a 132 MODELS AND METHODS IN MODERN SCIENCE International scientific-online conference systematic, innovative approach. The decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, PD-3775 of June 5, 2018, "On additional measures to improve the quality of education in higher education institutions and ensure their active participation in large-scale reforms in the country," became the legal basis for the fundamental changes in Uzbekistan’s education sector. Based on this law, important reforms included the creation of new higher education institutions in the regions, the opening of modern educational and specialization areas, as well as the expansion of correspondence and evening education departments, and increasing the admission quotas for universities. Now, introducing modern teaching methods, including blended learning, has become increasingly important. Strengthening effective innovations through regulation in education is also a critical task. In October 2019, the "Concept for the Development of Higher Education in the Republic of Uzbekistan until 2030" was adopted. An important innovation was the gradual transition to a credit-module system in higher education institutions. During the pandemic, the events planned under the 2030 Development Concept were accelerated unexpectedly and, in many ways, obligatorily. To adequately address the challenges, it was necessary to reorganize the entire education system, including not only higher education but also secondary schools and even preschool education. In a short period, Uzbekistan’s entire education system was restructured and launched based on digital and distance learning principles. The COVID-19 pandemic and the associated quarantine not only disrupted the usual way of life and people’s labor activities but also opened new opportunities for organizing civil society behavior. This was fully relevant to the education system, where restrictions on the mobility of participants required the urgent establishment of an education process. In these circumstances, distance education played a key role in maintaining the continuity of education. In order to ensure the continuity of the educational process in the country's higher education institutions and provide methodological support for students’ learning activities remotely, distance education platforms were launched on April 1, 2020. These platforms primarily provided students with the opportunity to organize learning in a completely new format by creating virtual classrooms where students and teachers could interact. The Distance Learning System is software that supports the organization of distance learning, the management of educational processes, the circulation of electronic documents, the creation of electronic learning materials, and the 133 MODELS AND METHODS IN MODERN SCIENCE International scientific-online conference evaluation of progress. It also enables