Alan R. Roper regards online learning from the viewpoint of successful students. He interviews these students in order to determine strategies that could help others be successful in the same venture, and also to help educators understand how to optimally use online learning to achieve both educator and learner goals. If the author were to be taken seriously, it would have several implications for the way in which teaching and learning manifest themselves.

Online learning is a very recent addition to the educational paradigm. Nevertheless, it has increasingly been recognized as carrying great potential for the future of learning and teaching. As this way of learning has become part of the educational community however, several unforeseen problems have presented themselves. Students for example struggle to maintain their motivation, as they are generally required to study in isolation, as it were, without the physical setup of the campus, other students and lecturers as a continual reminder of the importance of learning and grades. Instead, online learning entails studying within a generally non-academic setup. This appears to be a challenge for many students.

If the author's premise is taken seriously, the implication could be a significant improvement in student performance when engaged in online learning. Successful online students for example provide the specific strategies that they have used to maintain their motivation and manage their time effectively while being very independent in their learning paradigm. Teachers could then use the proven success of these strategies to implement motivating and time management strategies for their students.

Specifically important is for example the use of online interaction not only among students and educators, but also among students themselves. Another significant factor is that these interactions are useful not only for current learning activities and motivation, but also for future networking opportunities when the students enter their careers of choice.