We may be six years into the new millennium, but according to a recent survey, e-learning has yet to push training out of the traditional classroom setting.

Respondents to “The 2005 United States Training Industry Study,” conducted by Training magazine, said that they provide about 70 percent of their formal training the old-fashioned way: in the classroom.

Depending on the size of the company and the type of training involved, 15 percent to 30 percent of those surveyed said that they used a combination of e-learning and traditional teaching methods in their training programs.

While the e-learning trend might not be growing as fast as anticipated, another trend — outsourcing training — continues to rise. In 2004, 35 percent of all respondents said that they outsourced the design of their traditional training programs. This increased to 38 percent in 2005.

As far as training budgets are concerned, 32 percent of the respondents reported that their training budgets increased in 2005 over 2004, while 56 percent said they were the same. The remaining 12 percent reported a decrease. When it comes to controlling the budget, the study shows that human resource/training departments control 35 percent of technology-based training purchases and 51 percent of traditional training purchases.

The study compiled responses from 1,223 companies, ranging in size from fewer than 100 employees to more than 10,000.