I tend to argee with you butterflywing. I have taken classes online and at a quilt shop. There is no comparing the two. I also think a video or book is much more helpful than an on line class. But, I suppose it would depend on the teacher too. You know yourself, some people are better than others at teaching.
I also firmly believe that certain patterns that you use force you to learn something new and help you to grow. One of those quilt shop classes for me was, "The lessons at the Lake", by sandi. It was a sampler quilt with many different techniques covered. So fun! I am not sure if you can get the pattern anymore. This was a couple years ago. A Block of the month.
I bought a book called, "Lessons from Moma" by Atkinson Designs that I am going to try and see how that one streches my skills. I have two in line before working with it, but, it looks very interesting. It is also a sampler.
Well good luck with your classes. Let us know how it all turns out for you.