You are very correct. One of my classes was lab oriented. I needed to be there at each lab table. The students made all the typical mistakes and we worked out how to resolve them together. I could imagine some part being online, (especially with good graphics) but not everything.
I took MBA courses on line. I worked out well. The resources to check everything were also on line as well as company reports and real world recaps of events. We all communicated in paragraphs over the internet and it was not necessary to have in class discussions — which probably would have been good for the class if they were managed well.
I particularly liked the final exam under a supervisor. As I said earlier, students can take a photo of an exam question, look up the answer during a rest room break, and give the correct answer to the class with a single click.
I favor a zero fail for cheating.
Reminds me of a couple of college friends doing their first EE lab.
They did a number on some meter, and the repair guy shows up, and said to the lab assistant: "Huh. Never saw THAT before. Usually only the needle gets bent. This is all but fried."