Distance Education : Education And Education

Adam Savage once said “I think one of the defining moments of adulthood is the realization that nobody 's going to take care of you. That you have to do the heavy lifting while you 're here. And when you don 't, well, you suffer the consequences.” Now, what if we replaced “adulthood” with the term “higher education”, or more specifically, “distance education”? The words become almost synonymous when you define what it takes to succeed in either field. In the article, College Distance Education Courses: Evaluating Benefits and Costs from Institutional, Faculty and Students’ Perspectives written by Simon A. Lei and Rajeev K. Gupta, distance education is defined as “technology-based instruction in which students are at a location physically separated from their instructor during the entire course of study” (Lei and Gupta 616). In Lei and Gupta’s article, there are many drawbacks of distance education defined, but distance education remains an amazing opportunity because the benefits and the platform to develop useful life skills far outweigh said drawbacks.

“Can You Be Educated from a Distance,” an insightful essay by James Barszcz, brings to focus some of the benefits and disadvantages of Distance Learning education (DL). In it, Barszcz discusses the mechanics of DL courses available to students, the quality of education DL can offer, and some reasoning behind its rapidly growing popularity. “Can You Be Educated from a Distance” is an engaging article that students of all ages can benefit from.

Many advocates of distance education are ardent about their venue and very critical of traditional education. These online education devotees view traditional classes as being unchangeable, inflexible, teacher-centered, and static (Angiello, 2010). However, proponents argue that many simply would not be able to get a degree without distance education—the full-time police officer, the mother of four, or the individual living in a rural area approximately 100-200 miles away from any educational institution. Many individuals desperately need distance education courses because they "have jobs, families, civic responsibilities. They are thirsting. But some want us to say, 'Sorry you don’t want to drink the water there, but we can’t bottle our fresh spring water, so you’ll have to come here or drink nothing" (Baker, 1986). Proponents contend that distance education is "as good as" traditional education. In other words, learning occurs as much in distance education as it does in traditional education. However, is this really so? Does distance education work better for some students

For the years, many individuals have decided to pursue their education via distance learning. Distance learning has given individuals the opportunity to learn and study course material at their own pace. Distance learning offers many advantages. First, many enjoy the convenience of distance learning that works around their schedule. Second, distance learning offers flexibility to learners with no set time to complete assignments and readings. A leaner is the master of their own schedule and can choose a time that works best for them (Study magazine). Lastly, the cost of distance learning is often cheaper than traditional education, with no added expenses.

Many students are absent numerous days throughout the school year due to illness, vacations, bad weather, or other complications. Consequently, these students get left behind in class. Perhaps a big test was missed, or an important lecture or activity, these problems can easily be solved. Some schools have already taken the step to eliminate these problems by offering distance learning; a way to attend classes from home even if the student is not able to attend class physically. Offering these online classes would allow students the ability to attend classes even if they are home sick, on vacation, or if the weather is bad and school is cancelled. Setting up distance learning in a school could improve grades and learning opportunities throughout the

This is a necessity for staying relevant in an increasingly internet-dependent society. Those in higher education must not cling to the traditional classroom. Traditional classes may still have their place, but they are becoming increasingly less preferable to hybrid and completely online alternatives. Unlike its traditional counterpart, online education is better suited towards handling a varied demographic of students. Its advantages lie in the flexibility of its schedule. A student who would be working around the usual time a traditional class would be taking place would have a much easier time fitting an online class into their schedule (Britt 31). For those who feel they need the physical interaction with their instructor, many classes are being offered with varying degrees of hybridity between the traditional class and an online class (Britt 33). As education continues to evolve, more options for digital schooling should become

Distance learning (education) is a modern system of non- formal education. There are different terms used for

In today’s society, so many people are continuing their education beyond high school. We realize that in order to make a decent living, a degree is most likely a requirement. In some cases even a bachelor’s degree is not enough to qualify for many positions. Nevertheless, thanks to technology, we now have the option to learn online or in a traditional classroom setting. There are very few differences between the two, and students need to understand that as much time and energy will need to be devoted to the online courses as on a campus. “A 2010 meta-analysis and review of online-learning studies concluded that online learning was as good as or slightly more effective than traditional face-to-face instruction” (Mendenhall, 2011).

Distance learning (education) has become an integral part of the education process over the past few decades and is growing in popularity as technology advances.(Willis 1992) describes distance education (as) "the organizational framework andprocess of providing instruction at a distance. Distance education takes place when ateacher and student(s) are physically separated, and technology…(is) used to bridge theinstruction gap." (Coutts 1996). Furthermore, "distance learning activities are designedto fit the specific context for learning, the nature of the subject matter; intended learningoutcomes, needs and goals of the learner, the learner's environment and the instructional echnologies and methods." (American

Students are required to learn massive amounts of course material. It is mandatory to learn at the instructor’s pace. Online courses give flexibility while scheduling to learn this material. Students are overwhelmed with homework throughout the duration of each class. Some have up to four classes of homework due weekly. It can be difficult for many to absorb all the material while scheduling work and home life. Trying to arrange the balance of each can be tiring for the body and mind. When taking online classes, there is an advantage to have the capability to learn the subject when the brain and body are ready to handle it. This flexibility can give the benefit of the full focus on schoolwork. On-campus classes give the benefit of help on the spot when needed, but students that take a

Non-traditional students are finding it easier and easier to maintain a job, a family, and pursuing a college career at the same time. This is possible because more and more non-traditional students are receiving an education using distance learning, as opposed to traditional, in-the-classroom teaching. Distance learning is basically taking college level, credit-bearing courses via the Internet. One of the most obvious advantages of distance learning is that it puts the classroom in your home, office, or wherever you can find a computer and log on to the Internet. However, there is much controversy regarding the quality of the courses being offered on the Internet versus the quality of

The year 2014 I majored in Information Technology and received my first Online Education class. Privacy, space, and concentration are what Online Education provided. Online Education has granted me a greater learning experience than being taught by the few lazy teachers in the past. Teachers online provide links, videos, and handout-guides for every assignment, anything needed to complete and learn the materials. Not only has Online Education granted me a higher learning experience, but also saved me an immense amount of money on gas and having the need to drive daily to class and paying for parking. Many students struggle financially, and online education has saved me a fortune. It is important to know that Online Education has affected us students in a positive way where we have the alternative to meet an Education without the need to drive daily to campus. Each year institutions’ of higher education has offered more courses that are fully online as well as more that are blended or hybrid in design format (Hoskins and van Hooff, 2005). Colleges and universities are placing greater emphasis on increasing online education offerings (Allen and Seaman, 2005).

Education is an important part of people’s lives; it will either make them or break them in the future depending on the careers they choose. Education is greatly diverse today in comparison to the 1950s because of advancements in teaching and other great inventions that provide easier techniques of teaching. One major issue that has been raised is distant learning courses and online education.

More importantly, research studies have shown that there is “no significant difference” between online and face-to-face in traditional measures of achievement in most situations. (Means, Barbara, xv). That being the case, college’s student discovers themselves with another obligation than getting a degree. Family and jobs make equal demands on their time. Eventually, having the option of taking online classes and studying with their own time management is seriously important. As an example, a student who is working full time because he needs money to go to

Taking an online course can help a student accomplish anything they would like to do that is education related, such as getting ahead in certain classes, finishing high school early, or maybe even college. Another plus to taking courses online is being able to work at your own pace. Researchers are finding that the slowest student takes five times as long to learn as the fastest (“Online Classes”). Lectures and other materials are electronically sent to the student, who will then read them and complete assignments, which then allows them to do the homework when they would like to and at the speed they learn things (“10 Advantages”).