Online Education - Research Paper Example

Online Education Online education can is an approach to teaching and learning that utilizes Internet technologies to communicate and collaborate in an educational context. It includes technology that supplements traditional classroom training with web-based components and learning environments where the educational process prevailed. (Ben). Much of the content dealing with online education has placed its focus on how online learner outcomes can improve, and strategies to achieve the improvement. Other studies have focused on how traditional classroom learning would turn into an online class. However, a number of these studies have not focused on how online education affects both students and their instructors, whether positively or negatively. In this paper, the pedagogical benefits and demerits of online education have been identified, and suggestions given on how both the learner and the instructor can use these benefits and deal with the identified faults. The Internet and intranet hold enormous potential for the rapid dissemination of knowledge and information to a worldwide workforce when utilized correctly. However, online-based education comes with its merits and demerits. Online education comes to extensibility, accessibility and suitability. It means that users can proceed through a training program at their pace and place too. Considering they do not need to be in class at a given time of the day, students can access online training at anytime. Additionally, they can receive as much training as they want since the internet is rich in information. By not physically being available in class, the students will save time and costs of travelling to class every day. It will also give convenience to students since they attend classes in their own time. Online education provides collaborative and explanatory environment. It enables students to explore more with other students, through online forums, like Course Infos Discussion panel and talk, give communal areas to rely information (Kearsley 112).Additionally, online education is cheaper. It cuts on transport cost where the learner is required to travel to attend classes, the cost of buying teaching materials such as textbooks, chalkboards and acquisition of the physical learning environment. Some of the cost used in meeting requirements for online education may not exist in traditional education. Distributing web-based education is also cheap. Compared to traditional classroom education, spreading online education worldwide is more inexpensive and fast. Once the learner gets to the computer from any part of the world, they can access the training materials. Costs of hiring trainers to disburse skills to students reduce when online learning prevails. It is in contrast to traditional learning education where a trainer has to be physically present to teach students at a pay. Administrative costs are reduced. Where traditional classroom education prevails, the administration has to distribute learning materials to the students. They also have to print and distribute materials like internal memoranda and announcements to classes for students to get them. However, when online education prevails, these costs are cut down. The administration requires to just e-mailing learning materials and publications to learners, which can save them to computers or print them when necessary. It not only cuts down costs but also saves time that would have been spent physically delivering the materials to the students. Unlike traditional classroom education, online education is widely available. Everyone has access to a computer and can, therefore, enroll for online education. It may not apply to traditional classroom education where one may want to join a learning institution that may be distant from their place of residence. It means that if one cannot afford to the cost of traveling to the desired college or university, they will miss the chance of learning the desired course. Online education is up to date because it is easier to change content online, compared to where books exist. Once online content has been changed, it is available to the learner’s worldwide, making it the most efficient, accurate and up to date method of learning. It minimizes chances of availing outdated information to the students. With online education, learners have a vast access to information because they can access other sources of training because web-based training is still significant. It exposes them to more information than they would get if they were in traditional classroom learning. ‘The Internet gives access to the largest library in the world. Capitalize on the offerings that have already been created, and use them to enhance the learning you are distributing. (Harasim 78) That online education has been said to be good does not mean that it does not come with its demerits. Compared to traditional classroom education, online schools may not have some of the benefit its traditional classroom education gives. While online education entirely relies on technology, it comes with demerits that go hand in hand with technology. For instance, the efficiency of online training delivery methods relies on specifications of the browser the learner is going to use. Where the browser has restriction such as streaming videos, the student will not access the content sent by the instructor. In other cases, where the students use a limited browser bandwidth, accessing some content may be difficult because of the time spent in the process. Another student using a different browser to access the same information may not find difficulties. It brings about inequality among students This limitation will bring about inequality among students, especially during examinations, where a given students failure will attribute to the nature of the browser they used to access test content. Consequently, learners will only get frustrated. Today, most cases of online education are too static with minimum interaction between students and trainers. This minimal interaction means that when students need to consult, they can only rely on the internet, which may be misleading at times. With this, it simply means online students do not acquire enough knowledge in their respective subjects. The outcome will, therefore, be poor compared to traditional classroom education, which allows students and their trainers to interact and consult their trainers where they do not understand. In online education, student assessment and feedback may be limited. Considering that the internet provides a wide variety of information, it makes it hard to determine whether the work delivered by the student is genuine or copied. It makes it hard for their trainers to assess them. It may also limit learners feedback as in most cases; they will have ideas corresponding to some on the internet (Roblyer 75). Their freedom of expression is limited. Compared to traditional classroom education, the online education cost is sometimes high for both learners and the trainer. For instance, where the teacher supplies the content to a wide range of students, it may prove to be expensive. They will be required to pay for web hosting and content delivery that may be a high cost to meet sometimes. On the other hand, the learner needs owning a computer that may be costly, as well as paying for internet. If not, they will require paying for a cyber cafe to access online education. Sometimes registration fee for online learning is high depending on the course one registers for. This cost may not correspond to the quality of education the learner gets, especially where the student struggles to access online education because of low bandwidth browser. Additionally, online education relies on computer-based programs and databases. Database design is expensive and time-consuming. It, therefore, means that designing web-based training takes time. Therefore, the newness of the content is not considered in some cases. ‘Sometimes it takes long to develop web based training especially on the first time because it requires time and resources. (Choy 98) While online education entirely involves virtual human beings, it may encourage anti-social behavior. Human is a social being and by spending most of the time on computer acquiring online education, they tend to lack adequate time for socializing. Socialization may be limited with friends and relatives as well as participating in leisure activities. These are part of lifes important activities that involve individuals inner refreshment and by missing this, they will be missing important aspects of individuals talent progression (Moore et al 66). In traditional education, students meet, socialize and participate in activities that physically benefit them. Exercise is part of health practices that help individuals keep fit. Traditional classroom education students get to the college environment with beliefs or expectations about online learning that may or may not be correct. As more students choose to take online courses online, information systems educators need to stress the requirements for successful online course completion. Although as results of this study show online courses seem to be having many benefits, these types of courses may not fit a students learning style. Students may not understand the amount of work and time required to succeed in on the online course. Before enrolling, students need to have realistic expectations and be aware of the unique requirements needed to succeed in an online class. (Cavanaugh 102) Online education can be used as a supplement as well as complementary for traditional education. Its success depends on perfecting what is already contained in traditional education. It not only makes online education exist as a supplement for traditional education but also puts it on the correct path to total absorption of traditional education. For it to completely replace traditional learning education, it requires perfection and concentrating on the side of demerits to do away with them. Since online education relies on technology, perfection of one leads to perfection of the other. It is therefore important to improve technology because it is the only infrastructure that online education relies on. Only through making technology levels equal can online education fully supplement traditional education. Therefore, it is not sufficient to say that online education can exist in place of traditional classroom education without mentioning upgrading technology. Work Cited Cavanaugh, Catherine S. "The Effectiveness of Interactive Distance Education Technologies in K-12 Learning: A Meta-Analysis." (1999). Choy, Sheung On, and Kwok Chi Ng. "Implementing wiki software for supplementing online learning." Australasian Journal of Educational Technology 23.2 (2007). Harasim, Linda. "Online education." Computer networking and scholarly communication in the twenty-first-century university (1996): 203-214. Kearsley, Greg. "A guide to online education." Retrieved May 12 (1997): 2001. Moore, Michael G., and Greg Kearsley. Distance education: A systems view of online learning. Cengage Learning, 2011. Roblyer, M. D. "Virtually Successful: Defeating the Dropout Problem through Online School Programs: Virtual Schools Offer Learning Options to High-Performing Students and Provide an Opportunity for School Success to Those at Risk of Dropping out. Ms. Roblyer Reviews the Characteristics That Make for Successful Virtual School Programs." Phi Delta Kappan 88.1 (2006): 31. Read More