Freddie Truman, Negosentro | Online Learning and Its Impact on Education | Online learning is becoming increasingly popular across campuses. As early as elementary school, students can choose to attend classes online instead of stepping onto a brick-and-mortar campus. That shift in educational style has the potential to impact everything from how kindergarten is taught to the intensity of a college-level course. You can even enroll for sustainability courses online.
The Advantages of Online Learning
Taking education online has a number of key advantages, many of which have helped to revolutionize the process of learning for many individuals.
- Online learning is often more affordable than learning inside a classroom–including libraries of free lectures and other materials.
- Online learning is self-paced, allowing students to learn at their own speed instead of being held to the speed of the class.
- Taking class online removes the need to be in a brick and mortar classroom, which makes education more accessible to everyone.
The Disadvantages of Learning Online
While online learning has the potential to offer great benefits to its learners, it also has a few disadvantages that must be overcome in order to make the most of this fascinating educational style.
- Students who choose to take their education online must be highly self-motivated.
- It can be harder to ask questions and get feedback from instructors in an online learning environment.
- Young students who attend a primarily online learning environment may miss out on valuable social opportunities.
Typically, for these reasons, online learning is not the first method of choice for individuals who are hoping to embark on a new course of learning. For nontraditional learners or those on a tight schedule, however, online learning has opened new doors and created new opportunities–many of which are well worth those disadvantages.
The Impact of Online Learning on Education
As online learning becomes increasingly popular, its impact on education as a whole continues to increase. For example, online learning increases the necessity for technological efficiency. Students must be able to effectively use online platforms and learning tools in order to access information, attend virtual classes, and turn in assignments. It also helps to shape the future of education in a number of other ways.
Online learning makes education more accessible to everyone. Thanks to online learning opportunities, education is no longer limited to those who have the ability to attend classes in a brick and mortar institution every day. This is ideal for current employees who want to increase their knowledge or add certifications without taking time off work for these important activities, busy parents who have tight schedules and little time to devote to educational pursuits, and sick individuals who have plenty of time on their hands, but who can’t attend class on a brick and mortar campus. Thanks to online learning, these individuals can attend classes in their spare time. Salesforce development bootcamp? Not a problem. Gaining the Comp TIA+ security certification? Done online from your couch. Even entire degrees can be acquired via online education methods.
Teaching is becoming increasingly individualized thanks to online education. Simply throwing out a one-size-fits-all lesson is no longer acceptable for a wide range of teachers from elementary school to higher education. Instead, teachers are expected to work within a range of learning styles and offer instruction that fits the student, rather than trying to fit the student to the educational plan.
Self-paced learning makes it easier to complete certifications and degrees at a personal pace. For some people, learning comes easily. They’re able to fly through course material and pass tests with exceptional speed and accuracy. Others struggle to complete assignments at a steady pace, especially if they have responsibilities outside of school to take care of. Online learning, however, opens doors for both fast and slow learners, permitting them to complete their materials at a pace that works for them.
Online learning continues to grow in popularity, especially for individuals who struggle to attend a standard brick and mortar campus. While it’s unlikely to completely overtake actual classroom attendance any time soon, online learning has transformed the way people approach education. As it grows, those changes will become even more pronounced in many environments.
