Top 5 Pros and Cons of Online Education
There are a lot of disputes over the distance education. Students are pleased with an opportunity of learning management and foreign languages at home with a cup of tea. Teachers doubt that it is possible to get a job with such a diploma. In this article, we will try to find and evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of online education.
Distance learning is a process of receiving education with the help of Internet technologies. The first step to such studying is a laptop and high-speed internet.
Then, you’ll get access to the training site and materials in electronic format: textbooks, presentations, diagrams. Distance-students learn theory during online seminars, audio or text lectures. Exams are passed online in form of tests, laboratory works, and abstracts. Questions for a teacher can be asked through Skype, any messenger or email. Distant students will have to come to the university once to pass the state examinations and defend their papers.
Let’s look at other pros and cons of online universities.
# Pros
1. You can learn any time you want
If you study for your UKCAT test remotely, you decide when and how much time during the semester is given to study. You do not risk missing the morning class and skipping important information, being a distance learning student. All lectures are saved in the form of text or record; they can be reviewed or re-read. Also, you may return to a difficult material before the exam.
You build your individual training schedule by yourself. Some schools give their students an opportunity to postpone training for a long period and return to it without having to pay for educational services again.
2. You can learn at your own pace
Educating remotely, you do not have to worry about how fast (or how low) you can digest new information. You can always return to the study of more complex issues or use uk essay writing services (in case of emergency, of course), watch video lectures several times, read the correspondence with your teacher, and you can skip already known topics.
The main thing is to successfully pass the intermediate and final tests.
3. You can study anywhere you want
Students can learn, without leaving home or office, from anywhere in the world. To start learning, you need only to have a computer with Internet access. You don’t have to visit the educational institution daily. It is a definite plus for people with disabilities, for those living in hard-to-reach areas, serving sentences in places of deprivation of liberty, parents with small children.
Communication with teachers, tutors, are carried out in different ways: both online and offline. Sometimes it is even more effective and faster to consult with a tutor by e-mail than assigning a personal meeting or correspondence training. Also, do not forget about the availability of training materials.
There is no such problem as a lack of textbooks, books, methodologies. The access to all necessary literature is opened to the student after registration on degree programs, or he receives training materials by mail.
4. In-service training
You can study remotely at several courses simultaneously, get another higher education. It is not necessary to ask for unpaid leave at the main workplace or go on business trips. There are educational organizations that organize corporate training (advanced training) for employees of firms and civil servants.
5. Online college is cheaper than offline
If you compare training in a specific profession on a commercial basis, internally and remotely, then the second will definitely be cheaper. The student does not have to pay for transport, accommodation, and talking about foreign universities, a student does not need to waste money on a visa.
# Cons
1. Strong motivation and discipline are necessary
Practically, all the teaching material the distant-student learns independently. This requires developed willpower, responsibility, and self-control. It is not possible for everyone to maintain the necessary pace of training without outside control.
2. Online education is not the best for the development of communication skills
During the distance learning, personal contact of students with teachers and with each other is either minimal or completely absent. Therefore, this form of training is not suitable for the development of communication skills, confidence, teamwork skills. Lack of live personal contact between the student and the teacher, who could create additional emotions, tell something interesting. It greatly impoverishes and narrows your communication.
3. A lack of practical knowledge
Training in specialties involving a large number of practical classes is difficult. If you try to learn them remotely. Even the most advanced simulators will not be able to replace future physicians or teachers of “live” practice.
4. You need a computer and a stable internet connection.
If you have a low-speed Internet, it will be difficult to participate in online seminars and watch video lectures. In addition, a medium power computer is required for classes.
5. Not all professions are available.
Of course, it is totally possible to acquire the expertise of a web developer, English teacher, copywriter, marketing specialist, and many more, on a remote basis. However, multiple jobs are not available to study on the distance, including such fundamental field as healthcare or science. Therefore, Internet education is not suitable for those who dream of becoming a doctor, chemist and or nuclear-physicist scientists.
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