How Online Learning is Shaping the Future of Education
When the COVID-19 pandemic finally reached the United States, the country immediately went into full panic mode. Just about every industry took a major blow, with education being one of the largest areas of concern. In only a matter of days, every school and university had shut down indefinitely, causing instant uncertainty for the future of education. New questions rose every day about how teaching could continue without physically being in the classroom for the safety of students and teachers. With the help of online technologies such as Zoom, GoToMeeting, and various other programs, learning was able to continue so that students will not fall too far behind due to the pandemic. Once education was able to run smoothly via the internet, the financial and mental benefits of online learning for students started to be much more clear.
The intent of this blog post is to introduce the benefits of online education and give readers insight into some beneficial resources that can be utilized to further improve their online education experience as both a student or teacher. Due to the global pandemic that we are currently experiencing, a number of changes have been made in the way that education is continuing. By transitioning to an online education environment, the cost of attending universities may decrease, new technologies are being introduced to facilitate online learning, and the retention of information for students has started to increase.
Benefits of Online Learning Assets
With the increasingly widespread usage of Zoom, Thinkific, and numerous other online learning tools, students and teachers are now able to greatly improve their education experiences from the comfort and safety of their own homes. There is no need to spend extra time stressing over getting to work or class on time because of commuting traffic, and those who are involved with co-workers in different time zones can now work asynchronously without having to deal with scheduling conflicts. These upcoming resources and technology may be sending us down the right path to improve the student debt crisis as well.
In this article from the E-Commerce Times the CEO of Thinkific, Greg Smith, talks about another massive impact that online learning resources bring to the table. Because students and teachers no longer need to be in the same place at the same time, there is a much farther reach of education. Now students from all over the world can be involved with any particular university without travelling. The same goes for businesses; any organization that has been confined to strictly local business can now branch out and acquire new clients from just about anywhere.
Another valuable online resource that has gained prevalence from the pandemic is Miro. This website is fantastic for collaboration between peers and co-workers, and allows for colleagues to simultaneously pitch new ideas in a space that is visible to everyone who is working together. When used alongside Zoom, Miro is an extremely powerful tool that increases efficiency, creativity, and participation in meetings/classes.
One more perk of online learning for students is that they can participate in classes at their own pace, rather than at the pace that would be dictated by whomever is teaching an in-person course. This allows students to spend more time on the aspects of a course that are difficult for them as individuals while spending less time on topics that are easily understood.
According to co-director of the Peace Innovation Institute, Margarita Quihuis, “I take online courses (not university courses) to build skills. I can take them at my own pace and extract the specific knowledge that I need. I don't feel obligated to complete the course -- I pick and choose what I need for my own goals”.
Impact on Costs of Tuition
For as long as we can remember, there has always been an issue for thousands, if not millions, of people who cannot afford to pay for a college education. Without large sums of money being loaned to those in need, many individuals would not be able to earn a college degree. Degrees have become something that our society has decided is vital in order to have a job in the future which pays enough money to thrive in our country.
As it turns out, the COVID-19 pandemic may just be the key to lowering the costs of tuition that would make higher education more accessible and affordable for students all throughout the country.
Anirban Mukhopadhyay, an international professor of business at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, makes a very enlightening connection between online learning and more affordable education. In this article, he tells about how his students value a physical textbook versus an online textbook. He says that if the value of a hard copy textbook is $100, students would pay a value of only $20 for an online textbook.
The students believe that because of the physical interaction with the book, manufacturing and other related costs, that the online version of the book is worth 80% less than the hard copy. They also agree that in terms of online education, the cost to attend a college online should be significantly lower than in-person because of the lack of personal interaction with professors and other college resources such as classrooms or libraries.
One issue that arises with all of the online work is that students do not feel as if they are getting as high quality of education as they were before. However, as with all new experiences there is always room for improvement, so over time the quality of online education is likely to progress.
If colleges and universities begin to utilize online learning platforms as opposed to in-person learning due to the global crisis, this could certainly be a gateway to a more affordable education for students pursuing higher education. Here is another article about how online education can help to create a more affordable college education.
Mental Benefits
As mentioned earlier, online learning allows students to work at their own pace and on their own time. This is greatly beneficial for multiple reasons. For those who typically have a job while going to school, the online environment opens the possibility to work during the day and do school at night without having to do them both at the same time. It also allows students who need to earn more money to work longer hours rather than just a few in between classes.
Not having a strict schedule throughout the day gives students the option to focus on their studies on their own time. This is really helpful because some people work better in the evening, but have a class that is scheduled early in the morning. Working at personally preferred times allows students to submit higher quality assignments.
With regard to time management and online classes, a current student at Drexel University and intern with the Peace Innovation Institute said, “I could work at times that were better for my energy and it was easier to manage my time”.
It has even been proven that since the introduction of online learning, the retention of knowledge and efficiency of studies has definitely improved. Students can focus more on developing their knowledge of course topics rather than simply memorizing information for exams that typically invoke fear of failure. This article explains to readers that research is currently showing that students who are involved in online learning can retain 25-60% more information as opposed to when learning in person.
Closing Remarks
Here we have discussed the benefits of using online resources in education, how it can have an impact on the cost of attending college, and how online learning environments are better for students’ mental health. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the education system has undergone some drastic changes in a very short amount of time, but the way it has been handled shows definite promise for the future.
If you’ve had any doubts about online education as a whole, hopefully this article has given you some valuable resources to improve your experience and shown the many benefits of the online environment!
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