50$ essay

Baez

Laura Baez Daniel

Nancy Yi

ENC 1101

29 June 2020

Online vs. Traditional Learning

The most prominent factors that have led to the birth and subsequent development of open and distance teaching and learning have been: socio-political advances, the need to learn throughout life, the lack of conventional systems, advances in the field of educational sciences, and technological transformations. Distance learning has evolved through three major stages known as correspondence, telecommunication, and telematics. These great generational phases point out the great historical milestones of this modality of teaching and learning (Kentor 20). While many students still preferred the face-to-face interaction that they receive in a traditional classroom setting, the emerging technology has allowed online education to become a powerful tool learning tool that allows students to work at their own pace and from any part of the world following their skills and level of commitment.

Online education arose out of the need to provide education to students who cannot attend a classroom. This type of study is not only used as an auxiliary tool, but also as effective learning that helps people of any age and gender. Created to meet the educational demand of certain groups, the antecedents of this educational model are correspondence courses, used by students who were in isolated places and had no opportunity to attend a conventional school. Among the advantages of distance learning are flexibility, ease of access, and greater control of study time. Online learning grants people the opportunity to study at their own pace, going through all the content from the beginning or following a pre-established rhythm (Infobase 5). In terms of accessibility, it is a good option for people with a physical disability (visual, hearing, motor). Distant learning facilitates learning for them by providing them with several accommodations so that they don’t have to leave their home while trying to access quality education. It also allows students to have more study time since they tend to have more time between the deadlines and can choose to work as fast or a slow as their time and capacities permit. However, one of the cons of this type of education is that it requires that students are autodidactic and discipline because it’s really easy to get behind (Kentor 22). If a student chose to leave all the material to the day of or before the deadline, the quality of their learning decreases since the brain can’t properly absorb all the information at the same time. Since a traditional classroom style monitors more the progress of a student, some of them might feel more committed or pressured to completing their work on time.

Sometimes, the demand of students is so big that the time slots open for classes in higher education facilities are limited and often inconvenient for some people (Qui and McDougall 10). This makes a lot of students have to delay their classes a whole semester hoping that they will be able to fit the class in their schedule next time, which can be hard, especially for bigger universities and colleges where there are a lot of students and therefore, a lot of competition. This inconvenience might cause graduation delays which also turn into a financial problem. Another disadvantage is that at the end of the class there is no possibility of receiving it again. However, through an online class, most of the lessons are recorded so that students can access whenever they consider necessary and go back if they did not understand something. Also, having to travel to the place where the class is taught, extra time, and money are invested in it.

With face-to-face learning, students have a live interaction with a teacher or instructor. Since that interaction occurs in a person, this means that the student has to be physically present in a classroom which can generate more discipline for those students who have trouble organizing their schedule. This type of learning assuages the burden of having to organize their studies because they need to be in one place at a specific time and date. Furthermore, it is possible to interact with the instructor and the other students which can be beneficial for students to develop teamwork and communication skills. Yet, while having a specific date and time can enhance the experience of some students, it might hinder the experience for others (Qui and McDougall 9). Having a fixed schedule can interfere with the daily lives of those who need to work and take care of additional responsibilities.

Initially, online classes were created with the intention that the adult population begins their studies, with special methods, and at certain times. This form of study benefits the way of learning various subjects, without any kind of restriction; students are freer as they progress with their rhythm, depending on their skills and level of commitment. As there are no predefined schedules, students can adapt the training to their needs and reconcile work and family life with studies. Also, the online world makes it possible to be permanently informed and updated (Li and Irby 7). Teachers who teach in this format, are more prone to send many emails to remind students of their work, which serves as a constant reminder for students that they need to be on track. Teachers who teach traditional classes are less likely to reach their students via email, which is one of the most convenient and effective methods for people to stay in touch in the present day. Research findings by the University of the Potomac suggest that “77% of educators believe that online learning is just as good as traditional learning; if not better.” Online education offers options for K12 students by expanding access to opportunities not available in all traditional brick and mortar schools (Calarco 2). Some students even prefer to be homeschooled and use online classes because their parent’s jobs require them to travel a lot and they would otherwise have to change schools continuously (Hunt 10). This is the case of children who come from a household where their parents are in the military. They need to have access to open education and an online format could facilitate their experience and suit their needs more conveniently.

In a comparative analysis of student performance in an Online vs. Face-to-Face, the study revealed that they didn't found a statistically significant result that could demonstrate that one is better than the other (Paul and Jefferson). It turned out that in reality, it depends on the student regardless of gender and class rank. Both face-to-face and online teaching have their ideal student profile and usually respond to simple logic, that of age and time. Younger people, whose only obligation is to study, do not usually need to resort to online training. On the contrary, older people, active in work and/or with family responsibilities, see online training as the only way to combine their obligations with training. The evidence shows that any teaching adds value to the curriculum and the growth of the person's knowledge as long as they have dedicated themselves to investing time and dedication to their education. Schools should be able to provide both styles for students because they can work as additional tools to enhance the experience of the student. Sometimes, unexpected things happen, just like it’s happening now with the sudden pandemic of COVID-19. Many schools were not ready to adhere to an online style, which is why low-income students had a harder time accessing a computer and internet to complete their academic coursework. If there is a lesson to be learned from this, is that teachers, regardless of their favorite teaching style, should incorporate more online coursework in their curriculum. Doing this will not only assure that they are prepared in the case of an emergency but also that students will become avid at navigating online platforms and familiarize themselves with a cyber structure that could become a crucial piece for their professional development.

Works Cited

Calarco, Jessica. "Online Learning Will Be Hard for Kids Whose Schools Close – and the Digital Divide Will Make It Even Harder for Some of Them." Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2020. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, link-gale-com.db16.linccweb.org/apps/doc/MIUPZM999332869/OVIC?u=lincclin_mdcc&sid=OVIC&xid=d54eb856. Accessed 24 June 2020.

Hunt, Kim. "The Resiliency of Highly Mobile Military Children: Implications for Military and Education Leadership" (2013). University of San Diego, Digital USD, p10-12.

Kentor, Hope. “Distance Education and the Evolution of Online Learning in the

United States.” Curriculum and Teaching Dialogue, Vol. 17, No. 1 & 2, 2015, pp. 21-34. Digital Commons@DU, digitalcommons.du.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article= 1026&context=law_facpub. Accessed 24 June 2020.

Li, Chi-Sing and Irby, Beverly. "An Overview Of Online Education: Attractiveness, Benefits, Challenges, Concerns And Recommendations." (2008) EBSCO, College Student Journal. Part A, Vol. 42 Issue 2, p449-458. 10p.

Paul, Jasmine and Jefferson, Felicia. “A Comparative Analysis of Student Performance in an Online vs. Face-to-Face Environmental Science Course From 2009 to 2016.” (2019). Front. Comput. Sci

Qiu, Mingzhu and McDougall , Douglas. "Foster strengths and circumvent weaknesses: Advantages and disadvantages of online versus face-to-face subgroup discourse" (2013). Computers and Education Journal