Posted by admin on July 20th, 2009
<!– /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:”"; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-fareast-font-family:”Times New Roman”;} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} –>
For some people the classroom is not the ideal place to learn. Between students trying to prove themselves as subject-matter experts and those who ask questions for the sake of asking questions, between the busy work and lack of work handed out by teachers, between the clocks that are five minutes fast and five minutes slow; there is very little room for a proper education. How a student is able retain any information presented in a classroom crammed with annoyances and the tiniest discrepancy is beyond me. However, the tiniest of irritations can be avoided by removing the classroom from education. By creating his or her own learning environment a student can make sure all unpleasant quirks are nonexistent.
The best thing about an “at-home” education is that it does not have to be taken literally. Home is where a student is comfortable, safe and able to be productive in a positive environment. “Home” does not always mean “house”. Home can be your favorite café or your own corner section of the library. Home can be any number of places that allow you to take away the best education possible and this is something of which Penn Foster is well aware. In a world where complete downtown areas are wi-fi accessible and where you can take your laptop almost anywhere there is no need for the annoyances of brick-and-mortar classrooms. There is also no need to be paying more money for these annoyances when you can receive a college education that won’t put you thousands of dollars in debt. Nowadays, online education is the only thing that seems to make sense.
Posted by colettavw on July 31st, 2008
As a student of an on-line program, I fully appreciate the flexibility that the program provides. I am a working mother with a four-year degree under my belt. I chose my particular online program to achieve the skill sets necessary in my field. The reputation of the school is not as important in my case as the work I create and the education I receive from the program. The online program I attend is a match to my lifestyle and career goals; I can work from home, at any hour of the day or night, I have professors who are only an email away and who are very proficient with the computer as a means of communication and I work at my own pace–not at the pace of the slowest student in the room. Feedback is often received the same day an assignment is submitted and this adds to the value of the study. Students considering an online education should take in to consideration the intrinsic value that an online education provides.
Posted by J.M. Striegel on July 26th, 2008
Are you still apprehensive about diving into the land of online learning? Fearful you won’t know what to do, won’t know where to go, and maybe you are wondering if you can even stick to a routine of studying, participating in class, and reading the materials on the syllabus? You can test drive a car before you buy it, so why not take a few free online classes before you send in that application and course fee?
I’ve previously written about education being portable, and when you can download a lecture from iTunes, I think you have to agree that we are in a wonderful time where the power of knowledge can be harnessed by those who actively seek it. The internet has opened the door to so many wonderful opportunities and information, but it can begin to look like a badly organized junk drawer. The tools are there, they just might be lost in the clutter.
The OpenCourseware Consortium is a free digital publication that attempts to make free online learning a little easier to navigate. Boasting 2,810 courses from 26 sources within a collaboration of more than 200 higher education organizations and institutions, the Consortium hopes to encourage “the adoption and adaptation of open educational materials around the world.” From Tufts University to the Universidad de Sevilla in Spain, there are online course materials just waiting for you to take notice and utilize them.
Don’t forget languages. The Foreign Service Institute offers courses that were developed by the United States government. The site uses text, podcasts, and online forum discussion to teach you Arabic to Yoruba. Adding a foreign language to your resume may open doors to new job options. No employer has ever complained that the employee knew too many languages.
Not only can these sites be helpful tools in assessing whether or not you are ready to return to the halls of academia, they can inspire your course of study. Now, thanks to sites like Lecturefox, you can dabble in courses and topics that you may never have known existed, much less would have been able to pursue within a specific course of study. Who knew you could be so excited about Religion as a Natural Phenomenon?
J.M. Striegel
Posted by admin on May 13th, 2008
Is the growth of online education in the United States the result of some sweeping phenomenon - an inexplicable renewed interesting in learning? Perhaps it can be attributed to new government legislation or programs? Probably not. What may be a more reasonable explanation for the rise in online enrollment numbers is that online education reaches more people than traditional teaching methods ever could. Students in rural areas, military personnel deployed overseas, and professionals with busy calendars now have access to a quality education that can fit into their schedules more easily.
According to the Sloan Consortium’s report, Making the Grade: Online Education in the United States, 2006, 62% of academic leaders rate the learning outcomes in online education as the same or superior to those in face-to-face instruction. As enrollment statistics show, students are putting their faith in online learning to an even greater extent. Nearly 3.2 million students took at least one online course during the fall 2005, compared to 2.3 million students who were enrolled in a class in the fall of 2004, according to the report. And online education has been growing at a rate of about 20% each year. Enrollment numbers continue to climb each year as more students discover online learning and schools increase the resources they put into online education.
These increasing enrollment numbers reflect the desires of the 21st century student. According to USAToday.com, a recent study by the consulting and research firm Eduventures shows that 50% of those who expect to enroll in a higher education degree program would like to receive at least some of their education online.
Many public universities offering online programs have seen the most dramatic enrollments in recent years. Between 2001 and 2006, the University of Massachusetts’s online enrollment quadrupled. And in the spring of 2006, the online school had 9,200 students, according to the Wall Street Journal. The Journal also reported that Pennsylvania State University’s online program saw an 18% increase from 2005 to 2006.
The success of online education has intrigued candidates who would have never considered returning to school at a traditional university. ongress has taken steps in recent years to facilitate online education, passing new legislation which extends federal aid to online schools, for example. These factors have contributed to the spread of online education; an industry whose growth shows no signs of slowing any time soon.
