Things you need to know about online education
Online education is not ‘unusual’ in the post-pandemic age. The pandemic brought the entire world to its knees instantly and the students, along with colleges and universities had to wonder the way forward. This is when everyone resorted to online education. If you are a student looking to take admission to a university abroad and are worried about online education, your concerns are justified.
In this article, we try and help you understand the online education system and recognize its benefits and drawbacks. After all, having all information is the first step to addressing any concern.
Types of Online Education Programs
Synchronous Courses
If you are taking online education programs synchronously, you are required to log on to their courses at an equivalent time as your professors and peers. This means you will have to follow the fixed timings of your course. This does not usually work for professionals who are looking to continue their studies, since a major part of their day is already scheduled for.
Asynchronous Courses
If you are taking an online education program asynchronously, you can log on to the website whenever you want and you do not need to participate in discussion on lectures at an equivalent time as your professors and peers. Universities and colleges around the world offer such courses to ensure that students from all over the world can enroll in the same program, without having to worry about the timing of lectures.
Why choose online learning?
Taking online education has many benefits like convenience, accessibility, scheduling flexibility, and accelerated courses. Online education allows students to pursue their careers and personal duties while earning a degree. Also, you can gain education in the comfort of your place of living.
How to choose the best institution for online education?
Finding a good institution for online learning is extremely necessary. You can consider the following factors to select the institutions that fit you.
- The country the online institution is based out of.
- The institution’s official title- university, school, academy, etc.
- The type of program the institution is offering – degree certificate, qualification, etc.
- Your institution should be accredited. Accreditation can be regional or national.
- Your institution should have a good reputation.
- Your institution should facilitate teacher-student interaction.
Resources for Online Learning
If you are considering online education, you might need some resources that will help you to learn well. The resources offered to you will depend on the institution and type of online learning program. It will also depend on whether or not you are an officially registered student of the institute while pursuing the online program. If yes, you should have the same resources at your disposal as that of an on-campus student.
The common resources you may come across in your online learning journey are:
- Ebooks and Journals
Written materials like e-books, textbooks, and journals are essential resources in an online learning program. You will select the e-books according to your course and syllabus or your course instructor can also guide you. The main advantage of using e-books is that they are completely portable, and you can access them anywhere.
- Recorded lectures
Lectures are a very important part of the online learning program. They are the primary and most conventional method of teaching and hence, also the one that students are the most comfortable with. Attending lectures regularly or viewing the recordings is one of the most efficient ways to keep pace with the course.
- Interactive sessions
While pursuing regular, on-campus education, you can have regular face-to-face interactions with your professors and peers. As an alternative for online education learning programs, institutes arrange for interactive sessions where you can experience discussion forums and interactive questions and answers sessions.
How will online learning be delivered?
Now, the old unreliable methods of delivery like emails are avoided and the online learning program is delivered through the institution’s online learning platform. The platform depends on the software used but the students can access it from their mobile phones, PC, or tablets.
How are the students assessed?
Pursuing online education is not only about learning. You will be tested at regular intervals through various methods which are mentioned below.
- Individual Assignments
This is the most common form of assessment. You will be given various assignments throughout your course and a deadline will also be given. You will have to complete them within the deadline.
- Group Discussions
Various discussions on different topics are also organized usually to evaluate students. The students are usually required to give a presentation on a topic related to the course or the instructor can ask them some questions. Through discussions activities, your communication skills and interacting skills are also evaluated
- Journal Activities
Journal Activities are also a specific way of assessments. In journal entries, you have to write what you have learned during the period and it is written in the first-person style like a story. Journal activities are extremely useful ways for the course instructors to find out how you are doing and the batch’s progressions. Also, they reflect what you have learned and provide you with an opportunity to gauge your progress.
- Exams
Written examinations are the most conventional method for the instructor to test your learning. They give a clear reflection of what you have learned. The exams in online education are typically open-book tests. However, to prevent cheating, institutions may use exam software like virtual protocols or tools to monitor your visit to new web pages
How do online Institutions Prevent Cheating?
Online education doesn’t mean easier learning. Institutes that offer online education are working hard to ensure that cheating is almost impossible in an online course. Online learning technology is developing day by day. Institutions are using digital processes like advanced plagiarism detection software to ensure cheating pre-examinations.
Other characteristics of online education
Student Support Team
There is generally a student support team appointed in the online education programs of a reputed and prestigious institution. The responsibility of this team is to provide support to the students and solve the issues related to online learning. The issues can be technical or financial troubles.
Learning Outcomes are almost the same as in a traditional classroom
There is no significant difference in the learning outcome of online education and traditional classroom. The quality of learning and knowledge gained depends on the student’s interest and effort and today’s online education system is trying hard to ensure that students get an interactive experience in the online classroom just like traditional classrooms.
Online Education democratizes quality education
Many elite universities are providing online learning programs. If a student wants to pursue education abroad but cannot visit the country, then distance learning is the solution. Also, online courses are in demand all around the world. Basically, through online learning, anyone can access quality education regardless of where they live.
The teaching method of online courses can be different
Many formats can be adopted in online education. This solely depends on the course and instructor. Some courses require only text and video content. On the other hand, some courses demand high interactivity multimedia features, access to external links, animations, and high-quality simulations. However, access to the method of teaching is not so complicated. You can easily understand it and adapt to it.
Online learning cuts extra expenses
If you are pursuing online education, then you don’t need to travel. This reduces your expenses. If you are taking online education from an abroad institution, then your living and food expenses are cut out. Also, in online education programs, you don’t need to pay maintenance fees, infrastructure fees, etc. This is of great help to people who come from a poor financial background as such students can have good quality education from anywhere in the world at an affordable cost.
Online Education is for all age groups
Generally, people of high ages find it embarrassing to continue their studies in traditional classrooms because of the age difference. Distance learning is the best way to remove this insecurity as in distance learning, people can access education from anywhere in the world within their comfort zone.
Learners can decide their level of learning engagement
This is the best part of online learning. Students have the freedom of learning. They can take education according to their level of learning and time. Online learning offers a great amount of flexibility that helps the student to access quality education accordingly.
A wide range of courses is available in online education
There are various courses available in the online education system. You can do any course of your choice. Distance learning at most of the institutes around the world offers several courses, certificates, and degree options.
Online education is not always less expensive
Although online education acts as the extra expansion of traveling, living in other cities, and other expenses, the cost for it can still be high. This solely depends on the institution that you are applying to for the course. You should check properly about the cost of online education in your institution beforehand to avoid any confusion later.
Tips for taking online classes
Online education is emerging as the next big thing in today’s world. Many students are switching to online learning. If you are interested in online learning, you must prepare and arm yourself with everything you need to make the most of your online learning experience.
Here are some tips that you should keep in mind before beginning your journey with online education.
- Be prepared
Online education is not as easy as people assume. It can be more rigorous in many ways. It is well known that in online classes, exams are also held online. So, the professor cannot keep an eye on you, and students can coordinate with each other and defeat the idea of the examination itself. However, this also warrants the professors to set a difficult question paper and demand that the students write in-depth answers. As a result, the students need to study more in-depth and ensure that they have a good enough understanding of concepts to write good answers.
- Time Management skills are Essential
Often, students don’t follow a timetable during online classes. They just start to procrastinate things because no one can guide them face to face. Online classes do provide avenues for interaction among students; however, they are limited to the period when you log in to your online classes. Also, your assignments and projects remain pending since the interaction is limited and nobody is pushing you to be on your toes. This all can create a mess that can prove to be catastrophic for your results. So, to make your education work, you need to stick to a well-planned schedule strictly.
- Accountability is necessary
Holding accountability in online education is a little difficult but it is very important. In traditional classrooms, you interact with your professors and friends face to face regularly, which helps you to be accountable for your lectures, homework, tests, and assignments. However, reminders are given in online classes but you will see them during class hours and are likely to forget. The solution to this is you can use a planner or calendar to record due dates accordingly. This will be very helpful. Always remember that in online classes, the responsibility is yours. You should be accountable and responsible to yourself to make sure that you make the most of your course.
- Be comfortable with technology and online communication
If you want to excel in online education, you need to be comfortable with technology. Technology will be involved in every aspect of your course, including but not limited to lectures, class discussions, submitting projects, and assignments. You should also be able to adapt to the online communication system. Emails and chatrooms are most common. However, there can be other platforms depending on the institution. Therefore, it is a good idea to get used to using these platforms daily.
- Approaches to interaction and communication
In traditional classrooms, it is very easy to interact with professors and classmates. In online learning, the interaction is limited and therefore, all the more critical. It seems a bit difficult to approach professors or classmates online but it is necessary and you should be able to do it. This will help you in every aspect. You can use your interactions with professors to clear your doubts. Remember that you, as a student, need to make extra efforts to ensure that there is enough interaction.
If you are a student anywhere around the world looking to pursue the course of your choice online, knowing everything mentioned above can help you make the right choice and come up with a smart plan.
