Find Out More About Online Learning
Do you want to know more about about online learning? Or to know more about how you learn by online distance learning? Are you a teacher wanting to know how ICT is changing classroom education? Or are you a student wanting to find a distance learning online program or a school that offers the program you want?
These pages in the online and distance learning web site should help you find out more about online education, the difficulties, the advantages, where it can be taken, and more ...
What do you want to know about online learning?
Find a school near you
Online learning is becoming increasingly popular. It is such a convenient mode of study for many people, especially those who are working and do not wish to take time off work to attend campus for their studies.
Are you wanting to find a school for an online program?
Or are you wanting to find out about online learning programs in a particular discipline, or about college admission, or financing for your studies, or free education?
Are you a student wanting to know more about what distance learning is all about? Or how new ICTs are changing classroom education?
This section of the web site tries to help you find some answers.
If you know the subject area you want, use the link below and the search form to the right to find the school or program most suitable for you.
Find a distance online learning program or a school near you
Why is everybody asking about online learning?
In these difficult financial times, there has been a massive increase in the number of learners wanting to know more about online learning & distance learning (or elearning - also written as e learning or e-learning). Not only is learning online usually more affordable, it is also more convenient for these distance education learners.
What is important to recognize is that anyone can register for online courses and earn their degrees. In this manner, they can study full time or part time, if they have other responsibilities. Many people have found that this is the best way to start a new career or complete certain credits they were lacking in their degree, while they maintain their current job.
But one of the good things about online learning is that it is not only used in distance education programs - it is also used for campus-based programs.
What is the difference between online learning and distance education?
Distance education has been a method of learning for individuals wanting to study at home for at least one hundred years, starting with correspondence learning (home study) via postal mail. With the greater use of computers and the Internet, it is now possible to offer distance education programs using only the online modality. In fact, distance education programs in the US and Canada use online learning so much, that for many people distance education is thought to be only about online learning.
But in reality, not all distance education programs are offered offered totally online. In fact, many distance education programs use a mix of modalities in that they also refer the learner to physical books. However, even these books are increasingly available online.
In many developing countries where the availability of computers and access to the Internet cannot be assumed, distance education very often still uses a mix of hard-copy study guides, books and attendance at weekend classes. There are many initiatives to try to change the problems of access to ICT, e.g., "One Laptop Per Child (OLPC)", so that those countries can also reap the benefits of using ICT in learning.
So why all the fuss about online learning?
New information and communication technology (ICT) has made online learning or elearning possible, in which learners can participate in interactive learning using audio and video-conferencing, email, chat and computer-conferencing. The distance learner can now have almost the same instructional contact and interaction as the student on campus. This is why distance learners want to know more about online learning programs.
But online learning is not just the province of distance education. It is also used in campus-based education. The on-campus student can now have another modality to use in addition to the lecture and tutorial. So on-campus students and teachers also need to know more about online learning.
About campus programs
For those students who feel that distance education by online learning is not for them, check this link and find a school near you.
This Online and Distance Learning web site also has a section on campus programs.
For more information about online learning
Find out more about online programs.
Use this link to find more online programs and schools near you.
Use the search facility on this site to find more programs and schools and more about online learning.
Distance Learning = Active Learning
Globalization has made an enormous difference to the way we live and work, and I don’t just mean the impact of petrol prices on our driving habits.
Communicating with someone on the other side of the world is just as easy as communicating with someone next door. People change jobs more often than before, and jobs change just as frequently. And all these changes underscore the importance of education in this globalised, competitive, technology-driven, knowledge-based economy.
Living and working in today’s world demands that we know how to acquire knowledge and that we have well-developed critical thinking skills, excellent communication skills, and a desire for life-long learning.
And these are precisely the skills and attitudes that you should seek to develop in yourself. You shouldn't only acquire knowledge – you should also acquire the skills to acquire knowledge. In particular, distant learning requires that you develop these skills.
If you are learning by distance, the mode of learning that you will be using in your distance courses will vary according to the programme you have selected. In some programmes the mode will be mainly print materials. In other programmes it will be the online mode. And in some programmes it will be a blend of these modes.
In effect, the print and online materials replace the lectures that students get in a face-to-face course. But it usually does more than those lectures – the courseware often includes questions, exercises and further reading so that your learning can be active rather than passive. And that is the key - successful distance education requires ACTIVE LEARNING.
Free e-Book
Click here for a free e-book on Distance education for teacher training - a valuable resource for those interested in not just online and distance learning but also in technology and professional development.
Online Learning vs Campus Study
Which should you choose - online learning or campus study?
- Online study provides flexibility for working adults and others not able to attend campus universities.
- Online programs are usually more economical.
- However, campus schools may offer scholarships, internships and work opportunities.
- Online learning doesn't suit everyone. It depends on your learning style.
So which should you choose - an online school or a campus school? Find out more at College or Online.
