|
Featured Resources
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
Long-distance learning
Imagine with me for a minute: No more mad dashes across campus, books falling and papers flying, trying desperately to be on time for your 8 a.m. class. No more pinching yourself to stay awake while the professor drones on. No more doodling in the columns of your notebook while trying to maintain a scholarly guise. No more inane classmates sitting in front of, behind, or next to you. Or anywhere near you, for that matter. In fact, your nearest classmate could be miles—or half a world—away.
Distance learning (education that occurs when you and your professors are physically separated and aided by computers, video and other technologies) is moving rapidly to the forefront of academia. While many think of it as a new breed of education, schools all over the world have been involved in distance learning for the last hundred years. The new parts of today’s distance learning are computers. There’s even a new term for it: e-learning.
Distance learning, or e-learning, is an affordable and effective alternative for would-be students without the means or ability to physically attend a university. If you’re motivated and choose to, you can earn your entire degree online. “It’s a way to schedule your education around your life instead of the other way around,” says Linda Terrell. Linda earned a bachelor’s degree in business administra-tion in three years through distance-learning courses all at Franklin University in Columbus, Ohio, and Ivy Tech State College in Indiana. Her GPA was an impressive 3.89, and her schedule was packed.
“The online experience represents, for the first time, a level playing field,” says Paul Edelson, Dean of the School of Professional Development at SUNY Stony Brook and co-author of The Princeton Review’s Complete Book of Distance Learning Schools. “It’s a small jump from using e-mail to taking a course online.” But, Linda advises, “A lot of people aren’t truly prepared for a lot of what is involved in distance education.” Don’t fool yourself into thinking that because the courses are online, they must be cake. In most programs, you will earn the same degree as you would at a brick-and-mortar version of the university. But that means you must put in the same (or higher) level of dedication to your studies. Online courses can be just as difficult as a classes taken in a traditional setting. Although you may not ever meet your professors in the flesh, you will instead be in constant contact with them via streaming video, e-mail, telephone and in online discussions. “The quality that you get from it resides in the quality of effort you put into it, independent of the medium,” Edelson says.
There was only one time when “I wondered whether or not I was really sane,” Linda recalls. She was averaging 48 hours a week at work while taking one three hour class on campus and two six week accelerated courses. “That almost did me in,” she says, calling it the one time she had serious doubts about what she was getting herself into. Linda says e-learning professors aren’t so much instructors as they are facilitators. It’s up to each individual student to “delve in, decipher, absorb what knowledge they’re given,” she says.
How do you know if distance learning is right for you? Take a look at your learning style and study habits. In the Complete Book of Distance Learning Schools, Jerry Ice and Edelson say to take into account your level of comfort with technology. In other words, if you have difficulty turning a computer on, you may wish to rethink your decision. The support level of your environment is also an important factor; your friends and family need to understand that just because you’re taking classes from your computer at home doesn’t mean you’re always available. The authors also say to keep in mind the time frame you have to work with. Don’t overload yourself with courses you aren’t going to be able to realistically handle.
Where should you start your research? Try online. The schools that offer distance-learning programs are numerous, and most of the time you can find information about university programs on the school’s Web site. The Indiana College Network, for example, has a detailed Web site that includes a questionnaire you can take to see if distance learning is right for you. Read up on distance learning, and talk to an advisor or someone involved in a program before committing. Keep in mind that the admissions process will be the same for applying online; just because the courses are taken on a computer does not mean you get to skip writing that dreaded admissions essay. Be ready to make yourself a schedule that you will stick to, and set aside a specific amount of time each day for reading and studying. Don’t let yourself get behind. Distance learning should come with a warning: It is not a degree track made for everyone. If you crave social interaction and thrive in face-to-face contact, this form of learning may not be for you.
And in addition to self-discipline and motivation, it also requires excellent writing skills and heaps of self-discipline. “I’m proud of what I’ve achieved,” Linda says, reflecting on her experience. There is still much she wants to do: finish a master’s of library science degree and possibly a Ph.D. in the same field. Distance learning has given her the chance to rely on herself for her education. “I realize,” she says, “…that the only thing that will prevent me from accomplishing what I really want is myself.” Article provided by 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
