Pros And Cons Of The Distance Education (Essay Sample)

Pros And Cons Of The Distance Education Name {} Course {} Date {} Distance learning also referred to as virtual education or e-learning, is a modern approach to education that is performed remotely by the use of different electronic communication devices. Distance learning has offered many students, especially those whose situation did not favor traditional education, an opportunity to learn. Distance learning is characterized by flexibility in time and location; therefore, Individuals can easily schedule their learning without making any time and geographical consideration. As more people have become more comfortable with the use of technology, the quality of e-learning has improved. Nevertheless, not all individuals benefit from the e-learning. To ensure that all people benefit from e-learning it is important to establish the advantages and the disadvantage of e-learning.[John Bourne, Dale Harris, and Frank Mayadas, "Online Engineering Education: Learning Anywhere, Anytime,” Journal of Engineering Education 94, no. 1 (January 2005), 132] [Ibid.] One of the most relevant benefits of distance learning involves the provision of increased access to education for those individuals who could have no opportunity otherwise due to commitments like work and family. The fast changing work environment has made many people interested in advancing their career. At times due to their engagement with their work and their family, it becomes hard for them to meet their desires. However, through virtual education, they can seek any accredited degree without having to forgo their family or work. Similarly, they spend less because they do not have to commute daily to the class because they can study from any location as long as they have internet connectivity.[Ibid., 135] [Ibid., 140] The e-learning students can also schedule in a flexible manner for their classes to meet their self-paced learning objectives. Distance learning places the responsibility on the learner. Therefore, a student can browse through concepts that they have already mastered as they put more effort in areas that are new. The interaction between the learner with other students and the tutor is also improved. The discussion board provides an avenue through which students can interact and share out their opinions on what has been covered. More importantly, distance learning has a chance in equalizing access to education and allowing internationalization of the learning opportunities.[Kimberly C. Harper, Kuanchin Chen, and David C. Yen, "Distance Learning, Virtual Classrooms, and Teaching Pedagogy in the Internet Environment,” Technology in Society 26, no. 4 (November 2004), 586] [Ibid., 587] One of the major drawbacks of distance learning is that it denies the student a chance of being on campus and interacting with other students on their daily to day-to-day operations. Occasionally, students can feel isolated because some online learning environment does not offer group support and the learners might not complete the program. Sometimes, the internet provider downtime can hinder the learning process. Similarly, the lag time between the student input and the tutor and other student feedback can discourage the learner. Therefore, distance learning is only useful for disciplined students who are self-directed towards...