The Internet is full of positive information about online education for a reason. The benefits are many, from lower costs to accessibility and flexibility. However, a quick glance at the real world clearly shows that most students still choose traditional lessons. Are these people just ignorant? No Online courses can have several disadvantages compared to traditional courses.
1. Lack of accreditation and poor quality.
Before registering for an online course, make sure the program is accredited, and check this information with the accreditation agency. Legitimate schools, from established universities to new online universities, take pride in their status with accreditation agencies and agencies wishing to accredit good schools. Therefore, this information is available online for review.
If you graduate from a school without accreditation, you may experience a worthless diploma owed to you and you are not better prepared for the workforce. Checking the accreditation of a program online is a small step that can save you time, money, and heartache in the long run.
2. Little or no personal interaction.
This may seem obvious, but students tend to underestimate the impact if they never meet the instructor and the other students in the class. Mark Edmundson, professor of English at the University of Virginia, argued in Time’s statement that online education creates a “monologue, not a real dialogue” in the learning environment. Building relationships with your teacher and classmates take more effort in an online environment.
3. More work
Online courses generally require more reading and homework than traditional courses. Programs generally improve the quality of their online courses, which means that students need to do more to demonstrate that they have mastered the material. Expect at least 10 hours a week for each online course. However, it is not uncommon for a single course to take 15 or 20 hours per week.
4. Intensive need for self-discipline.
Online courses usually have deadlines for homework, exams, course reviews, etc. This is not a problem. The problem is the time management and organizational skills necessary to keep track of your work, allow enough time to complete each task, and align your lessons with other priorities in your life. If you’re prone to delays, you may need to improve your skills before choosing an online course or program.
5. Even more intensive need for self-control
Traditional college programs generally offer students or require that they meet with counselors to plan their college journey. If you only need one or two lessons, that’s fine. However, if you want to graduate online, you need to proactively find the information you need to make sure you’re taking the right courses for your degree program. Straying from this path can cause academic progress to fail, and you may have difficulty obtaining financial support.
Despite the potential difficulties, the vast majority of people are satisfied with their online education and happy to have chosen it over traditional classroom education. If you know the positive and negative aspects, you can make an informed decision about whether online learning is right for you.