Online Courses - Karleigh

As technology has evolved, it has opened many avenues for more efficient and modern ways of learning.  Nowadays we are able to have online books, dictionaries and many other educational tools at our fingertips.  While many people believe that technology is a beneficial tool that can be used in an educational environment, others may disagree.  Although the growing popularity of online courses may make cheating on exams easier and less detectable, online courses and open courseware are beneficial for students working towards a degree. 

For many people who are trying to hold down a job and earn a degree, online courses are extremely beneficial.  In Open Education’s Wide World of Possibilities, Gago, a 26 year old yak herder, was able to study modern poetry online in English through Yale’s open course.  Gago was able to improve his English through this free online course without having to leave his herd to attend classes (Mangan).  Without the online classes, Gago wouldn’t have had an opportunity to improve his English or study poetry.  Some people would argue that taking online classes as opposed to taking classes at a university severs the student’s personal relationship with the professor and peers.  Although that may be partially true, the student still has to communicate with the professor and possibly even classmates.  The only difference is that communication is through e-mail instead of in person. 

  As Americans, we are very fortunate to be provided with schools that give us ample opportunity to become educated.  In many places around the world, countries don’t have the necessary resources or funds to build public schools.  If there are no schools or teachers how are citizens of those countries supposed to learn?   Fortunately, online courses give people that live in primitive areas the opportunity to become educated.  Wendy Ermold, a scientific programmer who is currently residing near the Arctic Circle, used open courseware to study quantum physics, machine learning, and computational science and engineering.  For Wendy, many of the lessons she learned through open courseware were directly pertinent to the work she does composing programs and studying ocean currents (Mangan).  Neil D’souza has brought lessons from Khan Academy and various other open-courseware companies to orphanages and soup kitchens.  He founded the group, Teach A Class, which has taught math, science and English to children living in two Mongolian orphanages (Mangan). 

 Every person has strengths and weaknesses specific to common subjects taught in universities and schools.  For Julius J. Davis, physics was a subject that he had a hard time understanding.  A friend suggested that he search online for some extra classes that would help him better understand the material.  He was able to take an online course during the summer and fulfill an internship with a nonprofit organization.  Online courses were beneficial to Julius Davis because he was able to take the online course, without having to relinquish his internship.  He was also able to rewind through the lectures if he didn’t understand a concept (Mangan).    

In my experience with online classes, I found an extremely beneficial part of taking a class online is that the student has more resources.  Students that choose to take classes online are able to review assignments, study guides, lectures and other forms of material as many times as they need to grasp the lessons.  Also, online classes give a tremendous amount of flexibility.  Students who choose not take online classes don’t have the luxury to be able to go to class on their own time.  This is why online classes are great for people who work or are just trying to squeeze in a few more classes. 

Although online classes and open courseware allow for flexibility, allow people that live in primitive areas the opportunity to learn, and contribute more resources for the student to use, some people disagree that they’re beneficial to education.  Many people would argue that online classes make cheating easier, less risky, and less detectible and that online classes can be detrimental to some students grades.  For students coming directly from highly structured high school classes, online classes can be puzzling.  In order to be successful with online classes, the student has to be diligent and self-determined.  Although the curriculum isn’t different between online classes and on-campus classes, many students find online classes to be much more difficult for that exact reason (Cannon).    

As technology continues to develop, there will always be people who think traditional ways of learning benefit the student more than online classes and open courseware do.  However, online classes are a useful way for many people to earn a degree.  Attending classes during the day is very time consuming, if people have a job, kids, and an all-around busy life like many adults do, it can be very difficult for them to earn a degree.   People who aren’t fortunate enough to be surrounded by opportunities to earn an education have the chance to learn in online classes.  In my opinion, the most beneficial aspect to taking online classes is the amount of flexibility the student has.  On-campus classes are at a scheduled time either every day or certain days of the week; the student isn’t asked what time of day or what day of the week works best with their schedule.  Online classes can be completed based on the student’s time frame.  Yes, people may argue that online classes provide a more conducive environment for cheating, but I know that many online classes require exams to be proctored in order to avoid cheating. I believe that as technology progresses, education should grow along with it, if education never advanced or grew, life as we know it today would be drastically different.  Thousands’ of years ago, humans started using tools to make every-day life easier.  Technology is a tool that has continued to grow over the years.  People should view technology as a tool that can make learning more efficient and modern.     

Works Cited

Cannon, Jasemine. "Online Classes: For Better or Worse." N.p., 15 Sept. 2011. Web. 23 Oct. 2012.

Mangan, Katherine. "Open Education's Wide World of Possibilites." The Chronicle of Higher Education (2012): n. pag. Print.

Young, Jeffrey R. "Online Classes See Cheating Go High-Tech." Chronicle of Higher Education. N.p., 3 June 2012. Web. 23 Oct. 2012.