What Does Online Education Mean?
Online Education is a type of education that takes place over the internet rather than in a classroom setting. It is a firm of teaching whereby the teacher and the students are far way from each other. It can occur at the same time whereby the teacher is teaching and at the same time the students are listening, and it can also be a form of teaching whereby there’s no timing requirement for transmission. Topics or matter treated are usually sent in the form of documents, pictures, texts, videos.
What Does Traditional Education Mean?
Traditional education is a type of education that takes place in a classroom setting, whereby both the students and the teacher are physically present. In this kind of teaching setting the teacher is able to make use of different educational tools such as writing on the chalkboard, asking questions from the students, marking the students note and so on. In this case, the students are also able to interact with each other, form group discussions for better understanding of the subject being taught.
Discipline and self-motivation
For a traditional classroom, there’s always a schedule of how the classes are to be arranged, this is popularly known as a time-table. The time-table consists of the classes that are to be held from Monday to Friday, and also the duration for each classes. If a student skips the class for a day then such student would not be able to gather the information learnt from the teacher.
It is the job of the teacher to encourage the students on reasons why they must read and study. Apart from this, the teacher must also explain the subject of discussion in an engaging and friendly manner so that no student is left out.
Unlike traditional education, the students need self-motivation in the case of online education. This is a type of learning in which discipline is very essential, the student needs to have the mind of sparing time out of his/her schedule to concentrate on completing the course outline.
Sometimes, the student is given a particular date to finish all the required topics in a course online. For online education, there might be room for the students to have an online discussion on the course they are taking, or the ability to talk one on one with a student via video; however the student needs to impel himself to finish the course outline.
Advantages Of Online Education
- Choice
For online education, the number of courses that could be studied online are far more than those present in traditional education. In this case, the student can broaden his knowledge on various subjects that are not even available to students in a classroom setting.
- Cost And Expenses
One of the major advantages of online education is that it is cheaper than traditional education. The cost of online education is easily affordable compared to the other, and you practically don’t have to worry about the cost of transport. The train for this lower cost is because fewer physical equipment and structures are used. Although, as of now, the cost of some courses offered online is almost the same as the cost of some courses in a classroom setting.
- Flexibility
This is another main difference that distinguishes the two forms of teaching from each other. Online education is good and useful to students who have other things to do apart from studying. Examples for students who have paid jobs or those who for one reason or the other are not able to attend classes at the supposed time. This also extends to students who might want to take up a course, not for a career, but have an interest in it.
- Invitation Of Guests Lectures Or Experts
Whenever a guest lecturer or expert is to be invited to teach in a classroom setting, it involves proper planning. The time must be convenient for both the guest and the students. For online education, however, it is more convenient, because there are available social platforms like Zoom, Telegram, Skype, Google Meet, and so on. These platforms make it easier for both the guest lecturer and the students because they do not have to move away from their location. Another benefit of this is that the guest lecturer can deliver a lecture from anywhere in the world without any itch.
- Lesson Recordings
Online courses come with the special feature of being able to be recorded, and thereby they can be made available for students who probably missed the class or need it for further studying. In this case, the student can listen to the lecture over and over again unlike traditional education. Also, the lecturer can update the notes with more useful content. This means that the students have the freedom to current information as regards that course.
- Participation
The active involvement of students in online education is always higher than the other, especially in cases whereby a specific number of students’ involvement is needed. The students will have no choice but to participate in the class.
- High-Class Teacher To Student Interaction
For online education, there’s always a quality interaction between the teacher and the students. If the teacher is at ease with using computerized technology devices, there’s always more access for the students to be involved in discussions with the teacher. This means of communication is usually through sites like WhatsApp, online forums, and so on.
Disadvantages Of Online Education
- Cheating
Cheating during assessments is very common in both online and traditional educations; however, it won’t be easy for the teacher to keep track of the students during an online assessment. The students might have other devices beside them to check for answers.
- Communication Skills
Communication skill is always developed in a traditional education setting. It gives room for students to listen to each other, have a dialogue about topics, listen to other people’s minds and judgment, and also take action against arguments. In the case of online education, all these qualities are not easy to develop, especially when there is no timing requirement for transmission.
- Procrastination
Online education gives room for delay, procrastination is a normal trend in students. Unserious students find themselves postponing the examination until it becomes too late for the student. For online education, it is easier to delay assignments that do not have a supposed time for submission.
- Self-motivation
Students involved in online education need to make deliberate and conscious efforts to complete their course outlines. In the case of an online educational setting, most students lack the needed zeal. This is because there is usually no set schedule and tutors sometimes, thereby it gives room for lack of self-motivation and lack of time management.
- Social-Isolation
Students of online classes that do not have any form of work apart from studying might feel a form of aloneness when the classes are going on. Apart from the fact that interaction between the students during online classes is possible, it cannot be compared to the type of physical discussions and interactions that a traditional class setting exposed the student to.
Advantages Of Traditional Education
- Confidence
Carrying out classes in a classroom setting has a way of giving the students self-esteem. This is because, in a traditional setting, the students are privileged to associate with their teacher, and so a consciousness of self-reliance is instilled in them.
- Group Work
One of the major importance of the traditional classroom is that the students can associate, brainstorm on ideas and work together on group assignments or projects. Completion of a project is also possible in an online education setting, but it doesn’t give room for the same level of interaction.
- Interpersonal Skills
Some Interpersonal skills are necessary to be cultivated in dealing with personal and professional lives. These types of skills can be cultivated when the students start interacting with each other and with their teachers.
- Pressure
Traditional education has a way of putting pressure on the students to work harder, and so there is minimal procrastination from the students. Most of the assignments, group works, projects usually come with a set time for submission, and so the students have no choice but to complete them. Students must cultivate the habit of working under pressure.
- Public Speaking
Communication skills are built in the lives of students in a traditional classroom setting. The students have the self-esteem to voice out their opinions about subjects of discussion.