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What are Three Advantages and Disadvantages of Distance Learning?

Posted On Monday, 24 May 2021 20:30
What are Three Advantages and Disadvantages of Distance Learning?

There are many pros and cons of distance learning. Here we can see some of these and what impact they might have on students and educators. There are many things to consider when thinking about distance learning and these are some of the advantages of distance learning:

Advantages of Distance Learning

Distance Education Is Cheaper - One of the first and most noticeable aspects of online distance learning is that it is cheaper than the traditional in classroom format which we are all used to. There are several reasons for this, with the chief of these being the lack of cost of running a brick and mortar institution frees up overhead costs. These savings can be passed on to the consumer or parents of a student. Being able to manage costs and keep the overall costs down is good since it also makes it easier for more people to have access to a high level of education which might not be available to them at a traditional educational institution. This lower cost does not come with any drawbacks relative to the quality of the course but rather far from it since distance education can often outperform in class education.

Availability Of Training Materials - In any educational institution or platform, there will always be needed materials for study. A benefit of e-learning or distance education is that the materials often come with the course. This is huge since it saves the student the time and financial resources they would otherwise have to expend on acquiring all the materials. Also these online materials can be great and can include a variety of types and mediums. They could be everything from videos, pictures to PDF documents that have been customized to suit the needs of the class and fill a variety of roles. Although some people might prefer to have physical copies of materials, that does not mean that distance education is not right for them; moreover, people can still print these materials to use by hand if they wish meaning they can have both digital and paper copies.

You Can Study Any Place - Lastly a major advantage of online distance education is the ability to be able to study and learn from anywhere. This is great for a number of reasons. As we have seen in the past year, many things can cause disruption to our lives and this includes education. The ability to be able to work from anywhere and from home especially is a great asset and can only really be offered by pure remote learning. Some other applications of this can be seen with international students or students who had to move with their family in the middle of the school year. If the student is able to work remotely, then they are able to continue their studies uninterrupted due to the possibilities technology offers them. This is also true of adults who are continuing their education or learning a new skill for their job, they too will also be able to take advantage of the opportunity of remote e-learning.

Disadvantages of Distance Learning:

Strong Motivation Is Required - One potential issue for online distance learning or any independent work or study program is that it requires a large amount of self discipline and self motivation since there is no one to stand over you and make sure that the work is getting done within the correct time frame. If you are not a strongly self motivated person, it is easy to fall behind in an online course. This is not always the case of course since some are not as time focused but in general if you lack the ability to motivate yourself, it is possible to struggle in an e-learning program. This is one potential disadvantage that some people might face. There are ways to overcome this of course such as being careful which program/platform you choose and making a plan just like you would for any academic course.

Lack Of Practical Knowledge - While most young learners are very familiar with technology and online applications, some are not and this is more true with older generations who lack some practical technical knowledge that is needed to be successful in some courses. This could affect more than just older learners and people undergoing online training, this can also be a potential setback with parents with younger children as well as teachers who might find it difficult acclimating to the new online learning format and all the complications that can in some situations come with it. One potential solution to this though is a training course! There are online courses available that can teach you some basic and practical knowledge about computers, e-learning and how to use different applications and documents.

Distance Education Is Not Suitable For The Development Of Communication Skills -  A major advantage of traditional in classroom education is how it can help students develop social skills which are as useful in life as the knowledge they learn from their lessons. So this then becomes an issue for distance learning since this is often done alone at home. How can students grow socially into functioning adults without being able to hone and sharpen their social skills that they will need after their education is complete? Although there are some difficulties in developing social skills within an online learning atmosphere, there are still some ways where it can be beneficial. It largely depends on the type of course and how it's constructed. For example a large virtual classroom where students can still speak to their peers can in some ways also help to expand these social skills.

While there are more potential advantages and disadvantages in regards to online distance learning, it is important to understand some of the major pros and cons about it and be able to be more informed how it can be useful to you going forward since more and more classrooms will be online in the future according to most predictions. Understanding the benefits and issues will help to make this transition more successful

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