Education Articles from College Matching Service

There are a lot of opinions revolving and having been thought of around the small issue which is turning to a big issue of distance learning. Distance learning or education is completing a curriculum of studies without being present in a classroom. The quality of education is usually better than that of a class room since most individuals who choose distance learning to obtain their education is more self motivated and every bit as conscientious about their education as their counterpart in the class room.

Due to today’s technology, made in part by the internet, more people than ever before are choosing distance learning over traditional class room settings as the vehicle of choice to obtain their education. Convenience cost of travel and other costs associated with a more traditional setting and busy schedules are just some of the reasons more students are taking course work through distance education institutions. After all, consider the commute time to and from a campus and the delays between classes. Wouldn’t your time be better spent on studies, leisure time or even time with your family or friends? College life is about experiencing new things on your own and to avoid getting burned out from all that studying and slight nagging from parents. In a lot of countries, distance learning is a very common thing.

After graduation, the student goes all the way to the college of their choice and lives in the college or university dormitory or a place nearby where they can rent out for the remainder of their stay in their university or colle

You have worked really hard to get your slot for that online degree you have been eyeing to enroll in. Now comes the hard part, making it work for you and completing the course in the time allotted.

It would be great to start by reviewing the course syllabus. By browsing the topics for discussion ahead of time, you can start planning ahead for each of them. You can assign a period for studying each of the topics and maybe start to research and browse a bit for more information online.

Plan your weeks ahead to include your study hours. If you are working, try to schedule your studies early in the morning or late at night for at least an hour or two in a day. Try to strike a good balance between work and your studies. It may be difficult to do at first but all you need to do is start the schedule and stick to it.

Try to find a space that would be yours and yours alone during your study time. It is important to keep your study space neat, organized and distraction-free. This will prevent you from foregoing your supposedly study times and making sure that you always stick to your schedule so you will not get a backlog in your lessons.

It is very important to seek the support of your family, friends and even co-workers (if you are working) so that they will be able to work with you and give you a little consideration when you are trying to complete a project or assignment from school. Their moral and emotional support is needed during this time and it would really be wonderful if they will be there in the background rooting for you to get that degree.

The ever increasing popularity of the various distance learning programs has also amplified the need to make these mediums more user friendly. Thereby, these programs have certain prerequisite that a student needs to fulfill. If you want to pursue such a distance learning program you need to be computer savvy as well as have a firm technical knowledge. You must also be very comfortable with the various common features of Window. You also need to be comfortable with reading online textbooks as several course content of several distance learning programs are distributed by means of eBook format.

The providers of distance learning programs use a wide range of technical options, such as:

• Print: It is a traditional as well as fundamental aspect of distance learning programs. The common print formats used in distance learning are study guides, course syllabus, text books, references, case studies and workbooks.
• Video: Nowadays video is also used as a tool for providing distance learning instructions. These include short educational films, video tapes, slide shows, real time one way or two way video with two way audio conferencing.
• Voice: The popular instructional audio tools include audio conferencing, telephone, short wave radio as well as radio and audio tapes.
• Data: With the rapid expansion of computer networks and remarkable progress in the magnetic storage technology, computers are now been used as the most effective means of distance learning. There are various computer applications including:

• Computer-assisted instruction (CAI): This application allows the computer to act as an autonomous teaching machine in order to present individual lessons.

• Computer-managed instruction (CMI): It helps the computer to organize instruction as well as to track student records.

• Computer-mediated education (CME): These are those applications that aid in communication and enable the computer to deliver instructions. These include fax, electronic bulletin boards, electronic bulletin boards, electronic mail, and World-Wide Web applications etc.

• Computer-Based Multimedia: It helps to amalgamate different video, voice, and other computer technologies into a single delivery system.

Some helpful tips:

• While working on assignments it is better to compose them in a word processing program to track spelling and grammatical mistakes easily.

• Keep a track as well as copies of all sent emails incase your instructor fails to receive any assignments on time.

In present days, distance learning is a popular option for pursuing higher education. Thereby, more and more people, especially the working individuals are now opting for such programs. Earlier, the study materials of distance learning were very much traditional with books and readers. With the advent of Internet, some of the course materials are now completely virtual or electronic. However, these distance learning programs have both pros and cons, but it can also be a great experience if you are sincere enough. In fact it is always better to closely examine the pros and cons of the distance learning program before getting yourself enrolled. Though there are several types and methods of distance learning, they all have certain identifiable common factors.

The advantages of distance learning:

• You can pursue these kinds of courses at your convenience depending on your requirement. Most of these courses are not even based on college’s annual or semester schedule.
• There is no predetermined class time and you the flexibility and freedom to move at your own pace. You also have the freedom to complete your assignments and readings according to your schedule. Moreover, some of the distance learning programs also allow you to design your own degree plan.
• You can save both your time and money on transport as you receive the study materials and can study at home. However, there are certain distance learning programs which still have some in-class components.
• The cost prices of these distance learning programs are often cheaper than traditional universities, colleges and trade schools.

The limitations of distance learning:

• There is no or at the most very little face-to-face communication with the students and faculties. This means that you will actually miss the personal anecdotes, expressions, tips and personalized attention of your teacher.
• Though a number of mainstream colleges and universities are now embracing distance learning, it lacks in brand name.
• Most of the distance learning programs require technical skills and knowledge. Thereby if you are not technically sound or computer savvy, these courses may not work for you.
• Moreover, these distance learning courses also lacks in several motivational factors, which usually arises from contacts and competitions.

In these days, accredited distance learning refers to online educational programs. The various degree and certificate programs offered by these online learning institutions are a feasible substitute to any traditional classroom education programs. These distance learning options have enabled several working professionals to continue their formal education in order to upgrade their career opportunities. It is especially beneficial for people who are working in the education and business field as these industries seek for new methods, knowledge, and opportunities for constant growth and advancement.

Furthermore, there are a number of other factors affecting the popularity of these online colleges and universities. These include:

• Obtaining education through online colleges and universities eliminates the need to attend classes and thus saves both you time and money that you may have spend for commuting to the classroom every day.

• Unlike a traditional college, distance learning centers provide you the total freedom to complete your study and course work at any time during the day and also have an easy access to your coursework.

• In an online college you also have the flexibility to re-schedule your class timing at your convenience in order to meet your professional deadlines. Whereas, in a traditional college re-scheduling of classes is either almost impossible or involves a number of time consuming formalities.

• Online programs provide flexibility not only in class timing, but also allow the students to choose the learning method that would work best for them. The traditional colleges have actually failed to provide such facilities.

• Sometimes, online learning fails offer a motivating environment or even to promote interaction among students, which is a major benefit of traditional colleges. However, the online educational institutes are gradually overcoming this particular limitation with the advent of student forums where every student has a say.

• The cost of an online learning program is more or less similar to that of a traditional college. However, the cost of a tradition college is often high to the factors like the cost of room and board, as well as transportation.

Today, most of the academic advisors consider these distance learning programs to be as good as, or even better than a traditional education program. In fact, about 3.2 million students are now obtaining their degree and certificate programs through these online educational institutes.

There are several distance learning universities functioning in the global education industry. Due to their busy life style, a number of people are opting for these online degree and certificate programs. Apart from this, there are also several other factors that have facilitate the growth and popularity of these universities, such as:

• These distance learning universities provide very flexible time schedule.
• These universities make it mandatory for students to learn the latest computer and Internet technologies.
• Presently, the employers value the online degrees of the reputed distance learning universities as much as a traditional college degree.

The online universities are the most common and popular distance learning centers. These include:

University of Phoenix Online

The University of Phoenix Online founded is recognized by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. It is the major private university of North America. The University of Phoenix provides around 100 online degree programs at the bachelor’s, associates, masters and doctoral levels. Some of the most popular programs are:

• Information Technology
• Business Administration
• Criminal Justice
• Nursing
• Human Resource Management
• Health Care Services

Virginia College Online

The Virginia College provides certified and career-focused education programs. This senior college is recognized by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools. This online institute offers Associate, Bachelor and Master Degree programs in several popular subjects, such as:

• Office and Business Management
• Paralegal
• Health Care
• Criminal Justice
• Golf Management
• Computer Technology

Westwood Online

The Westwood Online is the online college program of Westwood College . It is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT) as well as by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools. It enables you to earn your associate’s degree in within 20 months, and your bachelor’s in three years. You can even earn an MBA degree in a year. The various programs include:

• Interior Design
• Accounting
• Computer Network Engineering and Management
• Information Systems Security
• Game Art
• Visual Communications

After becoming a student of The Art Institute, you will get the scope to learn many new things. Life is completely different here, as the faculty is trained and qualified. The difference in the approach of students is more highlighted when you are in the practical classes. However, with sophisticated infrastructure and well trained staff the academy makes attempt to create qualified professionals. No set time for class and ample resources eagle students to create a bright future for themselves without wasting time in commuting.

The faculty of the institute is trained from Socrates Distance Learning Technologies Group® which is one of the well known institutes in its field.

This training imparted to the faculty enables them to take up adult learning sessions easily. They are highly skilled and have the knowledge teaching people of various age groups.

The faculty is also trained on imparting online education. Since online education is another growing branch of the institute, this is also taken into consideration.

The academic approach of the Institute also involves a wide number of factors. They are enlisted below:

a) The Institute should have a very learned faculty members. The learned faculty members should be able to impart education in such way that people can understand and be encouraged.

b) The second function of the faculty is to inspire the students. The students should be given an impression that what they are studying is easy and interesting and they can excel in the same field. This would give them confidence and also make them distinct from the rest.

c) The institute must have a vast library with a wide collection. Ranging from gothic romance to fruitful science and from parody scribbling to modern art, the library should be versatile. The student should be motivated by the library and its wide collection must be helpful for their studies.

The impact of online education varies from one learner to another. The intensity of a learner’s learning process largely depends on the nature of instructions provided coupled with the attention level of the learner. Students, not so familiar with computers, often find it difficult to grasp online education. E-learning materials are, however, prepared from the perceptive of such students. Still a few loop holes can divert their attention resulting in the failure of understand.

Learning online has various advantages and based on it online education and degree programs have been developed. Self motivation and basic understanding of computers is essential if one has to make the maximum utilization of online education. Candidates, habituated in brick and mortar education, find online education uncomfortable. Hence some qualities are required to be developed to understand the situation better.

Tips To Being A Good Online Learner

• Access to computer and modem : For online education, you require a computer and internet connection at some. Since you might feel like studying or using the course material any point of time, cyber café is not a good idea. Make sure your computer has ample memory and processing power to run the up to date software.

• Communicate through writing : The best part to express is to write. Though keyboards have replaced conventional pen and paper writing still it is expected that you will express in words. In any virtual classroom, all communication takes place in writing. Learners always feel comfortable if they write, whether it is a blog, e-mail or notes.

• Spend the appropriate amount of time on the course : Spend at least 5 to 10 hours per week in the course. This would enable you to understand better with time. Simply do not neglect the course just because the timings are flexible.

• Realize the importance of attitude and effort : Just because you are not there in a classroom ambiance, do not ignore the seriousness of the education. Make attempts to invest your 100% in the course. Such an act will fetch you maximum return after the course is over.

• Participate actively – Try to apply what you learn online and also participate in the learning process. Contribute your idea, thoughts and plans to make the online learning more interesting and beneficial. Be open with your problems and let not act them as barriers.