Online Learning For Dummies. Susan Manning

video on how to change a fuse in your car — you are learning online. With the arrival of the Internet, the world has increasingly shifted from classroom-based instruction to learning online.

      In this chapter, we sort through the factors that make the online experience different from traditional education. By taking a look at who is learning online and what they’re gaining from the experience, along with doing some honest self-assessment on your own, you'll be able to determine whether this type of learning is right for you.

What Makes Online Learning Different from Traditional Education?

      You may not remember life without the Internet, but it hasn’t been that long since the only choices for learning were attending a traditional school or taking correspondence classes by mail. In response to an increasing demand for alternatives, some colleges began offering classes in the evenings or on weekends to accommodate working adults. That changed when the Internet became available to everyone. Eventually, online courses came into vogue as a way to learn “anywhere and at any time.” Still, their format remained similar to the one people had known for a century; the teacher directed the learning. Today, people know so much more about how to learn, especially online. In this section, we compare the traditional model of learning to the world of online learning.

      Connecting to learning and people via the Internet

      Online learning is using the Internet to learn. It is about connecting the learner to educational materials by way of the Internet. As we show you throughout this book, online learning can happen in a variety of forms and fashions, but the underlying use of the Internet and its technologies are fundamental. Lessons, communication, and assessment (grading) all happen by way of the Internet. In the following sections, we describe the two major models for this communication and assessment: instructor-led and self-paced.

      You’re not alone: Instructor-led and -facilitated courses

      The most common model of online learning in formal educational programs is instructor-led or instructor-facilitated. That means an instructor determines the content and pace of the instruction. In a sense, this is really no different from a traditional classroom experience. In a quality online course, you interact frequently with that instructor, either privately via email or publicly in discussion areas, just as you would have open discussions in a traditional classroom or private conversations on the side. We talk more specifically in Chapter 10 about how online discussion works.

Sometimes online teachers are known as facilitators. In contrast to what you may think of as traditional education, with a professor lecturing and learners soaking up the information, a facilitator provides resources for learners to consider and then facilitates their understanding through a series of discussions or activities. Although facilitation happens in traditional classrooms through face-to-face discussions, it takes on a special significance in online education. Typically, instructor-led courses require learners to interact with one another and everyone follows the same schedule, so they’re always aware that others are taking the course with them. We explain more about whom you’re likely to find in your online classroom in Chapter 9.

      

Not every opportunity to learn is tied to a formal program. If you’re taking a course by way of your local 2-year college, we count that as formal. If you sign up for a 4-week course by way of Udemy (an online self-paced education portal), that’s informal. Nevertheless, in both cases, you’re learning online.

      

In most cases, instructors are present in the online environment just as they are in a traditional one. However, what they do with their time in the environment might be a little different from what you would expect an instructor to do in a traditional classroom. Instead of lecturing, the instructor might post a series of narrated slides they created. Or, they might draw out additional responses in discussion rather than tell the class the answers.

      Okay, sometimes you’re alone: Self-paced courses

      Another prevalent model of online learning is self-paced: That means computer-based instruction is delivered to you without an instructor attached. You access the lessons, follow the instructions, and return the required products — a completed test on the material demonstrating your understanding, for example. A computer scores the test. You work through the lessons at your own pace with no intervention or guidance from a teacher, and you have no way of knowing whether other students are even in the class with you. You might be the only student or one of a thousand.

      In the business world, self-paced learning is the most common form of online education. A lot of corporate training is delivered by way of web-based programs that look similar to PowerPoint slides, sometimes with audio or video attached. At the end of the presentation, you typically find a self-test worked into the program. As the learner, you make the decisions and control the pace of the instruction with a simple click of the mouse.

      Here’s an example: At one time, state employees were required to complete ethics training that was delivered online. Some employees completed the training in 20 minutes, whereas others needed two hours, depending on how fast they read and how comfortable they were with technology. The program summarized basic information about state laws regarding campaigning, accepting gifts, and so on. Then the employees were instructed to consider different scenarios and select the most ethical responses. The results were scored, and each employee received a compliance certificate.

Can you imagine the cost of calling together all employees to complete the same training in classrooms? Not only would time be lost on the job, but facilities would also need to be considered, and travel time could possibly be involved. The self-paced model was much less costly.

      

In a self-paced course, you work at your own pace with little or no instructor input. In an instructor-led course, you follow an established schedule and interact with the other students and the instructor.

      Working when it’s convenient

      In our opinion, one of the best features of online education is its convenience: You get to work when it works for you. Say you’re a supervisor assigned to the third shift and you work from 11 P.m. to 7 A.m. You may be able to squeeze in a morning class, but chances are, your biorhythms put you in a groggy state after work. You could sleep a little and then wake up and take a night class before your shift, but then when will you do your homework? And, what about tomorrow night when your son has a Little League game? Wouldn’t it be great to work your course around your schedule? In many cases, online learning can accommodate your personal schedule. In the following sections, we define two types of timing for online courses: asynchronous learning and real-time (synchronous) learning.

      Asynchronous learning

      One of the most common questions related to online learning is “When do classes meet?” To answer that question, you have to understand the meaning of asynchronous. When a class is asynchronous, it does not meet at an appointed time. There is no synchronization of schedules. You don’t have to be at class at any given time, such as 9 A.m. or 6:30 P.m.

      THE ROOTS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION

      You may be curious about the origins of distance education. Online education is just an extension of what began in 1728 when Caleb Phillips started selling shorthand lessons in the Boston Gazette. In the United States, as soon as the postal service was up and running, schools such as Chautauqua College of Liberal Arts of New York and the International Correspondence School