The Advantages of Online Learning

      Right now is an unprecedented time for parents as they struggle to make decisions about the educational future of their children in a way they never have before. Parents must choose whether sending their child to school is a safe choice and the alternative is online schooling that is new to many families. So, let's take a moment to dispel some rumors and discuss the advantages online school can have.

First, online learning is not an autonomous process for the student. They don’t just turn on a computer and read in silence all day long, intermittently answering questions that are graded by a machine. It’s anything but that. Online learning is a robust process that includes collaboration with other students, teachers, and a broader digital community. There is content there to read (there most certainly should be) and there are opportunities for students to check their level of understanding by answering questions their teacher might not ever see, but online learning includes so much more.

The teacher of an online course is a person who might not even live in the same town as the student, but they are no less available to assist a student and provide structured learning. Depending on the teacher, the school, and the age of the student, they might be able to call, text, email, or video chat with the teacher as well as watch videos the teacher produced or other videos supplied by the teacher that feature other educators. 

Collaboration with other students is also easier than ever. All educational formats including brick and mortar have moved away from students working quietly by themselves in desks. In fact, if you walk in any brick and mortar classroom today you’ll see students trying to mimic what happens in a digital classroom naturally. Students with computers can instantly share work, comments, and ideas (in a good way) with fellow students and work in a collaborative manner that is more efficient than it used to be. 

The information they are working with might also be more current and relevant. Textbooks, for example, are never any more current than the day they were printed. However, In a digital classroom, information is much more likely to be fluid and constantly changing. Students can easily link to current events in printed or video formats and learn with a sense of immediate relevance that can be difficult to achieve in a traditional classroom.

Lastly, scheduling and timing is a big advantage of online learning. Instead of having to sit through English every day at exactly 10:05 and only until 10:55, students can choose when and for how long a class lasts. This empowers students and families to be more efficient with the time they spend learning. They can also have more flexibility in the school to better adapt to busy lifestyles including travel.

Of course in these times, online learning can be a means of staying safe from illness, and perhaps today that is its biggest advantage.