ONLINE EDUCATION: PROS & CONS

Online Education: Pros & Cons

AbstractOver the past several years, colleges and universities have seen a huge growth both in the number of online courses offered and the number of students enrolled in these courses. Allan Hancock College in California, for instance, reported that when they started offering online classes in 1999 two courses were offered. During the spring of 2003, 66 classes were available online and enrollments were up 38%. Approximately four years ago, Santa Barbara City College, also in California, started online classes with an enrollment of about 500 students. Now, over 3,000 students take at lease one course online each semester. This trend is continuing throughout the United States and the world.

Introduction Demographic changes in the United States are having a tremendous affect on the composition of the college and university campus. Students of various races, national origin, and socioeconomic backgrounds are making their way to higher education in larger numbers than every before. The changes have also brought more adult learners to higher education:Serving the needs of adult students in higher education has become an important priority for higher education professionals over the past twenty years. The average student no longer fits the standard definition for a college student: eighteen to twenty- two years old, directly enrolled from higher school, living on campus or in the Greek community, and enrolled full-time. These adult learners are demanding a new approach for achieving their educational goals. Changes in the use of technology as a means of educational delivery are also having an impact on the student body and the services provided to them. Increasingly, higher education is relying on technology to meet educational needs. Technology is being used in administrative, academic, and student services areas. Perhaps the most visible area within higher education being influenced by the use of technology is recruitment. (Gillespie, 1996)Potashnik (1998) predicted an increase in educational competition and alliances in a global market. He said the greater competition in higher education would force institutions offer programs on a global level, increasing the use of online education. Online education, he said, makes it possible for institutions to build partnership alliances that were not possible in the past. Institutions are collaborating with businesses, foreign alliances, international organizations to provide fast, efficient, and cost effective distance education. These predictions are being played out today and increasing the likelihood that online education will continue to grow. Today, the growth of online education is evident even in public media. On Talk of the Nation, a National Public Radio program, Neal Conan (2006) reported that 1,500,000 students are enrolled in online education. He further reported that 8% of all college and university enrollments are online, making it the fastest growing segment within higher education. His guest speaker, Peter Stokes, Executive Vice President of Eduventures, explained that the overall growth within higher education is currently around 2%. However, recent growth in online education far exceeds that rate at 15%.Despite the increase in the use of online education, it ...