A couple of decades ago, a person who wanted to gain new knowledge was forced to visit educational institutions or libraries regularly.
However, the pandemic has changed the scenario opting most colleges to switch to online classes.
Today, all you need to study is a computer with internet access. However, an emergency change in college format generally showed its pros and cons.
At first, the online study posed mostly cons because rebuilding the educational process in a record short time was not an easy task.
The unwillingness of teachers to work remotely, lack of skills and experience in working on educational platforms, insufficient use of digital tools, and ignorance of the capabilities of the current information and educational environment.
Lack of case technology for distance learning, technological problems, and other difficulties were presented by the new reality to teachers and online students in the first days of training.
Eventually, the online schools proved to have their pros as well. This article will discuss the pros and cons of online classes that future students may encounter.
Table of Contents
Pros of Online Learning
1. Availability
The most significant benefit of online degrees is their accessibility. You can be anywhere and study online at the best universities in the world and with the most brilliant teachers.
You can learn at home or while traveling, in a cafe or in the country – wherever the Internet is. However, you are not limited by country or continent.
2. Feedback
The most valuable thing in distance learning is the constant feedback from the teacher. So you understand what you are doing right and what is not. The teacher is always in touch, prompts, and guides in problematic situations.
3. Social equality
All applicants for a place in the online college are equal, no matter their income level, physical abilities, skin color, or gender. This might not be true for physical campus student.
4. Flexibility
With few excuses for not pursuing higher education to earn a degree, more and more people are turning to online classes to strengthen their careers and earn a good salary.
Regardless of your obligations, you should be able to take advantage of online education’s flexibility.
There is virtually no downside to mention in learning styles, perhaps except for choosing many classes at once.
Those new to online education should familiarize themselves with the free online courses to feel how they work.
5. Mass Character
Online degree programs are no longer dependent on audience size compared to traditional classes.
An unlimited number of students can simultaneously study and receive higher education remotely at the university or college.
6. Interactivity
Interactive modules such as videos or animated content can be integrated depending on your online college courses.
The provision of tests and learning status checks at the end of a lesson can also significantly increase long-term learning success and motivation.
7. Specific knowledge
Online learning gives a person a specific set of knowledge and skills. Everyone who studied at the traditional institution came across frankly superfluous subjects that did not fit into the picture of specialized education.
Biologists in universities are tortured with mathematics, mathematicians with philosophy, and everyone is also tortured with physical education.
Online learning is spared the overabundances of traditional college. And if you pay for specific programming courses, you won’t be forced to run and jump.
8. Advanced innovations and technologies
Another positive feature of the online learning experience is technological innovations, such as continuous semesters, are being applied practically and conveniently.
Some campus courses dominate standalone courses, meaning you can complete all curriculum requirements according to a self-defined schedule without waiting for a new semester to start.
9. Standardized quality
Due to the one-off provision of the respective online campus classes, there are no fluctuations in the teaching quality.
The successful outcome of the respective measure no longer depends on the form of the lecturer on the day, which is why consistent quality is guaranteed when selecting the appropriate electronic courses.
10. Take classes from a first-class teacher
There are many opportunities to take classes from top-class teachers in an online class. These high-quality teachers tend to be concentrated in the city center, which can be inaccessible for prospective students.
However, if you are online, you can expect a reduction in regional disparities. No need to go to the city center to take classes; even local students will be offered a fulfilling class at a reasonable price.
It is useful when you want to study deeper for university entrance exams or qualification exams.
In the live distribution online program, you can communicate with the instructor and other interaction with peers through chat, so you can not miss the effect of active learning.
11. Relevance of knowledge
In recent years, the reputation of traditional education has declined markedly. Many college students with a college degree do not find jobs in their field.
Graduates of engineering faculties become managers in offices, and former students of the philological faculty turn into sales advisors.
Due to these reasons, in-person programs are losing their prestige among traditional students.
And the prestige of the online university, on the contrary, is growing. Today, a person who has studied a particular course remotely is in a winning position.
He is more likely to put his knowledge into practice than someone who has spent years studying abstract subjects that are inapplicable in campus experience at a community college.
12. Opportunities for people with Disability
One of the biggest edges of virtual learning is its accessibility for people with disabilities.
They can create a learning environment with modern professions in demand without leaving home, find a job in the future and improve the quality of their lives.
13. Multilingualism
The exact online learning module can be presented in different languages depending on the programming.
An online learning environment enables greater opportunities for students’ individuality and user-friendliness, especially in international companies.
Undergraduate degree programs from traditional universities mainly used a central primary language might not have good acceptance among employers in this criteria.
14. Save Time and Money
Another advantage of online lessons is that both the learner and the provider can effectively reduce costs.
You have to prepare an ample space such as a venue to provide classes, but it is not necessary for the online class schedule.
At the extreme, it’s possible with just one computer. These days, most personal computers have a built-in camera and microphone, so there is little need to purchase something separately.
Another point is that the more difficult it is to go to a cram school from home, the more time you can save.
As the time to take the exam approaches, there are situations where even 5 minutes feel regrettable.
At such times, for example, if you run out of time to go to a two-hour round-trip cram school, it would be a great advantage.
The online environment may be a nice place for time management and physical strength for family responsibilities and office hours.
Cons of Online Education
In addition to the numerous advantages of online forms of teaching, we can also identify difficulties that the new technology brings with it. Some of these are explained below.
1. Communication Problem
The Internet is becoming more widespread nationwide. As long as you have a communication environment and tools, you can take online lessons almost anywhere.
However, there are regional differences in connection speed. Depending on the area, the speed may be prolonged, and there is a wide range of cases where classes are hindered.
You may not be able to download the distributed prints, or the audio may be difficult to hear. Sometimes, the screen suddenly becomes dark and disappears.
2. Limited choice
Unfortunately, the online experience cannot teach you everything. In some cases, it is unfeasible to do without practical training under the guidance of an experienced mentor.
You can study history or literature remotely and become an excellent designer or programmer. But you can’t train to be a pilot or a surgeon.
Perhaps the situation will change shortly. One day, virtual actuality technology will allow people worldwide to participate in collaborative laboratory work.
The list of professions and skills that we can master remotely will greatly expand when this happens.
3. Unsuitable for Loaning a Degree
Bachelor’s degrees in online classes are becoming commonplace in American universities. However, it is not without problems, such as discovering fraudulent activity.
Some educational institutions also grant degrees to students who are not correctly enrolled, as long as they pay the tuition fees.
Online lessons have the property that it is difficult to know whether or not you are attending, and it is also difficult to prevent cheating during the test.
There is a way to check attendance with facial recognition, but there is no stopping the act of illegally covering the test from a place outside the video. As a result, more and more tests and exams are being conducted in the field.
4. Self-discipline
Due to the time and location-independent features of online learning, users are often left to themselves.
Therefore, motivation and the ability to acquire utterly new content independently are essential for learning success.
However, this facet is perceived as a burden by many users, especially in the case of long-term e-learning concepts.
5. No room for questions
Since the pupils sit alone in front of the screen in many electronic forms of teaching, there is little opportunity for queries.
The content is presented and can only be recorded in this form. Misinterpretations are rarely uncovered and prevent learning success in the worst case.
In addition, uncertainties and irritations are not absorbed and can therefore lead to frustration in the long term.
As they often arise within classic offline training courses, creative problem-solving dynamics do not come about in this way either.
6. Load increase
With the transition to online, teachers ask for more material for self-study and increase the amount of homework. It means the time saved on the road is spent on an additional study load.
7. No positive side effects
The fact that online education gives a person a specific set of knowledge can be considered not only a plus sign but also a minus.
By studying remotely, a student deprives himself of many positive “side effects” of academic education.
For example, taking notes from long lectures trains the speed of writing, develops mechanical memory and teaches you to isolate the most critical fragments from the flow of information on the go.
This expertise is instrumental in everyday life, but online learning does not provide them.
8. Health Risks
If you take online lessons for too long, your eyesight may deteriorate, your shoulders may become stiff, and you may feel sick. In some incidences, there may be a risk of causing deafness.
It is essential to keep a reasonable usage time when using electronic devices. Be aware of the habit of standing and stretching from time to time to avoid long periods of continuous use.
If you sit down all the time, your body will inevitably become stiff. If you take 90 minutes or more of online lessons, you should leave the screen once.
Setting the screen brightness to a gentle setting will reduce the strain on your eyes.
The recipient must be careful, and the online lesson provider must also consider the learner’s health.
9. Insidious circumstances
In the process of online education, you will undoubtedly encounter unforeseen circumstances that will interfere with you.
For example, your light may turn off at the most inopportune moment, or your computer may fail.
And the Internet can break during an essential online seminar, and you can’t do anything about it. Remote learning makes you dependent on technology.
Of course, you can get stuck in the elevator to the university. But if you have already reached the college building, there is little that can prevent you from gaining knowledge.
10. Narrowing horizons
Academic education provides a high level of knowledge in the chosen specialty. Additional items expand a person’s horizons and teach them to think logically and figuratively.
Concentrating only on the subjects necessary for professional development can limit the development of a person’s personality.
11. Difficult for Visually Impaired People
Online lessons are organized from the perspective of a healthy person. Visually impaired students can solve their problems more effectively in face-to-face learning than in online classes.
Providing “natural” equality is problematic because it is impossible to respond individually like face-to-face, and online is a form everyone receives together.
Online lessons are not all-purpose, so it may be necessary to choose face-to-face lessons depending on the situation.
Quick Summary (Pros and Cons of Online Classes)
| Pros |
|---|
| Save Cost on Commuting |
| Save Time |
| Available to all Students |
| Constant Feedback from Teachers |
| Study on One’s Pace |
| Specific Knowledge As Students Prefer |
| Suitable for Disabled Students |
| Cons |
|---|
| Additional cost on Technology and Internet |
| Additional Time with Increase load of Homework and Resources Management |
| Isolation as Students Learn in Home |
| No Room for Queries and Increase Chance of Misinterpretation |
| Self Motivation and Self Discipline are needed; that may Sometimes be Hard to Keep Up |
| Limited Choice of Subjects Courses Needing Practical Knowledge is not Available |
| Problematic for Visually Impaired Student |
Today, online education is already an excellent opportunity for many students to graduate from universities and technical schools during quarantine, despite the advantages and disadvantages of distance learning.
And it is not yet explicit how the pandemic will develop, but e-learning technologies will be at the peak of their development.
(Last Updated on August 25, 2022)
