Online Education

September 10, 2009

Online Learning

I recently graduated from an online graduate degree program offered by Northwestern University. There are several reasons why online programs are growing in popularity. Many working students have an opportunity to obtain advanced training that otherwise would not be available; most classes are held at night, after work. Parents with child-raising responsibilities can attend classes from home while still taking care of the kids. Employers who contribute to an employee's education strengthen their workforce while being able to retain valued workers. Colleges with online programs have the chance to expand their student base. The schools do not need to support the high overhead of bricks and mortar classrooms even while charging regular tuition rates. Faculties often are enriched by instructors with practical experience in their fields, even if they are somewhat less academically oriented. This is an excellent forum to put technology to work for educational outreach and could serve as a model for other types of educational activities needed by universities and corporations to develop the technologically advanced workforce that will be required in coming decades. Finally, there is a lot of latitude to apply innovative ideas to the process of education.
The application process is similar to on campus programs. Some graduate programs do not require completion of the GRE. Mine did not when I applied two years ago although transcripts from previous schools were required. Interest in online education has been strong so schools have their choice of highly qualified candidates. Most programs are accredited, but there are a variety or organizations offering accreditation so prospective students should be careful to evaluate the programs that interest them.
Online classes may be conducted synchronously (real-time) or asynchronously. Many use a combination of the two methods. Synchronous teaching sessions use web-based teleconferencing with or without a telephone bridge for audio. Students need access to a broadband Internet connection. Technical issues arise frequently but they are usually easy to solve. Asynchronous solutions do not require such robust Internet connections but they have functional limitations and restrict interaction of students with each other and with faculty. Most educational programs utilize course management software such as Blackboard© to communicate weekly assignments, supplemental educational material, discussion boards, homework submission, and to post grades. A critical element of almost every class at Northwestern University was a group project. We had to learn to effectively collaborate and be productive in the face of demanding work schedules with students that lived in different time zones that spanned the country.
Online education poses challenges for students. Foremost is a commitment to continued learning and self-discipline to study and work hard. In my program, each class demanded ten to twenty hours of work per week to keep up with homework, class sessions, group projects, tests, and discussion board participation. There were eleven required classes. We operated on the quarter system with just short breaks between quarters. The program I participated in was technology-oriented. Students needed to learn new software packages for many classes. For example, I used MS Word, PowerPoint, Access, Excel, Visio, SQL, SPSS, TreeAge, WebEx, Adobe Connect Pro, EndNote, and Blackboard. Most classes had a final exam that required one to visit a proctored test site. One of the biggest challenges was managing the dynamics of working in groups where the members never met in person, never even saw each other, lived in different time zones, had different clinical or technical expertise and sometimes came to online meetings carrying the burdens of their personal lives, home, and work.
I think online education is the wave of the future in adult education. Many workers change careers during their lifetimes and need retraining. Also, a major way of advancing ones career is to learn new skills. Online education is a realistic way to meet each of these requirements.