Are you ready for the exciting new world of online learning?

At Study2U, we are passionate about  online learning. It is one of the most significant developments to have taken place in the world of education for many years. Online learning has given to millions of people a wonderful opportunity to become better qualified, enhance their careers and to experience positive change in their lives. Around 4 million people in the U.S. alone have already seized this opportunity to become online students, and millions more worldwide have now made the same decision to take advantage of online learning.

The following aims to give you more information about this exciting new study option. If you have had an experience with online learning, please email us and we will share it with our audience. We would love to hear from you!

What is online learning?

When you learn you are in the process of acquiring skill or knowledge. “Online learning” simply describes the way you access this, where learning content is delivered via the internet and other new media technologies such as MP3s, PDAs and iPods.

This profoundly important facility is now used by educational institutions in many countries to enable millions of people of all ages and backgrounds to have easy access to knowledge and to teachers. It means that you can move from ad-hoc online learning to a completely new level. This is where a structured approach is taken to learn from a particular body of knowledge that interests you, and where dedicated teaching staff can help and guide you all the way to a degree or other qualification.

How do you study online?

Online students interact with learning content, teachers and class members in a similar way to campus students. For example they view lectures, partake in discussions, have one-on-one tutorials with their teacher, perform group work, submit assignments, and take exams, all online.

In any course of learning, good communication between teacher and students and between students is important. When you learn online there can be one-to-one communication between you and your teachers by email about work you are completing. You could also pose a question to your study group using email or on a discussion forum, and then join in the discussion that follows. Other internet resources such as instant messaging or conferencing facilities help to ensure rapid and relevant communication.

Do you already learn online?

Put simply, learning is about joining a community that with the assistance of teachers, accesses information on a subject, then analyses it, resulting in greater skill and knowledge.

By using the various functions of the internet, you have probably already done a lot of learning online in an ad-hoc way. For example you view videos on YouTube just as you would view a lecture online, you meet people with similar interests, discuss ideas and form friendships on blogs or on community sites like Facebook. You speak to friends and colleagues via instant messaging services like Skype and MSN Messenger.

If you think about, you should be comfortable with the idea of learning online because you’re already using the technology that online learning uses, to delivery learning.

What’s the difference between online learning and distance learning?

“Distance learning” refers to the idea of learning at a distance where learning materials are sent to the student. This was first put into practice by the University of London External System in 1958.

Communication between teachers and students has improved as better communication tools have become available, i.e. telephone, videos, CDs, email. The internet has taken distance learning to a new level by enabling much more fluid communication and interaction between students and teachers. This level of communication enables communities to form and function, meaning the learning experience is similar to that of a campus-based one.

How popular is online learning?

Some years ago John Chambers, CEO of Cisco Systems' once made this prediction about online learning: "The next big killer application for the Internet is going to be education. Education over the Internet is going to be so big it is going to make email usage look like a rounding error in terms of the Internet capacity it is going to consume.”

The Sloan Consortium is a leading researcher of online learning. In a recent survey of more than 2,500 US universities and colleges, they found:
• Over 3.9 million students were taking at least one online course during the fall 2007 term - a 12 percent increase over the number reported the previous year.
• The 12.9 percent growth rate for online enrollments far exceeds the 1.2 percent growth of the overall higher education student population.
• Over 20 percent of all U.S. higher education students were taking at least one online course in the fall of 2007.

They concluded: “online enrollments have continued to grow at rates far in excess of the total higher education student population, with the most recent data demonstrating no signs of slowing.”

This demonstrates clearly  that online learning is becoming more popular each year.

There has been a significant rise in the number of universities and colleges making online courses available in the last few years. 96 percent of the very largest institutions (more than 15,000 total enrollments) have some online offerings, as outlined in another report by the Sloan Consortium in 2006.

What are the main reasons behind the rapid growth of online learning?

Convenience
You take the classroom with you and access it when you want, so it fits around your schedule.

Richer class discussion 
Some people say that they get more out of online learning because they find that there is richer class discussion. In a lecture theatre, the shy, less confident students tend not to contribute to class discussion. When you are online, you have time to think about a meaningful contribution and therefore you are more confident about sharing your views. You also end up talking with more people because it is easier to approach people online. Some classes allocate marks according to your individual contributions because this is seen as important for your overall understanding of the subject.

Deeper interaction with learning content 
Another reason people prefer online learning is that you can absorb information at your own pace and be more thorough about engaging in the learning content. For example when you’re in a lecture hall, if you miss what the lecturer said, it’s gone forever. However, online students can rewind over lectures, or research points that the lecturer has made before moving on to their next point.

Different learning styles can be accommodated 
Learning materials can be developed for different learning styles. E.g. a lecturer can provide both visual representation of an idea he is trying to convey along with actually describing it, to satisfy both visual and auditory learners.

More friendships developed 
Because it’s easier to interact with people online you end up speaking with more students and making more friendships at a deeper level. Also, there is a good chance of meeting with them down the line at a class reunion, or you might be able to organise an informal meet-up with your local classmates.

Diversity of views 
Because students can be located anywhere, you will most probably be studying with people from different states or countries.  This means that you will encounter a rich diversity of views held by people from completely different walks of life!

Can online learning change the world?

More people will receive education!
• People who traditionally wouldn’t have access to high-quality education, are provided with an opportunity to improve their knowledge and skills. The greater the number of people who are educated, the better the standard of living for the world’s citizens, particularly in third world countries
• Online learning offers a more student-centred approach for people who tend not to flourish in a classroom setting and can bring them the important benefits of education that they would not otherwise receive.
• Online learning means that more people in work are able to study at their convenience. They can improve their skills to do their jobs better. This in turn helps to improve productivity and innovation, leading to better performing economies and higher standards of living (!!!). See Kaplan’s campaign on unleashing talent.

From the evidence available, online learning is already changing the world!