Study: Students prefer ‘real’ classrooms, not online
By Carla Rivera, Los Angeles Times
As colleges are rushing — or being pushed — to embrace online education, they might want to take pause: Most students prefer connecting with teachers and fellow students and don’t want to take all of their classes online, a study suggests.
Students preferred direct instruction if they expected a course to be difficult, singling out math and science, according to the study released Thursday by the Community College Research Center at Columbia University’s Teachers College.
They also preferred a face-to-face setting when studying subjects they considered interesting or important, especially if the class was in their major. Many of the students said they learned more when the instructor is present.
The overall findings suggest that demand for online courses may be less than advertised. That consideration may become more important as many states move toward greater online offerings as a way to increase access and lower costs.
The drive in California is being led by Gov. Jerry Brown, who proposed new funding for online efforts in his 2013-14 budget plan, including nearly $17 million for the state’s 112 community colleges to create a “virtual campus.”
“In our students, about 10 percent said yes if I could take all of my courses online that would be helpful, but 90 percent said they’d like to take some online mixed with face-to-face,” said study author Shanna Smith Jaggars, who is the assistant director of the research center. “If students are not able to get into courses because there are not enough course sections, it doesn’t seem to suggest that adding more online courses is the answer.”
The findings, drawn from a larger study, are based on interviews with 46 students at two community colleges in Virginia who were taking at least one online class in spring 2011. They were a mix of ages and most were working.
Most students said they took online courses because of the flexible schedule, and some older students said they preferred a virtual classroom because they didn’t have to interact with their younger classmates.
But most said they missed the personal back-and-forth of the classroom.
“It just seems more, when you do it online, if you need help, your teacher is basically not there,” said one student. “Like face-to-face, she can help you a little bit more. But then when it comes to online, you have to teach yourself, I guess you could say.”
Nearly 27 percent of California’s 2.4 million community college students take at least one online class, up from 12.5 percent in 2005-06, according to officials. Students ages 18 to 24 account for 61 percent of those enrolled in online courses, and those younger students seem to be driving demand.
But the Columbia study echoes concerns that online learning doesn’t serve the needs of all students.
“It’s consistent with what the chancellor [Brice Harris] has been saying, that we don’t want students taking 100 percent of their classes online, it needs to be the proper mix,” said spokesman Paul Feist. “We need to restore course offerings at community colleges and restore access, but that will not be exclusively online.”
I think there is a place for both.
I am sure the future holder of a BS Degree will obtain it through a combination of On line and Formal Class / Lab credit.
It is the smart thing to do. Kids grow up with high tech at their fingertips. No problem saving some dough. A mixture properly done could save a ton. If you want a world class education for free though, check out Khan Academy.
People should see some analogy between on-line education and on-line shopping…..although it is a real benefit to some (like the physically handicapped or the person working two jobs) it undercuts the economic viability of face-to-face interaction. Given it’s ability to provide states with minimally meeting eductaional requirements at the lowest cost, guess where the “market” is going to take us? As Steven Colbert says :”the market has spoken” – and it will generate what seems like demand, but is instead lack of options. We see it here at LTCC for sure. It’s the same thing with digital textbooks – most students dont want them – but publishers and schools are pushing them. So much for real demand and supply. There is a reason why education is a government function, and it was to shield it from the down sides of an approach focused on short term profit. We already have one or two generations that have minimal social skills, and now we are looking to institutionalize it in our methods of teaching and learning? Great!
I take allot of online Training. Everything from Harardous waste Regulations and handling, to SIP, IP Telephony updates and function.
I take about 100 hours of this training per year.
For subjects where specific information needs to relayed, and a need to demonstrate that the material has been understood and can be applied in real situations. Online training is superior in many cases.
You are able to review the material at your own pace. There are no interruptions from the course material by peers. You are not exposed to unrelated subjects that a professor or instructor may want to delve into based on what is important to them at a given point in time.
The internet is a game changer. Its not all dry reading. Multimedia has opened the door to some very effective online instruction.
Throw in Live chat or co browsing for more complex subjects and it really gives many what they need while eliminating the overhead of the Collage Campus.
Education appears to be in line with the rest of the world as everything works toward a state of binary opposition (i.e. online/face-to-face, conventional/organic, box stores/specialty shops, conservative/liberal, analog/digital…).
I’ve taken on-line courses and had a good experience, but not nearly as good as being in an actual classroom directly interacting with fellow students and teachers. Oftentimes to encourage discussion among online students, teachers require students to give their peers feedback on class work. One of the problems I ran into with this was that many people waited until the last minute to turn in homework to be critiqued. This meant those of us who liked to get things done early had to wait around for the rest of the class. Yes, we could have critiqued each other’s work, but that does little to promote diversity and a healthy interactive environment. Another thing I didn’t like about the on-line classes was not being able to simply raise my hand and ask the teacher a question.
On the other hand, some people simply can’t quit their job(s) or relinquish all other responsibilities and become full-time students. So, on-line education definitely has a place in our educational system. Also, classes that frequently are cancelled due to low enrollment have a greater chance of moving forward if they can draw from a state/national/global pool of students. This is definitely something a smaller college could benefit from (like LTCC). The lower overhead is clearly a great thing about on-line education as well, which again can benefit those smaller schools that operate on limited budgets/resources.
To promote healthier social skills and communication between people, as well as a more well-rounded education, face-to-face will always be better (don’t forget, all that multimedia stuff done on-line can also be incorporated into a traditional classroom). However, if people don’t participate in technologically interactive experiences like on-line education, they’re going to miss out on a lot of opportunities and will eventually get left behind (due to a lack of skills/understanding regarding technology). A balance between the two approaches seems to be the logical answer.