12.09.2008

Pros and Cons of E-learning

E-learning has been gaining more and more power; but there are still many questions about advantages and disadvantages of getting higher education online.

E-learning has shown its great advantages through its accessibility to all students irrespective of their residence. E-classes help students to communicate with their tutors, get clarifications regarding their subjects and study and access teaching materials through e-libraries.

Universities and colleges which provide online degrees involve more and more electronic facilities to give their online students fast and qualified assistance. Students' interactions have become much easier than face-to-face communication. Another advantage of e-learning is its time flexibility. One can get online resources, communicate with his tutor or class mates, send his query and write term paper at any time he can get access to the Internet.E-learning or networked learning has been becoming more and more popular among students living in developing and undeveloped countries. They can afford getting higher education degrees at respectable universities and colleges by saving extra expenses for traveling, accommodation, food and high fees for tutors. E-learning can offer such students much easier and affordable way to get a good education and a prestige higher degree.

However, there are still a few disadvantages in e-learning which are enough obvious to be omitted in this article. Lack of face-to-face communication with teachers contributes lack of understanding between a student and a teacher. While a teacher cannot easily feel a student's demands, interests and motivations, a student can simply be lazy being non-motivated enough and having free time schedule for his e-learning. This may result a low scope of the student's knowledge and the teacher's accusation in lack of proficiency. Next, online classes, conferences and discussions are limited in time and totally exclude emotional interactivity. Though some universities and colleges which provide online courses and give online degrees evolve voice communication through networking technologies there is still lack of gestures, vivid dialogue and feeling of your interlocutor's presence.

E-learning as it looks today leaves so many questions and demands regarding its improvement as it gets benefits. However, its fast growing shows a great future for online degrees. One of the most influential things which stimulate e-learning development is globalization through the Internet. The globalize world of computer technologies accepts people of different cultures irrespective of their origin, boundaries, genders, races, ages and sexes. E-learning has become an integral part of this e-world and welcomes everybody who has willingness to learn and get higher education.
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