With increasing advances in technology and life styles of modern-day students in higher education (e.g., rising age, multiple roles), many argue for educational reforms, radical rethink of curriculum, and leveraging IT-enabled distance education.
Are you in favor of IT-enabled distance education, particularly at Masters and Doctoral levels?
Distance education is one of the facilities that makes learning easier and more accessible for all. Though it is not recognized by the Ministry of Higher education in my country, but to me, it is a great revolution in learning offered to people all over the world.
Distance IT - enabled education is excellent tool for both the learners who can learn from the convenience of their homes, as well as the education systems that can reach throughout the world to deliver their educational aims.
Technology has helped in the growth of mobile learning and long distance learning. The use of internet technology has enabled teachers to reach students across boarders and also students from developing countries have used internet technology to subscribe for advanced educational courses. Many universities and colleges have embraced online education by creating virtual classrooms. Online education is flexible and affordable, students can attend classrooms during their free time, and they can also have a chance to interact with other students virtually.
Please follow this useful link:
https://www.researchgate.net/post/Are_you_in_favor_of_promoting_IT-enabled_distance_education_Why_or_why_not
21st century is all about learning anywhere, anytime at one's own pace; not only for masters and doctoral level, but for all levels IT enabled distance education is quite an excellent opportunity.
Great contributions! Thank y dear colleagues, Nazia Asad , Abderrahim Benkhaled , Mohamad-Hani Temsah
Distance education is one of the facilities that makes learning easier and more accessible for all. Though it is not recognized by the Ministry of Higher education in my country, but to me, it is a great revolution in learning offered to people all over the world.
Students with scheduling or distance problems can benefit, as can employees, because distance education can be more flexible in terms of time and can be delivered virtually anywhere.
Yes, for working people it gives an opportunity to learn at their convenient time and place, also its affordable.. But for courses where practical knowledge is a must like medicine, engineering, etc IT enabled distance education programs should not be offered..
Distant (Remote) learning with IT means is absolutely welcome. Despite the fact that it is basically just a new technology applied for a real problem, it opens up so many opportunities, that generally speaking it is revolutionizing educational processes, promising many new educational forms, audiences, lecturers, instructors, as well as new educational goals addressed.
The distance education is a great way of acquiring knowledge/degree, especially with the available standards of information technology. Disbelief in the degrees acquired by the distance mode is really unnecessary.
A well planned online degree is as good as a regular degree.
There are so many people (probably including me) who do not want to travel, stay away, and due to financial constraints cannot join a regular course.
Many universities (Harvard, Johns Hopkins) now provide well planned online degrees
I am "FOR" online education
All the best
-Ramana
May be useful for some cases, especially those who work in the morning and can not obtain knowledge or have special conditions prevent them from getting knowledge in the normal way.
Distance learning via IT is a good idea and it is already in operation. This gives an opportunity to study its weaknesses and its inherent problems especially in areas where it differs significantly with traditional physical classroom learning. Major concerns, one of which is, ascertaining intellectual output is actually produced by the student, should be taken into cognisance in the design of distance learning with IT in any particular establishment or educational endeavour.
Distance IT - enabled education is excellent tool for both the learners who can learn from the convenience of their homes, as well as the education systems that can reach throughout the world to deliver their educational aims.
A learning revolution is already in the making via IT, e.g. Virtual and Augmented Reality as educational tools for achieving a circular economy. However, assembly pedagogics has its own value, e.g. for social group learning.
Distance Education, I think that this type of education does not cover the whole process of learning. Students or candidates need to be in touch with their supervisors and experts.
This type of learning is not recognized by the Iraqi Ministry of Education because it does not comply with all the conditions and instructions provided by the ministry and the laws pertaining to graduate students.
Distance learning plays an active role in raising cultural, scientific and social levels among individuals. The large shortage of teaching staff and trained hands in different fields. Alleviates the weakness of the potential suffered by some universities. Reduces individual differences among trainees, by placing diverse educational resources in the hands of the learner, as well as providing full support to training institutions with everything they need to produce effective teaching and teaching techniques. Open prospects for career advancement for those who missed the train of regular education of staff, which enables them to study and work at the same time. Save time and effort.
I have been patiently waiting for the holograms that expose the experts/supervisors that Yousif mentioned. Anyone utilizing this technology in learning?
I see that this will democratize education and make it available to a much larger population who may not otherwise be able to afford quality education. EdEx & Coursera are already making this a reality.
In my opinion I think with the rapid growth of science and technology, it will be very useful and helpful.
It is really time to integrate and promote technology in education. It is an absolute necessity.
Nope I am not for it !!!!!!! Why - the effectiveness of teaching and learning is lost . Especially with labs and assignments, I feel classrooms are more effective . Learning has its impact too, a classroom setup is more effective mode of discussion and interactive . At least I have experience , one online course is okay but a whole Master's degree I am not in favor of it ...
Are you in favor of promoting IT-enabled distance education? Why or why not?
Different people have different needs. It depends on a person's particular need at a time as well as what subjects are being conducted. E.g. if you are staying in remote area / country whereby local community has no other better means to offer relevant education then IT-enabled distance education is very beneficial & helpful. Moreover, certain courses that require onsite experimental labs, field works, face to face discussion etc., then IT-enabled distance education might not serve the purpose.
Dear Aparna,
You are right. No computer can replace a teacher's interactive dialog with a student, or the whole students audience. Unfortunately, bureaucrats look at remote teaching as a way to save money at the expense of reducing the amount of teachers, while increasing a number of students.
They may be right financially, but it will substantially degrade education, and the quality of graduated students. In summary, remote education ought to be well balanced with what is and isn't appropriate to do to really improve the overall educational process.
Both my MA in Transpersonal Psychology and my PhD were undertaken on line. For my MA, we were divided into groups of 6 to 8 pupils and the University had a program where we could all see and participate in the group discussions, often based on some thing we had all read. I found it fascinating, we all learnt from each other and a mentor monitored what we wrote and could join the discussion, when he or she wanted. We were not allowed to criticise the points of view of another but we could ask him or her to clarify more what he or she meant. It gave me invaluable training in tolerance and respect for the point of view of others and the realisation there are many ways of seeing reality. Also in an online system like this, there could be no wall flowers as everyone had to express their ideas and read what others had written to be able to comment on these comments as well. It was a lot of work. When one has a teacher, one usually only gets one point of view although of course one reads the ideas of other published authors. For my PhD I worked with one mentor and I too had a different but beneficial learning experience where I was allowed to also follow my own interests. I really recommend on line learning, I feel it is particularly beneficial to post grad students.
Warm regards Tina
I think yes, it is very beneficial for those who are doing a job. However, it depends on the feasibility, affordability, and circumstances.
There are many advantages of distance education:
However, the main drawback associated with it is questionable credibility of evaluation process and degrees.
Dear Len and Aparna,
You are both right that no computers can currently replace the human's addition to individuals learning experience , however , the online learning platforms opened new dimensions for the learning process .
One example of such successful learning / teaching online experience one to one is for those learning other languages , as these video chatting is valuable addition to the students from the comfort of their home , having access to native speakers 24/7
It depends on the situation. For example in rural area and politically unstable areas, it may make sense. Otherwise, there is no substitute for a University setting.
Excellent response, Maham Muzamil . Thank you for sharing your insights
My take on this is that the younger generation would overwhelmingly prefer distance learning and some of the non-traditional (returning) students prefer face-to-face learning. Thus, by all means, promote the IT-based format to meet the needs of that segment of the audience.
I believe that learning another language while learning another concept should enrich the global organization. In US there are only a few multi-linguistic teachers (Evan with ESL which is a large makeup of migrates). Lets push it!!
I am in favor of undergraduate and postgraduate lato-sensu levels, since they already work and have good results in Brazil.
But for masters and doctorates, this is starting now, I believe that no, because it needs the face-to-face contact of the student and the supervisor
Patricia Thompson
You can use any software or videoconference for an F2F connection, but I believe it is not the same thing for a thesis orientation or dissertation face to face.
Are you in favor of promoting IT-enabled distance education? Why or why not?
Thank you dear colleagues for your insightful responses, Luay Abdulwahid Shihab Marcelo Tsuguio Okano Patricia Thompson Karen A. Darbinyan Srini Vasan
Indeed it will increase the productivity of the students in question at their work places.
ADVANTAGES
1. Convenience
2. Flexible
3. Self-directed
4. Accessibility
5. No travel expenses
6. Less cost
DISADVANTAGES
1. No social interaction
2. Making time
3. No instructor facetime
4. No campus atmosphere
5. Stigma/perception
6. No skills on technology/ If you’re not computer
It is a great revolution in learning offered to people all over the world.
I agree with my colleagues and especially Md Azree Othuman Mydin
Impressive query and valuable informative replies from our RG colleagues.
I do agree with their comments.
For school students wishing to access courses that their school may not offer or those living in rural and remote regions it represents a revolution. In Australia these course in the case of rural and remote were delivered by radio.
Yes i am in favour of distance learning education. I agree with @ Hazim Al Dilaimy
Yes it is Valuable to increase education via Any Mean either Online Parttime Fulltime Any way. Regards
Yes, I strongly support this. Technological development is the bridge for the transmission of information and ideas to all learners around the world. However, there is a need for technological infrastructure in some of the world's poor countries, which do not have Internet services and technology .
Distance IT Such programs facilitate many things, especially on the learners and make them closer and easier to get the information.
Distance IT and Such programs facilitate many things, especially on the learners and make them closer and easier to get the information and learning.
My concern is that it will vie a lonely pursuit. Does anyone know of a IT Distance learning that has a concern for " How much social interaction is usually within the program." I am of a hybrid system that allows for rF2F 4 times a month.
Whether we like it or not, we live in an IT-enabled world. We have to be part of the change train or we will miss the ride. Thank you dear colleagues for your contributions to this discussion.
It is not suited to the societal and educational conditions of many countries, and there are many solid universities in developed countries that do not support it. I think that the main reason for its lack of preference is due to the misuse of this educational pattern in terms of his ability to provide a sound educational environment.
Thank you dear colleagues for your contributions. This collection of responses is awesome.
I AM OK WITH IT-ENABLED DISTANCE LEARNING, AS LONG AS THERE IS FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION - EVEN THOUGH EXPRESSION OF FREEDOM IS VERY SUBJECTIVE! HOW DO YOU SELECT WHAT IS GOOD FOR ONE AND NOT GOOD FOR THE OTHER.? MAKING ASSIGNMENTS TO COMPLETE REQUIRED STANDARDS SHOULD BE REACHED WITH RIGOR THAT WOULD BE REQUIRED WITHIN THE PROCESS OF ASSESSMENT AND LEARNING. WHO WILL DECIDE UPON THESE STANDARDS?
It helps to promote education by making it easier and more accessible.
Yes always
Technology facilitates education, helps to identify the latest types of knowledge, helps increase communication between teachers and students, and encourages creativity and innovation
Distant education is very useful for being easily accessed by a lot of people in the world. The only demerit that makes it unattainable is that not all countries recognize it.
There is so much knowledge to be learned just by the touch of a finger.
This is an amazing collection of responses. Thank you Patricia Thompson , Hazim Al Dilaimy , Mohammad Mehdizadeh , Bassam Samir Alromeedy , Abderrahim Benkhaled , Wahag Abass , Isam Issa Omran
Not always distance education is advantageous. Depends by the specialization.
Distance education may not be healthy and generally weaken human performance with respect to academic quality.
It may be conditionally promoted for efficient professional looking for education for promotion in queue.
It is very fundamental question . In regular education we are taking ICT classes .
For teacher student interaction basis Audion Visual Learning system will make
up the deficiency of distance learning .
Agree with comments, on distance mode of education, of Pankaj Tomar and Laura Bulgariu.
I support it as a means of learning but it does not replace traditional education
Definitely IT-enabled distance education mode supports learning, but may neither be equal to traditional education system nor can replace the same.
Direct traditional learning is more effective than distance education. Eye-contact, interactive learning that could be promoted in traditional learning has more advantages than distance learning which does not have the interaction between students and the instructor.
A big challenges are a part of distance learning education. If you are a student, the challenge is to go about your time receiving.
More application courses are required to include student selected settings allowing to customize a course to particular student needs. Say one is concerned to see more detailed examples on solving equations. Another one would prefer more exercises on finding derivatives, etc. The third one would like more details in the physics lecture relating electricity, etc.
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