As technology progresses, it brings a new thing to almost every area of our lives. One area that technology has impacted is in education and learning. Technology has made it possible to have online courses and online learning. One has the option of attending either traditional classroom learning or attending virtual classes online through online colleges and universities. Online learning offers one the ability to relax at home and use their personal computers at home to obtain a college education. It thus seems fit that we should use online learning in colleges and universities. While there is a convenience that comes about with the use of technology, online courses may not be fully beneficial compared to traditional learning. Traditional learning is more beneficial to online learning when compared in terms of group research, skill development, and the basic assessment techniques.
One first difference between traditional and online learning is in scheduling and time. The traditional class makes use of a fixed environment and a fixed time for teaching and learning. This creates a restriction on the number of students that can study in a specific period of time. The number of students depends on the learning institution and the size of the class. Traditional learning offers a less degree of flexibility because both students and teachers have to be in a particular place at a specific time. Students in traditional classes usually have the responsibility of showing up for their class so as to meet the attendance requirement. It may thus not be convenient for someone working on a full-time basis. They would have difficulty in arranging and getting free time to attend classes.
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Unlike traditional learning, online learning requires one to have an internet connection so as to access the virtual class. It is possible to have students from different countries and different parts of the world gather for classes. Students can allocate their free time where they will pursue the virtual classes online. The online environment offers a great degree of flexibility and convenience for the students. Such flexibility allows students to be able to attend class at any place and anytime. Students in traditional learning have to comply with a specific timetable which they should use to complete their studies.
Online learning is different from traditional learning methods in the area of developing interpersonal skills. Online courses do not require any face to face interaction with teachers or classmates. The information on assignments is usually posted online and can be completed at one's pleasure without going to class meetings. Even though this concept of leisure can be nice, it incredibly takes away interpersonal skills which children usually acquire during their education.
In a traditional classroom setting, students could be required to speak their mind. They may have to give speeches and presentations. It could also involve working in groups with different kinds of people. Online courses do not need any of that. Interpersonal skills could be important to foster the student’s ability to succeed in the careers (Lindsey and Rice, 2015). Traditional learning equips students with these interpersonal skills. The interaction in the classroom setting between students, classmates, and professors helps build the ability to speak and interact with others. This gives them a chance to learn how to carry themselves in a professional setting. Online courses will only hinder the student’s ability to speak and interact with the others in a way that enhances their interpersonal skills, their life, and their career.
Group assignments in the traditional classroom environment are usually valuable for teamwork. Through the group assignment, the teacher can be able to see the student that is putting more effort into the group work and give them more credit. This gives the students a chance to get their grades according to inputs. The meeting of teachers and classmates face to face also creates a better understanding through feedback. Feedback received from the classmates and peers allows one to improve on their assignments before handing the final copy to the teacher.
Group Assignments in online classes are usually difficult to execute and take a lot of time to bring the entire team together. It can be difficult to know when everyone is free to work on the project and who is going to handle which section. Online students may have to communicate with each other through emails so as to plan out their schedules.
One similarity with both online and traditional learning settings is that they follow similar assessment methods. Whether it is a traditional and online class being taken, there would be assignments that are supposed to be completed. The traditional class, however, has the benefit where students can check each other’s work before handing the assignment to the teacher. For the online task, students do the assignments by themselves unless they agree to send their assignments electronically to each other.
The traditional classroom setting makes use of tests to determine the student’s ability to understand the course content. Teachers set a time limit where students complete the assignment in either an open-book or closed-book exam. Students have to sit for the exam in their learning institution. On the contrary, tests are usually difficult to carry out. Online programs that make use of online test usually make use of webcam and microphones to carry out the exam. Some online classes do not make use of tests. Instead, they use an intensive homework, papers, and assignments.
In conclusion, the main advantage of the online setting is that it is flexible and convenient. However, students may have to take responsibility for their own learning compared to traditional approaches. There are considerable differences between the method of communication between online and traditional learning. Nevertheless, they have the same objective and delivering information. There are more benefits of the traditional learning compared to online. Being able to physically meet the teacher, get feedback, and carrying out tests helps the students. Even though technology has advanced with online learning, the traditional setting is better in providing a better environment.
References
Lindsey, N. S., & Rice, M. L. (2015). Interpersonal Skills and Education in the Traditional and Online Classroom Environments. Journal of Interactive Online Learning , 13 (3).
