A View of the On-Line Classroom!

Peering into a distance classroom, you see a highly digital setting. The formal education is conducted while seated in front of the computer screen which is connected to the internet. Absent is the struggle to find the location of the classroom on a large unfamiliar campus and being on time for the instructor’s entrance. Instead, students sit alone in the comfort of the environment of their choice, telecommuting concepts, assignments and jokes.

I have been working at an essay writing service for a while and decided to share my research. And so, the first day of a class will begin by receiving a study package from the professor that includes a reading list, set of lectures to be downloaded chronologically at an individualized pace and assignment requirements. One also receives a list of fellow students, their e-mail addresses and a private classroom forum message board.

Electronic learning can be either synchronous or asynchronous.

Synchronous learning imitates the traditional pyramid classroom. Classes take place at a specified time, in real-time. Students are connected to each other and to the teachers through audio, satellite television and chat rooms. Questions and responses are immediate. Synchronous learning can take place anywhere, but not anytime and is dependent on available technology.

Asynchronous learning can take place at any time. Students receive a learning package to work on at their own pace. They communicate with teachers and class members through e-mail and message boards. This style of learning offers collaborative non-hierarchical experience that is boundless to time and place. Most on-line courses are conducted in this educational style.

Class size is limited similar to traditional education. Students receive grades, credits and certification according to the standards of the educational institution.

Many courses often have specified dates when they begin and end and include a schedule of coursework and assignment due dates. There are also courses that are self-paced, which are similar to independent study.

Most learning occurs in the communication between students and professors and among students themselves. Students are often graded on their on-line participation which is required five out of seven days a week. Students find these dialogues and academic debates demanding and quite challenging. Through these on-line chats, social relationships also grow. Social quantifiers, such as physical characteristics and race, don’t exist here. The entire experience is liberating. Just as in conventional education, distance learning creates strong social and professional bonds between students and their instructors.