Internet has influenced our society in several ways and it includes the education sector. My parents tell me it was not possible to get a college degree in older days without leaving the house. But now thousands if not more people get college education without leaving their homes or workplaces as long as they have access to the internet. Some people think online education is less effective than physical classrooms but they often have low knowledge of online education or wrong opinions. Online education should be promoted because it helps many people get education who would not otherwise due to reasons such as cost and location.
Online education is a great substitute for physical classrooms due to lower costs. College education is expensive everywhere and this includes rich countries like the U.S. Online education usually costs less because online universities don’t have to build buildings and facilities and they can admit more people than traditional colleges and universities. They also hire fewer people. A study by a team from Parthenon reported, “that full-time virtual schools cost, on average, $6,400 per pupil, compared with $8,900 for blended schools and $10,000 for traditional brick-and-mortar public schools.” (Ark). I know many poor people in Saudi Arabia who did not go to school because their parents could not afford the high tuition. The lower costs of online education can help many poor people go to college.
Online education means location is not a problem anymore. In case of regular colleges and universities, one has to live close to get education. Online education system means location is not important because one can get education from anywhere if he has internet. Similarly, in many countries including Saudi Arabia, there are few colleges and universities despite large populations. The number of colleges and universities is about 25 in Saudi Arabia which is not much. In fact, the country’s largest university is King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah and it has “over 70,000 students.” (Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia). Thus, online education is a good thing for many people in the world who don’t live close to a college or university.
Those who oppose online education think it doesn’t offer opportunities for students to talk with each other. It may be true a little bit but technology is solving this problem. Online classes often have internet discussion boards and students can also meet on social media such as Facebook. In addition, many professors in online classrooms ask students to talk and also discuss other students’ ideas. It is possible the quality of student interactions with each other is sometimes better because students come from different countries and culture.
Online education is a new trend but it is becoming popular due to several benefits as compared to traditional colleges and universities. First of all, online education is cheaper than traditional education because online colleges and universities don’t have to build buildings and they have fewer employees. Online education also means location does not matter, thus, anyone anywhere in the world can get online education through internet. Some people think online education doesn’t allow students to engage with each other but technology is improving and students often use internet discussion boards and social media to talk to each other.
- Ark, Tom Vander. Is Online Learning One Third Cheaper? 2012 10 January. 17 June 2015
- Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia. Higher Education. 17 June 2015
