The Challenge of Online Learning
The Challenge of Online Learning
It is no surprise that distance learning is viewed by many whose jobs depend on the academic establishment as the enemy; thus frequently attempts are made to denigrate degrees earned at a distance as the supposed inferior of their campus-based counterparts, even when their requirements are clearly directly comparable, and there is a clear offensive by the large and well-heeled campus-based schools against smaller specialist institutions, especially those that have escaped to some extent the shackles of state regulation, that threaten their control of the e-learning market. The truth is that, just like the Web itself, e-learning, being a global phenomenon, is seen as a threat because it is not capable of being controlled and subjected to the same political and academic restrictions as learning on the campus. British students, for example, do not only have the choice of British providers of learning, but those from Europe, with its long tradition of private higher education, the U.S.A. and even South Africa, India and countries beyond. The means to experience the educational culture of another continent without so much as leaving one's living-room is a truly astounding innovation.
But why should the new e-learning market only be open to those already providing campus-based learning? The phenomenon of the specialist e-university, existing without a campus and with only an office for its physical facilities, with the rest of its activities occurring entirely online, is already here. Jones International University is a good example of such an institution; it offers high-level instruction from a diverse and well-qualified faculty, as does Western Governors' University, also without a campus and specialising in experiential assessment. Smaller institutions exist in abundance, often focussing on a particular area, philosophy or learning style. It is self-evident that starting an e-university, particularly one offering a limited range of programmes, is a significantly less expensive and difficult undertaking than its physical counterpart, thus enabling a wide range of potential providers, including notably corporate e-learning programmes, to seek to take a share of what is an extremely large and lucrative market. The nature of distance learning means also that the university offices may be located according to the optimum financial and regulatory conditions for their establishment, rather than necessarily needing to be near their clients, and that the client base is not merely national but potentially global. It is even possible to use open-source software for course delivery, such as Moodle®. The University of Phoenix, started by history professor John Sperling, is a prime example of a privately-owned American e-university (now the world's largest) that delivers a deeply market-oriented product in a commercially astute and aggressive manner. In an article from Business 2.0, Paul Keegan writes,
"The University of Phoenix has been criticized by many of those associated with traditional universities as a "diploma mill" and "McUniversity" for creating a fast-track curriculum that allows working adults to get degrees almost as quickly as full-time students. These critics argue that U of P has always been more interested in pleasing shareholders and watching the profit margins from its schools than ensuring that its students get a good education.
But to its customer base of adults - you have to be 23 years old to be admitted - U of P has been a godsend. Many say their lives are so busy that they almost certainly couldn't get their degrees any other way. Even the university's unusual pedagogy, which stresses group learning and real-world experience, is finally gaining respect from peer institutions. Much of the animosity toward U of P, Sperling's defenders say, has come because he has done much better than traditional academia in serving the burgeoning adult market that now makes up about half of the nation's college students. Quite simply, he's stealing their customers."
More traditional state-sponsored institutions, being mostly wedded to the physical campus, are of necessity slower movers in adapting to the new market of distance education than University of Phoenix has proved to be, but some are already producing highly innovative responses to the situation. The extensive regulatory environment in which many state-sponsored universities operate means that it is more difficult for them to adapt to a client base that expects flexibility, personal focus, professional relevance and the assessment of experiential credit to be combined with academic rigor and efficient customer service. One answer, which we advocate, is the removal of much of the regulatory environment of higher education and the return of universities to their original status of self-governing and independent entities free from state control over their programs and competing in a free market.
The prospect of an educational utopia is now coming to be realised, whereby one can study almost anything one wishes at one's own time and pace, choosing between both state and private, established and new, traditional and progressive institutions. Thereby one may seek the university education that most closely harmonises with one's own ideals and beliefs. For years it has been the academic establishment that has been in control of university education; now it is the student. There is something out there for nearly everyone, and the scene is set for a population that is better-educated, more professionally-focused and free to explore its own intellectual curiosity to the full.
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