To distance learn or not: part one

Distance learning and the internet

While there's no doubt that the world wide web impacts every aspect of teaching and learning, the greatest impression is that which has been made on distance learning. Yes, it existed before the internet was as widely adopted as it is in the present day, but it relied on snail mail, the archaic fax machine and other methods of communication that are reminiscent of the dinosaur era.

With the rise in technological capacity, there is an ease with which distance learning courses can be offered and undertaken and this has caused an explosion of them on the web. Every Tom, Dick and Harry is offering training of some sort - whether it's on effective strategies for shoelace-tying or mechanical engineering. These developments raise a number of questions. One of these is around the impact that this has had on the standard of global education generally. Another asks how distance learning compares to traditional learning models in terms of the quality of the teaching and learning that is on offer.

Comparing distance learning with the traditional model

Addressing the initial issue first: how has the explosion of distance learning courses affected the global standard of education? Admittedly, this is a difficult question, the results of which are virtually impossible to measure. However, it is reasonable to acknowledge that there are a number of factors in play. Plausibly, one might argue that there is no way to control what courses are offered online - which means that a diminishing standard is likely.

However, the converse can also be argued. The nature of the web is such that it is almost completely controlled by consumers. Content, products and services that are sub-standard or lack interest-value swiftly find themselves at the bottom of the Alexa (www.alexa.com) rankings, while ‘good' content spreads virally. Surely the same pattern would be true for educational offerings? While inferior courses might be offered, they are unlikely to have many candidates enrolling if only because when people buy products online, they seek validation in their decisions from people whom they trust; people like themselves.

This raises another issue though: are the masses informed enough to distinguish good educational offerings from bad ones? In a society that cares more about whether Brangelina is pregnant again than the fact that Zimbabwe is run by a dictator and its people are starving, can we really trust our friends to make decisions around how we are educated? And herein lies the necessity for extensive research into the course you are interested in and who's offering it, rather than a reason to dismiss the learning model entirely.

And of course, there are benefits to the ubiquity of distance learning. Access is one of these. People, who previously had no access to education in any shape or form, now have the option of learning from international educators. While traditional web access might not yet be universal, poor nations have quickly adopted mobile phones which have the potential to be excellent learning tools. If the argument that ‘some education is better that none' holds, then those who are cynical about distance learning and its efficacy must surely be silenced in this regard?

That said, it is not for everyone and it is a distinctly different learning model from the one that most of us are used to. The question remains; is it as good or as effective as traditional contact learning? The answer - it depends on your perspective and on your approach.