Understanding the Limits of Online Courses
Distance Education's Potential Pitfalls for Students
Sep 2, 2009
Online learning offers great potential to students depending upon their experience, maturity, and personalities. However, distance education also has many limitations that students should know about before registering for an online course.
The Land of Promise May Actually be the Unforgiving Environment
Online classes are praised by supporters as the land of promise in education; however, they also may be an "unforgiving environment" according to Dykman and Davis (2008) who have reviewed a series of relevant research on the subject. They argue that "[m]istakes in process are often difficult to recognize because of a basic lack of traditional contact between faculty and students. This means that relatively minor problems can escalate to a crisis before being recognized by the professor" (pg. 281). This raises student responsibility to a high level.
Students wishing to succeed need to be monitoring their own progress and not simply taking for granted that the instructor is watching. Interaction with instructors need to be initiated by students on a regular basis and problems reported immediately.
24/7 Access is Not 24/7 Access
Advertising for online learning is always quick to promise 24 hour a day, 7 days a week access to instructors. However, students need to be aware that instructors are not simply sitting at their computers awaiting contact. Often instructors also teach traditional face-to-face courses and have family/social obligations. Even those who are not teaching in traditional environments are in the online realm due to small children, elderly parents, or other responsibilities.
All of this means that if a project is due by noon, waiting until 11 p.m. the night before to ask questions will rarely result in satisfaction or success for the student.
Technical Problems are Rarely an Excuse
In many online programs, the only technical issues that are considered acceptable for turning in late work are those directly the responsibility of the institution (such as the learning environment crashing). In fact, many instructors now consider this the new "dog ate my homework" excuse. As Segal (2000) notes in her article about student excuses, "[t]he computer age has revolutionized the student story, inspiring almost as many new excuses as it has Internet businesses" (A64).
This means that a student would be wise to back up all work and always have a second computer available because when tech problems arise (and they always do), the once easy method of attending class and turning in assignments while sitting in pajamas at home becomes a problem. Students need to ensure that when their laptop crashes their grade does not follow suit.
Online Students Can Confront Limitations via Awareness
Taking time to be aware of the course requirements can help students in an Internet course to function more effectively. Some courses are more text-heavy than others, but regardless of the amount of reading, failure to fully understand how the course operates will create frustration, stress, and ultimately lower grades. Therefore, even if a student is completely computer savvy s/he should always plan to spend at least an hour the first day exploring the course.
Students should take the time to be aware of the following:
- What to do in case of technical problems: most institutions have very visible tech support and students should keep the phone number and email address handy in case they cannot sign into the institution's site.
- The instructor's late policy: some institutions give instructors the option of creating their own policies, so a student must be sure to check each instructor's stand on late assignments.
- Where assignments are posted and how to turn them in: even though it may seem like this is something that can wait, the first day of class is the best time to check this out.
- Participation requirements: accrediting bodies set standards for institutions, so this is something that is typically strictly enforced by instructors.
- How to contact the instructor outside of the course shell: students need to keep the instructor's email address and (if given) phone number in an easy to find place (the same place as tech support would probably be best). This is important in case the course website encounters problems or the student is away from the computer and needs to contact the instructor for guidance.
- The best way to ask for help: Many instructors set up a special forum for questions and check that particular forum more regularly than the rest. Students wishing to get questions answered quickly and efficiently should be aware of whatever method the instructor has indicated for getting help within the course.
- The instructor's general rhythm: students should find out the hours an instructor is online and forget the 24/7 promise of recruiters. Asking questions early with the instructor's schedule in mind could potentially save a student's grade point average as well as his/her sanity.
Triumph Over Challenges
Distance education most certainly offers benefits for students of all ages, however, being successful means understanding that this learning environment is not without challenges. By having a realistic view of what to expect from instructors and how to prepare themselves, students can triumph over challenges and gain the success they seek.
To learn more:
Dykman, C. and Davis, C. "Online Education Forum – Part Three: A Quality Online Educational Experience." Journal of Information Systems Education, 19 no3 281-9, 10/01/2008.
Segal, C. "The dog ate my disk and other tales of woe." The Chronicle of Higher Education, August 11, 2000.
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