The concept of online education has emerged within a couple of years when people enthusiastically want to reshape the learning process. With the ascent of internet accessibility and technology, the traditional education system not remains the only learning option anymore. According to the survey report presented by the Babson Survey Research Group, over 30 percent of higher studies students in the United States are opting at least one online course and the number is growing along with time. Many educators think online education is a rational one for every age as it can help students to learn new skills as well as sharpen the existing skills with difficult subjects. Unlike the traditional education system, online education enables the students and teachers to set their learning schedules and pace according to their understanding and flexibility.
However, instead of rapid digitalization and technological advancement, online studies were still considered as the ads on of traditional learning process until we embarked on the Covid-19 pandemic era. The virtual world was playing the role of rescuer since the whole world has shut physical and social interaction down during the pandemic situation. Subsequently, online education or online studies has taken the place of the traditional education system.
The education sector of India has been affected hugely because of the sudden lockdown announced by the government. From school education to higher education, corporate education, management education every field was shattered due to this unpleasant unfamiliar situation that humankind ever faced. India is the only country with its billions of population, being able to shift the whole education system successfully into the digital medium within a few days. Needless to say, the pandemic has transformed the chalk-talk teaching model to one driven by technology. The tireless effort of education policymakers helps to figure out how to drive the education at scale while ensuring the quality level of online teaching. The A-level B-schools were playing a crucial role in initiating a paradigm shift in the process of technology-driven pedagogy making, teaching and learning.
Business colleges adopted two models of learning. These are synchronous online learning where students can attend live classes of their faculties and the asynchronous online learning method where students can be benefited with study materials, assessment applications, and repository of prerecorded live classes, video materials, or course contents. Many business schools have started combining their courses with other famous online educational institutions to optimize the course contents. They also offer various professional certificate courses through digital medium which can help the young generations to boost their career aspects.
Four reasons why online learning is considered as the future of education system are as follows:
1. It allows customizing teaching-learning experience
Online education provides flexibility to not only the students but also the teachers. These classes are smaller in size than any traditional classes. Students can access the study materials according to their flexible time and pace. Also, the teachers can teach at any place. Sometimes they can break the online classes into small pieces to lower the monotony.
2. It is cost-effective
Unlike the in-person education process, online education programs are offered by educational institutions at affordable prices. There are wide ranges of payment options through which learners can pay in installments.
Some educational websites also provide class materials for free. In other words, the monetary investment is less but the benefit is higher than traditional learning program.
3. It offers a wide range of programs
In the internet world, there are infinite subjects and skills to learn and teach. A growing number of educational institutions offer online versions of their courses and study programs. From school level pedagogy to management level courses- there are thousands of options for the learning enthusiasts.
4. A new way of earning money
Online learning provides opportunities to earn money for many unemployed professionals who are struggling for several years to get a suitable job profile. Because of this paradigm shift, institutions are now searching experts for online teaching more in number.
These are just a couple of reasons why the education system is rapidly bending towards online education and why most of the students as well as teachers think it as a better option in upcoming days. We can say cataclysmic events and pandemics invigorate our inspiration to embrace innovative communication technology and e-learning tools. Notwithstanding, there is an extreme requirement of assessing the upsides and downsides of the technology-driven learning-teaching experiences so as to build up a sustainable framework for the forthcoming future.
