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Distance learning advantages
Distance learning has become widespread with the spread of the Corona virus, as many advantages of distance learning have emerged, the most prominent of which are the following:
Flexibility in learning
Flexibility in learning is one of the best advantages of distance learning, as distance learning allows the student the opportunity to choose the time, place, and method used for learning, which means that it keeps the option open for the student to choose the method that suits him, for example: Distance learning provides the option of video conferencing for people who want to learn remotely with the possibility of direct communication with teachers. For people who have certain commitments and responsibilities that do not enable them to communicate directly with the teacher, such as: people who are committed to work and study together, distance learning provides them with other wide options that meet their needs and suit their times.
Saving time and effort
Distance learning saves time and effort for both the student and the teacher, as distance learning has removed the student and teacher’s anxiety about the need to attend the specified lecture time, the type of transportation used to attend the lessons, and whether there is a traffic jam or not, which saves time and effort.
Saving money
Distance learning reduces the usual educational costs, and therefore the certificates and degrees obtained through distance learning have become a common and recognized concept, as there are many accredited universities that specialize only in the distance learning process, as these universities have saved the costs of establishing the university, and targeted the education process directly, which provided the student with the same study programs that were available in regular universities, but with a radical difference in prices.
Examples of this include: A student residing in the United States of America needs approximately $22,000 annually to study at a public university for a four-year major, while international study costs reach $45,000 annually for the same major, while a student committed to the distance learning system at the same university and major needs approximately $50,000 for his full four years of study.
In addition, distance learning has saved the student financial expenses related to transportation used to reach the university, and everything related to it from car maintenance costs, gasoline expenses, or bus tickets, and it has also saved the student costs related to purchasing books and papers.
Getting more opportunities
Distance learning provides more opportunities for students, as it allows students to study at different universities around the world without requiring travel and physical presence at the university, which has enabled students to study at various prestigious universities around the world, which the student is usually unable to study in due to the distance, tuition costs, housing fees, and other university attendance requirements.
In addition, distance learning has opened horizons for students who are unable to complete their education for various reasons and circumstances, including: health reasons, commitment to external jobs and work, or the requirements of parenthood, and other circumstances that prevent them from engaging in the regular educational process.
Gaining more technological skills
Distance learning enables the student to gain more technological skills, as distance learning can only be done through one of the available technological means, and among the technological skills that the student acquires during distance learning are the following:
1- Searching the Internet.
2- Mastery of working on various computer programs such as (Word) and the slide presentation program (Power Point).
3- The skill of working on electronic discussion boards.
4- Working on various social networking sites.
5- The skill of email correspondence.
6- The skill of making videos.
7- The skill of publishing on a website or blog.
Distance learning provides the necessary technological skills for the individual, as it is expected that all jobs in the future will be done remotely. It is noteworthy that according to an American report published in 2018, two-thirds of the jobs made available in the United States in 2010 required the person to have intermediate to advanced technological skills, out of 13 million jobs.
Distance learning has many advantages, such as: saving time, effort, and money, and providing the opportunity to work and learn at the same time, which facilitated the learning and teaching process for students and teachers alike.
Disadvantages of distance learning
Despite the positives and advantages of distance learning, there are several disadvantages to it, as explained below:
Lack of social interaction
The regular learning process provides an opportunity for students to get to know each other, and brings students together from different places and enables them to interact and exchange personal experiences. As for the distance learning process, it is limited only to electronic education methods, which allow students to interact with each other via electronic discussion boards, chat rooms, email, or video clips, but all of these methods do not replace the regular personal communication process, which led to a lack of social interaction skills among students.
Low level of personal skills
The lack of direct interaction between students, and between the student and the teacher, has led to difficulty in forming social relationships, and a lack of personal skills necessary to form these relationships, to the point that some students began to feel isolated as a result of completing their daily schoolwork alone without anyone participating in it, and without engaging in group work.
Employer’s questioning of the credibility of education
The presence of direct interaction between students or between the student and the professor in the regular education process leads to the student being constantly reminded of his work, homework, and exam times, while in distance learning, this is largely due to the student himself, as the student is solely responsible for keeping track of work and homework, and a student who does not have concentration skills, or who does not have self-motivation cannot complete the educational process efficiently, and these motives and others are likely to make the employer question the credibility of the certificate acquired through distance learning.
Occurrence of problems related to the Internet
The distance learning process requires some basic things, such as: a computer, a stable Internet connection, and sometimes a camera, as reliance on these tools has become essential in the distance learning process, and without them, information cannot be communicated, and the exposure of one of these basics to a malfunction or a specific problem is a reason for disrupting the entire educational process and not completing it.
Examples of this include: a malfunction related to the Internet connection, or a malfunction in programs or devices, and therefore this excessive reliance on technological means in the educational process was a major flaw in the distance learning process.
The complexity of the learning method for some
Distance learning is often associated with a lack of efficiency of faculty members, and sometimes even if the teacher is good, it may be difficult for him to complete the distance learning process due to his lack of knowledge of how to use modern technology well. In addition, some students do not have the ability to understand without real interaction with the professor, which makes the teaching method complicated for some.
Distance learning has many disadvantages, the most important of which are: a feeling of loneliness and isolation due to a lack of social interaction, and a low level of personal skills among students, in addition to the possibility of the employer questioning the credibility of the certificate resulting from distance learning, but work must be done to overcome these disadvantages and try to solve them in order to continue the educational process.
The Future of Distance Learning
In light of the circumstances of the Corona pandemic and its impact on various sectors around the world, all parties have worked to limit the spread of the virus by closing some sectors, including: schools, universities, and all educational institutions for all ages, as there are approximately 150 countries that have issued a decision to close all educational institutions during the Corona pandemic, which affected 80% of the student density around the world, as the number of students enrolled in official universities in person decreased, according to a study published in the (Cureus Journal Of Medicine) in 2020.
Therefore, it is not expected that the educational process will return to what it was before, but distance learning will become part of the normal routine of life, as it is necessary to focus on the positives of the distance learning process despite its many negatives; In order to reap the fruits of this process and benefit from it as much as possible.
The world has turned to distance learning to a large extent after the emergence of the Corona pandemic, as the closure decisions affected most students around the world, and it was necessary to complete the educational process, and it is expected that the world will turn to adopting distance learning in the future.