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Introduction
As the internet permeates every aspect of our lives, it has help humans find new ways of utilizing it. Besides information sharing, staying connected with friends and family and conducting transactions, the internet has also enabled the spread of education. Today, numerous universities and private platforms offer online education courses – both formal and informal – for students seeking to learn a new skill or acquire qualifications in a particular field. To understand the popularity of the medium, look at the number of courses offered online today. In the mid-90s, the National Association of Schools and Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA) had eight colleges with courses offered online, while in 2012 that number has grown to 39. Over 40 per cent of the institutions under NASPAA offer online courses (Ginn and Hammond, 248). Similarly, the rate of enrolment for online courses has grown at over 21 per cent every year, against 2 per cent for traditional classroom teaching courses.
It is therefore now widely accepted that with the advent of the internet, the way education and training is imparted has changed. While the traditional classroom had the teacher and students coming together in one physical location at the same time, this does not necessarily apply to the online classroom. Online classrooms are of multiple types, but for the purpose of this discussion, the focus will be on two main types – live classes and on-demand.
Similarities between the Online and Traditional Classroom
In the traditional classroom, students come together with the instructor to interact and discuss as well as debate various aspects of the topic being taught. While the learning material such as reading etc. is provided by the instructor or carried by the students, the key learning takes place based on the interaction in the classroom with the teacher and among the students. Similarly, in an online live classroom, the teacher coordinates the class which can connect to the virtual classroom through their own computers. This creates an online virtual classroom where the teacher teaches the chosen subject through video to all the students. The students also have facilities such as discussion boards and query panels through which they can discuss their queries with the instructor. The other format of online training involves a pre-recorded session which students can access at their convenience, and post their queries to the instructor and classmates via a messaging forum, like a bulletin board service. The direct interaction between students and with the instructor is missing. However, the latter offers a greater degree of convenience for students, mainly those who are learning while working.
Key Differences between Online and Traditional Classrooms
Online classrooms serve as a viable alternative for traditional classrooms, mainly for students in remote locations and limited access to education. Online classrooms have a set of limitations as against the traditional methods of teaching in a classroom. Several researchers have studied the variation in impact and leaning between online and traditional classrooms and the findings have been varied.
The first key difference between online and traditional teaching is the fact that traditional teaching is instructor driven while online teaching tends to be more student or learner driven in its scope. The locus to learn lies with the student as he or she has to log in, follow the video lectures and given material, contribute to discussions and enhance the learning experience. Since students tend to be remotely located, undertaking these activities can be strenuous for the student (Education Portal, 1). Online learning is favorable for independent learning styles, while collaborative learning is achieved better in physical classrooms. The biggest advantage of online learning systems is the opportunity for lifelong learning, global community participation and access to international expertise. In addition, online learning tends to be updated and relevant than classroom learning. On the other hand, student participation in discussion and query sessions is higher than online formats (Morgan, 1). The biggest problems with online education include the limited direct contact between students and the faculty as well as among themselves.
Another key difference is where the teaching needs to be hands-on, such as in the case of various technical proficiency courses. These courses require a significant portion of hands-on work, and unless the student attends regular traditional classes, that may not be possible.
Measuring the Effectiveness of the Learning between the Two Forms
The key measure of determining which model is better lies in the ability to measure the effectiveness of student learning. Attendance and dropout rates are one manifestation of the degree of engagement and learning of students and were initially used to measure effectiveness. Carr (269) and McLaren (9) found that the level of persistence was much higher for traditional classroom, than for the online courses. However, this can be attributed to the fact that in the case of traditional classrooms there is an external locus of control – minimum attendance requirements, peer pressure and parental pressure among others. In the case of online classes, the motivation is intrinsic, as the student himself has to log in to the classroom, go through the study material and initiate and maintain contact with peers and the instructors through discussion boards and other tools.
However, in the case of outcomes of the students in terms of final grades, there was found to be little statistical difference between students who took a course online and those who took it in a traditional classroom. Studies by researchers such as Thirunarayanan and Perez-Prad (135), Smith (43) and McLaren (9) found limited or no statistical difference between the final outcomes of students learning online and through traditional means. However, given the fact that the students who complete the online courses are more motivated than those attending the traditional classrooms, the subsequent retention rates may vary in the online students due to one or more of several factors:
- Their intention to learn: since most online students tend to be older, their motivation to learn may be higher (Karayan & Crowe, 71)
- Their retention of subject matter: Due to the fact that the internet throws up millions of bits of information, students could be undergoing several courses and therefore retention of the subject matter may be low due to the volume of material available.
- Classroom discussion: the impact of a traditional classroom debate in face-to-face situations is known to help students learn better and retain more. However, the impact of a similar online debate needs to be ascertained.
Conclusion
While the two forms of learning seem to indicate a close parity in terms of achieving the learning objective, variances between the two forms are definitive. While classroom courses are better used for hands-on teaching and where the level of collective learning is higher, online courses are suited for individual learning and a broader scope. This is due to the fact that the internet provides resources from where sufficient accurate and recent information can be gleaned. Therefore, the internet classroom has its share of positives, but that does not mean traditional classroom teaching will die out. In the future, it is likely that there will be an amalgamation of both forms of learning to provide students an all-round learning experience.
References
Carr, S. “As distance education comes of age, the challenge is keeping the students”. 2000. Web. Chronicle of Higher Education, Information Technology Section. Last accessed 30 October 2014.
Education Portal. “What Are the Differences Between Online and Traditional Education?” 2014. Web. Last accessed 30 October 2014.
Ginn, M. H., & Hammond, A. “Online education in public affairs: Current state and emerging issues.” 2012. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 18(2), 247–270.
Karayan, S., & Crowe, J. “Student perspectives of electronic discussion groups”. 1997. THE Journal: Technological Horizons in Education, 24(9), 69–71.
McLaren, C. H. “A comparison of student persistence and performance in online and classroom business statistics experiences”. 2004. Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, 2(1), 1–10.
Morgan, K. “Compare and Contrast Online Vs. Classroom Instruction”.2013. SeattlePi. Web. Last accessed 30 October 2014.
Smith, L. “Content and delivery: A comparison and contrast of electronic and traditional MBA marketing planning courses”. 2001. Journal of Marketing Education, 21(1), 35–44.
Thirunarayanan, M., & Perez-Prad, A. “Comparing web-based and classroom-based learning: A quantitative study”. 2001. Journal of Research on Computing in Education, 34(2), 131–137.
