Online Learning

Learning - A Recap: The spoken word carried knowledge as far as a person travelled within his language region, as long as that person lived and/or as long as the memory of what was said remained in those who listened. The written word solved two of those problems but not the first and was still subject to loss if not kept in the right conditions. Also, the written word was subject to scarcity because of limited manuscripts/printings. The printing press addressed the scarcity issue to some extent but then the people who owned the books were not likely to make them available to every person who wandered onto the estate in search of answers. So we needed libraries to hold a "Commons" of knowledge. If you were privileged, a college or university not only provided the library but the instructors to guide you along in your study.

But the problem of distance remained. What if you could not travel to one of those centers of learning? A correspondence course! You could send in your answers by mail. Then came the idea of distance learning to groups via the radio or even the television. And with the invention of the VCR, the idea of personal training via video tapes. Study at your own pace!

So when the internet came along the tradition of distance learning was well established. And there were cost savings too. All of the course materials could be distributed online. Video and audio enhanced the learning experience. And bigger players started to pay attention to the market for online learning.

Those bigger entities knew that to make serious money, they would need to offer significant content and be able to issue degrees which were recognized by some accreditation body. Those with capital moved to scoop up struggling brick and mortar learning institutions and re-present them as online colleges. And that is where we are today.

Before you invest your money in such institutions, thoroughly investigate their representations and, if possible, speak to graduates to see if their experiences met their expectations.