The Internet has created a revolution in every area of modern life. Education is no exception. For many students, especially mid-career professionals, online classes allow them to continue their education or gain training in new areas without interrupting their work schedules. While online classes differ in a number of areas from traditional classes, the sharp lines which used to divide traditional classes from online classes are beginning to blur.
Online Classes Defined
Online classes are defined as courses which are offered primarily or exclusively through the Internet as opposed to being taught in a classroom or in a workplace setting. Online classes may be offered by traditional universities, companies, nonprofit organizations or schools and other institutions which operate exclusively online. Online classes may be offered for college credit, industry certification or strictly for personal enrichment. Virtually any subject can be taken through an online class. In this respect, online courses are more like traditional courses than different from them.
Required Equipment
The basic requirement for taking an online class is access to a computer with Internet access. For online courses with a video element, high-speed Internet connections are often required, although many courses can be accessed through a dial-up connection. Many online classes require students to have email accounts for submitting assignments and receiving feedback. Others require students to have a headset and/or a web cam for real-time interaction with other students and instructors. Some courses require students to download proprietary software. Online courses have more extensive requirements than most traditional classes, which only require students to show up in the classroom at appointed times and days during the week. However, some traditional curricula (including many law schools) also recommend or require students to have computers as well.
Instruction Methods
Some online courses attempt to replicate the classroom experience of traditional courses as much as possible. These classes frequently schedule real-time discussion sections among participants by either voice or text chat. One online learning environment has created a virtual campus within the environment of Second Life, where student avatars interact with one another (See Resources).
Other online courses are primarily self-taught, with students completing lessons and assignments at their own pace, and submitting their work through a website or by email. Some independent traditional courses are similar to online courses in that students pace themselves and submit assignments on their own schedules, either by hard copy or sometimes by email.
Learning Materials
Most traditional courses require books, along with some handout materials. However, the line between online and traditional courses is beginning to blur in this area, as some online courses also require books and traditional reading materials, in addition to or sometimes instead of providing reading materials online. On the other hand, many traditional courses are beginning to offer course materials via the Internet or in files which can be downloaded by students, either to conserve paper or to cut costs for students, or both.
Class Interaction
Traditional classes provide interaction between students and instructors during scheduled class periods. Online classes did not offer this component before; however, many online classes do provide interaction between students and between students and instructors. The important difference is that interactions for traditional courses are face-to-face, which online classes can approximate but not duplicate. The lines between traditional and online classes are also blurring in other areas of interaction in that many traditional classes include interaction between students, and especially between students and instructors, via email, much like with online classes.
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