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TRADITIONAL VS. ONLINE LEARNING

As time flies, online learning gradually becomes more and more viable for
students. Despite the rise of online courses, traditional learning is still trying to adopt a
newer means to retain learners’ interest and gain back its relevance. While it is
controversial to say which is better, we can see how similar but also different these
two learning methods are. Here is a comparison between two ways to give you a
general view and basic understanding about these learning experiences.

To begin with, there are some similarities between online and traditional
systems. First, it has been proven that the knowledge provided is absorbed equally in
two ways. It depends on how enthusiastically the learners concentrate on the lesson
,for example, instead of sleeping in class, sleeping in front of a screen does not make
any more information dash to your brain, but if you dedicatedly focus on the lesson, in
both ways, you will gain all the things in that course. Though many have claimed that
the amount of information online classes provide are not as adequate as the traditional
ones, most online courses have the same curriculum as traditional classes. The next
one is deadlines, regardless of having a course at a physical class or just through a
screen, students would always make sure that their assignments are submitted on time.
In the same way as the traditional class, teachers always expect students to do a series
of reading and writing assignments, which may include watching documentaries or
movies that your professor adds to the syllabus. According to the Journal of Public
Affairs Education, both online and on campus classrooms include formal assessments
and quizzes. In both cases, lecturers can limit the time for test completion and allow
for closed- or open-book testing methods. The content is usually the same for online
and classroom tests, but some evaluations may be limited. For example, an online test
taker might not have access to classroom equipment necessary for biology or
chemistry lab tests. It's much easier for lecturers to monitor cheating in a classroom
setting. Although online test takers can't see other student's exams, they might use the
Internet or textbooks to answer questions, and the teacher may never know.The last
similarity is both face-to-face and distance class requires students to manage their time
wisely. On campus, students are planned for their time outside of the classroom to
allow for studying, projects, homework and extracurricular activities. However,
Northcentral University, an online institution, states that with the absence of regular
class meetings, online courses require students to acquire and learn course materials
on their own time. If you don’t learn how to manage your time wisely, you won’t be
able to get things done as efficiently as possible. You may miss out on meeting your
goals, fail to study often enough, and get too far behind on your lessons

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 Though there are many similarities, the differences are rather much more
significant. Comparing online education and offline education, the first things that
come to mind are always flexibility, synchronicity, effectiveness and cost.

For flexibility, online classes tend to be much more flexible than traditional
ones. If we look at the aspect of time and space in both ways, online learning has
much fewer constraints and limits. Needing its physical contact, a set of fixed time
and space are needed in order for traditional classes to occur. To be more exact, a
defined schedule and location beforehand are essential in planning an offline class. On
the contrary, online classes have neither of those weaknesses. As it does not need
every person to be in the same space to conduct a class which leads to more freedom
in choosing the time period as well. While traditional classes expect you to meet
certain requirements for those who enroll in their education, online classes are
available for almost everybody. The fact that location isn’t a limiting factor broadens
your education’s choices which traditional classes are unable to provide. For instance,
if you live in Virginia, you may be unable to attend an out of state program. However,
with online education, you can even tour the country and simultaneously get your
degree. All you will need is a computer and a strong internet connection. The variety
of people online education brings is enormous. The recent statistics indicate that the
world has a total of more than 7 billion people. This makes it more difficult to meet
people with whom you have things in common. But, an online degree program will
help you meet new friends regardless of the distance. More opportunities are given to
those who live in remote places as classes are more accessible than ever was thanks to
a variety of courses that schools offer.

While online learning favors flexibility, synchronicity is something that

traditional learning executes better. As online education is provided only through a
screen, the interactions are extremely limited. Most of the time, teachers and students
have to communicate by means of a small monitor which can only display a certain
amount of people at a time. Not to mention the difference in technology which every
individual possessed. Some may have devices that are not able to transmit accurate
information. All these barriers may lead to an unsync classroom which can lead to
many consequences. On the other hand, traditional classrooms do not hold any of
these restrictions. The presence of every student at the same place is a huge aid to the
teacher as they are able to attend to every needs and questions. There is almost no
chance that miscommunication can happen. A small failure in communication even in
the smallest of ways can lead to huge delays in project deadlines, tense business
relationships and loss of profits. Managing offline class performance is also easier
than online ones. Being face to face with what you are working with would always be
better than through a small inadequate screen.

Another significant difference between traditional learning and online learning

is their effectiveness. Although in both ways students learn the same things in similar
curriculums, traditional learning requires less self-research and follows a
predetermined path while online learning is found to be more suitable for students
who favor self-regulated learning. A student responded to online coursework by
stating, “It is more self-guided so I can spend more time on the concepts that I need

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help with and less on concepts that I can pick up quickly” (Kirtman, 2009, p. 110).
Also, students in traditional classes tend to excel in group projects thanks to
interpersonal interaction between members which helps with clearer communication.
Online classes students, on the other hand, do better in individual projects because
they can dive deeper into their research topic. So although the results are mostly the
same, what we learn in these classes is very different. We are more interactive and
focus in face-to-face classes, but online class gives us more freedom and time to dive
deeper into topics that suit our interest.

One last difference between these learning methods is their cost. Traditional
learning will always cost you more than online learning. Assume that you are
attending your local university, which cuts down your travel and housing costs a lot,
online learning is still much cheaper. In traditional learning, you have to spend your
money on books and other school-related materials. With online learning, the only big
payment you will ever make is on your smart device which you may already have own
or needed for school anyway. In online school, you also can buy ebooks that cost you
a fraction of the price of physical books. Not to mention, the tuition cost for traditional
learning will definitely be higher than online learning because of operation and
maintenance cost. Jeffrey R. Young mentioned this problem in an article in 2018, “the
savings for online courses ranged from $12 to $66 per credit hour, a difference of
from 3 percent to 50 percent of the average credit hour costs”. So, unless you are able
to get a scholarship, online learning will always be the better option financially.

In conclusion, although still providing us with the same amount of knowledge,

online learning and traditional learning have many major differences in aspects like
flexibility, synchronicity, effectiveness and cost. While face-to-face learning provides
greater clarity and understanding with interpersonal communication, online learning is
superior in flexibility and cost-saving. And each form of education suits different
types of students, it is better to do research thoroughly to find out what way of
learning is best for any specific case. Methods of learning change time by time, but at
the moment whether traditional learning and online learning could coexist and support
one another or completely replace each other. It depends on the development of
technology and how convenient and effective those methods bring to every situation.

References:
Simon, D., Jackson, K. & Maxwell, K. (2013). TRADITIONAL VERSUS ONLINE
INSTRUCTION: FACULTY RESOURCES IMPACT STRATEGIES FOR COURSE
DELIVERY. Hampton University.

Kirtman, L. (2009). Online versus In-Class Courses: An Examination of Differences

in Learning Outcomes. Issues in Teacher Education, 18(2), 103–115.
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ858508.pdf

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Young, Jeffrey R. (2018). Do Online Courses Really Save Money? A New Study
Explores ROI for Colleges and Students. EdSurge. Retrieved November 28, 2020,
from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-04-12-do-online-courses-really-save-
money-a-new-study-explores-roi-for-colleges-and-students

Tucker, K. (n.d.). Similarities Between Taking Classes Online and on Campus.

Classroom. Retrieved November 29, 2020, from
https://classroom.synonym.com/similarities-between-taking-classes-online-campus-
4755.html

Morgan, K. (n.d.). Compare and Contrast Online Vs. Classroom Instruction.

SeattlePi. Retrieved November 30, 2020, from
https://education.seattlepi.com/compare-contrast-online-vs-classroom-instruction-
1757.html