Distance Learning Flexibility Flexible Specificity

Distance Learning

Flexibility

Flexible specificity in instruction time

Student is free to devote time to other activities such as work, sport, or personal pursuits.

Access to Learning a. Increased availability of learning: student is able to access lessons and learning materials at any given time according to personal schedule, as above.

Promotes Life Long Learning a. Student learns responsibility in all areas of learning.

Promotion and Compensation

Persons engaging in distance learning can do so while engaged in a profession.

Distance learning can increase the possibility of workers being eligible for promotion or salary increases.

Access to Experts and Online Databases a. Distance learning necessitates access to online experts and databases as an alternative to on-campus libraries.

Instructor Communication

Instructors are available via e-mail or cell phone.

E-mail and cell phone communication tends to be discouraged in on-campus lectures; on-campus students tend to take advantage of such communications to minimize assignment and learning duties.

Email Assignment Submission

E-mail assignment submission; students do not need to physically hand in assignments; this facilitates the process of both submission and marking.

Financial and Social Benefits

Students do not need to physically travel to class venues.

Students can remain within their current social setting; increasing security and support in the learning process.

A disadvantage of this may be that students do not truly connect with other students in their study direction, with the result of relative isolation.

This can be remedied by further e-mail association with the rest of the "class."

Distance education has opened many doors for persons otherwise unable to gain access to tertiary instruction. There are therefore many advantages to this phenomenon. The most obvious of these is the cost saving in travel money towards class attendance. Concomitantly, distance learning students are also free to pursue their own endeavors in terms of careers and relationships, which would not be possible when traveling to the physical location of study.

Furthermore, distance education enables students to gain access to a variety of expertise that would not otherwise be possible. Online databases for example can be accessed from a remote computer, whereas an on-campus class would entail only the expertise of the professor.