The Top Ten Reasons Why Online Learning

Can Beat Classroom Learning

Eric B. Dent, Ph.D.

Executive Director, Doctoral Programs

University of Maryland University College

I am an organizational behavior professor who researches, teaches, and consults in areas such as leadership, communications, change dynamics, and team building. My field is frequently described with the derogatory term "touchy-feely." Although I eschew this term, interpersonal contact is certainly a central dynamic of the field. Along comes the worldwide web which cannot be characterized as touchy-feely. The vernacular of the web is "virtual," "asynchronous," "emoticon," "hyperlink," and "bot." Consequently, for all of its wonderful benefits, most people do not associate the web with taking the place of experiences that have always had a human element. What I've discovered in the world of higher education, though, is that online learning has some tremendous advantages compared with classroom learning, particularly for working adults. Before going further, I should add that, like any good person working in the field of human behavior, I could deliver a masterful argument for why web-based learning and education is not as effective as classroom learning. I could rise higher over the lecturn and preach about the magical moment when student and professor make eye contact in mutual recognition of special learning that is taking place as the professor touches the hearts and minds of her students.

But rather than rising to that occasion, I will focus in this essay on the tremendous advantages of web-based learning. Before you reply that "online learning is not for me," let me point out that virtually (pun intended) all professors sometime in the next ten years will engage in online learning and/or training of some sort from your university. Moreover, many professors will be asked to participate in teaching an online course.

First, the requisite caveats. Online learning certainly allows for less human contact. Secondly, the advantages I describe below are limited to facilitated experiences in which a professor is an active participant in the learning experience - not self study. Thirdly, even with the advantages I will describe below, I believe there are certain subjects or types of courses which are best taken in the classroom. Finally, it seems clear that an even better learning environment combines the strengths of face-to-face encounters with those of the worldwide web.

Let us begin by reminding ourselves that the magical teaching moment I referred to above is a very infrequent learning experience. Most of the learning we've done in the classroom has been in spite of the way classroom teaching occurs, not because of it. So, yes, the magical moments are special and probably cannot be replicated in the same way online. But, the drudgery which is a frequent component of classroom learning can largely be eliminated online. Recall the hundreds, if not thousands, of harsh critiques that were written about classroom learning (cf. Vaill, 1996) long before "dot com" entered the lexicon.

Before presenting my top 10 reasons, let me discuss the most important shift in mindset that must occur in order to appreciate fully the advantages of online learning. When I first began working online, my assumption was that the goal was to try to replicate, virtually, what occurs in a classroom. At some point, it dawned on me that that was not a reasonable or realistic goal. What I now believe is that the instructor's purpose is to create as fertile a learning environment as possible using this medium. Let's face it. Many people have complained about the limits that classrooms impose on learning. The classroom is not the "perfect" learning environment to which all other forms of learning should aspire. The classroom has some capabilities that are not easily replicated online. At the same time, online education has capabilities that are not possible in the classroom.

Let us also be clear that classroom learning is not very feasible for large numbers of people. Online learning is an unmixed blessing for those who live too far from a critical mass of learners, for those who may be aboard military ships, or for those who cannot make a commitment to a geographical presence weekly (or more frequently) because of business travel. Another unmixed blessing is the expansion of resources at our fingertips offered by the web. MIT, for example, has made course syllabi available on the web.

Without further ado, let me offer my top ten reasons why online learning can be more effective than classroom learning. Since David Letterman puts his top ten list in order, I will do the same knowing that others will see different emphases than I do. The list below is limited to the learning experience within a class, and doesn't include factors such as access for those in remote locations.

1. In a typical class discussion, a handful of people do most of the talking - Such discussion places many learners at a disadvantage - those who are introverted, those for whom English is not their first language, those who don't like to interrupt, those who like to think more before they speak, and many others. An online classroom creates a level playing field for all of these people who can participate in the dialogue by taking their time in crafting their contributions. Consequently, online, a typical discussion includes many more people. By my estimates, despite my best efforts in the classroom, only 20% of the students do 80% of the discussing. Online, 65% of the students do 80% of the discussing.

2. The class "covers" more material - The well-kept secret of online education is that class ends when all of the content is addressed, not when the bell rings. Countless times in face-to-face classes professors run out of time and remove content that students must know. Online, the bell doesn't ring and the students are expected to make whatever time it takes to learn course material. Consequently, online students do more work and cover more subject matter.

3. The class is a flow rather than discrete events in time - When I was a student I must admit that there were times when I hardly gave a thought to a course between its weekly class meetings (unfortunately, as a professor this occasionally happens too). In a well-designed online course, this isn't possible. Most students do something in the course nearly every day. This constant interaction with the subject matter greatly increases learning retention.

4. The class deals with all process and substance issues - Most teachers think of class time as purely devoted to substance and see questions of process as detracting from class. Most teachers' least favorite questions are: Will this be in the test? How many pages should this assignment be? Do you care what font we use? Although answering these questions doesn't take much time many process questions do (or if unaddressed, leave students frustrated and unsatisfied). These include, explain how you graded the way you did or why you let some students' presentations go longer than others. Again, because class time is essentially unbounded, time is not a pedagogical constraint in addressing all questions of substance or process.

5. Class can't just be "war stories" - Successful online learning is clearly substance driven. I certainly think learning should be fun, but online, a teacher can't get by primarily as a comedian or a raconteur. As a student, I had many enjoyable classes with showmen (and women). They were entertaining, but I actually learned very little. Although there is room for comedy and stories online, if that's all there is, it stands out much more than it does in a classroom.

6. Online learning is more efficient for students - When I have asked students why they prefer online learning the first response I often hear is "because I don't have to sit through a two hour class to get 15 minutes of material." Online, students make choices about conversations in which to participate and can quickly scan student (or teacher) contributions that are already understood, long-winded, or unfocused. Students are more active and self-directed in their learning.

7. Tremendous individual customization is available - When I teach a class, I take care to design it so that it meets the needs of people with different learning styles. In the classroom, any approach to this is necessarily crude. Students may tune out analytic discussion if they are visual learners. The class may be somewhat repetitious. Of all the top 10 reasons, technology plays the greatest role here. Learning experience can now be constructed to fit an individual learning style. Practice problems, for example, can pinpoint student deficiencies and supply additional problems of that type to the student. In the classroom, an instructor deals with the class as a whole even though there is tremendous individual variation. Online, this individual variation is much better accommodated.

8. The biorhythm advantage - Class is not tied to a geographical or time-specific anchor. In my case, I have always taught working adult students sometime in the 6:00 - 10:00 p.m. timeframe. As mentioned earlier, a weekly (or more) commitment to a particular space at a particular time does not fit many lifestyles today. Moreover, research suggests that, biorhythmically, 6 - 10 p.m. is probably the absolute worst time to learn for most people. Online students can "take" the class whenever they want. Morning people are often in my class from 5:00 - 7:00 a.m. Night people are often there from 10:00 p.m. - 3:00 a.m. Students can much more easily integrate their learning time with other aspects of their lives.

9. Class discussion is richer because it is recorded - All parts of an online course are recorded, most frequently in text. There are at least two great advantages to this feature. One is that no one has to rely on memory of what was said in an earlier week. A simple search makes the information accessible. Consequently, class discussions don't go down the dead ends of someone responding to what he thought she said when in fact she clearly said something different. More importantly, though, class discussions easily cross week boundaries. It is very common for a discussion which began in the first week of the course to resurface in the fourth week when new learnings shine a fresh perspective on it. This type of dialogue feels much more natural than the fragmented discussions I experienced in the classroom.

10. Students have much more interaction with each other - In the 6 - 10 p.m. time slot I mentioned earlier, students often seem to be like SWAT team members. They arrive a nanosecond before class starts (or more likely, late) and they instantly disperse when class ends. Online, students typically share rich and thorough personal introductions. At that depth, students easily find common ground around hobbies, work experiences, religion, and travel experiences. Students tell me that because there isn't an outside-of-class it feels more natural to call or e-mail other students during the week. They describe those contacts as feeling part of class, not outside of it.

Much of our natural dialogue about the internet seems polarized - it is either a good thing or a bad thing. My experience with teaching online is that it is a different thing. I encourage us all to experiment in both our face-to-face and virtual learning encounters and to share what seems to work and not work. It seems clear that the world wide web offers another method of learning. Employing it appropriately will give society one more way of assisting people in a lifetime of learning.

References

Vaill, P. B. (1996). Learning as a way of being: Strategies for survival in a world of permanent white water. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.