For many centuries, the learning process at universities was strictly fixed. However, the age of modern technology has brought the distance format to the educational sector. At the same time, there is a lot of debate about the advantages of each method and which type of practice is better. This essay aims to analyze and study both types of education to compare and highlight key features.
The traditional method of teaching consists, first of all, of full-time attendance at an educational institution. Such training to this day remains the standard, despite the emergence of many alternatives. Most parents prefer to send their children to regular schools, and students most often enter full-time departments of universities. The primary motivation for that is the traditional character of the approach. However, this choice is due not only to established views but also to several significant advantages.
First of all, the personal attendance of classes is directly related to communication and presence in the team. This factor is especially crucial for children and adolescents attending school. At this age, interaction with peers is a prerequisite for a full-fledged personality formation. Although interaction in the team is not easy, children form many essential communication skills, which are then used throughout life. Secondly, in many educational fields, including school, influence, and a teacher’s living example are invaluable help in mastering the sciences. Naturally, an alternative to this method can be training with parents; however, there are several nuances. Usually, parents are too busy working to educate their children fully. On the other hand, most people do not have the necessary pedagogical skills due to the lack of specialized education. Thus, traditional learning provides many unique features that have almost no alternatives.
However, the development of technology has taken distance learning to a new level. If earlier individuals received a group of tasks in person or by mail, after which they studied outside the university, now students have the opportunity to access classes via the Internet. Moreover, modern technologies allow implementing the format of lectures and personal lessons with teachers through the use of audio and video communications. Using these technologies with each step brings distance learning closer to traditional. At the same time, this alternative method is devoid of some of the drawbacks and has several beneficial advantages.
First of all, people studying remotely are freed from the need to travel somewhere to attend classes and can carry out the learning process directly from home. It is convenient for several categories of individuals: students living far from the place of study and, for example, humans with disabilities who cannot go to an educational institution every day. Using a remote course, in this case, allows these persons to receive the same education as with the traditional method, eliminating the need for constant trips. At the same time, opportunities are opening up for admission to educational institutions located in other cities and even countries, making it possible to unite people around the world.
Besides, individuals get the opportunity to combine study with work without compromising the educational process. According to statistics, a lot of people enter and, most importantly, graduate from similar programs than from specialized second-education courses of study (Celik, 2016). At the same time, many specialists around the world have completed distance learning courses and are not inferior in their professional qualities to people who have studied traditionally. Thus, distance learning, without a doubt, has advantages over conventional approaches.
However, each of these teaching methods is in its niche and unique characteristics. It can be concluded that they are not interchangeable for many reasons comparing these two methods. Firstly, the concept of quality distance learning is often applied only to adults who want and know how to acquire knowledge independently. Unlike children, such individuals can focus on studying much more effectively since they already know how the learning process should occur. On the other hand, children and adolescents must attend schools personally to communicate and receive knowledge most efficiently, that is, directly from teachers. Transferring schoolchildren to a distance program can be a catastrophic decision since they will not be able to distinguish between home environment and work surroundings. It was vividly demonstrated this year because of the quarantine situation due to the coronavirus COVID-19. Many schoolchildren who were forced to sit at home had less progress since school curricula were not tailored to distance learning.
At the same time, for many people, obtaining a higher specialized education could well have taken place in a remote version. The introduction of homeschooling elements would reveal which of the students wants to study and is making every possible effort to do so. Distance education excludes the possibility of cheating and other dishonest methods, especially with the active introduction of high automated verification technologies. However, this process’s main feature should still be the communication of students with teachers, even if it is translated into digital and remote forms. A lot of valuable knowledge can be transmitted only personally, by personal example.
Thus, both types of training can and should exist in the modern educational system. Each of these methods has its characteristics and its scope. Traditional education should be strictly assigned to school institutions. On the other hand, distance learning should preserve the foundations of the conventional, but change them according to the spread of high technology to achieve the effectiveness of the educational process.
Reference
Celik, F. (2016). Comparing distance education versus traditional education in Engineering Management Masters Program: Sakarya University sample. IFAC-PapersOnLine, 49(29), 305-309. Web.