20 Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Classes in India
The aim of this article is to know about the Advantages and Disadvantages of Online classes in India. and what are the benefits and limitations of online education for students and teachers in India.
Times have changed a lot!!! You must have heard stories from your parents of walking miles to school or maybe some didn’t get a chance so for the difficulties they had seen ahead due to not being able to make it to school.
Education well has always been important had to make its way through and mankind came with intelligent solutions to make learning possible. Like one very brilliant solution to the problem was distance education in which people would enroll and get tutorials and books at the disposal of their home. While the assignments were sent through the post.
Technology impacted every part of life, the most useful being emergence of online learning. All you need is a nice system and a good internet connection. And yes not to forget the learning spirit. All is done from your home on your terms. What more can anyone ask for.
But we cannot deny the existence of another side of the picture. We need to assume both the perspective before making a decision. So here you go with the advantages and disadvantages of online classes or online modes of study.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Online classes Infographic
advantages and disadvantages of online classes infographic
10 Advantages of Online Education in India
We live in a world where everything is becoming more convenient. From the convenience of our smartphones to the ease of online shopping, we’re constantly looking for ways to make life easier.
One of the easiest ways to make things more convenient for yourself is to take an online class. Whether you’re interested in learning a new skill or want to brush up on your existing skills, there are plenty of benefits to online classes bellow we will discuss some of them.
1. Creativity in the transmission of information.
Everything has its value and we cannot deny the value of books for being an imperative source of knowledge but here in online education, we get to see great uses of the internet and resources to disseminate the information. Videos, podcasts, PDFs, illustrations.
Everything that will facilitate you in learning better this making the teachers and students both equipped and efficient. This creativity helps in academic success, emotional and mental well-being, cognitive abilities, and problem-solving.
2. Freedom of connecting from anywhere
The concept of online education is not to restrain students to a specific timetable to which the adherence becomes difficult in the first place. This is the beauty of online classes that students will connect with from anywhere.
It does not matter even if they are in the same city or not. In fact, it can be considered the best for international students. Students have shown their trust in the online classes which means they are ready for the commitments as well.
3. Diversity in audience
When you are enrolled in a traditional class then mostly the students are from a single culture. Due to its accessibility worldwide, online education offers diversity in students. The same course can be taken up from any part of the world.
A study conducted with 5000 students all over and conducted online discussions on various topics resulted in better performance of the students in quizzes with much variety in students.
These results prove that even when traditional classes are available the online classes can bring much diversity.
4. Cost-effective
Online education are not just limited to being the ones that are actually helping the students in getting more close to technology but it is saving many of their pennies which are spent in terms of transportation, boarding, and other miscellaneous. Not to forget that all of this sums up to make a big amount.
So with online learning, students get to save up a slot of amount. Even when students are taking up the courses that will cost them less tuition fee as compared to on campus.
The average amount for an online education course will start from 400 dollars for each credit but this is an estimated amount, not an accurate one.
5. Punctuality
Class attendance is important for students to stay disciplined. But the traditional classes can sometimes make students miss out on their lectures which means a great loss in academics.
The class attendance and online assignments both independently affect the grades. The ease of attending the class where ever a student wants ensures that they are catching up with all the course work. Learning will be optimized.
6. Different learning styles
This may be the least discussed field in academics. What happens is that the traditional classrooms follow a single methodology. For example the typical blackboard approach but how do we know that learning styles for all the students are the same because studies price that they are not.
This is why it is suggested that first, we need to identify the learning styles of the students in online classes and then make our outline consistent with their styles that will harness variety.
7. So many options
Offline or traditional education would mean that the students will have to locate a university and look for their courses. The subjects that interest you may not be available nearby and for this, you will have to sacrifice the comfort of your home.
Here in online education, you have plenty of courses to choose from. Harvard offered 68 MOOCs (Massive Open Online Classes) between 2012 to 2014. These courses included mathematics, engineering, technology, and science.
8. Best for jobholders.
There are many students especially living far off their native lands who are working and earning at the same time. So of all the advantages, we have read so far all of them fall in the right place here.
If you are working then there is more of a chance that traditional education does not suit you. While with the online education you can take the class from anywhere in India and learn at your own disposal.
9. No age barrier
Online classes are effective for all age groups, people can finish their studies via online available courses and school students can find their notes in the online application.
10 Disadvantages of Online Education in India
You do not get heads every time you flip the coin, so better be ready for the other side of the coin as well. Online education was introduced for people to whom the offline mode did not settle well. We cannot deny that it has equal side effects as well which can weigh different according to the needs of the people.
1. Attention span
The human brain has to do all the learning processes and the primary step in this is having a considerable attention span. Microsoft conducted popular research in 2012 stating that the attention span of a high school student is that of 12 seconds but many psychologists, later on, did not agree as a psychologist says that attention span depends upon the task at hand.
In the case of online studies, students may feel a lack of interest if there is a monotonous kind of lecturing going on so it is best to deploy certain activities in between that will increase the attention span of the students.
2. Technological drawbacks
Although the world has advanced slots there are still many places that are technically deprived. They in this way will be left behind in learning and the aim of online education is to meet the masses at ease.
Another perspective in this scenario is that what if you face some technical glitch that is hindering your smooth process of getting classes. So to get all the benefits from online education it is also necessary that one should be aware of the technology and also be able to fix the problems in case he faces some.
In the Online mode of study, more lectures are most important but success can be attributed to three factors instructor, technology, and student’s previous knowledge of technology.
3. Lack of socialization.
Students are not just learning through the lectures in offline classes rather they are also interacting with others and attaining many life skills from them.
In online education, you don’t get to meet people more often rather there is more of a chance that you are isolated at home which thwarts your socialization.
The good thing is that institutes are aware of these drawbacks and they are conducting online discussions in order to fulfill this gap. These steps can help to make a better experience of online learning.
4. Challenges the teachers.
Teachers or instructors still have faced many challenges for instructing through a new medium. This needs training and if there is not sufficient knowledge regarding technological uses then it is a loss both on part of the teacher and especially the students.
Whenever something needs to be part of a new technological wave then there should be sufficient training. Some of the challenges faced by teachers are teaching styles, time management, transferring from face-to-face interaction to online and faculty roles.
To address these issues we need training of teachers and learners both to be aware of the situation.
5. Dangers of screen time
Ever since the use of computers became common there had been thousands of researches giving evidence of how dangerous screen exposure is if it exceeds the limit. So in online classes, the extent of classes can vary and so maybe the screen-time for classes and assignments making it other works combine can reach the point where it is becoming hazardous for the human brain.
Overall the dangers of screen time has obesity, an unhealthy diet, affecting the quality of life, and depression. If a student has to spend most of the day in front of the screen all for the purpose of studying or making assignments then the screen time is a concern that needs to have balance. Having a schedule of outdoor activities and studies can help in keeping the mind fresh.
6. Too much independence.
We all know that online classes mean that you are not supposed to be part of any particular schedule which gives independence of attending the classes when they want or they can even take follow-ups. If only someone is responsible enough to manage his time and conduct all the classes on time and submit the assignments before they are due.
But how do we know that the one enrolling in the online classes will really be fair to his time and fulfill all his duties? This needs to make a timetable and follow it strictly otherwise online classes will lose their true purpose.
7. It needs active learning.
Offline classes have face-to-face interaction between the teacher and the student. Teachers in this way become aware of their student’s needs and can compensate for that. All the ambiguities can be answered right away without doing any more effort. In online classes, the interaction among both parties is limited to the lectures only.
Students have to be active learners or else it will be a waste of time. Thus may take more time for some people and the advantage we discussed online classes of saving time for other activities will die.
Therefore it is recommended that online classes should be more interactive and there should be not only a session for question-answers but also give students a window of time when they can reach their instructor.
8. It can be time-consuming
It may sound ironic that online classes are time-consuming because they are known for saving time. Especially when there is lesser knowledge about the technology it can take up hours to understand the prerequisites.
Another situation can be that if online classes are also taking this much time in making assignments or presentations then the idea that it will be more advantageous to be in online mode fades away.
Conclusion
Education is pivotal for growth and in today’s era, you cannot imagine yourself without higher education especially. This is the reason that people have come up with ways to make the process of education easier for people.
There had been institutes and campuses in the first place where people would go to study. Nonetheless, these did not seem viable for few candidates so they came up with distance education and then online learning.
These many options created for students were only because the loopholes in the education system should be filled and more people should get benefit from it.
So when we talk about whether online education is a better option or not then the answer is simply that it depends upon the need of the person. If someone finds it easier to be part of the offline mode of study then he should be given the freedom to do so.
For all those who think that online education is better for them then they should go for it. It is a simple decision and anyone can weigh out the pros and cons and easily come to conclusion.
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