Being the latest wave of education, online learning is garnering a lot of attention despite posing initial challenges for instructors and students.
Its benefits in terms of flexibility, convenience, and variety of learning styles have made it an alternative over traditional classroom methods. This gradual shift towards online learning is also supported by a research report by Orbis in which the global e-learning market is estimated to boom to a value of $275.10 billion by 2022.
While online education has its benefits, students who are new to e-learning can find it difficult to adapt to this learning experience.
Here are five problems new students enrolling in online learning courses may run into
1. Adaptability Struggle
Switching from a traditional classroom to a virtual one makes the learning experience entirely different for students.
While one offers face-to-face interaction with the tutor, the other offers computer-based training devoid of any human conversation. With such a defined shift in the learning dynamics, students generally find it difficult to adjust to the new method of learning.
While classroom education allows students to take notes and ease into passive listening, online education demands students to spring into action, something they weren’t previously used to doing.
Thus, students who have previously studied in traditional classroom methods find it challenging to adapt to online training, and have to show active participation to make use of course material that is presented to them in a multitude of formats.
2. Time management
While online learning offers students the ultimate freedom to organize their studies around personal and professional commitments, the very flexibility that online education provides can also lead to complacency and a false sense of security.
Time management is a difficult trait to master for online learners as online courses require a lot of time and personal effort. Since online courses are every bit as detailed and demanding as their offline counterparts, their flexible nature also makes it a strenuous task for students to take the time out of their various commitments to attend the course.
Therefore, there is a need for e-learners to show appropriate dedication and set aside time for serious study sessions.
3. Self-motivation
Working towards any goal requires a certain amount of dedication and motivation, and when it comes to online learning, things are no different.
However, the digital nature of online education is fraught with opportunities to lose dedication, and hence, self-motivation is an essential requirement. There are countless distractions in the form of social media which can keep students away from being regular with their classes and coursework; a lot of valuable study time can pass if students don’t monitor their internet usage meticulously.
For instance, a student preparing for a competitive examination like UPSC or IES cannot afford to lose track of self-motivation, something that takes a hit due to the abstract nature of online learning.
As a result, many learners fall behind schedule and start nurturing the idea of giving up.
4. Reliance on Technology
Unlike traditional classroom methods, students who enroll in online learning programs have to rely on technology for all their study materials.
While conventional institutions provide students with any technological types of equipment and basics of simple attendance are easily met by just being in school; if something goes wrong in online learning, on the other hand, students may not only miss essential assignments, but they may also be marked as absent.
Working within the confines of technology also translates to working within the confines of network adapters, routers, modems, and more. If even one of these facets fails, the connection to the course material becomes compromised for an indefinite period.
5. Classroom engagement
One of the most common challenges faced by students in online education is the lack of face-to-face engagement with teachers and other students.
Since online courses are essentially conducted through a web-based platform that includes reading materials, assignments, and a forum for class discussions, students find it difficult to connect with their instructors in real-time.
While teachers can transfer knowledge in a variety of ways (sharing presentations, posting lecture videos, streaming lectures live), some students do not find a virtual classroom as engaging as a traditional one.
This disconnect from peers and instructors becomes challenging for students who are already struggling to understand the course material.
Online education and e-learning portals are a valuable part of the modernized education space. Such offerings in academia enable students to gain a reputable education while allowing them time for personal liberties, work, and study.
While online learning is empowering people to take up a variety of courses, but at its initial stage, it comes with its own set of challenges.
So whether you are enrolling in online classes for competitive examinations like IES, CLAT, GATE, or for skill upgradation, it is solely dependent on the student’s will to overcome these challenges and to derive the best out of them.
