Running Head: ONLINE LEARNING

Online Learning Theresa Smith Azusa Pacific University

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Online Learning I grew up in the tiny, isolated town of Blythe, California, and in the early 1990s, I traveled two hours one way to the California State University, San Bernardino, extension campus in Palm Desert to take my college courses. During those long and lonely drives across the desert, I often wished for an easier way to earn my college degree. Though distance learning began to take shape as early as the 1970s (Lepi, 2012), it wasnt a common way to take college courses until the early to mid-1990s. With the introduction and growth of the internet during the 1990s and early 2000s, colleges began to offer courses online. Now, I am enrolled in a masters program that is one hundred percent online. Since my graduation from high school in 1988, I have personally seen the face of education change. But is it a change for the better? In his A Brief History of Distance Education, Nasseh (1997) traces distance learning back to the nineteenth century where it began in the form of correspondence courses. In the early 1900s, correspondence study grew to include radio instruction, which then expanded into educational television. Nasseh (1997) writes, Packing companies, railroads, the American Banking Association, Labor Unions, Army and Navy, and state and national welfare associations recognized the merits of correspondence instruction. However, despite the efforts of leaders in
the field, correspondence study struggled to gain acceptance, and it was still seen as suspect by academics (Nasseh, 1997). New technologies in the 1970s and 1980s, such as cable and satellite television, became a new medium for distance education courses (Nasseh, 1997). Today, there are

currently over six million students pursuing an online degree who are taking an online course (Lepi, 2012).

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But is online learning working? According to the U.S. Department of Education (2010), there have been more than a thousand empirical studies of online learning since 1996, so this is a topic that has been thoroughly investigated. Their report (2010) states, Earlier studies of distance learning concluded that these technologies were not significantly different from regular classroom learning in terms of effectiveness. The report also states that, Students who took all or part of their course online performed better, on average, than those taking the same course through traditional face-to-face instruction. Interestingly, the report also found that learning is comparable in blended (a combination of face-to-face and online learning) and purely online learning environments. In their report Differences Between Traditional and Distance Education Academic Performances: A meta-analytic approach, Schachar and Neumann (2003) write that, in two thirds of the cases, students taking courses by distance education outperformed their student counterparts enrolled in traditionally instructed courses and the results of the meta-analysis show a strong positive trend indicating that DE [distance education] is an effective form of instruction. In her research report Learning Style and Effectiveness of Online and Face-to-Face Instruction, Neuhauser (2002) compares two sections of the same course, one section taught in a traditional face-to-face format, and one taught in an online format. She found, no significant differences in test scores, assignments, participation grades, and final grades, although the online groups averages were slightly higher. Neuhauser also states that,

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Ninety-six percent of the online students found the course to be either as effective, or more effective, to their learning than their typical face-to-face course. So, the research clearly shows that online learning is as effective, if not more effective, than a traditional face-to-face classroom environment. I do have some personal experience in this matter. My son took virtual classes for the tenth and eleventh grade years of high school. He was completely online and did not attend traditional school. Many people close to me thought this was a travesty and that my son was missing out somehow. However, my son really enjoyed his online learning experience and actually expressed to me that he felt he learned more because he could work at his own pace and was not disturbed by misbehaving students or other things that distracted him at the traditional high school. Last school year, I was a teacher for one of my school districts virtual programs, called Advanced Academics. After interacting with the curriculum, it is my opinion that the courses were more rigorous than what our students were getting at the traditional high schools. Many students signed up for the program under the misconception that it would be easy, only to drop out after discovering the opposite was true. However, this program was a blessing for many students who were not able to attend school for a variety of reasons. In conclusion, research has shown that distance education and/or online learning is a very effective alternative to the traditional classroom. What I would have given back in 1988 to be able to take advantage of distance education! Moving forward, it is safe to say that online learning isnt going anywhere. And why should it? Research shows that student success can no longer be measured by face-to-face time.

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References Jashik, S. (2009). The evidence of online education. Inside higher ed. Retrieved from http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/06/29/online Lepi, K. (2012). The history of online education. Edudemic. Retrieved from http://www.edudemic.com/2012/10/the-history-of-online-education/ Nasseh, B. (1997). A brief history of distance education. Seniornet.org. Retrieved from http://www.seniornet.org/edu/art/history.html Neuhauser, C. (2002). Learning style and effectiveness of online and face-to-face instruction, The American Journal of Distance Education, 16 (2). Retrieved from http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtS earch_SearchValue_0=EJ656148&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ65 6148 Research on the effectiveness of online learning. (2011). The future of state universities. Retrieved from http://www.academicpartnerships.com/docs/default-document library/white-paper-final-9-22-2011-%281%29.pdf?sfvrsn=0

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References, continued Schachar, M., & Neumann, Y., (2003). Differences between traditional and distance education academic performances: A meta-analytic approach. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 4 (2). Retrieved from http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/viewArticle/153/234 U.S. Department of Education. (2010). Evaluation of evidence based practices in online learning: a meta analysis and review of online learning studies. Retrieved from http://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/tech/evidence-based-practices/finalreport.pdf

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