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The Positive Effects of the Internet on Distance Education, Teacher-Student Relationships, and
Stephanie Aguirre
Abstract
As the use of the internet and its World Wide Web counterpart become more
common in the typical household, so too does its prevalence by teachers and students in
the classroom. This increased availability of the internet has had a positive effect on
students. By allowing multiple avenues for a teacher and student to communicate over
long distances and more frequently, the internet has had a profound effect on
Furthermore, innovative and interactive engagement strategies are meeting the changing
needs of today’s students. This beneficial tool, when used with careful thought and
educational experience.
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 2
Introduction
The use of computers and the Internet is expanding exponentially in the field of education
for children and adults around the world. Together they are opening doorways that once seemed
closed due to the limitations of space, time and accessibility. Historically, the computer dates
back almost 70 years. In 1937, Iowa State University created the first electronic digital computer
which was considered a phenomenal invention. It began to capture the attention of many
researchers and inventors (Robinson, 2011). The computer has since gone from being a rare
In the last three decades there has been a significant increase of computer technology
being interwoven into the classroom. For example, in 1983, there was approximately one
computer available per 168 students. A 2010 study conducted by The National Center for
Educational Statistics showed a dramatic change to one computer for every five students and
97% of teachers reported having at least one computer available in their classroom (Carver,
2016). During this same decade nearly two billion users worldwide, not only owned a
computerized technological device, but utilized it to interact with people across the globe via the
world’s largest computer network system known as the Internet (Robinson, 2011; Mowery &
Simcoe, 2001). Mowery and Simcoe (2001) argue that the World Wide Web, a software that
enables the cross-referencing of a collection of multimedia documents, has facilitated the growth
and usage of the internet. Due to these complementary inventions, the internet has a growing
collection of computers that have the ability to communicate with each other.
The increasing availability of computer devices that have access to the internet has
created a unique and effective scenario for individuals to access an educational experience
abroad and from the comfort of their own home. Another positive aspect that has been noticed by
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 3
teachers and students is the fact that software programs such as Google Chat, Facetime, and
Skype can be very beneficial when it comes to creating and fostering the teacher-student
relationship that tends to suffer when face-to-face communication is not a possibility (Walsh,
2015) In addition, the internet has become a powerful ally to educators when trying to create
unique and engaging lessons and lectures for their classroom of students. Overall, the internet
has had multiple positive effects on the field of education, and its use will only create better
Originally, distance education was defined as correspondence between the teacher and
student via the postal service and was in printed form. This began to change dramatically with
the advent of multiple technologies such as audio and videotape, radio and television
broadcasting, and satellite transmission. As the end of the 20th century approached, the Internet
and World Wide Web made the opportunity to learn and receive academic credentials across
great distances even more plausible for a large population of the world. While distance education
has provided many benefits to the teacher and learner, the most popular features include the
potential to reach a global audience and the saved time and flexibility that it provides (Kerka,
1996).
Dianna Plott is an ESL (English as a Second Language) instructor that works for
VIPKID, an online education firm located in China that provides elementary education to
Chinese students from American educators. She is an advocate for online teaching even though
she is thousands of miles away from her students and all communication is done through Skype.
Skype is a software application that was founded by Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis in 2003
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 4
and is currently owned by Microsoft. Using a microphone and a headset, Skype has the ability to
connect people over exceedingly long distances via internet technology (Wearden, 2011). Plott
related a recent event where one of her students was able to attend to an instructional session
with her while driving through the busy streets of Beijing. Plott has been a classroom teacher
where instruction was taught completely face-to-face, but since her career change she admits
when comparing the relationship she had to her classroom of students and her online students
academically beneficial relationship with their 25+ students, whereas, I feel like I am able
to give each of my online students 1:1 attention. Additionally, the cultural experience is
opportunistic for both my student and myself. (D. Plott, personal communication, May
27, 2017)
In other words, what Plott is saying is her experience as a classroom teacher with multiple
students was not as beneficial as the relationship she has now with her online students. It is due
to the advancements in technology, like Skype, that Plott is able to have this job opportunity and
the rewarding experience that comes with instructing a student across the world.
Additionally, many colleges, universities, and the students that attend them have been
privy to the financial benefits distance education provides (Devarics, 2001). Universities and
colleges have seen attendance in courses grow as students who would not ordinarily be able to
enroll in these courses now have the ability to do so because of the reach that distance education
provides. According to the American Council on Education, between 1995 and 1998 the number
of students who participated in some sort of distance learning doubled to 1.6 million (Devarics,
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 5
2001). Monetarily, distance education has shown to have a very positive impact for both
universities and the online students they serve because of the internet and World Wide Web.
The internet has become a valuable tool for teachers and students alike in developing and
shaping relationships. Arguably, this is one of the most critical components to a successful
relationship that teachers form with their students can significantly affect their anxiety,
confidence, sense of belonging, and overall performance (Tyler, 1964). Overall, when teachers Commented [1]: Old research is okay if it is a seminal
article or ground breaking research. Otherwise strive
for recent scholarship.
are able to invest in a particular student and give 1:1 attention more frequently, students tend to
Commented [2]: I completely understand what you
mean about a more relevant source but the reason I
become more engaged and interested in their personal learning and its corresponding successful included this 1964 source is due to the fact that I was
trying to show how "longstanding" this belief is.
educational outcomes (Cooper, 2004). Due to an increasing number of students that teachers are
charged with teaching in the average self-contained classroom, it is reasonable to see the
potential benefits that the internet can have on the teacher-student relationship (Goldring, Gray &
Bitterman, 2013). Using the internet, teachers are able to provide extra support and feedback that
Large classroom sizes and an uneven ratio of teachers to students has long been a
frustration to educators and students alike. The teacher’s ability to form meaningful relationships
with students can, understandably, be more difficult when a class size is exceedingly large
(Pedder, 2006). In 2011, the average class size in the US ranged from 20-22 students (Goldring,
Gray & Bitterman, 2013). Recent policy trends, however, only indicate that class sizes will
continue to increase over time (Kelly, 2019). In addition, the size of a class can be substantially
different based on the geography and economics of a given location (DeGeurin, 2019). In short,
too many students per one teacher dramatically affects the amount of time and effort a teacher
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 6
can invest in each student (Pedder, 2006). Utilizing the internet, though, teachers are now
increasingly able to give individualized attention to their students and, therefore, are more likely
With the help of the World Wide Web, teachers are now able to give frequent feedback
via email, blogs and interactive software programs, such as Skype (Barreau, 2002). Indeed, as
the internet has continued to improve and expand, a larger platform of audio/visual conferencing
technology has integrated into the educational field and, fortunately, most pre-service teachers
feel excited and knowledgeable about using them with their future students (Baltaci-Goktalay &
Ozdilek, 2010). Incoming teachers who use these software programs are able to glean the
benefits of face-to-face communication and one-to-one feedback in situations when this personal
beneficial to a student’s success can be very difficult for an instructor to provide, especially with
a large number of students in a particular class (Pedder, 2006). It is for this reason that teachers
continuously use every resource at their disposal to provide this to their students. Prior to the
availability of the internet it was common for teachers to find time during school hours to have
1:1 conversations with students. This was generally the only time that teachers could provide
feedback to students and gain understanding about their students’ learning needs. However, since
the adoption of the Common Core State Standards, it is widely expected and considered best
practice for educators to teach core standards in an engaging way to their entire classroom of
students. While it is understandable that this large group instruction is a necessity, the
personalized educational experience that creates and fosters the teacher-student relationship via
individual instruction and feedback inevitably comes at the expense of large group core
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 7
instruction (King & Watson, 2010). One possible resource is to have an instructional assistant
(IA) in the classroom, thereby allowing the teacher to teach to a large group while the IA can
provide feedback by grading papers, meet in small groups, and have 1:1 conferences (Gerber,
Finn, Achilles, & Boyd-Zaharias, 2001). However, this only results in the original issue of an
worthwhile relationship with their students, it seems counterproductive to have the IA provide
the interaction. The internet has the capability to assist teachers in not relying on an IA to
accomplish what should be the job of a certified and experienced educator (Gerber et al., 2001).
experiences with students, and could look very different depending on the age of the student and
the classroom environment, it has created an avenue that teachers can use to successfully develop
an effective and beneficial relationship with students while simultaneously continuing to adhere
their overall effort to perform academically well and achieve positive results in their coursework
(Sun & Rueda, 2012). In this context, however, the word “effort” is somewhat broadly used. A
student who puts forth effort out of a sense of duty and to merely follow directions might be
considered on task and, therefore engaged, but this type of effort and engagement differs from
the student who is genuinely engaged because they are interested in what they are learning and
see value in it (Parsons, Nuland, & Parsons, 2014). The latter type of engagement has been
termed by experts as cognitive engagement and is more likely to produce optimal results.
According to Rotgans and Schmidt (2011), “cognitive engagement in the classroom can be
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 8
characterized as a psychological state in which students put in a lot of effort to truly understand a
topic and in which students persist studying over a long period of time.” In short, cognitive
engagement is a more relevant construct and, not only creates a greater amount of stamina and
perseverance from the student, but also the use of metacognitive and self-regulated strategies
(Parsons et al., 2014). While research and data continue to show that a student’s level of
engagement in the classroom is fundamental in their overall academic success, teachers are also
seeing that a lack of engagement is consistently contributing to specific issues such as attendance
problems, boredom, failure to complete work, and, inevitably dropping out of school (Turner,
Meyer, & Patrick, 2011). With the expansion and availability of the Internet and World Wide
Web, new avenues to engage students of all ages and produce positive academic results are
starting to make their way into the classroom; a critical development considering the current
generation of students, referred to as the Net Generation, are becoming somewhat reliant on
The impact that educational technology has had on student achievement has been
explored by John Schacter (1999), who serves as vice president of research for the Milken
Family Foundation. One finding showed that, on average, students who used computer based
instruction scored at the 64th percentile on achievement tests. The students who used computers
were compared to a control group of students that did not have access to computers or the
internet and scored, on average, in the 50th percentile (Schacter, 1999). The results could be due
to a lot of factors, but what appears to be a commonality is students are generally more engaged
when technology and internet software programs are utilized during instruction and assessing.
Much like colored photos and pictures are more interesting and eye-catching during a lesson, a
video streamed from diverse parts of the world is all the more captivating when compared to
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 9
merely reading about a topic from typed text. A common topic discussed among educators is the
notion that students today require feedback that is instantaneous as well as a sense of immediate
gratification regarding their learning experience (Min & Siegel, 2001). This could be for many
reasons, but an overwhelming consensus of research is showing this is most likely due to the
In the last couple decades technology such as Smartboards have replaced dry erase
whiteboards and, in rare circumstances, even chalkboards that recently adorned the walls of
some classrooms. Smartboard technology allows students to interact with anything that the
teacher projects onto the screen. A Smartboard also has the ability to connect directly to the
internet and with the assistance of a connected projector, a teacher can display and interact with
anything that can be accessed via the internet. Commented [3]: Good points, but you should try to
link this
The internet is also making its way into the classroom via curriculum that is dependent on Commented [4]: Link to my main argument?
internet technology being available to teachers and students. One organization, Curriculum
Associates, continues to develop curriculum that strives to be engaging to students while still
aligning to Common Core State Standards (Curriculum Associates, 2019). A popular curricular
resource from Curriculum Associates adopted by multiple districts across the country for Math
and Literacy is iReady. The curriculum promises, “actionable assessments and engaging
instruction that drive student gains in reading and mathematics” (Curriculum Associates, 2019,
Our program section, para. 4). In other words, lessons and activities cater to a student’s ability
level based on a diagnostic assessment. Using iReady, teachers are able to integrate internet
technology into the classroom alongside whole class and small group instruction. Students begin
the year by taking a diagnostic assessment that evaluates each individual student in the core
mathematical concepts. Following the diagnostic, students are then given lessons based on their
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 10
personal level of knowledge in each area. The iReady curriculum provides students with
engaging and fun learning games based on their level of math readiness as well (Curriculum
Associates, 2019). Not only does this curriculum provide engaging and individualized
instruction, but valuable feedback is provided to the teacher when the students complete the
diagnostic every few months. The feedback consists of charts, graphs and explanations of a
student’s growth in various competencies. The combination of large and small group instruction,
as well as internet technology integration curriculum such as iReady provides is meeting the
Counter-Arguments
The claim has been made there are some disadvantages to distance education (Kerka,
1996). Kerka asserts some of the most common issues that students encounter are connection
issues related to the internet. A strong connection to the internet is important for a student who is
receiving their education via an online course. A slow and unreliable internet connection can
slow down video, sound and programs designed to allow live two-way communication
(Dervarics, 2001). In addition, learners must be equipped with the necessary technical skills and
internet knowledge in order to navigate their way through technology dependent coursework
(Kerka, 1996). While these concerns are valid, it is important to take into consideration there are
challenges to both distance learning and traditional degree programs that require students to take
classes on a university campus. In many cases it might be impossible for a student to attend
classes at a campus. Obstacles such as a lack of child care, transportation or time availability can
become insurmountable barriers to an education and can leave the student feeling hopeless and
without options (Barreau, 2002; Dervarics, 2001). However, these arguments stem from a time
when the internet was new and less stable. With the increasing availability of reliable internet
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 11
connections, it is less likely that a student will encounter internet connection issues that are
In regards to the affect the internet has on the teacher-student relationship, Kerka (1996)
has also posed the argument that any type of technological exchange between an educator and a
professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, believes that in order for two individuals
to create and maintain a valuable relationship, face-to-face contact must take place; it is only
through this type of contact that genuine social and emotional skills can be achieved (Turkle,
2015). In addition, unlike the connectedness and social norms that traditional classrooms
communication protocols, such as nonverbal cues (Kerka, 1996). It has been noted by some
scholars that the attitudes of some teachers and students might not be able to adapt to the
teaching strategies necessary when providing instruction via the internet (Oliveira, Penedo, &
Pereira, 2018). When looking at these claims, though, it is important to first understand that a
community is defined as a group of individuals with shared and common interests that interact
within a shared space, and that “space” does not necessarily have to be geographical (Kerka,
1996). Keeping this definition in mind, it is incredibly plausible that a relationship between an
instructor and a student can be successful via an online course, especially with recent
technological advancements (Inan & Lowther, 2010). In fact, using interactive software, students
are now able to have the face-to-face conversations with their instructor and peers that seemed
impossible many years ago (Barreau, 2002). In other words, the community and interaction that
the internet can now provide may look different than that of the traditional classroom, but due to
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 12
the internet and its capabilities, it is fast becoming a successful alternative classroom
There are some opponents to the increasing use of technology as a way of engaging
students in the classroom (Turkle, 2016). The concerns raised revolve around the theory that
electronic devices can have harmful effects on the cognitive development of adolescents when
they are overused throughout the day (Christakis, 2015). In addition, students can become so
immersed in technological devices and the internet that they, inevitably, begin to lose focus with
the surrounding tangible world; many becoming so engrossed with an online book, game or
social media website that behaviors characteristic of addiction start to surface (Turkle, 2016).
This same behavior, though, can be replicated when a student completely immerses themselves
in a captivating novel. Indeed, there are some phenomenal works of literature available that
provide people with the opportunity to escape the stresses of everyday life. At times it becomes
necessary to practice self-control by putting a book away until an assignment, chore or job is
completed. This is also true regarding technology. The educational capabilities that technology
and the internet have are immense. They are both tools that can provide an abundant amount of
entertainment and enjoyment. Like anything else, tangible or otherwise, if not used appropriately
they can become problematic. In other words, a level of self-control and clear expectations need
to be put in place so that technology, like a book, does not turn from an engaging educational
device to an obstacle. The internet and the technological advancements that have emerged from
it are what many students are becoming accustomed to. When it is used in the classroom
appropriately it “speaks their language” and is a successful tool to teaching across multiple
content areas.
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF THE INTERNET IN EDUCATION 13
Conclusion
The internet has become an integral part of many people's lives and the purpose of this
paper is to show how it has assisted the educational institution to capitalize on its versatility to
educators and students. Opportunities to take college level courses are now possible for students
that might not have otherwise had the ability to do so. Communication between teachers and
students is much more accessible with the use of interactive software programs like Skype.
Finally, there are now multiple ways that engagement strategies can be incorporated into various
lessons and activities because of the expansion of internet capabilities. Much like anything else,
though, something that has been created and developed by human ingenuity can have its
Ultimately, the benefits that the internet has offered to distance education, teacher-student
communication, and student engagement far outweigh the criticisms of the internet's immersion
into the educational realm. The integration of the internet into the field of education has opened
doorways previously closed to the learner and teacher. As long as responsible and considerate
thought is exercised when applying this powerful tool in the classroom, the internet and the
World Wide Web will, undoubtedly, continue to make numerous and profound positive impacts
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