Online school. Has it come into it's own?

[ChilliDawg]

This thread is simply going to be my recent observations about the perception of "online" school.  I have suddenly noticed a drastic shift, lately, in the acceptance of online education.

When I started my pursuit of a degree back in 2007, I was very skeptical about taking an online class.  Personally, I was ALL FOR IT.  The idea of working in my own free time and not having to drive into a campus.  Not having to sit through boring lectures.   I was a busy, working father of three boys, but I desperately wanted a degree at the age of 38.  I was becoming older, and was afraid that my 20 year lucky streak of securing great jobs without having a degree may someday come to an end. A local college near me offered many degrees, completely online.  They were a State College, brick and mortar, but at the time they were pioneers in our community with the whole online thing. I decided to take some classes online, but was always afraid to tell people that I was doing so.  There was a universal grin or raise of the eyebrow when I told people that I was doing it online.  "Oh, so you aren't really going to school?" or "Oh, that whole University of Phoenix thing, huh".  Or, if I simply told them I was going to school and did not elaborate on the delivery medium, they would always reply with a question about what nights I had to go to school.  They always tried to nail down how I worked full time, had kids, and went to school at the same time.  At one point, I had to appeal to my company HR department to get them to reimburse me for an online class.  They didn't see it as legitimate.  Again, I had this latent shame about doing online school.  Regardless, I kept chiseling away and taking classes. 

As with all things, online schooling has benefitted from technological advances, proctoring, and acceptance of the younger generation. 

My recent thoughts on this topic have come to the surface because my son started at a Brick and Mortar state college this past Fall.  He is doing the whole college kid experience.  Scholarship, back pack, laptop, commute to campus, etc.  Of the 15 credits that he is presently enrolled in, two of the classes are online.  A criminal justice class and a coding class.  ALL of his classes are accessible online.  Most of his college books are either open source or E-Books.   His textbook and supplies costs were nearly negligible.  Almost all classes, regardless of whether he drives in and sits in the lecture hall or not, require all submissions and assignments to be turned in online.   He even uses Blackboard and Canvas, which I have been using at various schools since 2007.  The same one that I was once ashamed of people seeing.  There is part of me which almost gets irritated at the school for shelling out so much money for a program which I feel that I have done myself, for so much cheaper.  The other part is excited that our methods of education have come into their own, and are now becoming mainstream.  Maybe not so much the alternative credit portion of our methodology, but certainly the delivery medium.  My wife who is an admin at a local College has told me that her school is struggling with enrollment, primarily because kids and parents want to see more online options. We are in the era of mobile devices everywhere, and an App for everything.  The kids are demanding an app for their schooling.   My sister in law is an educator, and she recently was told to go back for her Master degree.  The school that she works for recommended a specific Online Masters from a South Carolina state college.  Even the employers are now seeing the light on this issue.

Sorry for my unsolicited bloviations.  I still see threads that people start that ask if they should bother taking online classes or if it "Looks bad".  I honestly think that those of us who went online years ago, when it was frowned upon, are somewhat vindicated.  Your thoughts?

[quigongene]

I was asked to join a project that injects IT security into the purchasing process at my company. I was asked to write up a quick 2 line "bio" to introduce myself to potential vendors.

It went something like:

quigongene is the information security analyst for this solicitation. quigongene joined company in May 2017 and has 8 years of information security experience and 25 years in information technology. quigongene holds the CISSP and ISSAP from ISC2 as well as the CISA from ISACA. quigongene also holds a Bachelor Degree in Cybersecurity & Information Assurance from Western Governors University in Utah.

Not even a blink. Just a reply saying "that looks great!!". So much of college is online now that I believe only the zealots care about sitting in lecture halls.

[ChilliDawg]

I was asked to join a project that injects IT security into the purchasing process at my company.  I was asked to write up a quick 2 line "bio" to introduce myself to potential vendors.

It went something like:

quigongene is the information security analyst for this solicitation.  quigongene joined company in May 2017 and has 8 years of information security experience and 25 years in information technology.  quigongene holds the CISSP and ISSAP from ISC2 as well as the CISA from ISACA.  quigongene also holds a Bachelor Degree in Cybersecurity & Information Assurance from Western Governors University in Utah.

Not even a blink.  Just a reply saying "that looks great!!".  So much of college is online now that I believe only the zealots care about sitting in lecture halls.

Honestly,  my friends that went to school during the late 1980's or early 1990's are the most skeptical about it.  My wife is a 1994 graduate of Kent State University.  She has even admitted that it "doesn't seem right" to her.  Even though, she has seen me learn, flourish and enjoy the process.  

It has occurred to me that anyone that has spent countless hours sitting in lecture, and who has taken out $40,000 dollars in student loans are probably NEVER going to readily accept that the online method is as effective, if not more.

[zzzz24]

As long as it's a legit reputable school, I think the vast majority of employers could care less if the degree was earned in-class vs online.

They wouldn't even ask the question. Most don't even care about transcripts or individual class grades, they just care that you have a degree to check the box.
Depending on the profession, it could obviously be different, but for the vast majority of jobs, this is the way I see it.

In all of the jobs I have had, I think only one employer asked me for an actual copy of my college diploma to prove I had one.

[sanantone]

In my area, it's unusual to ask for a diploma because diplomas can be easily faked. I've turned over open transcripts for some jobs, but police departments wanted sealed transcripts. I also applied for a college instructor position that required sealed transcripts. Maybe it's a government thing, but I've lost count of how many times I've had to upload transcripts with an application, bring one to an interview, or submit one after a job offer. It isn't specific to a field because I've applied for almost every type of job under the sun. I could possibly have the world record for number of job applications.

I've only had one employer who required copies of my diplomas instead of my transcripts, and I thought it was idiotic. I wouldn't have a high opinion of an employer that doesn't know how to or doesn't bother to verify education. That's how so many people with diploma mill degrees get jobs. If your employer isn't asking for official transcripts for a position that requires a degree, you better hope they're using a degree verification service. 

I've had a degree since 2011, and I've applied for thousands of jobs (necessary during the recession), so my sample size is huge.

Research has shown that online classes are just as effective as in-person classes, but only for adult learners. Students who are of the traditional college age tend to struggle more with online classes. 

For-profit colleges, in general, are of low quality whether the programs are online or in person. There is research that has found that 2-year programs at community colleges have better outcomes than 2-year programs at for-profit colleges. The only exception was cosmetology because the most prestigious beauty schools are for-profit.

[bluebooger]

the bureaucracy can be a little behind the technology

I noticed a local community college had an online course in "math for healthcare"
it covered stuff like calculating IV concentrations and flow
and medication dose per body weight and so on

I called them up, told them I wasn't a student at the college but would love to take course
they said no problem, we just need tuition and proof of vaccinations

I replied "uh what ? its an online class -- I'll never step into a classroom -- I'll never even come into contact with another student"

they said "oh yeah, that makes sense .. hold on"

couple of minutes later, "sorry, we need proof of vaccinations to enroll you"

"oh well, never mind ... thanks anyway"

I've been vaccinated, but didn't have nay paperwork on hand to prove it and wasn't about to schedule a doctor's appointment just to get a record of it

[sanantone]

the bureaucracy can be a little behind the technology  

I noticed a local community college had an online course in "math for healthcare"  
it covered stuff like calculating IV concentrations and flow
and medication dose per body weight and so on

I called them up, told them I wasn't a student at the college but would love to take course  
they said no problem, we just need tuition and proof of vaccinations

I replied "uh what ? its an online class -- I'll never step into a classroom -- I'll never even come into contact with another student"

they said "oh yeah, that makes sense .. hold on"

couple of minutes later,  "sorry, we need proof of vaccinations to  enroll you"  

"oh well, never mind ... thanks anyway"

I've been vaccinated, but didn't have nay paperwork on hand to prove it and wasn't about to schedule a doctor's appointment just to get a record of it

It could have been state law. Texas used to require the meningitis vaccination for everyone under 26. Fortunately for me, I was over 26 and could request a waiver. For University of Florida, I requested a distance learner waiver. There's also the option of requesting a conscious objection waiver, which is basically a religious exemption.

[dfrecore]

My kids have had to turn in papers to their teachers via google docs since 7th/9th grade (I did not make them do that as a homeschooling mom prior to that! 
But they ALWAYS chose to do their papers on the computer rather than long hand since they were in 2nd grade!).

My daughter is at a charter HS and has always had the option of math sitting in a classroom, or doing an online video-based program in the math lab - she chooses the lab.  My son is at a large public HS and is taking math as an accelerated online course because he switched from a charter school in Jr. High that did the normal Algebra I/Geometry sequence to the new Integrated Math I/II/III sequence, and he's all over the place with what he knows compared to them and doesn't "fit" into the regular classroom at this point.  He was able to skip Math I, and is going through Math II pretty quickly (he's almost done), and then will go into Math III w/Precalc next year back in the classroom.

All of this to say that many kids are exposed to online courses at least partially by 7th grade, and fully by 9th.  They won't think anything of online vs. butt-in-seat in a few years.  I imagine that they'll take some courses online, and some butt-in-seat, throughout their college careers.  I already have kids of my friends who I'm helping with college stuff (kind of doing the counselor thing to assist in making sure the CC-to-4yr school goes smoothly), and all of them have taken at least 1 online course for something like College Success or Health 101 or Major/Career Search.  Some like it, some don't, and some are still not sure how they feel about it - but they all think the courses are "legitimate" and would consider more in the future, especially since they all work at least part time.

[Rustydroid]

I've been going to a traditional community college for close to two years. In that time I've taken one online class after the class that i signed up for during the winter intersession was cancelled. I also signed up for one hybrid class. Both classes I passed with an A but they were hard. One of the classes online had us doing a lot of reading and turning in papers every other day.
My first Accounting class, Financial Accounting I did most of the learning on my own. The professor was going fast and half the class dropped towards the middle of the semester. I had to watch youtube videos and read my book. I had a hard time understanding credits and debits until I saw a youtube video by a CPA on them. The thing that I liked about that is that you can pause the video, read and do additional research or rewind the video and watch it again. He gave an acronym "dealer" to remember and memorized it.
One of my economics professor joked about the class saying that it was not hard that it could be learned on your own. He said that he wondered who would do better the students that studied on their own or the ones who went to class. He then said that he would rather not know.
Right now I'm signed up for a hybrid class on college algebra. I did not even realize that it was a hybrid class. The first day of class the professor kept on stressing that it was a hybrid class that it was going to be harder because she had little time to review the material with us. She said that we would have to review the stuff on our own. She kept saying to drop the class if that was not for us.

[Supermind]

I guess the skepticism about online education comes from the well-researched psychological phenomenon called ‘justification of effort.’ People who have put the efforts (physically, mentally & financially) to graduate from a B&M school want to justify their own efforts. If they willingly accept that our online education is probably as good as theirs, then it can feel very unsettling to think that they need not have gone through so much. I guess that is probably also why even the traditional universities are sometimes skeptical of people with online degrees.