Dismissal of online learning still a thing?

[MNomadic]

@MNomadic

In most programs in the sciences and specifically in the medical field, there are things you can do online and things you need to do in-person. That is fine and I would never dispute that setup. I'm actually against programs that are targeting clinical practice but don't include clinical training and actually find it rather irresponsible.

What I am in favor of is an online program that allows you to take the parts that don't need to be done in-person online, while mandating in-person training for the parts where hands-on training is indispensable. I think that's a reasonable thought process.

What struck me is how people dismissed that and ignored the fact that the online learner would have the same level of hands-on training in the critical parts that required it. The blanket idea of throwing away all online programs because a few are run irresponsibly is in itself irresponsible on the part of the detractors.

I am one hundred percent in concurrence with you. Some stuff does NEED to be hands on and in person. However, driving to a campus downtown, dealing with parking, trekking across campus to sit in a lecture hall of 500 people to listen to a lecture on theory(accompanied by a PowerPoint), see if they take attendance, and hand in a paper assignment is a complete waste of time and money nowadays.

I get far more out of a video where I can speed it up, skip the fluff, rewind/read the transcripts when I need to, pause to run errands, bring the laptop into the bathroom with me(if I had beans earlier that day), multitask on the easier stuff, etc. And then email the assignment in when I'm ready.