Deciding Between a Traditional Campus and an E-College

Advantages of the distant learning

With the recent development of the multimedia technologies students may receive a degree even without visiting a college. E-colleges not only have earned their legitimacy but are popular among different categories of population. Previously distant learning via Internet was the choice of the adult learners. Nowadays it is popular with the school leavers willing to combine work with studies as well.

Benefits of the distant learning include not only flexibility and convenience of schedules. As a rule, these online courses are cheaper than their analogs at traditional campuses. Anonymity or rather absence of eye-to-eye contact with the educators and other learners helps students to realize their potential more effectively. Comfortable atmosphere and ability to plan one's schedule according to one's needs make taking courses at e-colleges beneficial.

A blot on the landscape

Notwithstanding all the seeming advantages of the distant learning teens need to think twice before deciding on an e-college. The fact is that this choice would indicate the beginning of the adult life. Student life at standard campus is a kind of procrastination of inevitable process of maturity. In future people having received an online degree may feel that they have deprived themselves from a part of careless youth time.

Another point is the difficulty with self organization, self motivation and time management of the distant students. Lots of the e-colleges use the asynchronous techniques. It means that the learners do not need to access and perform the tasks simultaneously with the instructors and other students. Students may download their assignments 24 hours a day 7 days a week. But this option deprives the students of the control function of the standard college. It is not advisable for a school-leaver to decide on the distant learning, if he/she lacks

• self organization;
• self motivation;
• time management skills;
• profound computer user skills.