The learning revolution isn't
going fast enough! It's
started, but proceeds slowly. My
fascination with information technology (IT), especially with
computers, the Internet and the World Wide Web is that’s where
learning is happening dynamically.
Online learning should be
developing at the speed of light, or at least going a bit faster than
a mule train, in every subject area.
The technology exists, the subject matter abounds, but only
computer and IT stuff have made the leaps that we should be making
with all learning.
The potential for online
education has been put succinctly by Bob Kerrey, president of the New
School in New York City: "It's allowing people to learn in ways
that were impossible before."
Just think of what can be done
when we get our online learning act together:
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Your education can take place in comfort at home. No more
classrooms, sitting at uncomfortable school desks, at inconvenient
hours, surrounded by bare walls and smelly students.
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You can learn at times that suit you.
No more showing up for classes at badly scheduled hours.
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Libraries full of information will be accessible online.
Forget the mildewed library stacks, the missing books and
periodicals with pages torn out. Libraries will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a
week.
-
Videotapes of the greatest lecturers in the world on any subject can be
imported to your PC, saved and played as many times as you need.
Celebrate the end of listening to dull lectures by boring
professors.
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Data and information can be presented in attractive and engaging media
formats.
-
No subject matter or major area of study will be beyond your reach.
Gone will be the days of travelling to distant countries to
access a research facility.
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Forums and chat rooms for topical discussions will be readily available.
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Experts, mentors and archives of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's) will
provide answers to your most difficult questions.
-
Links to multiple sources of information will invite in-depth topical
research.
We’re
headed in the right direction. Even
today, there’s much to be learned online.
Before undertaking study
online, it’s important to know some of the qualities
needed to be successful at it. “Self-directed learners show
initiative, independence, and persistence in learning. As they accept
responsibility for their learning, they see problems as challenges
rather than obstacles: they share a high degree of curiosity, a strong
desire to learn, and the capacity for self-discipline. They can set
goals, make plans, organize their time, and set an appropriate pace
for learning."
If you have the qualities for
independent learning, you need the tools.
Learning how to use a computer and how to search for
information on the Internet form the basic tools.
This includes how to:
When you learn how to do
Internet searches, you'll have acquired a basic
learning skill. You need
to learn how to use search tools like Google,
All the Web and
Vivisimo,
which searches Yahoo, Alta Vista, MSN, Fast, Hotbot, Netscape, Direct
Hit and AOL. You also
need to learn how to tell the search tool what you want to know.
Next, you need to know how to
collect and organize the information you get.
The basic way to collect information from the Internet involves
learning to copy from a Web site and paste into a notebook or word
processor.
The last step is learning how
to organize what you’ve collected into an order that makes some
sense.
With those basics, you know how
to learn. All you need
now is the subject matter, the information, the data you want to
learn.
Are you interested in earning
a college or university degree online? Do you simply want to take some
college courses? If so,
several Web sites list online university programs.
US
News
surveyed over 2,000 traditional colleges and virtual
universities to compile their new E-learning directory.
World
Wide Learn
lists hundreds of online degree programs, MBA programs, online courses, computer training, continuing education, career training, certificate programs, personal development courses, and learning resources in 361 subject areas offered by universities, colleges and training companies from all over the world.
For
those seeking college or university courses online, an incredible
array of course listings is featured at eLearners.com.
Their database contains links to 24,000 online courses.
You can locate either degrees or courses by subject.
They also list 2,400 distance and e-learning degree and
certificate programs. That
isn’t all. ELearners.com has over 30 informative FAQ's
& articles about learning online as well as Links and information
in 14 categories of learner resources.
One of the most popular
University programs, offering degree programs in Business, Management,
Technology, Education and Nursing is the University
of Phoenix online. Their
programs have been accredited, and they’ve been providing degree
study online since 1989. Everything,
including book buying, is done online.
The Internet offers
specialized courses, like Math
Courses Online and Learn
Plus where they offer language instruction in Spanish or German.
At Virtual
Courses on the Web, Mark Daltonor provides links to numerous
biology courses.
The
way to find online courses that fit your special interests is to
specify a search phrase on a search engine. Those interests can be as
broad and varied as science, literature, language, botany, sewing,
cooking or chess playing. If
you’re interested in chemistry, for instance, type “online
chemistry courses” in the search bar, and you’ll get a slew of
links to chemistry courses—some free and some
fee-based.
As you would expect,
technology represents the most highly developed area of online
courses. Next to that,
business courses have grown in numbers and scope.
In both of these areas, courses have become well presented and
inexpensive. A favorite
site of mine for these courses is Learn2.
They
offer courses in several categories, from beginner to advanced levels.
Learn2’s course catalogue
reveals not only a wide range of computer and Internet related courses
but also their expansion into other fields, including languages. The catalogue
is impressive. They also
charge for courses by subscription period.
While their courses have a narrower range of titles at $25 for
6 months or $50 for a year, Learn2’s coverage in each course is more
comprehensive. The
presentation is excellent.
The
Internet makes it possible to follow Thomas Huxley’s advice: “Try to learn something about everything and
everything about something."
