Can Online Learning Outperform In-Person Instruction?
Online education has traditionally appealed to a select niche of learners. Most prominently, this audience consisted of adult students returning to school after a period of absence, transfer students, and first-generation college students.
However, in 2020, online learning became the new ‘normal.’ This elicited quite fervent responses from students, harboring in the advent of a novel educational dilemma — virtual vs. in-person learning. In this article, we’ll dive into the pros and cons of each learning environment across a variety of categories.
Round 1: Accessibility
Online Learning
When it comes to online learning, accessibility depends heavily on two factors — technology and Internet connection.
As of 2020, over 85% of the American population has access to the Internet. However, lower-income groups and individuals in rural areas are often at a disadvantage when it comes to accessing the online learning environment. In fact, 18% of rural households in the US still do not have access to the Internet, based on recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics. The cost of the Internet as well as the technology needed to access it become primary ways of excluding these students from gaining the same quality of education as those who can afford this technology.
Likewise, even those who do have the technology to engage in online learning are often faced with the limitations of technology. Online programs crash, network connections lag, and individual computers are prone to their own issues. These become great challenges to ensuring a seamless remote, online learning experience, which is avoided in in-person instruction.
In-Person
In-person instruction has the benefit of reaching a higher amount of learners, evening out the playing field for low-income learners. The ability to learn is no longer primarily dependent on one’s Internet connection or technology access. Getting to the physical location becomes the primary factor that determines access to learning.
Of course, this physical access to the learning environment becomes a challenge for those with a disability as well as those who do not have the requisite transportation to get to class. Such a problem is resolved with online learning, as it becomes accessible to those with mobility issues. The ability to learn anywhere with an Internet connection makes physical location irrelevant to learning the provided material.
Winner: Based on my research, I would say that in-person education wins the accessibility round, as the financial and technological demands set forth by online learning ostracize those of lower socioeconomic class and those who live in rural areas.
Round 2: Motivation
Online
The quality of online education is highly dependent on the discipline and responsibility of the individual student. Without the presence of a physical instructor to overlook the activities occurring within a classroom, students are more likely to lose focus and engage themselves in activities unrelated to the task at hand.
Unfortunately, as college students, we are all too familiar with procrastination, which only becomes magnified in an environment that puts the student in charge of their online learning experience.
While the flexibility and asynchronous nature of online learning cater to a particular subset of learners, this becomes a major burden for students who need a strict physical environment in order to learn effectively. This also becomes one of the main reasons for the low completion rates present in online learning courses.
In-Person
On the contrary, in-person instruction has the benefit of making students feel more accountable for their learning. Monitored and guided by instructors, students are constantly ‘on the lookout’ for potentially being caught off guard participating in activities unrelated to the class. This makes them more inclined to focus on the content at hand. The physical environment of many students learning together keeps students on track, as they come into contact with like-minded students.
Winner: In-person education wins this round, as the accountability of the student is increased in a collegiate environment. However, this will vary on the personal self-discipline of the student.
Round 3: Interaction
Online
A great asset of online learning is the many avenues of communication that it offers. From discussion board chats to voice chats to virtual meetings, communicating becomes simplified. Slack, Discord, Zoom, and Google Meet, to name a few, have become the primary methods for connecting students globally, trespassing the challenges posed by distance.
However, it is imperative that this communication is sustained throughout the course of a class and semester. Infrequent or delayed communication pose added burdens not only for students needing a quick response in order to proceed with a task but also for professors who need to gauge their students’ ability to engage with the newly acquired material.
In making communication efficient for online learning, both the student and the professor should work on opening the pathways to communication, while, at the same time, being responsive to all incoming information.
In-Person
For in-person instruction, communication can, at times, be limited to class time or office hours.While each instructor has their own preferred way of communicating with students (either through email, scheduled meetings, or by phone), it may become a challenge for students to adapt to the various means of communication set forth by their professors.
Office hours can be difficult to access when an influx of students is in dire need of assistance prior to exam weeks, for instance. Arranging meetings are an additional step that students must plan in advance, which, we all know, does not always happen.
Winner: Due to the endless opportunities to stay connected virtually and digitally, this round goes to online learning.
Round 4: Class Material
Online
What sets apart virtual learning from in-person learning is the ability to access courses and resources anywhere at any time. With 24/7 access to lectures, class readings, and resources, and discussion chats, students are able to refer to class material as much or as little as they want.
This becomes especially beneficial for students struggling with particular concepts, who can easily pause or rewatch a lecture or video to obtain a better grasp of the material. Additionally, this bodes well for students studying for exams, where all of a semester’s content is laid out right in front of them.
The aspect of teaching class material in a virtual setting is another story. With professors relying on a lecture-based approach to learning, students become even more distracted and disengaged online than in-person. It is paramount that professors adapt their teaching styles, including a more flexible style of learning.
Utilizing videos, holding discussions, encouraging project-based learning, and presenting information in small chunks are several ways to diversify the online learning environment.This not only holds students’ attention, but it also makes the learner more likely to truly learn the material rather than resort to rote memorization of the content assigned.
In-Person
When it comes to in-person instruction, access to class material can be limited to the scheduled class time. Meaning, students who are absent or struggle with particular concepts are left to their own devices to figure out what they missed or need assistance with.
Of course, this varies by instructor and class, but class material oftentimes becomes scattered across multiple platforms. From content delivered in a physical class to assignments posted on online platforms like Google Classroom, Blackboard, or Schoology, it can become challenging for students to organize and find all of the materials that they need, especially if the material is being added sequentially, forcing the student to keep tabs on when new material is uploaded.
Again, this leads back to the self-discipline of the individual student and how well they are able to keep track of the various information they need. In online learning, this process of accessing materials is streamlined, as it is usually confined to a singular platform.
Winner: With the ability to keep class material organized in one place (with the help of technology), online learning wins this round.
And the winner is … it’s a draw.
As we have seen, online learning and in-person instruction each have their own flaws and assets that make them better or worse in certain areas. However, the times in which we are living today certainly offer us the potential to expand upon the opportunities that an online learning environment offers its students. While online learning cannot replace in-person instruction, a symbiotic relationship among the student, instructor, technology, and class curricula can surely result in a rich learning experience.
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References
- https://www.techlearninguniversity.com/news/remote-vs-in-person-classes-what-the-data-shows
- https://students4sc.org/2020/09/23/the-virtual-divide-online-vs-in-person-learning-in-fall-2020/
- https://www.uis.edu/ion/resources/tutorials/online-education-overview/strengths-and-weaknesses/
- http://www.guide2research.com/research/online-education-statistics
Want more on the future of college education, post-pandemic? Check out my previous articles:
