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Posts Tagged ‘online learning’

What You May And May Not Know About Online Learning

November 8th, 2009

 

Isn’t all Online learning just cheap videos and information websites?

 

This is is exactly what people have thought for so many years, but now it couldn’t be further from the truth, as the internet and the world wide web have grown into something that represents a real opportunity for people to seek higher learning. Sure, there is lots of online learning that a person can do just by surfing the web and seeing what kinds of information they can uncover, but the truth is that you’re never sure about how valid any of that information is, because you don’t know the source its coming from. The information you gain in this way might help you increase your skill or knowledge of a particular subject matter, but it won’t help you get a job in it, like getting a real online education will.

 

What is “real” online education? “Real” refers to the fact that there are now institutions on the internet that will allow you to get an education every bit as valid as one that you might get in any other post secondary institution in the world. This doesn’t just mean that you will receive online learning, but also that you can earn diploma’s, certificates, and even real degrees online.

 

Are these degrees actually good for anything? This is the part that comes as the biggest surprise to most people as they might expect that anything involved in online learning would be low budget and possibly even shady, and those institutions do exist, although in smaller quantities than they did years ago. Now, you can get degrees through online learning that are from institutions accredited by the most important accreditation bodies in the country, making your studies just as valid as those of someone who went to a regular university.

 

Who is offering these opportunities for online learning? Almost all of the major schools and universities that you know in the real world are also now offering classes online. Many will only have a class are two which are available via online learning, while others will allow you to complete your entire degree over the internet. Great schools like DeVry, the University of Phoenix, and Kaplan University are offering degree programs which can be earned online, and which will get you real jobs upon graduation. Now that so many different colleges are offering these methods of learning you can find a program in almost any focus or discipline if you would rather study online than at a physical campus.

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The Unmatched Career Value of a Higher Learning Degree

June 21st, 2009

People who have Bachelor’s Degrees earn on average $26,000 more a year than those with just a high school diploma, according to numbers released by the Census Bureau last week. These numbers were for the year 2007 and were gathered from a survey on educational attainment in the United States.

The percent of people who have Bachelor’s degrees is also on the rise. Results showed that in 2008 29 percent of adults 25 and older have a Bachelor’s degree, this is compared to 24 percent in 1998.

What does this mean? It means that in order to remain marketable in today’s marketplace, higher education is essential. The recession has made it increasingly more difficult to find and keep a good job. Unemployment rates for those with higher education are much lower. Many people are realizing this and choosing to go back to school. This is illustrated by the fact that post-secondary enrollments are up, according to the Department of Education,

Higher Education = Higher Quality of Life

It also means that the value of a degree translates to more than a million dollars over a lifetime. In addition, there have been several studies that have found that higher education also equals a higher quality of life.

Higher education has been proven to correlate with better health. A 2004 report released by the College Board, a non-profit association, showed that those who have a bachelor’s degree were at least 20 percent more likely to consider themselves in good health than those who did not have a high school diploma.

The report also showed that those with a college degree had far smaller incarceration rates. And this was not the only positive affect on society that higher education has – individuals with a degree were also more likely to volunteer and to donate blood, according to the report.

Another study, published in Postsecondary Opportunity and written by Tom Mortenson, listed out activities that were associated with people who have Bachelor’s degrees and those that were not.

Those with a Bachelor’s were more likely to:

  • Vote

  • Have regular medical and dental checkups

  • More likely to use the Internet

  • Use computers

  • Attend art and cultural activities

  • Exercise

  • Buy and read books

  • Read newspapers and newsmagazines

  • Have knowledge about government

  • Be politically active

  • Have children with higher levels of education

And were less likely to:

  • Be overweight

  • Smoke

  • Be disabled

The statistical information published by the Census Bureau makes it clear the monetary rewards of an education. But reports also show that the value of an education is far greater than just economics. And this all translates to the fact that it pays to get a degree.  For more information and free enrollment information, check out Masters Degree Computer Science, Engineering College Online or Master of Science Degree.

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The Best College Online Study

May 31st, 2009

Nowadays there are a growing number of individuals who are interested in furthering their education but just can’t seem to get around to it for one reason or another. In today’s fast paced life style getting an education can very difficult when managing a job, a social life, and a family life. College online programs offer easy to deal with, on your own time schedules coupled with customized learning environments allowing for even the busiest of us to make a better life through education. With the immense variety of online programs it can be difficult to sift through them, so here a few things to take into consideration.

 

  1. A legitimate online program will have been accredited by a trustworthy agent.
  2. It can be a long and sometimes grueling process but be sure to do extensive research on the schooling your interested in.

 

Have you ever considered the differences between studying and study habits on a campus at a traditional learning setting with what it is like with college online study? Many people feel that the freedom that is had by studying with online courses can be distracting and that it can be hard to stay focused, but it is just the opposite. With traditional educational institutes the classes are fast paced and give no mercy to those who may fall behind, but with online studying you can work at your own pace often times being a lot more successful at taking in the material. Here are some of the advantages on college online.

 

  1. Personalized learning environment.
  2. You can create your own schedule and decide for yourself how long it will take to get your degree.
  3. Traditional education often times can be group work with peer evaluation which for some people can be detrimental to their learning experience. Online learning works the way you want it to.

 

Many of us who are interested in college education are deterred by the sky-rocketing fees that it takes to get where we want to be. Now days there are solutions for college online tuition that is accessible to all of us. Most people think that loans grants and scholarships are only those who are off to traditional universities and colleges but this is entirely not true. Providing you are enrolled with a reputable online college and you fill out a FAFSA application you are eligible. Here some other things to think about regarding online college tuitions.

 

  1. Be sure that the online college you want to attend is an accredited online college otherwise your degree may not be generally recognized.
  2. Online loans usually do not have to be paid back right away and can very lenient with the rules and regulations.

 

 

 

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What Online Learning Offers To You

May 31st, 2009

 

The process of earning your degree online doesn’t have to be a complicated one. You can earn a degree with little hassle and great success by just knowing what is available and taking hold of your future. Make your dreams a reality by taking an online course and furthering your education. Whether you are just starting your college education or you desire to earn a degree that will help you gain a higher standing in your company, online education is the way to go. This modern way of education has helped millions worldwide gain access to degree while maintaining their social, family, business and community obligations. Give it a try, you will not be disappointed.

 

 

College Online Application- The process of applying to an online university course is very similar to a typical on campus application process. You will probably be required to write an essay or two, give your information and transcripts (if you have transcripts) and you will possibly be contacted by phone for a personal interview. Do not be intimidated by the college online application process. They are simply trying to find out who you are, what you would like to study and your qualification to take the course (if you have the prerequisites in place.). Be confident, be yourself and be excited!

 

College Online Classes- The college online classes offered come in a variety. You can earn a degree in teaching, law, sports medicine, technology, journalism, psychology, and so much more! Depending on the degree, you will easily be able to find out how long your degree will take. The excellent thing is, online courses are not just for undergraduate courses, they also include Masters degrees, PhDs and MBAs as well. Class settings for each individual course will vary. Some are broken up into weeks where you read a certain amount then write a short essay of 500 words or so at the end of the week. Others are broken down into days and you are sent MP3 versions of lectures. If you are curious as to how the classes operate, never hesitate to ask before you apply.

 

College Online Learning- The benefits of college online learning are many! You will not have to commute, you can do it in your own time and you are not obligated to be absent from events you desire to be present at. Online learning is an excellent option for those who need to stay employed yet need to further their educations.

 

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The Lifestyle Value of a Higher Learning Degree

May 21st, 2009

People who have Bachelor’s Degrees earn on average $26,000 more a year than those with just a high school diploma, according to numbers released by the Census Bureau last week. These numbers were for the year 2007 and were gathered from a survey on educational attainment in the United States.

The percent of people who have Bachelor’s degrees is also on the rise. Results showed that in 2008 29 percent of adults 25 and older have a Bachelor’s degree, this is compared to 24 percent in 1998.

What does this mean? It means that in order to remain marketable in today’s marketplace, higher education is essential. The recession has made it increasingly more difficult to find and keep a good job. Unemployment rates for those with higher education are much lower. Many people are realizing this and choosing to go back to school. This is illustrated by the fact that post-secondary enrollments are up, according to the Department of Education,

Higher Education = Higher Quality of Life

It also means that the value of a degree translates to more than a million dollars over a lifetime. In addition, there have been several studies that have found that higher education also equals a higher quality of life.

Higher education has been proven to correlate with better health. A 2004 report released by the College Board, a non-profit association, showed that those who have a bachelor’s degree were at least 20 percent more likely to consider themselves in good health than those who did not have a high school diploma.

The report also showed that those with a college degree had far smaller incarceration rates. And this was not the only positive affect on society that higher education has – individuals with a degree were also more likely to volunteer and to donate blood, according to the report.

Another study, published in Postsecondary Opportunity and written by Tom Mortenson, listed out activities that were associated with people who have Bachelor’s degrees and those that were not.

Those with a Bachelor’s were more likely to:

  • Vote

  • Have regular medical and dental checkups

  • More likely to use the Internet

  • Use computers

  • Attend art and cultural activities

  • Exercise

  • Buy and read books

  • Read newspapers and newsmagazines

  • Have knowledge about government

  • Be politically active

  • Have children with higher levels of education

And were less likely to:

  • Be overweight

  • Smoke

  • Be disabled

The statistical information published by the Census Bureau makes it clear the monetary rewards of an education. But reports also show that the value of an education is far greater than just economics. And this all translates to the fact that it pays to get a degree.  Register for free today at Masters Degree Salary, Masters Degree Science or Top Online MBA Programs.

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The Attractiveness of the Online College Option: Eight Must-Haves

May 13th, 2009

Choosing an online college can be very overwhelming. How do you know which ones are worth going to with so many of them to choose from? The best way to find out is to choose several different schools that have programs that you are interested in, and then speak in depth to their admissions advisors. Below are eight must-haves for a good online college; you can base your talking points on this list.

  1. Must be accredited. It is important that the online college that you choose be accredited because this is a way that you can ensure that the school meets established standards. This makes a difference if you want to transfer your credits or prove the worth of your degree to an employer. There are two types of accreditation: institutional and specialized. An institutional accreditation applies to the entire school and its programs, while a specialized accreditation generally applies to a specific degree program or school of study within the college or university. This is further broken down into national accreditation or regional accreditation. Regional accreditations are the most widely recognized.

  2. Platform must be easy to use. The “platform” is where you will find your classes, chat rooms, even your virtual library. Every online college has a different online learning platform, and they all work a little differently. You should make sure that the school’s platform is intuitive and easy for you to use. Ask the admissions advisor if you can have a demonstration of their platform and if they offer online tutorials to students.

  3. Must have tech support. Since all of your studies are done on your computer in an online environment, the chances that you will run into some sort of technical issue are pretty good. Make sure that the school you choose has 24/7 tech support. You can ask the admissions advisor how long the average wait time is to speak to tech support – chances are when you run into problems you won’t have that much time to figure them out.

  4. Must provide student services. A good online college has student services to make sure that their students have the optimal chance at success. This includes offering tutoring services for a small fee or even for free.

  5. Must accept CLEP credits. You may hear many online schools advertising credits for “life experience.” In general, the only legitimate way to offer this is through CLEP testing. These credits are accepted at many online colleges and traditional universities. They are a great way to test out of classes on subjects that you may already have mastered.

  6. Must have small class sizes. A good online college will have a small number of students in each class. This is because online students need a lot of individual attention to ensure that they do not feel isolated. A smaller class size makes this more manageable for the instructor, which brings me to my next must have …

  7. Instructors must be accessible. Make sure that the school that you choose requires instructors to allot a certain amount of time to give students the chance to speak with them on an individual basis.

  8. Must have a variety of financial aid options. If you are in need of some type of help to pay for school, like most of us, make sure that the school you choose has plenty of financial aid options. These include federal grants, scholarships, and student loans. Ask the admission advisor specifically about this – for each school has different financial aid opportunities.  You can also pre-qualify via sites like College Online Tuition by simply submitting your information.

All these discussion points will probably make for a long conversation, so make sure that you put aside some time to get to each of them. Don’t worry about asking the admissions advisors at your school choices too many questions – that is what they are there for! Also have a pen and paper ready (or your laptop) to write down notes, that way you can compare the different schools. Good luck with your decision!  Find out more at Affordable Online Colleges and Best Online MBA Programs.

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How to use twitter in online learning

May 1st, 2009

Twitter came to the attention of the wider world with the recent New York plane crash/rescue where a participant took a photograph on his camera phone. Through Twitter, it was flashed around the phone before the “traditional” news agencies were on the scene.

Barack Obama also used twitter to update followers on his presidential campaign.

So what is twitter?

Twitter is an online microblogging service.

What?

OK, in real language, its a cross between a blog, a text message and a conversation that the rest of the world can hear.

It is completely free for anyone to register.

“Twitterers” can post short messages (up to 140 characters in length) which can be read by their “followers” (people who chose to receive updates from this person or organisation).

Think for a second of the power of this – and bear in mind that a message can contain a link to a webpage, a photograph, video clip etc etc. It’s like being able to send a message to the world…

So why should use twitter to create a learning environment?

Well, one of the advantages of online training is that both participants don’t have to be present at the same time for an event to take place. That’s exactly the same in twitter.

Sending an email has reliability problems, people use several computers, spam filters can kill genuine message – in short, don’t rely on email…

With twitter though, everything is displayed on a webpage and (subject to user remembering user name & password) can be displayed anywhere in the world.

So, a class tutor can send a reading list to delegates a few days before an event through twitter.

How do I do this?, I don’t want the whole world hearing my conversation

When you go into twitter to set up your account, you can specify that your updates are protected (made private)

This is how to do it
When you have registered at twitter.com – go to the top right hand corner of the account screen & tick the “settings” option.

Next, tick the “protect my updates” box. This means that your updates, (posts) will not be published in the “public timeline” – messages that are entered by twitterers all over the world.
protected
When someone you haven’t approved, visits your profile, they will see this message.

Just click the “send request” button”.

So, by co-ordinating users to protect updates – you can, to some extent use twitter to create a free learning (or any other) environment.

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