Week+One+Video+and+Response

This week I watched the video, [|Anytime, Anywhere: Online Learning Shapes the Future]. The video makes valid points in why online learning whether for high school or college is beneficial. Yet this video as a future teacher also worries me and brings up some concerns. Due to the time we now live in, technology has taken over the daily routine to a person. Whether it be a new tablet coming out, the iPhone or computers, technology has engulfed our culture. Online classes are something that when I was in high school hadn't come out yet, but when I went into college they were becoming a convenient way for students to be able to go to college and do other things on our own time.

For high school, I understand that schools and districts want their students to be technological savvy, but at what cost to the student? For school districts that do not have a financial means in their budget or a lack of teachers; online learning is a great way for students to be able to keep up with city school districts that have the budget. It also gives the students a chance to take a class in which he or she would not be able to because of lack of interest in the subject- for example learning a new language like Chinese. For high school to be replacing teachers in some instances for online learning; I think this could be hazardous to the student’s ability to learn the actual subject. For example there are students who need that teacher in the classroom for discipline reasons and for needing explanation for something they do not understand. It also introduces the social aspect in school. Children go to school to learn many things, and social skills are one of them. Online learning classrooms do not have the same interaction as a non-online learning classroom does. Online learning is for students to work at their own pace, more of an individual type setting. Yet in corporate America, you have to be able to participate in team work and work with others and if a student is constantly on his or her own there is a chance where their social skills are going to be hindered.

Yet on the other hand, there is the college aspect for online learning. Online learning is probably one of the greatest things to have happened for college students. Many students that are in college have other things to do whether it be working full time, taking care of a family, the class is not offered in school or they are living somewhere else, not near the college for internship reasons or other reasons. Some colleges are even just online colleges now and do not have campus centers. I was one of these students who needed online learning courses to be able to stay enrolled in school because of an internship that I was doing. That being said of how popular online learning classrooms are, I am very surprised in the lack thereof that Stockton College has. With Stockton being mostly a commuter school I would think that they would have more online classes. Yet I soon found out for myself when I went down to Florida for my internship that there was no opportunity for me to take an online class in the field that I am studying for.

This short video covers many aspects that as teachers can be positives and negatives and it is interesting to see how online learning is being done across the states.