Category: Online Courses

An online course refers to the course or medium of content that is provided to anyone irrespective of their age through a digital platform. Nowadays, these online courses have become important for the ones who are seeking job opportunities in accordance to some prescribed professional skills.

Students are required to be familiar and well versed with the usage and applications of technology. The advancements in Information Technology (IT) has actually opened the way for students to shift from their traditional way of learning to a new one i.e., learning via digital platform. Online course actually changes and transforms teaching and learning relationships, methods, opportunities and outcomes.

Main motive for pursuing online course is to improvise opportunities for oneself. A good characteristic of online education is to provide active learning which helps working professionals to be updated with the real world and the technologies that are emerging.

Hooman Estelami (2012) examined the varying experiences in hybrid-online and purely online course formats. The outcome was that the online courses are increasing nowadays at a tremendous rate with the advancement in technology. It even allows disadvantaged students to compete more effectively with the advantageous ones more effectively than in traditional learning.

The most crucial factor is interaction in education. The interaction made online are actually reciprocal of events with at least two actions and two objects which mutually influence one another. Moore (1989) described that there are three main types of interaction; crucial for success in online courses:

1. Learner–content interaction. The provision of materials alone cannot be enough to foster learning, which requires students to actively engage with the content purposefully. Online course participants tend to rank learner–content interactions highly.
2. Learner– Learner Interaction. Generally, students appreciate opportunities to work and share ideas with their peer groups , others feel that these are highly tangential.
3. Learner–Teacher Interaction. Instructors are often known and regarded as experts in the subject they teach to the students. Hence, communication with them can be thought of as a highly perceived value amongst learners.

The results of the study indicate that the preferences, self-reported measures, demographics can actually play a key and important role in determining the predictors for the performance in online courses; and the research on the performance of the students in online courses can be expanded to various other domains and fields. Knowledge can actually aid a student to make corrective measures or seek other modes of learning.

Who wouldn’t want to be able to go to class at any time without having to commute? Online courses have been getting more and more popular due to how convenient they are. Students can choose when and where to complete the course while working towards their degree. As long as students have Internet access, they can access and complete course requirements. Online students must be responsible and self-motivated to benefit from freedoms of online classes.

Online classes have a considerable amount of freedom. There is no classroom or set time for a student to have to show up for class. For example, instead of waking up at 7am to get ready for an 8am class, students can sleep in. In addition, students can choose to do their homework and use the course resources when they like. For instance, they can spend 30 minutes at 3pm and another 45 minutes at 6 pm working on homework instead of having to sit through an hour class at the same time and same place often in the same class seat. However, with the freedoms of online classes, there is the need to be responsible.

Responsibility is important to succeeding in online courses. For example, students need to check their schedule and course announcements often to make sure they don’t miss assignments or important information. Teachers won’t remind students about this in class, so students must remind themselves. This means making the class a high priority and taking it seriously. In addition to responsibility, self-motivation is necessary for being successful in an online course.

Some might think that self-motivation is the same as responsible. However, that is not true, especially for online classes. While responsibility is being aware of what needs to be done, self-motivation is the ability to fully do what needs to be done. Just as teachers won’t remind students about assignments, teachers also won’t have time in class for students to work on assignments.

Therefore, students need to be able to motivate themselves to do the assignments. This is difficult for many reasons. Some examples include all the distractions one might have a home such as family, pets, children, and just wanting to relax by watching TV, Netflix, and so forth. Students will need to be able to focus. For instance, they can set aside a specific amount of time every night at a certain time to work on their homework. That can give them the best chance to achieve the success they want.

Students can take advantage of what online classes offer if they remain responsible and self-motivated. The freedom might make this difficult. However, students can benefit from it in many ways. Being self-motivated and responsible can lead to success since our society has opportunities for people with strong determination and discipline. Online learning is meaningful life learning.

Should online courses replace face-to-face lecture courses?

Education is important in society because it helps individuals develop socially and economically. Society takes education as an important aspect because it assists individuals have new skills that will have a huge impact in the daily lives of people. It is important to note that education changes the lives of individuals. Delivery of education gives individuals a different perspective in life, which changes our attitude towards life. There is a need to note that most learning institutions help the students to network and remain competitive in society. Most learning institutions have the facilities to help students widen their knowledge because of research.

Change is an apparent thing where many open online progressions account for a developing part in the academic content in higher education. However, many disruptions arise from online courses that affect face-to-face lecture courses. Currently, traditional learning methods evolve with the aid of technology and computers. With the many ways of learning available in the current world, one of the most significant benefits is improved access to education to all different people. Most individuals globally are experiencing enhanced mobility as an outcome of the potential and freedom provided by online learning. Adopting online writing as a method of learning improves the legitimacy of formal academic education due to the remote access learning and use of technologies. Online courses have enabled most people to have an easy time replacing the traditional methods of doing things like communicating and the processes of learning. This essay argues some of the reasons why online courses should replace face-to-face lecture lessons and how the benefits outweigh challenges, disadvantages, and issues connected with the process.

One of the reasons why online courses are better compared to face-to-face lecture courses is due to the type of communication in the method. Online students communicate through emails or phones with their instructors, unlike traditional students who have direct contact with their instructors. Therefore, online students communicate through virtual discussions with other students compared to students in the lecture courses. This reason means that they get enough time to have research about their conversations and discuss it with their professionals and other students. Unlike the lecture courses, the online process of learning develops students into autonomous and self-driven type compared to lecture students. Online learners require a higher rate and degree of personal discipline and responsibility, unlike lecture students who have regular communications with their professionals. The online methods thus turn learners into active schedulers, independent people, more knowledge in using technology, and useful in meeting deadlines. Online courses create room for students to have online success in the future (Neuhauser, 100). The method also has an advantage of preparing students for future jobs. Currently, most employers prefer students who are connected and acquainted with a dynamic world. The consistency and self-serving method provided by the online course method has the capability of producing a self-independent, hardworking, and a conversant person to the changing world. Most students who learn using the way of the online course have the capabilities of providing the right word in a company, meeting deadlines as well as handling tight schedules.

Importantly, online courses have the capability of providing a positive influence on educational cost to the students. Online courses can save on the cost spent on ensuring that students have to acquire their knowledge by physically meeting their lecturers. Some students grow from able families who have the skills of paying for college fees, thus benefiting from learning different kinds of courses and direct contact with their professionals. However, some students come from underprivileged families and lack the college fee. The online courses assist the poor students in paying for their fees since they have reduced costs, which allows students to have flexibility in working and studying. The online course method is cheaper compared to the lecture courses since students do not have to pay for facilities, textbooks, or even transport to school (Smith et al. 18). Students using the online method pay less compared to students who have face-to-face courses, thus assisting the poor students to keep studying. Moreover, the method is also useful to people with capabilities since it helps them save money in the future to use in other things. The technique has different platforms that have affordable prices to acquire resources for students taking online courses. The online method appears to be accessible due to its reduced overheads compared to the traditional way of face-to-face lectures. The process is also open for everyone who wishes to study, unlike the face-to-face method, which consists of limitations.

Third, online education has facilities that provide ample environment for students to keep learning and improve their skills in studies. The study states that if the system of online education became compulsory for every student, it would be impossible to join some activities like festivals and school clubs. This opinion means that some of the problems that arise due to the outside activities would get eliminated, thus providing a good environment for students to focus on studies. The online system offers open education for all kinds of people regardless of race, age, gender, or physical appearance. The online system eliminates unnecessary pressure caused by some activities, which lead to some issues like drug consumption and bullying.

Additionally, the method is also advantageous since students can take lessons from anywhere without pressure. This reason means that online courses provide freedom for students providing comfortable surroundings; students who want to join sports or any other activities have all the time needed to balance both studying and other businesses (Neuhauser, 103). The fact that the methods allow students to take subjects at their preferable time appears to be convenient for students, unlike face-to-face lectures. Online communities and forums created around the subjects add to the usage of the other distance programs in education,

Fourth, in comparison to the current lecture courses, the online method of studying is critical in all institutions due to its flexibility. Lectures can deliver their knowledge to a large number of students at a single lecture. Despite some people not finding any essence in the online directions, the process assists the institution in providing more subjects and holding more students at the same time offering excellent services. For instance, the technique is appropriate for older people who have no time to attend school and, at the same time, work to earn a living. Online courses also reduce congestion in institutions and even in school facilities like the library. A student taking online classes can access library books through online links at any time. The flexibility provided in the online courses system is also essential for people who have young children to raise, part-time jobs, live far from the institution, or take care of elder relatives (Callister, 245). People with tight schedules are therefore given a chance to study at an affordable price and do their work. Students have the advantage of studying at their speed, with their referred schedule and managing their time. Unlike face-to-face courses, students do not have to catch up with others in case of any emergency that needs attention. Tus the method not only benefits working individuals but all people in general who need their pace and speed of reading. Online courses have the advantage of retaining and attracting a different types of students’ geographies, motivations, backgrounds, and experiences. The accessibility level in the system allows schools to attract more clients to attend the school due to its provisions and services. It is crucial to note that online learning will help to deliver education in the future.

Many advantages are connected to online learning to learners since they have their environment and have the power to control the schedules. Students can choose the background they want to study, adjust lights, choose the favorable time, and postpone. The method also has the capability of avoiding disruptions like noisy classmates and others. Students discussing chats have the chance of focusing on the topic more than arguments through face-to-face. The online groups tend to put more effort into showing their headwork and engagement in class work unless the traditional method of face-to-face lectures. Notably, the feedback provided by online students appears to be consistent and in-depth. However, the online courses have so many benefits and advantages over the traditional method, there are some of the services and things that it cannot provide. For instance, the learner must be very dedicated to schoolwork to enable them to meet the deadlines and participate in class chats and discussions. Unlike online courses, the traditional method creates a stronger bond between the instructor and the students due to the time spent in the classroom and the face-to-face contribution by the student and the professor. Ultimately, although the internet has made learning easier for some students, it is not always as effective as face-to-face meetings. Students get to know each other physically through face-to-face meetings and discuss some topics that may appear hard, creating a stronger bond, unlike in the online system of learning. Both face-to-face courses and online courses ate effectively in different approaches and helped students in learning (Neuhauser, 112). Online courses are an effective method for students who cannot access education due to some reasons like work, illness, or other situations. We ought to know that face-to-face is effective in providing better bonding and communication between students and the instructors permitting learners to study more. Face-to-face, learning is important to the system because it has worked on previous education systems. However, in most cases, online learning works best because it saves the students’ time and cost in the learning institution. Most of the experts advocate for face-to-face learning because it creates discipline for the students because they have no option to attend the classes. Online learning is not effective when there is a need to monitor the progress of the students. Moreover, online learning reduces the interaction students have on campus, which play a vital role in their future. Students will not have the opportunity to travel abroad in search of education and learning new cultures. Students will lose the benefit of networking that comes with attending face-to-face learning. Even though online learning offers more in terms of benefits learning experience as the students interact more with their colleagues and different people who are attending various courses. Some individuals will not benefit the programs that universities provide like sports scholarships and other programs.

Ultimately, online courses are beneficial not only to students at a younger age but also at an older age. The significant difference between face-to-face lectures and online courses lies in the communication segment. Online courses allow students and educational facilities to improve their delivery of educational knowledge to students because online-based learning focus is to improve the students. The method is useful and helps people save money in education for future use and provides a comfortable surrounding for studying. The process also includes flexibility, unlike face-to-face lecture courses, since it allows people to work while still studying. . Online courses have enabled most people to have an easy time replacing the traditional methods of doing things like communicating and the processes of learning. It is crucial to separate the courses that rely on face-on-face interaction and the courses that will benefit on online courses.

People who live far from the institutions get a chance to explore without much pressure from paying transport or traveling daily to school. Online courses have provided people with new opportunities for unique flexibility of development and personal studying. Unlike before, students can participate in a full-time course and well-paying job or a project. The method provides people with skills and knowledge of the changing world, thus preparing them for future employment. Lastly, the technique offers people who are independent, self-motivated, and with technology skills in the future. Therefore, online courses should replace face-to-face lecture courses in future due to the necessary means it consists of enhancing education among students.

Work cited

1. Neuhauser, Charlotte. ‘Learning style and effectiveness of online and face-to-face instruction.’ The American Journal of Distance Education 16.2 (2012): 99-113.
2. Smith, Glenn Gordon, David Ferguson, and Mieke Caris. ‘Online vs. face-to-face.’ THE Journal (Technological Horizons In Education) 28.9 (2010): 18.
3. Callister, Ronda Roberts, and Mary Sue Love. ‘A comparison of learning outcomes in skills‐based courses: Online versus face‐to‐face formats.’ Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education 14.2 (2016): 243-256.

Online education witnessed rapid growth over the past decade. According to The Canadian Digital Learning Research Association (2018), more than two-thirds of Canadian higher education institutions offer online courses. In 2018, roughly one in five Canadian students are taking at least one online course for credit. Furthermore, 74% of institutions expected online registration to increase in the future and almost all institutions mentioned that the main advantage of online education is improved students’ access.

As a result of this growth, educators are constantly assessing the quality and effectiveness of online courses. A key issue in online education is the learners’ sense of isolation and disengagement (Al Samarraie, 2016). Many solutions were suggested by research findings to tackle disengagement issues. Despite the efforts implemented and strategies suggested to solve the issue of disengagement, lack of student engagement remains a current issue in online education (Kebritchi, 2017).

The purpose of this paper is to explore the existing limitations of the solutions suggested to solve the disengagement problem in online courses in higher education. The paper will start by defining disengagement and online courses. The next sections will present the perils of the disengagement issue, some causes of disengagement, and some of the solutions suggested. The paper will then examine the limitations of the solutions suggested and conclude by offering some recommendations and future areas of research.

Definitions

Before we discuss the lack of engagement in online courses, we will start by defining both engagement and online courses. There are numerous definitions of engagement in the literature. One of the most useful definitions was introduced by Kuh as quoted in Stott (2016) as “the time and energy students devote to educationally-sound activities” (p. 51). That definition adds a quantifiable dimension to an abstract concept like engagement, which makes it measurable for research purposes. In online courses, in particular, students’ disengagement displays itself in unique ways. One common way is gaming the system (Baker, Corbett, Koedinger, & Wagner, 2004). Gaming the system is defined as taking advantage of the feedback feature of an online module to progress through the module without really exerting any thinking about the content (Baker et al., 2004)

The definition of online learning is not to be confused with distance learning. Distance learning existed many years ago, whereas online learning is a relatively new phenomenon resulting from the development of the internet in the 1990s (Guri-Rosenblit, & Gros, 2011). Online learning can either be synchronous or asynchronous. In synchronous courses, all participants and the instructor log in to the web and interact at the same time. In asynchronous courses, there is no real-time interaction, so the instructor and students may log in to the web at the time most convenient to them (Appana, 2008). This paper will consider disengagement in asynchronous courses since it is the most commonly used format in higher education (Bonk, 2004).

Why Bother?

The lack of student engagement is a challenge worth exploring since the perils of disengagement can have negative implications on students, instructors, as well as higher education institutions at large. On one hand, disengagement impacts students’ participation, satisfaction with the course, and attrition rate (Morris, 2005). On the other hand, dissatisfaction with a course was found to negatively impact the evaluation of the course’s instructor (Stott, 2016). According to Stott (2016), students who fail to reach their goals in online courses tend to punish the instructors through poor ratings, which in turn renders some instructors reluctant to teaching online courses to avoid the risk of damaging their careers. Furthermore, higher education institutions are reported to be concerned about students’ engagement. The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) gathers and reports several engagement indicators among participating schools in the USA and Canada. The reported engagement indicators often impact the perceived image of the school, which in turn influences students’ enrollment and the school ranking (Maclean, 2018)

Causes of disengagement.

Several factors were documented to lead to a sense of disengagement among students enrolled in online courses. Causes of disengagement can be student-related, instructor-related, or technology-related. For example, student-related causes of disengagement include high work and life commitments as well as learners’ lack of readiness for online learning (Stott, 2016, Hung et al, 2010). Instructor-related causes include slow instructor response time, instructors’ lack of interest in teaching online courses, and the challenge of transferring face-to-face content to the online environment (Stott, 2016, Fein & Logan, 2003; Osika, Johnson, & Buteau, 2009). Technology-related causes include a non-user-friendly LMS, poor connectivity, the inadequacy of equipped e-learning system, and the lack of advanced multi-media tools (Stott, 2016, Zhang, 2004).

An opposing view to the idea that online learning causes disengagement was presented by Li and Akins (2004) who considered the whole idea a myth. The authors argue that technology alone does not have to promote disengagement. According to them, technology is only a tool, so an effective online course should be driven by sound pedagogical considerations. In other words, objectives need to be set to create an engaging learning environment in any course whether it is delivered online or offline. If that is not done properly, then a sense of disengagement can develop any way regardless of the mode of delivery. While Li and Atkins’ (2004) argument has merits, it is important to note that the disengagement problem is a multi-dimensional one that is caused by a mix of factors as noted in the literature. It is therefore over-simplistic to reduce the causes of the problem to only the proper planning of an engaging environment.

Possible solutions

Several strategies were suggested to raise the engagement levels of students online from a learner, institutional as well as instructional perspectives. From a learner perspective, the most quoted strategies in the literature were online communities, student collaboration with each other, and open-ended assignments (Trumbore, 2014). From an institutional perspective, a leading influential factor in student engagement is how supportive the environment is (Lundberg, 2015). A supportive environment is defined as one that includes a combination of positive interactions with faculty, staff, and students. It was found that student learning increases when the campus environment is broadly supportive of their success and when it encourages them to interact with diverse peers. Likewise, faculty make an important contribution to student learning by providing feedback that encourages students to work hard in order to meet academic expectations (Lundberg, 2015). From an instructional perspective, strategies that combat disengagement include mixing audio and videos with text discussions and changing the incentive structure to de-incentivize gaming the system (Ching & Hsu, 2015; Olesova, Richardson, Weasenforth, & Meloni, 2011, Baker et al., 2006)

Solutions’ limitations

It appears that research findings offer a wide range of solutions to the disengagement issue. However, as mentioned earlier, disengagement in online courses remains a current issue that needs attention (Kebritchi, 2017). This implies that there are limitations to the solutions offered. The literature suggests that limitations emerge either from the nature of online courses, or the reliability and adequacy of e-learning research.

The first limitation is related to the nature of online courses. Protopsalti (2019) clarified that whenever technology is used to fully replace face-to-face interaction, disengagement is inevitable. To him, technology can add to the learning experience when it supplements, rather than replaces, face-to-face interaction. He pinpointed that the outcomes of the hybrid models of blended learning employing this philosophy do not create the problems that emerge in fully online courses. In other words, according to Protopsalti (2019), solutions to disengagement in online courses do not live up to their promises because the full online presence of a course does not inherently lend itself to engagement.

The second limitation is related to the reliability and adequacy of e-learning research studies. Guri-Rosenblit (2011), highlighted that current research on e-learning is largely composed of sporadic studies that yield contradictory results, suffer from various biases, or do not yield conclusive findings that enable policymakers to use them in a useful way. Zawacli-Richter et al. (2009) identified three broad areas of e-learning research, macro, meso, and micro. The macro-level research covers the theoretical framework of e-learning and strategy-level issues. The meso-level research is concerned with administration and managerial issues. The micro-level research tackles the pedagogy of e-learning. Zawacli- Richter et al (2009) found out that there is a significant imbalance between research studies conducted at each level, with the majority of studies focusing on the micro-level. That could explain why suggested solutions to disengagement in many research studies did not live up to their promises or help eliminate the disengagement problem so far.

Now what?

This section will attempt to offer recommendations to tackle the previously discussed limitations. It will particularly recommend focusing on the blended learning approach and improving the quality of e-learning research.

A first recommendation is to increase the focus on blended learning. Since the inherent nature of online courses does not lend itself to engagement, it may seem appropriate for higher education institutions to re-design their course development strategy to incorporate the blended learning approach more often than the fully online model. The assertion that blended learning improves engagement and learning outcomes is supported in the literature (Osguthorpe & Graham, 2003; Bonk et al., 2006;). Blended learning is believed to combine the best of the two worlds of face-to-face and online learning (Osguthorpe, & Graham, 2003). While research findings did not agree on the optimum mix of face-to-face and online components in a blended learning course, most of the studies speak to the superiority of the blended model over the fully online one in terms of student achievement and satisfaction (Precel, K., Eshet-Alkalai, Y., & Alberto, Y., 2009). From a cost perspective, contrary to conventional wisdom, blended learning courses may prove more cost-effective than fully online courses. (Guri-Rosenblit, & Gros, 2011). The authors argued that the more intensive the technology used is, the higher the cost of installation, maintenance, and technical support.

A second recommendation is for institutions as well as governments to improve the quality of e-learning research at the macro, meso, and micro levels. At the macro and meso levels, efforts should focus on funding and encouraging more studies since studies at these levels are currently in severe shortage. At the micro-level, most studies focus on measuring the impact of one technology on students’ achievement (Guri-Rosenblit, & Gros, 2011). Such studies tend to be repetitive and limited in their ability to convey a comprehensive examination of the impact of e-learning. Efforts at the micro-level should focus on supporting a change in research design. Moreover, several sources pointed out the lack of e-learning strategy at many higher education institutions and at the national level. (Arafeh, 2004; OECD, 2005). Perhaps, that is one of the causes behind the sporadic nature of existing studies and perhaps that is where efforts should be directed to reverse the situation.

Eli Gladstone and Eric Silverberg are the two co-founders of Speaker Labs. They are aiming to reach $1 million in sales and a 9.6 satisfaction rating from their customers in fiscal year 2019. To reach their goals, they must decide on a new promotion strategy and decide whether or not to introduce a new service such as different workshop topics or online courses to their customers.

To reach their goals, Speaker Labs should introduce a new online course containing the important topics from their in-person workshops. By only including the important information from the workshops, they can prevent this new alternative from replacing the company’s other services. The online course will contain 8 hours of content, with instructional videos, quizzes, readings, tutorials, and individualized feedback to give customers an easy way to develop their skills.

The prices of the company’s workshops should increase to bring in more revenue to make their sales goal easier to obtain and so that Speaker Labs better compares to its competitors. The price of the corporate workshops should be increased from $1495 to $2,000 and the price of the lunch and learn sessions should be changed to $4,000. The price of the public group workshops should increase to $2,000 as well to match the corporate workshop price. The new online course should be priced at $1,250 so that they can meet their sales goal, while still not having them replace the company’s main focus, which is their in-person workshops. These prices will help the company bring in more revenue in a more efficient way.

Speaker Labs should continue to use Google Ads, as well as create a Facebook page and start using Facebook Advertising as a new way to promote the business. Since the company currently only uses Google Ads and relies mostly on word-of-mouth referrals, the new promotional strategy will allow the company to reach more potential customers. The budget of advertising on Facebook should be $20 per day, which will allow for 7 clicks per day. With this budget, 43% of the company’s sales will come from Facebook. The advertising budget for Google Ads should also increase to $12 per day so that they can continue to gain customers from both platforms. They should hire a new employee to take care of their advertising to save Silverberg and Gladstone more time to plan and deliver workshops. This employee should be paid $400 per month to run the two advertisement pages.

These decisions will help Speaker Labs reach their sales goal for fiscal 2019 by providing new and more efficient ways to produce revenue, while still allowing Silverberg and Gladstone to run their business as usual. Using the recommended product offering, pricing strategy, and promotional strategy will be beneficial for company growth and continue to satisfy customers.

Marketing Challenge

Eric Silverberg and Eli Gladstone are the co-founders of Speaker Labs. They are looking to grow their business and reach their sales goal of $1 million in 2019, as well as increase client satisfaction to a rating of 9.6 out of 10. In the past, they have seen an increasing trend in sales and are hoping to continue this in the future. To do so, the two must decide whether or not to introduce new workshops on different topics or introduce online courses. They also must decide on a way to promote their company so that they can attract more customers and increase sales. Their current pricing strategies seem to be working well for the company so far, though they should revise and see if any changes are needed.

Internal Analysis

In previous years, the company has done very well with sales and are aiming to continue this trend. They have not invested a huge amount of money into the business in the past, which may pose as a potential issue when thinking about expanding in the future as they have little experience doing so. Although, it may be beneficial for the company to invest more money to reach their sales goal in following years. Most of the current workshops are low in operational costs; so, finances do not seem to be a current issue, and they should have the sufficient money to use to put towards developing the company. Speaker Labs has not done much advertising in the past, instead, they have mainly relied on their current customers to refer them to new clients. Perhaps changing their method of advertising and directing it more publicly will aid in the achievement of their goals. The company uses Google Ads to promote their business, however, it does not have as much of an impact as the word-of-mouth referrals do. Since they do not have much exposure to the public, they may be able to increase sales by using a different form of advertising to reach a greater audience. The company has only two employees who handle almost all of the operations of the company, with an exception to their Google Ads page. This may be an issue when expanding as the two might need some help handling any expansions.

PEST Analysis

Speaker Labs workshops are a luxury purchase, thus, causing individuals with little disposable income to lose interest in the company. This would become a greater issue if the economy went into a recession as the company might not be able to survive. This is not a current problem as the economy is not in a recession, so, they do not have much to worry about as of right now. People are relying more and more on technology for various things, including skill development. Since Speaker Labs is not currently an online platform, the company could eventually go out of business if they do not keep up as this trend continues.

Competitive Analysis

Speaker Labs’ competitive advantage is their in-person training and classroom environment. Dale Carnegie Workshops are Speaker Labs’ first and largest competitor (Exhibit 1). Dale Carnegie is a very well-known company which offers seminars and workshops on many different business topics, some closely related to those of Speaker Labs. The classes are slightly more expensive than Speaker Labs and they do not target the technology sector as Speaker Labs does. The popularity of Dale Carnegie’s workshops threatens Speaker Labs as consumers may associate the workshops’ reputation with reliability. Toastmasters International is another one of Speaker Labs’ competitors. Toastmasters International is a non-profit organization that uses a club format to help their members with their public speaking. The members are able to give speeches and get feedback from other members during the club hours. This is a much cheaper option than Speaker Labs, which may steer more customers who are looking for simply public speaking help into consuming from this company. Since anyone is able to give feedback, the information from this company may not be reliable which gives Speaker Labs a greater advantage. The Second City is also a competitor for Speaker Labs. This is a famous theatre organization that offers different training programs for members with the goal of developing new skills. The Second City’s primary focus is on public speaking in general which differentiates from the focus of Speaker Labs which is more professionally focused. They do have a corporate arm which is priced significantly higher than Speaker Labs’ workshops. Due to Speaker Labs’ lower prices and greater emphasis on business, they have a better advantage to gaining new customers than The Second City does. The last competitor to Speaker Labs is digital services for public speaking. With growing technology, there are now many different digital services and apps that are made to help people develop their public speaking. These apps have much lower prices and are able to reach a much wider audience because of their online format. Some of the apps even used human coaches to help their clients, as well as artificial intelligence. These apps are much more convenient than the workshops held by Speaker Labs, although the in-person approach that Speaker Labs has is believed to be much more effective than the online formats.

Consumer Analysis

Speaker Labs currently has two different kinds of consumers, corporate and individuals, although their main focus is their corporate clients, specifically from the technology industry. Corporate clients are different organizations that wanted to improve their employee’s skills. Businesses in the technology industry are the company’s current target market, who currently make up 70% of Speaker Labs’ customers because both Silverberg and Gladstone are experienced in the industry, therefore the workshops are more beneficial to these clients. The company was looking into expanding into the financial sector and law firms for future sales. Both of these options would work for the company because of their focus on business presentations. The owners have experience working in the business department at Ivey Business School and at Ryerson University. Since they are educated in the business industry, their workshops would be beneficial for customers in these different industries.

The company also has individual clients who are seeking public speaking development on their own. Similar to corporate clients, most of these individual customers come from the technology industry because that is the company’s main focus, although they do have clients from many different industries. The company has a good reputation to those in the technology industry because that is what their company has become known for. If the company were to target different industries, this may take away their reputation and they could potentially lose sales from technology businesses.

Target Market

Speaker Labs should target large corporations in the technology industry rather than the financial sector or law firms. This is the company’s current target market and they have a good reputation to customers from this market. If they were to target the financial sector or law firms, they would have to change some of their content to ensure they are catering to their new customers, which would take a lot of extra work. Instead, the company should invest their time into using a more direct approach to reach the technology industry. Gaining more customers from the technology industry would have a very positive effect on future sales and help the company reach their goals.

The Marketing Mix

Speaker Labs should introduce new online courses as their first step toward growing their company. An online platform would allow Speaker Labs to reach a greater audience and provide a more convenient way for people to develop their skills, while also increasing sales. This decision is a more expensive option than introducing new workshops, but in the end, will better grow the company when considering how the world is becoming more dependent on technology. The online courses should include all of the components that Silverberg and Gladstone have already considered such as instructional videos, quizzes, readings, tutorials, and individual feedback, but should include only the highlights from the in-person workshops. Only including the highlights from the in-person workshops will prevent the new platform from replacing the main services of the company. The course will be delivered on the company’s new website which will have a cost of $10,000 to start and plan, and $1,500 each year to maintain it. Since Silverberg and Gladstone are already in charge of all of the day-to-day operations for the company, perhaps hiring someone new to develop and maintain the new website would be a good idea. The two should help to plan the website and courses and decide which content is to be included, but the new employee would take care of all other operations pertaining to the website. This way they will not miss out on as much time to deliver workshops and can still expand the company. The new employee should also be responsible for any other online operations such as advertising.

To compete with the Dale Carnegie workshops, Speaker Labs should increase the prices of their other services. Since they consider their workshops to be of higher quality, increasing the prices will help prove this to consumers. If the company increases the price of the corporate workshops and the public workshops to $2,000 per person and increase their lunch and learn session price to $4,000, they will better compare to the Dale Carnegie prices. Increasing these prices make the sessions more beneficial for the company by producing more revenue to help the company reach their sales goal. The price for the online courses should be lower than the prices for the in-person workshops. An assumption can be made that online sales will account for 15% of the company’s total revenue. This makes sense because if the company is aiming to double their sales, 65% of revenue coming from public workshops would require a lot of extra work from Silverberg and Gladstone, which they might not be able to handle. The online courses should have a price of $1,250 for 8 hours of content which is reasonable when comparing it to the price of $2,000 for 12 hours of detailed content. The sales goal for these online courses is $150,000 in 2019 which would require the company to sell 120 online courses. This number is reasonable because the company has sold more of their other services in previous years and online courses would likely be easier to sell. The lower price of the online courses will convince consumers that the in-person workshops are more beneficial for them because higher prices are often associated with higher quality. If people were to use the website prior to attending an in-person workshop consumers might become convinced that attending the in-person workshops will lead to further personal development. In other words, by using the website, they might get a small amount of learning but will be able to gain more knowledge by taking advantage of the company’s other services. This would be beneficial for Speaker Labs because if consumers began to do this, they would be producing more revenue from each individual consumer.

The company should continue using Google Ads as they already are to promote their services. To promote the company to new customers, they should create a Facebook page and use Facebook advertising. Facebook is a social network used by a huge variety of people which will give Speaker Labs greater opportunity to gain new customers. The new employee hired for online operations should be in charge of the online advertising for the company to save the two co-founders more time. The employee can run the new Facebook page and the Google Ads page and can make decisions about the company’s advertisements. Since the company currently pays someone $200 per month to maintain their Google Ads page, perhaps they can pay them $400 per month for the employee to run both of Speaker Labs’ advertisement pages. Facebook advertising can be used to target specific people by using different filters for their advertisements, therefore this will be an easy way for Speaker Labs to reach their target market. The company should use filters such as public speaking, business, and technology so that they will be able to have their advertisements reach people who will benefit from the company. Google Ads, they are currently using the cost-per-click method which seems to be working well for the company, therefore, they should use this same method with Facebook. The average cost per click on Facebook is $2.72, which is a similar price to the cost per click for Google Ads. The company’s current advertising budget for Google Ads is $10 per day, which they should increase to $12 per day. They should have a budget of $20 per day for advertising on Facebook. This will give the company an annual advertising budget of $16,480. This budget would allow 2,555 clicks per year on Facebook and 43% of total sales would come from these clicks. Since the company needs to sell 120 online courses, these advertising budgets are reasonable to get the required sales. After one year, the company will be able to see the effectiveness of the advertising strategies and potentially raise their budget so that they can reach even more consumers. To measure the effectiveness of Facebook Advertising, the company should have their clients indicate how they heard about Speaker Labs when they register on the company website. They will also be able to see how many people view their advertisements from both platforms and compare this number to the number of new customers.

The company currently holds their private workshops and lunch and learn sessions at their client’s offices in Toronto and they hold the public group workshops for individual clients at a computer coding school called HackerYou located in downtown Toronto. The placement of these workshops is good for the company because they are able to keep the costs low by reducing the amount of space they need to rent out. They should keep their distribution methods as is, with the addition of new courses distributed online.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Speaker Labs’ target market should be technology companies. They should target this group by introducing new online courses at the price of $1,250 per person and the new workshops should be promoted on Facebook advertising so that the company can directly reach their target market. These changes to the company will help them achieve their sales goal of $1 million and receive greater client satisfaction.

Abstract

The purpose of the present study is to explore how people gain chance in online business education, who has an administrative role in their profession and differ on levels of skills social skills, motivation, and satisfaction. This study probe how soft skills elements result online business education, favorable outcome in teaching environment. The Data has been collected from variety of different sources through video-recorded interviews and written comments found interviews using a social network. Samples include students, teacher, and professionals. Online programs have a rise in student registration in recent years. The institutions of higher education have interests in offering quality online programs to meet the request. Online program has interviewed and observed to look over their perceptions to convenience and encouragement in online learning and their plan for improving the quality of the online program. Online learning experience has viewed effective collaborate experiences as valuable for preparing them for grow of worldwide business environment at the same time it also served as a key challenge to their learning in the online environment. Students’ suggestions for improving the quality of program are discussed as well.

The data has been collected from different sources depth interviews was conducted. In qualitative analysis NVivo 10 software has been used. Much ability has been used for the evidence of different themes of the study such as Coding Nodes, Word Tree, Word Tag Clouds, Project Map, and Tree Map.

Keywords:

Case Study, Higher Education, Massive Online Course, Motivation, Nvivo, Online Learning, Soft Skills, Satisfaction, Social Skills, Self-Regulation

Introduction:

Education is the most important because it is a part of our life. Education is the major factor for the personal, social and economic development of the nation. Education is important to live with happiness and success. Education authorizes minds that will be able to design good thoughts and ideas.

Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow (Anthony J.D’ Angelo). The online business education has experienced a dramatic change due to the rapid development of technology, globalization, and business model innovation over the past decades (Golem, 2000; Marques, 2013; Robles, 2012). The important point online courses that soft skills can be unique as personal qualities, attributes, or the level of commitment, and such skills would set one apart from other individuals who have similar skills and experience. In Pakistan, five major online universities have variety of courses online. Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today Malcolm X (1879) Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.

The Virtual University is another major university in Pakistan that offers online courses. It was establish in 2002. For the first time in history, the Virtual University launches online computer technology courses. These courses in fields of business and management are offered.

Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) said that Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.

UET is degrees in M.Sc. Applied Chemistry, Physics and, Mathematics. The university’s aim is to provide education in remote areas provide an opportunity for skill students all around the nation, and to facilitate job employers in gaining higher educational qualifications thus to increase the learning rate of Pakistan.

Without the routine structures of a traditional class, people may get lost or confused about course activities and deadlines. Trainer may not always be accessible when students are studying or need help. Slow Internet connections are also today problem.

Today people are facing competition all over the world. A major objective of online business education is to prepare during job for the workplace and to adapt the environment. Mostly people cannot do online business education due to job description.

The online education has been started In Pakistan for its students are Comsats University. It was establish in 2002. The online courses provide by Comsats University are BS in information technology, Diploma in arts, Diploma in engineering subjects, Business administration and management, and Postgraduate programs in mathematics.

Allama Iqbal Open University, established in 1974, offers an online degree at low-cost rates to students. It was the first organization in Pakistan to offer the online degree. The university has provided online courses in all subjects including science, literature, arts, and politics.

One of the senior and largest universities in Pakistan is University of Peshawar. The university offers long-distance education chance to students in Pakistan. The programs provide by the University of Peshawar are BS programs in computer sciences, Postgraduate programs, and Business administration. The present study aims to identify online consequences. This study has different segments: the first part discusses the introduction, the second component describes the review of literature, the third segment explains research problem along with research objectives of the study, the fourth part shows conceptual framework, the fifth portion describes research methodology, the sixth section shows the findings of the study and it the last section conclusion and recommendations have been discussed.

Literature Review:

Online business education learning a limited amount of direct interaction with the teacher. Recent data suggest that more than 30 percent of educators believe online learning improve student performance and learning outcomes.

Today’s business community calls for sharp, problem-solving graduates. As a result, the business education community is under growing pressure to engage in significant programmatic reforms. Accordingly, business schools are increasingly relying on the online learning model as a vehicle to meet these challenges. In general, these skills are described as, “personality traits, goals, character, motivations and preference. Nevertheless, not only in the United States but also many employers around the world report the job candidates lack soft skills needed to fulfill their job duties and responsibilities (The value of soft, 2015).

Moss & Marroquin (2010) it is also important for the students to develop and push self-regulated strategies from learning and moderately transfer the concept of learning into real-life skills.

Another advantage of online business education refers to the fact that online business education access easily anywhere cope with thousands of students that try to join discussions. Perrault (2004) conduct an important point to the table label that the soft skill can be special as personal standard or the level of dedication these skills aside from other individual have the same experience & skills.

Online learning should be seen as a complement and add-on of classical forms of learning. Not even the best online course can fully restore the personal contact with a teacher, or the human relationships that develop in a group. So, regular classes should be replaced with online learning.

Anthony & Garner (2016) Leman (2013) the skills such as aim position, time management, make a policy itself, stimulation, and the person position within a particular group in the area of education.

Research objectives

The objectives of the study are:

• To identify the benefits did you found of online education.
• To explore these online courses helped you in improvements of your skills and in your job.
• To discover people choose online study rather than going physically to any institute.
• To describe online courses affordable as compared to institutions.

Conceptual Model of the Study:

Figure 1 shows the conceptual model for this study. This model shows that online business education cannot be replaced by the online business education system. The model also shows that these results of online business education can be difficult.

Consequence for Organization

P1

Online Higher Business Education

Employee Privilege

P2

P3 Upgrade Current Job

Figure 1. Conceptual Model

1. Research methodology:

4.1 Nature of Research

The research study is exploratory and qualitative in nature and based on interpretivism paradigm because the purpose of this study to explore different consequences of online business education in Pakistan. Case study method has been employed in this study.

4.2 Sample characteristics

The sample includes people who are living in Pakistan. The data collected by teacher, students, and professionals.

4.3 Data Collection Methods

Six face-to-face interviews of online business education students, professionals & teacher have been conducted of 5-10 minutes. Two different methods have been employed for the collection of data in this study. Firstly, data has been collected from people living in Pakistan teachers, students, and professional workers through video recording interviews in narrative form because open-ended questions regarding the consequences of online business education have been asked. Secondly, written comment-based interviews have been conducted using a social network of “FaceBook”. NVivo 10 “N Capture Option” has been used for the collection and arrangement of written comment-based interviews. Using NVivo 10 “N Capture Option” data have been used in this study.

Data Analysis Methods

Data Analysis Procedure Case study strategy has been used for the in-depth analysis of the online business education. Using NVvio 10 software different techniques have been used for the qualitative data analysis such as coding & thematic analysis, word tag clouds, word tree, and treemap. However, the methodology for applying different techniques using NVivo depends on the researchers who are applying different techniques. Many techniques have been used for the validation of different themes of the study such as Coding Nodes, Word Tree, Word Tag Clouds, and TreeMap. Data has been analyzed in different phases: first of all recorded data has been transcribed into textual form, then different themes have been identified from the textual data, after that all related textual data has been coded into different related themes. This study also used “word tree map” and “world tag clouds” for collecting more evidences for the strength and validity of different themes.

Tree Map Analysis of Online Business Education

Tree Map shows the importance and the worth of each theme of the study. Treemap (figure 2) shows the online business education in different phases of education. In online education system: Easy Access, Most Convenient, Less Expensive, Reasonable, Repeat Anytime, Improve Personality, Cost-Effective, Affordable, have been found as Employee Privilege. Similarly, Time-Saving, Improve Skills, Upgrade, Smoot, Passion, Increase Communication, Creative Mind, have been the part of Upgrade the Current Job. They have the Consequences of Organization, Competition, Innovations, Resources, Tight Scheduled, Beneficial, Improve Skills, Objectives, and Scope and Complete Awareness have been found in Organization. Those element factors in the big regions are more important as compared to small region.

Easy Access.

The empirical evidence as mentioned above, it’s clear that easy access is the second most important factor. In online business education easy access save your time and cost. As one Respondent said that:

• “Online Business Education has been increase is easy access to anywhere anytime just open with your login (R1)”
• “The easy accessible for everyone and make exam center in similar cities and they save tour time (R2)”
• “The easy access for because of my job timing so this is most convenient way to get skills & knowledge for a busy schedule person (R3)”

There are benefits of online course for many students, and I’m one of them it’s easy to access anywhere anytime just with your login id that’s all you need, it’s save time and also good for those students who can’t attend lectures due to this personal problems.

Affordable

The empirical evidence as mentioned above, it’s clear that affordable is the second most important factor. Would specify one price affordable for any specific course and would never increase it, and rest of same convenience attracts clients simple.

• “The price as affordable for employee for any specific course and would never increase it, and the rest of same convenient attracts clients (R1)”
• “These online courses are usually affordable and have to spend less money as compare to other courses have to spend less money (R2)”

Affordable for those students they have less resources and important for job promotions. They read any time when you time is available.

Time-saving

The empirical evidence as mentioned above, it’s clear that time-saving is the first most important factor. In online business education the save your time & money. Because busy scheduled its difficult with your job. As one Respondent said that:

• “The online courses save time because the access anywhere not physically attend the class’s simple login and read any time (R1)”
• “I foundtime-savingvicost-effectivetive and easy to find resources related to these courses and manage easily with job (R2)”
• “Theo online courses save time, low cost and not disturbance of other students and easily to adjust the time of class (R3)”
• “Main advantage I found is its time saving, easy to manage time and less expensive (R4)”
• “The main advantage of online courses is repeat 100 of time and easily understands the trainer point of view and discusses other group fellow (R5)”

There are benefits of online courses for many students, and I’m one of them, it’s easy to access anywhere anytime just with your login id that’s all you need, its time saving it’s also good for those students who can’t attend lectures due to their personal problems or etc. and the most of important and beneficial what I think is that you can repeat 100 times if you couldn’t understand anything and nothing will going to be missed like lectures.

Most Convenient

The empirical evidence as mentioned above, it’s clear that time convenient is the third most important factor. In online business education the save your time & money. Because busy scheduled its difficult with your job. As one Respondent said that:

• “The online courses most convenient for job holder the manage at the same time study & job and not take regular classes to cover up (R1)”
• “The bust schedule now a days everybody work hard to support the family and compulsory for upgrade your job (R5)”

I personally realize that I couldn’t make time to attend the regular classes in any institution because of routine work so this is the most convenient way to get skills & knowledge for a busy schedule person. The choose the online courses the routine is so much hectic.

Improving Skills

The empirical evidence as mentioned above, it’s clear that the improving skills are the third most important factor. In online business education the upgrade your job. Because busy scheduled its difficult with your job. As one Respondent said that:

• “The helped me in improving skills speaking, reading and listening skills now a days major factor to improve the skills if we stay in organization and upgrade your job (R2)”
• “The online courses the will improve someone skills and give satisfaction in your work job (R5)”

The improving skills to see annual performance analysis to recognize areas we need to improve. Position yourself to be accountable, improve your skill set, and continually learn by setting personal benchmarks and reviewing them regularly. Learning leads to a better quality of life, improve confidence and personal development, and affect our life in a positive way.

Not Physical Attend

The empirical evidence as mentioned above, it’s clear that the not physical classes regular they just learn online website are the fourth most important factor. In institution regular attend the class as compared to online. Respondent said that:

• “The online courses most convenient for job holder the manage at the same time study & job and not take regular classes to cover up (R1)”

With almost three million students currently registered in fully online programs and six million taking at least one online course as part of their degree, online education has clearly become vogue higher education alternatives. The regular improving reputation of online learning helped fuel its expansion, as initial skepticism faltered in the face of evidence showing that online learning can be just as successful as face-to-face education.

Findings of the study

Word Tag Clouds Figure 3 shows “Word Tag Clouds” which shows the size of different words according to their frequencies of repetition in textual data. Words having more frequency show their big size. In figure 3, Word Tag Clouds shows different unrelated words such as annoying, yeah, cost 100 these words are not the themes of the study.

In the phase of second-word tag clouds word which have been unrelated into ‘’stop word list’’ and then word tag clouds skills has been applied in figure 4, word clouds theme show different themes of the study as always, client, night, daily, choose, 100, pay, become, facing, lack, good, every, drawbacks, even, after.

Word Tree Analysis

Online word is the key word for this study. Therefore, using text search query a word tree has been explored for the word: “online”. In figure 5, word tree of “online” shows the different pattern of talks of respondents of the study. By reading line-by-line data where the word “online” has been used, the study observed the meaning of online business education in this study. Figure 5 Word Tree of the word “Online”

Time word is the other keyword for this study. Therefore, using text search query a word tree has been explored for the word: “Time”. In figure 6, word tree of “Time” shows the different pattern of talks of respondents of the study.

Conclusion and Discussions

Using a traditional method of case study research this study was aimed to identify the online business education system in organization, employee privilege, and current job upgrade. Online education have a variety of institute provide different courses online in Pakistan. For the collection of data, interviews has been conducted (students, employees, professionals) earlier time appointments were taken for the smooth conduct of interviews. Six interviews were recorded using video recording device.

All qualitative data has been examine using the popular software; “NVivo” a product of QSR International Australia. They have clear objective & scope, and complete awareness of courses which provided in institution. The study identified in organization easy access, affordable, improving personality, and most convenient, reasonable, less expensive, access anywhere, reduce expense. Different Employee privilege, tight schedule, innovations, competition, beneficial, resources, reverent material. In upgrade current job, time-saving, improve skills, upgrade, smooth, passion, managing notes, creative mind, not physically attend the classes of institution, and increase communication.

General Recommendations

This study presents different recommendations to those institution where online courses are provided. They give some suggestions to improve more the quality of online courses.

1. Firstly the trainer guidelines is provide when a student’s face difficulty if any lecture they easily contact with teacher the set time for meeting.
2. The university website is access easily not internet problem the improve the quality of online business education.
3. Student and teacher at least set one meeting within the month and communicate and resolve the problem easily which we have issued.
4. Lecture will be easily access the students just login your computer and repeat 100 of times in any issue in lecture to understand

References

1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pS1472811718302854ii/
2. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563218305703
3. https://www.sciencedirect.com/search?qs=higher%20online%20business%20education&show=25&sortBy=relevance&origin=home&zone=qSearch
4. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352340918315324
5. https://www…com/science/sciencedirectarticle/pii/S095965261930424X
6. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042816310138
7. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S147281171830168X
8. https://www.researchsnipers.com/5-universities-in-pakistan-offering-online-degree/

Abstract

Distance education has proven its advantages over time as a form of learning that overcomes geographical and time barriers. Massive Open Online Courses are a modern form of distance education that creates prerequisites for life-long learning. The purpose of the current work is to investigate the nature, distinctive features, and models of Massive Open Online Courses. The main elements of the courses, which are provided to learners through learning platforms, are systematized.

Keywords: Massive open online courses, distance education, learning platforms

Introduction

Distance education has emerged as a solution to the existing need for more opportunities for people to learn and overcoming the constraints of traditional forms of training. Distance education is characterized by a physical separation of learners, who study at their own pace and at a convenient time. In order to ensure interaction and communication between the main participants in the learning process, a variety of technologies are used. The first stages of distance education are distinguished by the provision of learning materials from teachers to learners with minimal communication between them. The idea of modern distance education is to exploit the potential of information and communication technologies and provide opportunities for learning to all people who have the need and desire to acquire knowledge and skills throughout their lives.

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are one of the modern forms of distance education. They provide conditions for comprehensive lifelong learning, allow members of the society to gain knowledge, competencies, and skills when they have an internally recognized necessity or are in need of additional professional qualifications.

There is a controversy over whether Massive Open Online Courses are a form of distance education. Some authors believe that such courses are a kind of self-learning. The refutation of these claims is the fact that many of the massive online courses are offered by well-established educational institutions, and certificates are issued upon successful completion.

The purpose of the current work is to reveal the essence, distinctive features, and models of Massive Open Online Courses, which are one of the most popular forms of distance education. The main components of the open courses are systematized.

Nature and characteristics of Massive Open Online Courses

Massive Open Online Courses are online courses that are conducted and accessible through the Web (Wikipedia). They are with open access and an unlimited number of users can subscribe and attend (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Massive Open Online Courses (adapted from Wikimedia Commons).

The term MOOC was introduced in 2008 by Dave Cormier. He used the term to outline the Connectivism and Connective Knowledge course, created by Canadian professors George Siemens and Stephen Downes. The course was offered for both a small number of students for a fee and over 2000 users online for free [Kerry Maxwell, Macmillan Dictionary].

MOOCs are based on the concept of free accessible, global, video-based courses that are realized through online platforms. They are used by a large number of learners to gain additional knowledge, skills, and competencies.

The main distinctive features of MOOCs are openness, structuredness, massiveness, presence of interaction and communication between participants, and underlying on the Connectivism paradigm [Alexander McAuley, Bonnie Stewart, George Siemens, and Dave Cormier and Baturay, M.H. (2015)].

• Open. Characteristic Open contains various interpretations. On the one side, the courses and educational resources are provided through systems that can be used by everyone – the registration and participation of users is free. On the other side, the access to the educational resources is free – activities and course content are shared and publicly available. Those massive courses that offer a certificate require the payment of a fee, so open can not be identified with free.
• Massiveness. The courses and the supporting platforms allow access and participation of a large number of users, which significantly exceeds the groups in the traditional training. This is one of the characteristics that distinguisMOOCsMOOC from all other forms of online training and courses.
• Structuredness. Massive courses are restricted in time and have a particular structure. Each course has pre-defined learning objectives to be met by the participants. Users achieve goals by working with learning content provided and performing certain learning activities. Different forms for evaluating the knowledge acquired by the participants are available.
• Connectivism. MOOCs are based on the Connectivism paradigm. The basic idea of this pedagogical approach is that knowledge is spread across a network of participants. Most of the course activities take place in a shared learning environment where learners work and study together.
• Interaction and communication. In order to realize the idea of connectivity, it is necessary to have the means by which the learners can interact and communicate with teachers and each other. Among the most popular forms of communication are discussions and forums where users can talk about topics and issues of the curriculum.

These features of massive courses as well as the provision of high-quality content developed by experts from some of the most prestigious universities explain their widespread distribution and the large number of participants. Learners receive flexible access to training without the need to invest significant financial resources and time, which is very important in contemporary society. They have the opportunity to choose courses among a wide variety of thematic areas, lecturers, experts, and educational organizations.

The MOOCs also have some negative aspects, including the lack of direct contact and real-time interaction between participants, which is inherent in distance education. Social exclusion can be a cause for a poor performance, lack of motivation, and low efficiency of learning.

Several observations and studies of MOOCs [Tony Bates – 1] mark a large percentage of participants who register in courses but do not take part in them and a very small percentage of participants that receive a certificate as a document proving completion of the course. In order to change these negative trends, different techniques should be applied to provoke learners to be active, motivated, committed and responsible for their own learning.

МООCs Models

Two MOOCs models can be distinguished – cMOOCs and xMOOCs.

c-MOOCs (connectivist MOOCs) are considered as the first phase in the development of MOOCs and are often called the original MOOCs. They are structured as open online communities of learners. cMOOCs are based on the educational principles and the philosophy of connectivism, emphasizing on the power of the social interaction in generating knowledge [Ospina-Delgado, J., Zorio-Grima, A. & García-Benau, M. (2016)].

The training and learning are implemented in a network of connected tools – different digital collaborative platforms such as blogs, wiki systems, social networks. This is a new type of learning environment where participants are the main drivers of learning, who interact with each other, share knowledge, experience and ideas, and solve problems. Each participant contributes and enriches with his knowledge to the knowledge of others. The standard forms for evaluating learners’ knowledge, such as tests and assignments are not available. The teachers’ of experts’ feedback to course participants can be seen as an informal form of assessment. The links between participants are many to many. There are multiple conversations in both groups and individuals [Tony Bates].

x-MOOCs (extended MOOCs) are the second phase of MOOCs development. Gradually MOOCs are being created and offered by large universities and delivered through their e-learning and distance learning platforms or through specially developed systems. xMOOCs are based on the philosophy of cognitivism and behaviorism. They rely on the traditional concept of transferring knowledge from teachers to learners. In the center of the learning process is the teacher (The concept of openness behind c and x-MOOCs [Osvaldo Rodriguez].) xMOOCs implementation is in the form of traditional online courses with a clearly defined curriculum and a fixed structure.

A distinguished feature of xMOOCs is the high-quality learning content created by experts. It is provided to learners in the form of short video lectures. In addition to the main content, learners can also use other materials – audio files, presentations, links to Web resources that enable them to expand their knowledge of a particular topic. The courses provide tools, such as online quizzes and assignments for assessing learners’ knowledge and skills. The quizzes are automatically evaluated with immediate feedback. The assignments are assessed by the teacher or by other learners to ensure their active participation in the learning process.

There are various tools for communication between users – forums and discussions. In discussions, learners have the opportunity to share their experience, which can enrich and support the other participants. They can receive guidance, help, and clarification, mainly by teachers, but also by the other learners.

Both models (cMOOCs and xMOOCs) have a common goal – to provide opportunities for open training for everyone. The differences lie in the learning environment that is being created. According to [Online Education Blog of Touro College] cMOOCs focus on creating and generating knowledge, while xMOOCs provide duplication of knowledge. The main criticism of xMOOCs is the lack of strong interaction among learners. However, xMOOCs are more widespread model being provided at this moment.

Platforms for offering MOOCs

MOOCs are implemented and delivered through learning management platforms. They allow the registration of a large number of participants, the storage of a significant amount of learning materials, and tools for automatic evaluation of quizez or assignments [Tony Bates]. Platforms also have tools to track users’ progress and analyze data about their performance in order to help teachers in course improvement.

Popular platforms for MOOCs are Coursera, Udacity, Udemy, EdX, FutureLearn, Saylor Academy, OpenLearning, FUN-MOOC, Open2Study, OpenUpEd, Janux, Stanford Online, EMMA, Canvas Network, and others.

The massive online courses have several common components, regardless of the platforms used for their creation [Grainger, B. (2013) and Reviews.com]:

• Standardized format. Courses are organized on a weekly or thematic basis. The structure and organization depend on the purpose of the course – whether users will work at their own pace or there is a planned development.
• Video lectures. The learning content is presented in the form of short video lectures, recorded by lecturers, lasting up to 10 minutes. Another common option is the integration of other media such as YouTube. Video subtitles are available in English and, in some cases, in other languages. Video lectures and subtitles can be downloaded for free by participants.
• Reading materials. Each course offers a text alternative of video lectures and additional materials for reading.
• Integrated activities. In addition to the learning content, courses also include learning activities – questions and quizzes. Usually, each module or weekend with a quiz, assignment or project that should be performed by the participants to determine the extent to which they have mastered the content. The questions are embedded in video lectures or organized into quizzes as separate items in each module. Immediate feedback is available since they are automatically evaluated. In many, courses the projects and assignments are subject to mutual evaluation, which ensures the active participation of learners.
• Discussion forums. An unchanging part of each course is the ability for every participant to communicate with others. Communication is possible in discussion forums where the participants comment and discuss issues related to course topics, solve problems or share opinions.
• Final Exam/Project. In order to determine whether the learning objectives are achieved or in other words whether the learners have acquired the required knowledge, skills, and competencies, it is necessary to conduct a final exam (usually in the form of a quiz) or to complete an assignment (project). Some courses provide opportunities for multiple attemps until positive results are achieved.

After some course’s successful completion, the participants can receive certificates, but they have to pay a fee, even if the course is free of charge. The partnership between MOOCs platforms and different universities allows learners, after positive results in certain courses, to obtain credits that are recognized by the educational institutions. Even is possible to acquire a master’s or a bachelor’s degree by enrolling in programs offered by universities and delivered through MOOCs platforms.

Alongside with MOOCs, other platforms that provide free remote access to educational resources are developing – Khan Academy, ALISON, Peer-to-Peer-University, and others. They are not considered as MOOCs and distinguish from them in two main characteristics – they are not maintained and offered by educational institutions and emphasize on self-learning.

Conclusion

Information and communication technologies are part of everyday life. Our society is transformed into a digital society and its members are constantly in need of new skills, knowledge, and competences in different fields. Massive Open Online Courses are a tool for additional and life-long learning. They are based on the concept of open, online, global courses accessible through platforms that are used by a large number of learners. Through them, learners have flexible access to training without the need for significant financial investments. They use high-quality learning content developed by experts from prestigious universities and have the opportunity to collaborate with people all over the world. Massive courses even can complement and enrich the traditional model of formal education. They are one of the most popular form of contemporary distance education.

Reference:

1. Kerry Maxwell, Macmillan Dictionary, https://www.macmillandictionary.com/buzzword/entries/mooc.html
2. McAuley, A., Stewart, B., Siemens, G., & Cormier, D. (2010). The MOOC model for digital practice.
3. Baturay, M. H. (2015). An overview of the world of MOOCs. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 174, 427-433.
4. Ospina-Delgado, J., Zorio-Grima, A., & García-Benau, M. (2016). Massive open online courses in higher education: A data analysis of the MOOC supply. Intangible Capital, 12(5), 1401-1450. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.3926/ic.798
5. What is the Difference Between xMOOCs and cMOOCs?, Online Education Blog of Touro College, http://blogs.onlineeducation.touro.edu/distinguishing-between-cmoocs-and-xmoocs/
6. Tony Bates, Comparing xMOOCs and cMOOCs: philosophy and practice, https://www.tonybates.ca/2014/10/13/comparing-xmoocs-and-cmoocs-philosophy-and-practice/
7. The concept of openness behind c and x-MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) Osvaldo Rodriguez, Open Praxis, vol. 5 issue 1, January–March 2013, pp. 67–73 Special theme: Openness in higher education
8. Tony Bates, The strengths and weaknesses of MOOCs: Part I, https://www.tonybates.ca/2014/10/19/the-strengths-and-weaknesses-of-moocs-part-i/
9. Grainger, B. (2013). Massive open online course (MOOC) report 2013.
10. The Best MOOC Platforms, Reviews.com, 2018, https://www.reviews.com/mooc-platforms/

Course Reflection on Psychology 201

As I reflect on the class as a whole I realize that I have a very neutral point of view of the class. I see it as neither good or bad. I normally enjoy psychology as a whole and find it quite fascinating to learn about how or brain works and the causes of our behaviors. On the other hand though, I really dislike classes that are online. Besides that, chapter 12 really stands out to me because of experiences that I have going on in my personal life.

Chapter 12 is about stress. The chapter talks about types of stress and how different stressors have different amounts of impact on our lives and health. The chapter also talks about how to cope with these stressors in different ways to try to reduce the impact that they have on your life and health. Basically the chapter is about health psychology. According to the book, “health psychologists study how a person’s behavior, thoughts, personality and attitudes influence his or her health for better or for worse” (Pastorino & Doyle-Portillo, 2019).

This chapter really stands out to me because back in September, my best friend was killed in a violent car accident. I just so happened to be following him home that day when it happened and was the first person on the scene to try to help. From that day on I have struggled heavily with PTSD type symptoms and major depression. This chapter does a lot to give me insight into why I feel the way I do and what I could possibly do to help myself on top of already seeing my counselor. The direct correlation into my personal life is why this chapter really stands out to me.

Section one of the chapter is titled “Change is Stressful” (Pastorino & Doyle-Portillo, 2019). It discusses how majorly or minorly life events affect you. It really applies to me because on the Holmes and Rahe social readjustment rating scale the death of a close family member, which is what I considered my best friend to be seeing as how I lived with him for almost the past two years, ranks number five in severity. The chapter goes on to talk about how as a college student along with the major stressor like that in our life we also have stressors that aren’t on the scale. These stressors are caused by school itself. The section really gives me a sense of hopefulness because it shows me there is a reason behind why I feel the emotions that I do to the extent that I do.

Section three offers insight into coping skills both emotionally and physically. From an emotional point of view, it talks about cognitive reappraisal. Cognitive reappraisal is basically a process where we change how we interpret whatever event that is causing us stress (Pastorino & Doyle-Portillo, 2019). I see this apply to me and helping me in such a way as not viewing my friends passing as a loss but viewing what I gained from his life. He was very influential in helping get me to the position I am in my life today. I even live with his parents still, which has saved me from a lot of stress and earned me opportunities I would’ve never been able to have before. This is really helpful for me and after I read this chapter I have been trying to implement this in my everyday life. Viewing the glass as half full instead of half empty.

From a physical standpoint the section talks about things such as exercise, relaxation, and social support (Pastorino & Doyle-Portillo, 2019). I have tried to engage in all of these in some way or another. Recently I have started going back to the gym, because in high school the gym was a very stress relieving place for me. Also, I relax by spending time playing PC video games with my friends in the afternoons. We all get on and just try to have a good time and that is a really good stress reliever for me. For the social support I have stayed in touch with a lot of the people who were really close with my friend as well and I have seen it help tremendously in how I carry myself through my day to day life. The coping portion of this chapter is the part that I was most able to apply to my real life. It gave me tips and recommendations for ways to cope with the pain of losing my best friend that I previously hadn’t thought of and I have seen major improvements in my day-to-day life by learning to implement them. Recovery is a long road but being honest, the book has actually helped me to a surprisingly large extent.

Overall I normally struggle pretty heavily with classes like this. I have taken quite a few online courses and never been able to do well. I enjoyed that this class only met once a week because it lightened the feel of my course load by giving me slightly more time throughout the week. On the other side of that though I very much disliked having almost all of our graded assignments being online. I struggle with being able to keep up with online classes by myself. Although, Professor Tam did a really good job on reinforcing the things we were supposed to be learning each week during our time in class. The group activities really facilitated a great deal of learning for me despite the trouble I had with the work in my own time. From a purely learning point of view, I believe that I did as well or better than I would have in a normal class, but from a success point of view, I believe I have done much worse than I would in a normal class. I feel as though, for me, meeting more often through the week gives me more drive and reminders to make sure I stay on top of work that I am supposed to be doing at home.

In conclusion, I found Chapter 12 to be a very helpful chapter for me in this time of my life. It did great things in informing me of how to deal with the ways that I feel on a daily basis. Also, I have very neutral feeling for the class overall due to how I struggle with mostly or purely online classes. Either way, learning psychology is an enjoyable thing for me, and a nice change of pace from the basic math, science, literature, and history classes that we are normally forced to take.

References

1. Pastorino, E. E., & Doyle-Portillo, S. M. (2019). What is psychology?: Foundations, applications & integration (Fourth ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

Policy on online classes

Introduction:

Online education in Punjab was discussed by the Punjab Higher Education Commission in March as the Covid-19 had left its cracks everywhere in Pakistan on surface and far deeper. Covid-19 is not a global public health concern but also a political, economic, and educational one. Number of the meetings were held by PHEC to discuss this issue in order to come up with suitable guidelines to overcome the educational difficulties raised by the deadly disease Coronavirus throughout the world. The 3rd meeting of the PHEC committee was convened on May 11, 2020at 11:00 am, to formulate policy and oversee the matters related to the provision of the online courses, farther assessments under the Chairmanship of Prof. Dr. Fazal Ahmed Khalid, chairman PHEC. (policy guidelines from the PHEC, May 2020)

In this meeting many chancellors, VC and professors interact and gave their opinions and guidelines for this policy making of online classes. Few are the names of participants of this meeting who were part of this discussion; Prof. Dr. Khalid Masoud Gondal (Commission member of the PHEC, Vice King Edward Medical University, Lahore), Man Imran Masood (Commission member of PHEC, VC, University of South Asia, Lahore), Prof. Dr. Younas Javid (VC, HITEC University Taxila) and so on (policy guidelines from the PHEC, May 2020). Everyone gave their opinions and guidelines that how we can cope with Covid-19 and continue our education in universities.

Currently, we can see that countries of the world have adopted the new education system which is very influential to the students. Pandemic has caused number of the backlashes in different fields specially education so PHEC has tried well to come up with certain policies to cover up education through online classes.

Government of Pakistan has played its active role in order to cope with the emerging problems in the lockdown time. HEC of Pakistan has elaborated its key factors to provide the education online despite of physical due to the deadly disease Covid-19. Hence, we know that this policy needs every effective measure to give course outlines, and the grades making in universities like; projects, assignments, quizzes, Mids. and finals online. So, it is very hard to assess such methods via online because number of the problems may raise.

Public policy is “the problem-solving activity”, which consists of the inputs and outputs by the political system. Following are the stages in policy-making;

• Problem Definition
• Agenda-setting
• Policy formulation
• Implementation
• Evaluation

Let’s discuss each stage which is described and analyzed in the policy-making process of online classes by PHEC.

Problem Definition: it is an initial stage in policy-making, and so was the case in formulating online classes policy. We can see that Pakistan has suffered a lot from Covid-19. Education is the prime responsibility of the state to be given the students, hence it was the crucial time for Pakistan to give physical education at the risk of lives of millions of the students studying in universities of Punjab. Other nations of have taken effective measures to cope with the problem of education due to lockdown and covid-19. The pandemic of covid-19 has adversely affected millions of students` education. Many problems came while formulating this policy which included: lack of internet facilities, less involvement of teachers with technology, teaching methods were not up to the mark online, students from remote areas being unable to get online education due to network problems and most of the students were unable to afford devices to get full advantage of this tenure of the education system during the lockdown. But like other countries of the world Pakistan has to initiate this step to involve students into technology and get benefits of it through online classes. PHEC took serious steps to look into this matter.

Policy formulation: after agenda setting, effective courses of action were developed, which is the second stage of the policy-making process. After the acknowledgment of agenda, in Pakistan parliamentary system policy formulation is being discuss in legislature where the policy making process starts.

Initially, PHEC set up a few meetings to discuss the matter thoroughly and come up with a suitable solution to the education problem during the early era of Covid-19. In such meetings number of guidelines have been given keeping every problem in view. Few professors gave suitable guidance`s like; Prof. dr. Khalid Masoud Gondal, VC, King Edward Medical University said that KEMU is already using online facilities for learning like Zoom and google classrooms etc. For supplementary examinations, in June, students are given two options; one is to join through online link and other is physical classroom by implementation of SoPs of Covid-19 and physical distancing[footnoteRef:1]. [1: Guidelines by PHEC in March 2020]

Furthermore, after such meetings the matter was brought to the policy making authorities like legislature, hence it was the issue of whole country so the parliament took serious step along with ministry of education to cope such problems at first. It was the big step for the first time in Pakistan throughout the history and was difficult enough to manage the online assessment and examinations. Bureaucrats examine the problem in deep according to their expertise, information, and ideas. Bureaucrats include; secretaries of higher education, inter-provincial ministries, and the ministry of youth taking part to discuss the problem and formulate the possible formulation of policy.

Finally, bureaucrats with certain hurdles, being a new ideas, succeeded to form new policy. I believe that this issue was unique in its nature because bureaucrats never faced such problem earlier because it was not path dependent rather a totally new issue. Other than this policy formulation is not so easy to be formulated and carried onwards but is difficult enough because while policy formulation the bureaucrats face strong opposition by the interest groups who resisted the policy-making and become hurdle to protect their interest. After making policy, it was evaluated in which resources, legal procedures and rules of business were determined with the mutual discussion of ministries and bureaucrats.

Implementation: implementation is a stage in which a policy is put into effect by the bureaucrats. As online classes policy is concerned by PHEC, it said that policy guidelines regarding online education in affiliated colleges and universities in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic have been given, and it was decided short-term, medium-term, and long-term plans shall be devised to strengthen the blended, distance and online education system by thee PHEC[footnoteRef:2]. PHEC committee initiated the programs to facilitate the training session to teachers, faculty, and staff to teach the students via online classes by using the Aaps like; MS Team, Zoom, Moodle and other softwares. Universities were given the task to promote this policy and implement it along with that universities will facilitate the colleges, regarding operating with Learning Management system (LMS) online courses, assessment procedures, lectures, knowledge sharing and IT support so that they can be benefited and uplift the policy made by PHEC. [2: International THE NEWS]

This policy is Top-down perspective policy enforced by the PHEC directly to the universities and colleges to be followed in order to hindrance the hurdles created by argumentations by many actors.

Evolution: It is the last stage after the policy is being implemented that a review is made on the policy made and implemented that whether the policy is effective as expected or needed reformation. As per the online classes policy is concerned, the policy was not reformed but continued after watching the success of both faculty and the students while taking interest in learning at home.

Although policy attained its objectives by saving the one-year study lives of students and keeping them stuck with their education at home in this crucial and hideous time of the Covid-19 pandemic. Expected outcomes were worth appreciable that oppose actors didn’t influence and the set purpose was achieved by the PHEC.

Furthermore, the unexpected outcomes were also face by the PHEC when one of the students lost his life while protesting against On-campus examination after chanting slogans as; “Classes on zoom, Exams in rooms” in front of UCP by the lathi charge discharged by Punjab police.

Conclusion: as we know that this policy was the need at this time of difficulty to save time and education of the youth of Pakistan, was also well implemented by the authorities rationally up to the higher level. Furthermore, it is still keep fulfilling its objectives and set targets with remarkable results. However, still, a few queries are there to be resolved.

Personal Analysis: as I am concerned, it was a great opportunity for us to evolve our skills and learn online in order to cope Covid-19 the deadly disease which affected almost every factor of life, and create a better understanding of modern technology as other nations are evolved with technology. Personally, I myself get evolved with technology just because of online classes and learned with the essence of heart. We must learn how to cope such emerging problems to save our time and learning methods by using technology and taking such policy steps to save our educational years.

Introduction

Online education, often referred to as e-learning, web-based learning, virtual learning or online learning has been around for over a decade. Since the covid-19 pandemic hit a couple of years ago, there has been a rapid increase in the use and acceptance of online education. Furthermore, online education has always been associated with higher institutions until recently when we see online education taking shape in primary and secondary schools across the globe due to the pandemic. There are several definitions of online learning out there today but at its core, it refers to education received via the internet using a combination of different web-based components and advanced technology (Ivanytska et al., 2021). (AEHE, 2014) explains that the definition is further complicated by nature and the extent to which online learning is being applied whether it is a full degree delivered through a series of online courses or a hybrid blend of face-to-face and online teaching techniques. While online learning has proven to be just as effective as classroom-based learning, and to a large extent can be used to complement classroom-based teaching it cannot fully replace classroom-based teaching. This is simply because the realities of the communities that often subscribe to online education are very different from those that go for classroom-based education.

This essay will focus on online education in higher institutions. It will refer to a fully online course designed to be delivered solely via the internet using various digital components and activities (discussions and grading) and delivered through one or more course management systems. While both online education and traditional classroom teaching have their unique characteristics, online education eliminates most of the barriers associated with students’ lives and traditional classroom teaching – including work, family demands, and geographical restrictions.

Most people who subscribe to online education are considered non-traditional students or adult learners. To understand a non-traditional student, it is imperative to understand a traditional student. A traditional student is one whose primary focus is their education and they devote most of their time to their classes and on-campus activities. They are typically aged between 18 and 25, they maybe have a part-time job but have not yet started a career and most likely went from secondary school to a higher institution. On the other hand, non-traditional students are those who do not follow the traditional route. They usually have established jobs including stay home parenting, are above 25, and have more responsibilities and other life commitments.

Online education provides a more flexible alternative to classroom-based learning for students to acquire an education. Virtual learning has enabled people who have work or family commitments to gain an education without neglecting these responsibilities. The flexibility it provides allows students to be able to work at their own pace, accelerating or slowing down their studies as they see fit. Students also have the opportunity to study anywhere be it at home, at a friend’s place, or even during their commute making use of valuable time. It also eliminates the need to travel to and from school daily, having to attend classes as well as spending valuable time waiting or moving between classes. Online education is also budget-friendly.

Student engagement in an online setting is more difficult than in a classroom-based setting. (Kuh, 2009, p5) defines engagement as: ‘The engagement premise is straightforward and easily understood: the more students study a subject, the more they know about it, and the more students practice and get feedback from faculty and staff members on their writing and collaborative problem solving, the deeper they come to understand what they are learning. The effectiveness of course delivery depends on using the appropriate tools in the course design. This involves engaging the learners and modifying the course design to cater to various learning styles. The classroom-based setup makes it easy for the teacher to engage and involve the students such an environment cannot be replicated easily in an online scenario. While students enrolled in online education are required to be self-motivated, able to meet deadlines and manage their day-to-day activities efficiently to make time for their education. According to (Darius, Gundabattini, and Solomon, 2021) Online education provides unlimited scope for introducing teaching innovations and engaging students. Although this is largely dependent on the student’s willingness to participate and available technology such as discussion boards.

Online education is not without its issues. (Simmons, 2021) explains that various issues exist for both teachers and students alike, ranging from awareness of and access to technology, funding, openness to online environs, skill, and course readiness among others. There is also the time restraint usually associated with adult learners given their busy schedules.

Technical issues and computer literacy is other stumbling block when it comes to online education. Many students face issues when it comes to navigating and making full use of online education management software. Access to good quality networks and computer systems is a must to benefit fully from online education but this is not the case for several students. They end up relying on public libraries and learning resource centers to meet these requirements.