Students no longer have to find time in their busy lives to commute and sit in a classroom.
drive to a school, sit in a classroom for a certain prescribed amount of time, and then return the next day or week or whenever the class is scheduled.
Distance learning allows students to learn from whatever distance, whether it be down-the-road from school or another country.
However, some are still unsure about distance learning.
So what is distance learning?
Defining Elements of Distance Learning
There are several elements to distance learning that differentiate it from traditional learning.
Distance
The key difference is, of course, the ‘distance’ aspect.
This means that during the majority of the course, the student and teacher will be interacting through the internet. This can be done via e-mail, video chat, or online presentations.
Time
Another key element of distance learning is the separation of teacher and student in space and time. You and your teacher may not be in the same time zone, let alone the same room.
For example, your assignment might be watching a presentation by the end of the week. Your teacher may give the presentation live, but then you can watch it later as a web series.
There could be dozens of students taking this online class. All of you are learning the same material and answering the same questions at different times.
This means that you control your learning pace.
If you want to cover a whole week’s worth of content in a few hours, you can. If you want to do so over a week, that’s up to you as well.
Communication
The final major element of distance learning classes is that you typically won’t meet your teacher in-person. Instead, you can communicate with them via chat, forum, or email.
Types of Distance Learning
There are two types of distance learning: synchronous and asynchronous.
When people ask ‘what is a distance learning course,’ sometimes this is the most difficult concept to get across.
Synchronous
Synchronous distance learning courses are courses where everyone learns at the same time.
There can be some slight variance in pace, but everyone is expected to learn a certain amount of content within a certain course of time.
So, if you’re taking courses from your local school, and you’re doing so via a distance learning system, they are likely to be synchronous. Everyone will be ending the course at the same time, and beginning the course at the same time as well.
Asynchronous
However, courses like those at Stratford Career Institute are ‘asynchronous,’ meaning that you can complete them at your own pace and on your own schedule. You don’t have to be done by the end of a semester, and you don’t have to wait until the end of a semester.
Such courses are easier to get through for people who have busier schedules, perhaps even those who have to work full-time jobs or who are taking care of children.
Try a Distance Learning Course Today
If you’re interested in distance learning classes, you can enroll today at Stratford Career Institute. You might find that distance learning is a better fit for your life than the traditional mode of schooling.
With classes ranging from interior decorating to small engine repair, we know that there is a course for you.
Browse our course catalog and enroll today!
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