Blog Post: Could Online High School or College Work for me?

The Internet and adult education
Education has changed drastically in the last 10 years. Private education institutes, flexible schedules and the insurgence of the internet in education has changed people’s access to education as well as their desire to advance their education.

Adults have long been the forgotten student when it comes to public education. If there was not the flexibility of attending an in-person class, during the day, your education options were very limited. That is no longer the case.

The internet has changed education, epically for adults. Below are excerpts from “The Internet as a Path to Adult Learning”  by Lori Pendley Kupczynski, Ed.D. and Buddy Hooper, Ed.D., we can explore how online education is different and how adults learn differently.

Recent History

There has been tremendous growth in the last 15 years regarding Internet-based learning. As Morabito (1999) notes, "By the 1990s, real-time computer-based teleconferencing was readily available to the public, both through commercial online networks and by the mid-1990s through the Internet" (p. 35). This accessibility, along with software programs such as WebCT and Blackboard and course-ready content for instructors, has allowed this form of instruction to truly expand and take over the realm of distance education. It is no longer too expensive to use the Internet for study, and the courses can provide excellent online tools, such as e-mail, course shells, message boards, and libraries "all at the same basic cost to the end user as the regular monthly Internet account" (Morabito, 1999, p. 35). Thus, the move to this type of teaching and learning, while continually evolving, is definitely a significant source of education now in the new millennium.

Current Trends in Learning

When focusing on Internet-based courses, it is crucial to understand two substantial theories in learning. These two theories are Andragogy and Learner-Centered teaching, Each is prevalent to the formulation of research in the current study as the study uses as its subjects adult learners and focuses on student perceptions of instructor behaviors and chosen teaching methodologies that lead to retention and success for them.

Five Assumptions of the Adult Learner

1. As a person matures, his or her self-concept moves from that of a dependent personality toward one of a self-directing human being.
2. An adult accumulates a growing reservoir of experience, which is a rich resource for learning.
3. The readiness of an adult to learn is closely related to the developmental tasks of his or her social role.
4. There is a change in time perspective as people mature—from future application of knowledge to immediacy of application. Thus an adult is more problem centered than subject centered in learning.
5. Adults are motivated to learn by internal factors rather than external ones. (Merriam & Caffarella, 1999, p. 272)

From these five assumptions, Knowles redirected the learning process in the classroom, creating a more self-directed and learner-centered atmosphere.

Adults have a lot more options when it comes to education, now. Research your educational opportunities at JobingEducation. Grand Canyon University provides online Master’s Degrees. University of Phoenix offers online undergraduate degrees and Pinnacle Online High School can support your need for a high school diploma. Furthering your education is at your fingertips – literally.

Information source: http://www.newhorizons.org
Article link: http://www.newhorizons.org/lifelong/higher_ed/hooper_kupczynski.htm