Statistics Show Online Students Are More Successful!
Students can give you a wide array of reasons why they are pursuing their degrees at an online university. For instance, cost is a huge consideration. On average, online schools cost 40% less than their traditional counterparts.
A second one is flexibility. The students take their courses when it's convenient to them, working around existing schedules to earn their best online degree. This benefit is especially appreciated by people holding regular jobs or are single parents. Now, a federal-sponsored report has given a new reason to go online for one's education: It's just a better way to learn.
Published by the U.S. Department of Education, this new report sampled hundreds of studies on distance education over the past ten years. It came to the conclusion that online students performed slightly better than those commuting to a physical classroom or living on campus. Most important, their grades and comprehension was noticeably better.
The study primarily concentrated on adults holding regular jobs (those getting their degrees outside of their regular jobs). This group is also the largest demographic group for distance learning. Their motivation was simple enough, the economy. Either they were going for degrees to increase their earning potential or to expand their skills to be more employable. The report did include students in elementary through high school. Yet whatever the age, the results for each group was the same. Online students performed better.
The explanation for it all was simple, time. Online students could take their classes when it was convenient for them, such as after supper, when the kids were at school or nothing was on TV anyway. They managed their valuable time to better effect. As a result they could concentrate on whatever they found interesting or was causing them problems. This more efficient use of their time could then be used to collaborate with fellow classmates, whether to problem solve or just to review. They were maximizing their educational environment on every level.
What also helped were the different teaching tools used in campus-based courses. Videos, online quizzes, study groups and online guidance were all available to the distance student. The study discovered learning rates were not inhibited by them. It was time management that provided the greater results.
The report also stated putting the entire class together isn't a slapdash affair. Teachers have to work hard creating the curricula of their students. The top accredited schools also employ the most modern computer systems, learning management software, libraries and staff to train their professors on how to teach online.
Even more interesting, most recruiting officers agree it pays off. They consider top online programs as academically challenging as classroom-taught counterparts. Another survey discovered 80% of senior executives of corporations and owners expressed that online degrees gave them similar quality employees as those who graduated with on campus degrees.
It seems online graduates develop other skills besides time management. The online graduate scores high on self-motivation, forward thinking, online social networking, team building/collaboration and the ability to learn independently on top of everything else. These are also highly attractive skills to many a recruiter.
It seems to be that the best online accredited degree is the one that moves you to your end goal, as far as time management and what employers look for. From associate degree programs online all the way through to master and PhD degrees, distance learning is training you in valuable business skills.
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