Online Learner and Learning: A Need For Change

Learning is an innate human desire. Learning never ends, rather it is a life long process similar to the process of human development. We strive throughout our life to explore, and discover new opportunities of learning for us. Living in digital age is certainly beginning of new era, hence brings new opportunities and challenges with it too.

             One of the phenomenal change has been brought due to internet, leading to global impact due to the use of technology even in our daily lives. Social media communication, and interaction is another milestone added to this phenomenal change in human communication and correspondence. Moreover, the use of mobile phones, tablets and other devices designed and created to use technology even for our simple tasks in our daily life routines has an unbelievable impact on our industry whether business, education, health, food, manufacturing or service. 

           Educational technology has a valuable impact on teaching and learning phenomena too. Due to online teaching and training services available even free of cost has jolted each learner sitting even at a remote location on the planet. More and more people irrespective of their age, ethnic background, professional and personal level are joining programs and courses to learn without leaving the comfort of their homes or office environments. Therefore, online learning is becoming a popular and fastest growing trend to attract learners to become part of E-learning industry whether as a learner or as an instructor. 

            However, learning and teaching online requires a whole different skill set to able to successfully exploit it to our best advantage. Generally, an online learner assumes himself/herself to behave and proceed in similar manner as he/she does in any face-to-face learning environment, however the story is quite different in electronic or E-learning environment. An online learner has to deal with a whole bunch of new technologies, no face-to-face interaction with peers and instructor, etc and no campus building, no physical library, no cafeteria, nor any physical support service offices. Hence, sometimes these experiences become quite overwhelming for an E-learner. 

          

       

Similarly, an online instructor has to go through quite similar type of challenges at his/her end too. An online teacher has to design, create, and plan online lessons, deal with high profile technology tools, learning management systems, and similar other challenges to make his/her online course a success. It becomes an over whelming experience for an online instructor as well.

           Although, there has been an extensive research in higher education about E-learning industry, course designing, technology tools required to create engaging content, adding variety and creativity to learning management systems and their selling to their respective clientele. Contrarily speaking, there has not been much research done about how to guide an online learner to become successful while taking the online study format, which is a totally new experience for him/her. 

          An online learner does not necessarily has to perform in a similar fashion just like a student physically attending a school/college/ university. Primarily, an online learning is meant to be a self-directed method of study. It is 100% self-paced, requires executive functioning skills including but not limited to ( planning, organizational skills, regulating emotions, paying attention, self-monitoring, time management, decision making etc). Hence, usually online learners drop out of classes in the first two weeks of their courses, unable to succeed and perform, cannot meet deadlines etc. 

         

         Following steps would help improve the online learning experience for the learner and instructor an advantageous opportunity.

• Educational institutions offering online programs for learners must conduct an initial training program/classes for student guidance about how to take the best advantage of their online classes. 
• There has to be a minimum criteria for student selection to enroll in an online class, this would enable the department to analyze the fundamentals of each learner interested. 
• Teaching and training departments must design separate courses/programs for synchronous and asynchronous learning environments, because majority of online learners are professionals and already in full time jobs, hence they are unable to manage the similar study work load like a student attending on campus classes. 
• Online instructors should be provided initial training opportunities before taking up the responsibility of online teaching and training. 

         Higher education has been revolutionized due to E-learning, hence they are making tiresome efforts to create impacting E-learning courses for their learners to compete in the competitive industry in the era of globalization. All those who have chosen to become part of E-learning industry whether as a learner or an instructor are at a cutting edge advantage of becoming change agents of global economy as leaders of tomorrow.