Main challenges that faces e-learning
It is tough to imagine that being in a college or campus was accessing the internet is impossible. The internet is readily accessible, and all the universities are expected to have the facilities which enable the students to access the internet. Technology is applied in almost every aspect of a university. Research shows that people who were born after 1982 have different exposure to technology compared to the previous years. The people born in later years have been given called the Net generation due to the access to technology that they have experienced in their lives since childhood. Technology is transforming hastily, and the delivery of education is shifting to online means in an unthinkable way. The impact of technology transformation is seen rippling in industries and institutions even more. There is a call for research to have a nuanced understanding of the best ways to deliver education online and effectively. There is uncertainty in the best modes of training, considering the current generation have exposure to technology at an early age. Barsky (2008) noted that interactive online activities have the potential to enhance the business activities and add skills which are required through the use of the best teaching tools for e-learning. Online learning can result in adequate skilled personnel’s when appropriate tools are used for training. Negash (2008) reports about synchronous and asynchronous training which may are two of the main methods used for training people online. The solution that many researchers have failed to provide a defined answer is on the best methods of teaching online and the tools. This paper will discuss the various challenges, better approaches, solutions, and creates an environment where other people can learn on the gaps and modify the future trends of technology.
Lack of accreditation and quality assurance is one of the main challenges that the faces e-learning. Presence of many unaccredited online learning platforms results in weakening of the legitimacy of online education. The assessment methods that are used during exams and classes when compared to the traditional classroom assessment are very different. The online assessment is weak and gives the students higher chances of cheating in the exams and missing classes. This is one of the main factors that has contributed significantly to the weakening legitimacy of online education.
Benefits of learning and teaching are demonstrated through the use of communication, cooperation and collaborative aspect of online working. This is the main advantages that are as a result of online learning and tutoring. The ability to carry out all the functions that are done in an ordinary classroom make the use of online learning an outstanding. Even though a class has been formed through the online platform, the problem associated with this is social isolation. The students fail to interact with each other, and they experience social isolation with the teacher since they spend less amount of time together. Lack of human communication may lead to social and several mental problems such as heightened stress, anxiety and negative thoughts. Even though online learning is working well with the use of tools such as virtual learning environments, blending the learning environments and monitoring students for social isolation should be put into action.
Information found on the internet is vast, and the scope is unlimited, this one of the main challenges that are experienced by the people who opt to study online. While carrying out studies through online platforms, the students are exposed to many disruptions and devices. The adverts on exciting courses social platforms are some of the hinderers of online learning. This has been an unsolved challenge. When looking for the best tools of training, removing the devices that disrupt students should be one of the main goals of the research. When the students follow other links to learn more on the topics that they consider attractive, the issue of scope arises. The students become exposed to too much information which may be irrelevant to the course that they are taking online, resulting in inconsistency in the studies. The availability of enormous information and which is inconsistent makes the students see much and understand less. In the earlier days before the use of technology, the scope was small and defined. Only the information in the books had to be followed, and thus the training was effecting in getting the best from the students. Online training platforms should maintain the trend of obtaining the best from the students while including the various advantages which technology is associated with such as the ability to study freely avoiding the necessity to travel to a fixed place to get the skills. Some of the main ways to reduce the devices that attract the students’ attention are to ensure that the web portal used for learning is private and it should be free from adverts including academic adverts and offers available. The network should be secure to ensure the student’s information is protected from getting emails for enrolling another course. The learning should be swift to ensure that students get the training even better than using ordinary classroom learning.
The capabilities that enable the students to multitask when online is another challenge that affects the productivity of the students who are involved in online training. E-learning requires strong motivation and time management skills. Since the students are online and the interaction with the teacher is virtual, the students may decide to get involved in other non-curriculum activities while the learning is taking place. Traditional classrooms have numerous factors that continuously push the students to their learning goals such as face to face communication with professors, peer to peer activities and strict schedules which all work together to ensure that the students are on the same track during their studies. The students learning online perform poorly compared to those who attend traditional classrooms. The students learning at the comfort of their homes are expected to learn delicate materials without a person urging them of their learning goals, and this becomes difficult compared to the students attending the traditional classroom. This challenge requires a reliable solution to ensure that the students remain intact when they are in an online class. Building strong self-motivation and discipline is key to ensuring that students learning through online platforms succeed.
In conclusion, computer simulations offer students risk-free and multiple experiences while making decisions, providing instant feedback, and this plays a vital role as they learn to make huge decisions. The students’ discipline is critical to ensure that online training is effective and efficient. The tutors can help to improve the discipline of the students by setting a strict deadline. The online classes should blend with the traditional classroom to ensure that some problems such as practical activities and communication issues are solved. E-learning should include strict methods to raise the quality and assurance of the students who have taken the course online. The numerous various considerations for quality assurance must be followed to ensure the authenticity of E-learning. The technologies developed should work towards reducing the percentage of cheating during assessments. The virtual learning environments need to be improved to cater for the students while they are still learning in the online class; assessment should be critical; the class is continuing. The learning environments should allow synchronous communication to ensure that the students stay active and participate in the lesson. The use of technology has brought significant benefits since knowledge is readily available. Improving the current status would make online learning effective as a traditional classroom and at the same time, enjoy the benefits associated with online classes.