Theme: distance learning: advantages and disadvantagest

THEME: DISTANCE LEARNING: ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGEST
PLAN:

1. 
   Distance learning: advantages and disadvantagest
   

2. Advantages and Disadvantages of Distance Learning
Advantages and Disadvantages of Distance Learning
Distance education is a concept that has gained significant popularity over the past few years. Distance learning programs have helped many students who are unable to attend campus-based or full-time courses to realize their educational aspirations. With distance education, learning instruction is disseminated over the internet through an online learning portal or video conference software. Such video conference software as ezTalks Cloud Meeting offer robust tools that can help instructors deliver full lessons to students from all over the world. But just like any other education program, distance learning comes with a set of pros and cons.
Distance learning might not be the best choice for every student seeking to pursue a college degree or university program. Thus understanding its advantages and drawbacks can help one decide on whether or not it is the right program to pursue.
Advantages of Distance Learning
1. Greater Flexibility
With distance learning programs, students can pursue and complete their desired courses from anywhere with the use of computer and internet connection. A larger percentage of those that enroll for distance education are actually persons who are working. Distance education allows such students to find convenient time to study without interfering with their already busy schedule. One can study after work, in the middle of the night or during weekends. Learning materials and instruction can actually be obtained online at any time. So working students can learn as they earn.
2. No commuting
Distance learning takes place online, which means students don't need to spend money and time commuting to and from class venues. Students can take lessons and complete assignments from the comfort of their home. Most institutions that offer distance learning programs deliver lectures and tutorials through online video conferencing. That means students don’t have to be stuck to the classroom. One can actually enjoy class sessions from the comfort of their living room couch, bedroom or garden. Video conferencing solutions like ezTalks Cloud Meeting offer innovative whiteboards and screen/file sharing options that make classes more interactive. Its full HD video and audio experience duplicates the real-life class scenario that makes online lectures more meaningful.
3. Significant Cost Savings
The cost of online-based education programs is generally lower compared to those offered in brick-and-mortar institutions. Undertaking an online course or program also eliminates the costs associated with commuting, renting an apartment and/or getting meal plans. That means distance learning an economically viable option for both students and parents. Apart from the convenience of pursuing a course from home, students will have a perfect opportunity to save more on their studies.
4. Convenient Learning
For most of the working class students, going back to the classroom is rather intimidating. Asking questions about a hard concept about a given topic can also be embarrassing for shy students. But that's not the case with distance learning. A disciplined and self-motivated student can learn at his or her own pace. Online education combines the use of tutorials, eLearning materials and video conference class sessions to deliver knowledge to students. That means learners with different abilities can have the opportunity to understand the course in much detail.
Disadvantages of Distance Learning
1. Lack of Social Interaction
Learning in a brick-and-mortar institution presents students with the opportunity to meet and interact with people from different locations on a personal level. Distance learning only limits students to classes and learning materials that are based online. Though students can interact through chat rooms, discussion boards, emails and/or video conferencing software, the experience cannot be compared to that of a traditional campus.
2. High Chances of Distraction
With no face-to-face interaction with instructors and other students, those who are enrolled on an online program might find it hard to keep track of their course work and assignments. That's because there are no constant reminders about pending assignments and/or deadlines. It only requires one to be self-motivated and focused to be able to complete a course successfully. Hence distance learning cannot be a good option for students who keep procrastinating things or those who aren't able to stick to deadlines.
3. Complicated Technology
Any student seeking to enroll for a distance learning program needs to invest in a range of equipment including computer, webcam and stable internet connection. There is absolutely no physical contact between students and instructors as instruction is delivered over the internet. This overdependence on technology is a major drawback to distance learning. In case of any software or hardware malfunction, the class session will come to a standstill, something that can interrupt the learning process. Moreover, the complicated nature of the technology used in distance learning only limits online education to students who are computer and tech savvy.
4. Questionable Credibility of Online Degrees
Despite its convenience and affordability, distance learning is still not the best option for many due to lack of lack of quality faculty members. Even when the instructors are fully qualified and experienced, they might not find it comfortable to teach in an online environment. The design and delivery of every course differs greatly. Sometimes the instructor might find little time to talk about trivial details of a given topic, which are otherwise important to helping students understand better a given concept. That, plus a host of other challenges like lack of proper assessment make credibility of distance learning degrees questionable.
As a matter of fact, there many employers out there who do not accept online degrees as they still find stigma attached to distance education. That means students have to evaluate whether or not their online degrees can be ideal for the target job or future learning. This discourages many students from undertaking a distance learning program even when the degree being offered is genuine and competitive in the market.
Conclusion
Despite its numerous drawbacks, distance learning still provides better learning options for students wishing to enjoy greater convenience and flexibility in pursuing a course. The greatest benefits of distance education is that it allows students to access numerous learning tools using minimum financial resources. Studying online is even made more interactive with the use of video conferencing software. That improves the ability to acquire and retain knowledge on a given subject.
However, distance education limits social interaction, involves useof complex technology and has a negative perception among some employers. Any student wishing to enroll for distance learning diploma or degree should weigh between its pros and cons to determine whether or not it's a good option. Generally, distance education can be the perfect option for working students.
Collaboration tools were considered essential to work collectively and to achieve a common goal. With the advent of new technologies and developed devices,it has become easier to use the collaboration tools more effectively to improve the productivity and the efficiency of the companies. Now you can find many improved features like the spreadsheets,slides,instant messaging,group chat,and video conferencing in the collaboration tools. Moreover,you can arrange a video conference or web meeting within a few hours depending on the availability of the participants.
In the current conditions,many collaboration tools are coming up with some distinct features to enhance the experience of the users. Cloud also offers different collaboration tools. With the cloud collaboration tools,you can arrange collaboration in real time. Cloud collaboration tools are highly appreciated by the businesses for some of the developed and easy to use features. If you are looking for a collaboration tool for your business,then you can consider these cloud tools below.
1. ezTalks Cloud Meeting
ezTalks Cloud Meeting is considered as one of the best cloud collaboration tools. Now it provides free cloud collaboration that can extend up to 100 participants. That means you can start cloud collaboration with 99 participants free of charge.ezTalks Cloud Meeting offers cloud-based solutions to the businesses and helps them communicate and connect with the employees remotely,share the files,and to get the work done effectively. Both free and paid services are available. Some key features of ezTalks Cloud Meeting are unlimited online meetings for cloud collaborations,private & group chat,content and screen sharing,interactive whiteboard,high-definition audio and video,make annotations and record and playback,and more. If you want to do cloud collaboration with colleagues located in various places,there is no doubt that ezTalks Cloud Meeting is a good choice.
2. Yammer
Yammer is another cloud-based collaboration tool. It allows you to collaborate and communicate privately by creating multiple groups. Moreover,it enables you to add the external collaborators. You can simply sign the office email and can use this platform for the official purposes through desktop or mobile. Some of the key features are private or public chat,like somebody’s status,inbox notification,external collaboration,and document sharing. It is one of the widely used tools utilized by both the small and medium sized businesses. It offers a central place for the file sharing,conversation,updates,and much more.
3. Evernote
If you are looking for a versatile tool for cloud collaboration,Evernote is designed for you only. It enables you to sync your notes across different platforms. It comes with an easy-to-use design that makes it a preferred option for the business even knowing that it is not highly appreciated by the IT sectors. You will get both the free and paid options with this tool. The free version can also be used both by the mobile and the desktop. With the paid option,you will get some improved features that include central user administration,screenshot images,and single workspace collaboration.
4. Prezi
Prezi is a cloud collaboration tool. This is more popular as an online presentation tool. It is extensively used as an alternative to the PowerPoint. It is more appreciated as it uses a single canvas instead of using slides. Moreover,it enables you to create unstructured and free-form presentations. It is user-friendly and offers offline editing as well. Some of the key features are the better collaboration with multiple users,remote presentation,handover presentation,importing PowerPoint slides,adding sound and narration,and embedding videos. It is mobile friendly.
5. Skype
Skye is one of the best cloud-based collaboration tools. It is widely praised by the users for some of its features that include free Skype meeting,PowerPoint collaboration,and screen sharing. It offers both the paid and free option. With the free service,you can host an online meeting with nine participants. With the paid option,you will get some developed features such as the instant messaging,online meeting recording,and group meeting up to 250 participants. It is popular as the teleconferencing and video conferencing solution. It is internationally available and people all over the world use this tool for the web conferencing or even for the personal purposes.
6. Cisco WebEx
Cisco WebEx is a top cloud collaboration tool. It is a widely used web conferencing and online meeting tool that businesses need for the productivity and efficiency. Some of the key features of the Cisco WebEx are file sharing,screen sharing,private and public chat,and annotation. It offers both the free and paid service. With the free service,you can start a web meeting with two participants. It works both on the desktops and mobile. If you want some developed features,you will have to go with the paid service. When it comes to the security,you will find end-to-end data encryption.
7. Office 365
This cloud tool for collaboration offers everything that includes Excel,plus file storage,Word,PowerPoint,SharePoint Online,and Exchange Online. It is considered best in terms of the functionality and features. It can be used for all sizes of the businesses,including large and small while integrating with many platforms. It offers some developed security features as well.
All the above seven cloud collaboration tools come with some specific features. Many of them offer both the paid and free versions. You just need to understand your requirements before choosing any collaboration tool for your business.
Cloud Collaboration: How to Collaborate in the Cloud
The term cloud collaboration is creating waves in the world of web recently. Bringing a revolution in the way of doing business over the Internet,this unique and innovative collaboration method has created a whole new platform for the businesses and organizations. If you're still unaware of the revolutionary way of cloud collaboration,keep on reading the article to explore vital facts related to it.
What Is Cloud Collaboration?
Cloud based collaboration refers to the way of co-authoring and sharing computer files,using the technology called cloud computing. Here,the documents that you want to share with other members of the team are uploaded to a central virtual storage,i.e. cloud,where all of you can easily accesse them anytime. Virtualizing resources like applications,data storage,networks and servers,it simply lets two or more employees work together on a project,regardless of the distance of state or country between them.
Benefits of Cloud Collaboration Let's hear about some of the major benefits of this particular kind of collaboration has to offer.
# Updates Appearing in Real Time. No matter whether the members of a business team operate from within a country or outside it,the moment anyone makes any edits or updates,it will be visible to everyone in the team,that also in real time.
# Better Access to Huge Files. No matter how huge is the file size,it stays stored in the cloud,letting everyone access it,without having to face any delay in receiving or distribution,unlike email service that fails to handle the file load if it gets larger than a few MB only.
# Increased Level of Participation. Access to different projects at once automatically gives rise to the participation level among the employees,where each one of them gets an equal opportunity for providing various inputs.
# A Breeding Ground for Creativity. No matter which corner of the world one locates,as long as he has the Internet connection and is a part of the cloud teams,he gets to participate and share his views and inputs in a project,making this platform a brainstorming forum.
# Ensure Organizational Progress. When all the business documents are kept in such a location from where the employees can access them anytime and keep on working on them without having to send the updated versions to others in the team,it naturally boosts the performance and progression level of the organization.
How to Make Cloud Collaboration with ezTalks Cloud Meeting? For those who want to make the most of this amazing collaboration in the cloud,making such collaboration with tools like ezTalks Cloud Meeting becomes of seminal importance. This cloud collaboration tool makes sure you get to the best cloud collaboration,with HD quality audio as well as video. With video communication becoming an integral part of ensuring the productivity and success of a business today,it is ezTalks Cloud Meeting that can help utilize the cloud collaboration to the maximum.Let's have a look at some of the key features of ezTalks Cloud Meeting:
• It lets you host online meeting with a maximum of 100 participants for free,and a maximum of 500 participants with paid version.
• Having both group and private chat options,it lets you control the accessibility of business talks.
• It comes with both recording as well as playback feature,you can get to explore the benefits of collaboration in cloud like never before.
• There is no limitation in how many meetings you can hold in the cloud with it.
• Content and screen sharing,annotation,interactive whiteboard as well as the live broadcasting make it more impressive than any other.
2 steps on how to collaborate in the cloud
Step 1. To start using the amazing ezTalks Cloud Meeting for collaborating in the cloud,you have two options to choose from. Either you can sign up or register for free to avail its free service; or else you can opt for purchasing a premium account that comes for only $12.99/month.Step 2. Once you download the ezTalks Cloud Meeting app on your device,whether it's desktop or mobile,there's no stopping you from joining the online meetings for collaboration in the cloud,while you're on the go.Just run this tool and click Start Meeting in its main window to enter a cloud collaboration room. Then,invite your team members in via the room ID or email invitation. When they're in,you can start collaborating in the cloud for the business things. How easy it is! In today's modern lifestyle,the collaboration strategy needs to be an open one and a not a restrictive one,that can help in increasing the productivity as well as mobilizing all the corporate data and information while maintaining maximum security. And it is here that comes the innovative way of sharing and collaborating,called cloud collaboration,which not only lets one enjoy the improved sales results,increased business efficiency and boosted decision-making but also optimizes the workflow,in the best yet most affordable way.