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| Yes | 43% | 118 votes | Total: 275 votes | |
| No | 57% | 157 votes |
Yes
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Add to FavoritesWith the wealth of knowledge contained on the Internet today, its impossible to think that with a little effort, that you could not gain a quality education from it. More and more colleges recently have decided to put their course materials for free view by any and all.
There are many pitfalls associated with this approach however. Lets discuss a few and hopefully you will have a game plan for gaining your education, for free.
The first thing you need to recognize is that a college gives you a varied curriculum in order to give you a wide knowledge base. This in itself is easy to overcome on your own. You can visit any college website and view the degree that you are wondering about. On the site it will list the curriculum and the courses the college would need you to take to accomplish this degree. You would simply follow the course plan. Start with the easiest and work towards the hardest.
Next, and probably most important, is the support system that a college offers. If you dont understand a topic, you can ask your professor or classmates to get a better understanding. This also can be done solely on the Internet and for free. There are literaly millions for forums and websites designed to answer questions. You need only to go into a chat room or forum and discuss the topic. The thing you have to be careful of however, is that the large majority of people you will be talking to, will not know what they are talking about. Listen to everyone's opinions. Get all the information before making a decision.
The last and hardest thing to overcome will be the degree. By gaining your knowledge on line, you will of course not get a degree. For some, this is the only reason they go to college. They are less concerned with the knowledge gain, and more concerned with the piece of paper that will allow them to get a good job. This can be overcome, however it will not be free. Many colleges allow you to challenge a class. This allows you to skip taking the class, take the final exam and if you pass, get credit for taking the class. To perform this cheaply, you can challenge as many classes as you can at a local community college, then move on to the four year college to finish.
If you are concerned more about your knowledge than you are about the degree, there is no doubt that you can get a vast and varied education using nothing but the Internet. All it will take on your part is discipline and a desire to gain the knowledge.
Learn more about this author, Lon Elliott.
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No
Modern Technology has proved too much in this modern world, including the impossible in the past. The complicated gadgets and all those high-tech computers make living at this stage easier and more comfortable. And with the emergence of internet, everything is very accessible with only the click of the finger; from your favorite pizza to your shoes and everything like homes and cars. Now, even education could be obtained through internet. This proves that everything would be possible with the new technology and the internet would bring us everything we need even if we just sit down in the comforts of our homes. There is no sweat and no hassles.
Although the internet is proving to the world that everything is possible, I still believe that education must be obtained hands-on. Internet could be a good source of information but it is not advisable for one to have his or her education through internet. They say that experience is the best teacher and having a hands-on experience on everything learned is much better than learning something through internet by just reading and talking to the teacher online. It is always important for someone while in the process of learning to have a hands-on experience regarding the course one is taking. In order for teaching and learning process to be considered a success, actual performance must be instigated.
Internet could provide everything to the students, from videos to chats to talking over the phone if the student has questions and problems. But this isn't enough to fill in all the informations that a student must learn and besides watching all those videos and talking with the teacher doesn't suffice for a good learning process. It is very different when one goes to school, sits down and listens to an instructor and have a hands-on experience in everything that is to be learned. Getting into college with all the books and other school materials is still the best way to have a college education. With all the activities that schools provide for students, surely it is still better to go to school and learn instead of plugging in your computer, tapping the keys and reading the screen and watching videos. Aside from these advantages, going to school would teach the students some self-discipline in performing tasks and doing things right. Activities are done with the guidance of a teacher and mistakes could be corrected on the spot.
This situation is comparable to reading a story and trying to understand it and listening to your father. mother or grandparents tell you a story which they have experienced. First hand experiences are more reliable than stories written by writers who haven't even seen the incident happen. That is why it is better for students to go to school to have a college education instead of obtaining a degree or a course through internet.
The actual learning and the presence of a teacher makes a big difference where education is concerned and one just have to look into how things go and decide that getting a college education is better than learning through internet. Internet is just an enhancement of the already acquired knowledge but not for obtaining a course.
People learn a lot from the internet but choosing to get a course through it is not advisable, especially for those who want to master their course. In schools, students actually work with their teachers to gain knowledge and skills. Through internet, knowledge could be obtained but I guess skills is hard to obtain by merely looking at videos.
Learn more about this author, Felisa Daskeo.
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