5 advantages of distance education:

1. Less classroom management = more time on task. Because it is a virtual environment, classroom distractions and interruptions are virtually nonexistent. Teachers can spend more time on teaching and less time on introduction and transition tasks, and student disruptions.
2. Flexibility of time. Students who have to work can schedule their hours around classes, or vice versa. Transportation time is eliminated, and rather than spending a six hour chunk of time at school, students can schedule classes the way they might in college – with breaks in between. Also, some classes only meet in live virtual chat rooms or via webcam once or twice a week, leaving ample amounts of free time for students to pursue work or other endeavors.
3. Tailored education. Students can really put together a schedule that works for them. For example, classes that aren’t normally offered in a traditional classroom may be readily available and depending on the attendance policy and how often the class meets, students could have significantly less scheduling conflicts.
4. Innovation. Schools that are built around the computer will naturally have a more pressing desire to seek out and utilize technology to the best of their ability. Classroom teachers, due to brevity of classtime, classroom management issues, or lack of technology are often not on the cutting-edge nor are they using technology to maximize their lesson plans. Teachers of online courses already have a lot of front-loaded work when they design the course; it is only natural, then, that they would spend time developing their technology.
5. Access. Students can access classes, coursework, and assignments from virtually any location on earth as long as appropriate Internet connections are available. This means that students whose parents want to take a vacation during a time when school is in session could potentially work from their hotel room as long as they called ahead to verify WiFi or Ethernet access.

5 disadvantages of distance education:

1. Loss of face to face interaction. Even if students and teachers are able to access skype or another webcam program, that human connection sans technology is lost. A chat room conversation is different from a classroom debate – some of the spontaneity can be lost, and it is more difficult to read the emotions into writing (sarcasm, sadness, etc), leaving it up to the students to make teachers and other classmates aware of their emotions.
2. Cost. Unlike public education, the online schools we’ve been looking at are not “free and compulsory,” each credit/class costs money. Unfortunately, many districts and/or schools that don’t yet have a high demand might opt out of paying for the program. In that case, the parents and student are left to pay the bill, and many parents will find this cost to be out of reach.
3. Technical difficulties. If one or two students experience technical difficulties in a traditional classroom, they can move next to another student to share a computer screen for until the problem is fixed. Students studying online in isolation do not have this option, nor do they have an in-house tech consultant. It could take hours or days for someone to fix their problem.
4. It’s not for everyone. Students who aren’t self motivated will probably find distance education difficult. Without regular daily (or bi/tri weekly) contact with teachers and other students, many students (even those who are motivated) might find it difficult to keep up with the course work, saying “I’ll do it later.”
5. Altered teaching mindset. Teaching distance education courses is not just a matter of throwing up a traditional schedule and set of lesson plans and activities. It requires a different mindset on the part of both teachers and students, and it requires that teachers adapt both their units/lessons/activities and their way of thinking about education.

How you would determine the readiness of students to participate in distance education?

• What type of study skills does the student have?
• Is the student equipped with enough technical knowledge to readily complete the courses? (In other words, will technology aid in his/her education, or will it detract from and hinder his/her learning?)
• Has the student complete online course work in a traditional course? Does the student understand how distance courses work?
• Does the student have the necessary technology at home (or will technology be provided)?

What would you need to do to be ready to teach in an online environment?

Resources. Other teachers who have taught in this environment before and who know what works and what does not work. Books on technology (ie one of the Dummy books - "Websites for Dummies" or something to that effect)

Technical support. I need access to someone who can help me when I get stuck or have trouble with my online tools (website, wiki, chat room, etc.)

Time to develop some great instructional plans.

A vested interest. Frankly, I'm not interested in online education. I love the vitality of the classroom, I am a people person and I find that I am better able to teach when I see students face to face. I'm sure that online education is a fabulous option for many teachers and students (it's definitely a great option for the United States, as our population continues to grow at a pace that will eventually outgrow our resources) it's simply not for me.