Why do nontraditional students who are enrolled in online programs Research Paper

Why do nontraditional students who are enrolled in online programs decide to dropout - Research Paper Example (Gutmann, A.1987). Unlike traditional educational ways involving a classroom and a teacher, online learning does not involve direct confrontations with a teacher and does not provide the environment of a traditional classroom. In most cases, distance learning involves a media center or a computer laboratory. Therefore, distance learning is a field of education that combines technology with teaching methods and techniques to provide an opportunity for students to learn without being physically present in a classroom. (Briel, H. J. 2011). Due to technological advances, there have been a recent explosion in the field of online education but the history of distance learning dates back to as early as 1728, when Caleb Phillips, who was a teacher of Short Hand method, published an advertisement in Boston Gazette to seek students to whom he would send lectures on weekly basis. An Englishman, Isaac Pitman, is regarded has an early pioneer in providing distance education. In 1840s, Isaac Pitma n taught Short Hand using correspondence in the Great Britain. The importance of education in modern democratic society is beautifully portrayed by Amy Gutmann in the following words: â€Å"When citizens rule in a democracy, they determine, among other things, how future citizens will be educated. Democratic education is therefore a political as well as an educational ideal. Because being educated as a child entails being ruled, ‘You cannot be a ruler unless you have first been ruled.’ Because being a democratic citizen entails ruling, the ideal of democratic education is being ruled, then ruling. Education not only sets the stage for democratic politics, it plays a central role in it.’’ (Gutmann, A.1987). Now adays, the world has transformed into a global village and with the passage of time, online learning has become the best possible learning source. Due to increased commitments in life, it is hardly possible for everyone to physically attend a school in order to increase their educational qualifications. The only viable alternative remains are, online courses. Although the growth rate in online programs is high but yet the dropouts have been of great concern to many organizations and higher institutions. (Briel, H. J. 2011). Magnitude of drop out crisis: The non traditional students dropping out of online education fall into various categories: I. Non-starters, II. Students who did not even make an effort to complete the official withdrawal procedure are classified in the category of informal withdrawals, III. Students who completed the official withdrawal procedure fall into the category of formal withdrawals, IV. Academic failures, V. Non-continuers. (Darrow, R. W. 2010). Online education is more flexible and ensures that students can learn and progress to advanced levels at their own pace. Online courses provide more effective learning opportunities than traditional schools because they provide an access to a broad curriculu m so that students can enroll in multiple courses which they cannot in traditional brick and mortar schools. Most virtual schools provide courses that are enriched with challenges to help their students to attain high quality and flexible education. However, according to the retention literature concerning online education, the rate of non traditional students dropping out of online courses occurs at much a faster pace than the number of drop outs from on-ground or traditional brick and mortar classes. According to a report in Meister-2002, 70 percent of the online learners registered for online programs failed to successfully complete the course. The Corporate

Why have the use of illcit substances become more common place amoung Essay

Why have the use of illcit substances become more common place amoung the youth in society - Essay Example Issues like the drug and other illicit substance abuse among youth! So sensitive is this issue that any misgiving can lead to catastrophe. In this research we try to identify and determine that is drug abuse really a threat or an episode of the aforementioned phenomenon. The purpose for selecting the topic is to define how illicit substances and their uses are common among the youth. Media is very popular now days. It occupies a big chunk of teenagers time and at the same time the failure to follow age restrictions are allowing teenagers to use illicit substances. And this curse is growing rapidly and is actually leaving negative effects on youth. The available work done related to this topic. In this project we explore how this influence of illicit substances has become stronger with a passage of time. Considering the amount youth spend using media facilities, this should be taken into account and also to understand the relationship of illicit substances used by youth and the role played by media (McArthur, 1999).. Our youth are considered the considered the most sensitive and receptive during their early years and this is the time in the modern era that exposure to media is at its height. The problem is how the use of illicit substances among youth really leads to believe or its just exaggeration and influence of the media. There is no yardstick to measure this phenomenon so it goes unchecked as it brings revenue to the media industry. This is the growing age of the youth and the involvement of media plays an important role. They tend to forget that there will be repercussions for their actions. It has been scientifically concluded that television as a source of media has a causal relationship. But this does not mean that it creates influence among the youth to use illicit substances. The developers of media were blamed for so me of the more extreme cases of the use of illicit substances. On the contrary many are disturbing in the sense of