I am a big supporter of online distance education. That is not to say that distance education is without flaws. I support distance education because to me it seems like a vehicle to meet students individual needs and offer students a way to learn on an individual basis. I see this as a good thing because different students learn in different ways and many students fail in our current educational system because their needs are not met by a classroom teacher who has to teach in a uniform manner to a classroom of 40 students.
Distance education can be a costly venture, from the investment in current technology to the training provided for online instructors and pay to online technicians. Maybe this needed money can be allocated from traditional educational funds used to by things such as textbooks. Textbooks are becoming, or maybe already have become outdated. Our current generation is used to having information at the touch of their fingertips with the internet, and with so many credible sources and primary sources available electronically, do we still need the traditional, expensive textbook. This is just one example. I am sure there are other outdated, archaic educational practices and resources that are absorbing money that can be used to support distance education.
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