This week I reached out to a former classmate from MSU that is teaching Social Studies in a face-to-face classroom this year. I asked him a few questions about what he thinks of online education. These were my questions and his answers:

“Q: What are your overall thoughts about online learning?

A: Personally, I think that online learning is possible, and will probably become the way of the future in education. Only problem is that the troubles of the system haven’t been worked out, and in-person education still holds supreme, especially with regards to social interaction.

Q: Do you think that taking a few classes online is beneficial for a student’s future?

A: I think that a couple of online classes could definitely be a help to students in future. I could see a hybrid mix of an online class of student choice and then in-person classes for core subjects, like Algebra and US History. Especially in a world were technology is advancing very quickly, it’s very important for young students to understand how to learn and do business through online environments, especially when working with online communications.

Q: How do you think online classes compare to face-to-face classes in categories like, interaction, quality of material, and individualization?

A:  I think online classes can really help individualize a class for students, especially for those who might move slower than the average student, or who need more support. I think that online classrooms do lack the personal interactions that an in-person classroom hails, and despite messaging devices, it is not equivalent to in-person collaboration – not to the same level. With regards to quality of material, I think that the online classroom can have the same quality of content to the in-person classroom, though I think that you need students to be able to take responsibility of organizing and effectively using materials provided.

Q: Do you know much about online education or is it just something that you’ve never heard much about before?

A: I have dabbled with online education, and am working on curriculum that could be applied and created for an online classroom”

After viewing his answers, one big idea that I came away with is that I think it is extremely important for online educators to be advocates for virtual learning. I think this because this educator that I interviewed did not seem to realize that we have students all across Michigan taking all of their classes online. And when I have told others about me being an online educator many are surprised to learn that we have been around for 20+ years. However, I was very happy to see that this person does not automatically assume that online classes have a lower quality of material. I think that a lot of people see online classes as being “easier”, but maybe with more information spread by those experienced with teaching/taking online classes, this myth will disappear. I also think that he made a good point when he brought up that it is “very important for young students to understand how to learn and do business through online environments, especially when workig with online communications’. I completely agree with this statement because we are becoming an increasingly technological world, and we should be preparing our students to be successful in this world.

I have reached out to other former classmates and will update when/if I hear back from more of them.