Can all courses be adapted for online learning?
As you may know, I am college student pursuing my studies online with Axia College of the University of Phoenix. When I started with Axia, I wasn’t knew to the online learning as I had completed three distance learning courses while I was in high school; Pascal, C++, and Visual Basic. I had a great experience with these classes; and because of that experience, the thought of earning a degree online seemed to be a natural option.I did have concerns starting out, though. My previous experience with online learning was totally with programming courses. Computer courses seem to fit very well with the online learning model for obvious reasons. I was primarily concerned with completing math courses online, as I knew that completing assignments was going to be a totally different process. I also feared not being able to use the step-by-step examples of an instructor to help me understand how to solve problems.
A couple of months ago, I finished my first academic year at Axia without any major problems. In fact, I did really well with earning nothing less than an A- in any class. Most of these classes were fairly subjective in nature, and thus reading he text and writing well with a purpose aided in the success of those classes. Environmental Science did throw me for a loop a couple of times, but I was eventually able to figure that course out as well.
To begin my second academic year, I’ve been taking Algebra and Financial Management. Before the start of these courses, I was a bit nervous about the Algebra, but didn’t think twice about Financial Management.
My concerns about studying math in an online environment were not entirely wrong, but none were of any negative consequence. The new approach to completing math assignments has led me to understand concepts faster as I’m forced to think through each step of the process. I was a horrible math student in high school, but I’m doing a bit better in college.
My Financial Management course, on the other hand, is my untamed beast for the time being. The text for the course is bulky, examples within the text don’t prepare the student for assignments, and my assignments have been very hit or miss as far as grades are concerned. While students can call instructors, or e-mail them, the schedule at which I work on assignments, following the provided calendar, allows very little, if any, time to try to hash out what assignments are really asking for, or to gain clarification on an issue.
As a struggled with yet another assignment, which I know will gain at a maximum half the points of assignment is worth, I’ve begun to ask myself if all college courses can be adapted for online learning. Are all subjects equal in an online environment?
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