Featured Articles on OnlineEducation.com
As part of an ongoing commitment to provide students with clear and comprehensive guidance on online education and degree programs, OnlineEducation.com offers a broad range of informational resources on relevant topics in the field of higher education. These articles are meant to complement our rigorous research and reporting on specific online degrees, on trends in online learning, and on careers in fields linked to particular academic programs. The features section includes general interest stories, in-depth reports, and practical guides that delve into a wide array of subject areas, extending beyond online education, and reaching out into the larger world of knowledge and scholarship.
Look Who’s Talking: Online Education Tech & Learning Management Systems
Learning management systems allow instructors to create and distribute courses while also letting students interact with course materials and with one another. The Learning management system (LMS) that a school uses can have a significant impact on how students perform and each year schools are investing in tools to make sure that they are using the right technologies to help their students succeed.
Look Who’s Talking: Online vs. Traditional Education
Any student considering taking courses online who has never done so before may understandably have some trepidation. Is an online course really going to give you the experience and knowledge that you need to pursue the degree — and eventually career — that you want?
Los Angeles Schools Serve as Vaccination Sites While Online Education Continues to Support Learning Goals
A year ago, the outbreak of the global novel coronavirus pandemic forced educators and learning providers at traditional brick-and-mortar institutions to pivot to online education platforms and models.
Low-Cost, Educational & Fun: The Ultimate Guide to Online Learning Resources for Kids
Especially in the midst of a pandemic, parents (with kids ages 5-18) are struggling to find distance-based resources to keep children entertained and educated. And while there is definitely an ocean of options available online, it can be overwhelming to search for resources.
Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month: An Expert’s Advocacy Guide
To increase awareness around the importance of this field, April is designated as Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month. This month is an opportunity to learn more about math, get to know the people who have made and are making history in this field, and celebrate the advances that math and statistics have made.
Media Literacy Week: An Expert’s Advocacy Guide
Media literacy, just like reading and math, is a skill that must be taught and cultivated. While this used to be reserved for the college level and above, media literacy has been trickling down through the grade levels.
Meet and Engage with Top CMOs on Twitter
Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) guide and develop strategy using traditional techniques, such as celebrity influence, as well as those related to developing technologies, including social media and an ever-growing field of data. By following and engaging with these CMOs on Twitter, you can stay on the vanguard of marketing thought and strategy, and monitor emerging methods.
Merit America: What to Know About Affordable Online Technical Training
Merit America is a non-profit that, according to the website, “provides a path to skilled technology careers for Americans who can’t yet compete for these roles.” All Merit America programs are offered through distance learning and have no upfront costs.
Microcredentials: Can They Help Stop-Outs Graduate From College?
A new survey indicates that many stop-outs could resume degree programs if more colleges offered academic credits through microcredentials, plus granted credits for prior learning. Microcredentials generally refer to credit, noncredit, and professional certificates awarded by colleges and universities in exchange for completing courses and programs. Their market is booming, and according to Credential Engine—a nonprofit which tracks this market’s growth—their numbers have surged in recent years from 334,000 awarded during 2018 to over a million in 2023.
Microsoft’s Teams Bundling: What EU’s Crackdown Means for Tech & Education
Microsoft’s decision to bundle its Teams collaboration tool with the Office 365 suite has ignited significant debate about its competitive practices, particularly in Europe. German-based video conferencing platform alfaview has filed antitrust complaints, accusing Microsoft of stifling innovation and eliminating competition by including Teams at no additional cost within its dominant Office package. Similar concerns have been raised in other sectors, including education, where Microsoft’s handling of personal data in its 365 Education suite has also come under scrutiny.
More on Performance-Based Admissions: Who Benefits?
Performance-based admissions (PBA) enables applicants to demonstrate their readiness for advanced study by completing a sample of a degree program’s actual coursework during one to three “gateway” or “pathway” courses. In exchange, those applicants need not file the extensive documentation that graduate admissions offices typically demand, including reference letters, scores on admissions tests like the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), college transcripts, application essays, and resumes.
Most Useful Online Degrees (2020-2021)
In today’s economic environment, the traditional dreamy narrative of earning a liberal arts degree while attending a storybook campus isn’t practical. While a strong foundation is always a good place to start, today’s employers expect and need specialized skills that many graduating college seniors simply don’t have. Starting the process early on with a roadmap will help students graduate with employable assets.
National Arts and Humanities Month: An Expert’s Advocacy Guide
The arts and humanities are a vast field that encompasses everything from performance art to painting, music, languages, and even history. While to many, the arts and humanities can seem esoteric, they are, in fact, part of everyday life.
National Human Trafficking Prevention Month: An Expert’s Advocacy Guide
According to the US Department of State office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons: “Human trafficking, also known as trafficking in persons, includes both forced labor and sex trafficking. It not only represents a threat to international peace and security but also undermines the rule of law, robs millions of their dignity and freedom, enriches transnational criminals and terrorists, and threatens public safety and national security everywhere.”
National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo): An Expert’s Advocacy Guide
November is National Novel Writing Month. Otherwise known as NaNoWriMo, this is an annual event during which writers attempt to complete a novel in just 30 days. While the event is open to writers of all experience levels, it typically attracts novice writers looking for a challenge. Many participants find the event to be highly motivating, as the fast-paced nature of NaNoWriMo encourages them to focus and get their ideas down on paper quickly.
National Suicide Prevention Month: An Expert’s Advocacy Guide
September is designated as National Suicide Prevention Month. Mental health organizations across the country collaborate to share the message that help is available from professionals able to work with clients through their crises.
No Application Required? Clemson’s New Online Computer Science Master’s Degree
Clemson University offers its new online master of science in computer science degree in collaboration with Coursera, one of the most innovative firms in online education that we’ll talk more about below. Classes start in August 2024 and the university estimates most working adult students will complete the degree in 20 to 36 months.
One Foot in Academia, One in Industry: Experts Who Teach
MOOCs—massive open online courses—have lowered the barrier to entry for students wishing to learn a new trade. Advances in technology have made distance learning more accessible and more engaging and traditional academic institutions like colleges and universities have fully embraced online education.
Online Alumni Less Satisfied with For-Profit Colleges, Says New Survey
Because of all the controversy surrounding the for-profit University of Phoenix’s planned acquisition by the University of Idaho, it’s reasonable to ask questions about the relative value of for-profit higher education in America. Do the alumni of such schools value their educational experiences as much as the alumni of nonprofit colleges and universities?
Online Cannabis Degree: Interview with UMSOP Program Director
The cannabis industry does over $52 billion in annual sales and job availability went up by 76 percent across the sector last year. But with so few academic programs on the subject, where are the leaders in medical cannabis going to come from?
Online Competency-Based Education (CBE)
Competency-based education (CBE) acknowledges the fact that not all students in the same course will learn at the same pace or in the same way. Instead of relying on a rigidly structured timetable, CBE allows students to advance to different parts of a course and even to another level based on their mastery — or competence — in a certain area.
Online Education in the Time of COVID-19
During the COVID-19 pandemic, over half-a-million students in the US have been affected by countless university closures. Online education has come a long way in the last decade—and it’s about to be catapulted into the global mainstream.
Online Education Resources for Low-Income and Immigrant Students
Parents working to provide their children with the best education and opportunities available is already challenging when juggling the responsibilities of work and day-to-day life. But imagine having the added pressure of not understanding the language used or lacking internet access to navigate existing education systems.
Online Learning Best Practices: 5 Great Resources for the COVID-19 Lockdown
Rapidly transitioning from traditional classroom-based teaching and learning to online learning mid-semester can be a difficult and stressful process. Discover some best practices and resources to help you get started, and to smooth the transition to online.
Online Learning Poised to Eclipse Traditional College Classrooms: New Study
Demand for online education continues to surge. And according to a new study, online learning may even be poised to eclipse traditional college and university classrooms. The Changing Landscape of Online Education (CHLOE) report released in August 2023 shows how student demand for online learning drives colleges to adapt. In its eighth annual edition since 2015, this survey polled more than 300 chief online officers (COOs) at four- and two-year institutions across the United States who manage virtual instruction at their schools.