Do the costs outweigh the Benefits in Distance Education?
Distance education is an attractive method of learning, but is it worth it to make this type of learning a big part of our future? Does it have a great enough upside for us to invest in? Finally as I learned in my senior economics class, do the benefits of distance education outweigh the costs? Some may say distance education isn't worth it, and others take the opposing side. There are valid reasons that support each side. After a bit of research I concluded, not only is distance education worth it to the individual, but more importantly to our society. I chose the side which supports distance education rather than its opposition because of the solid facts I came across while researching. My purpose is to convince you that the benefits of distance education outweigh the costs. As you will see, distance education is beneficial for individuals but its greater contribution is to our society as a whole.
In many cultures, there are biases and prejudices against women. Because of certain religious and cultural norms, women are not allowed to participate in the traditional classroom settings. Face to face contact is prohibited, this is why they rely on video-conferencing technology for women. "King Saud University in Saudi Arabia has resorted to video-conferencing technology to educate female students who are otherwise prohibited by religious precepts and social norms from coming into face to face contact with male in s tructors"(Comparative Evaluation). There was A poll taken showed negative results of distance education through video-conferencing. Negative statistics such as "The majority of instructors find it difficult to move freely in the class, studio, or a major i ty of female students find it difficult to watch the instructor on the television monitor, or read whatever is written on the chalkboard"(comp. Eval.) brings the effectiveness of distance education down, but without it, female education in Saudi Arabia wo u ld be much worse off. In this Saudi Arabian culture there are negative affects to this type of learning. For the most part, females agree that distance education has positive effects. "72.4% of the female students feel televised instruction affects the re comprehension positively"(Comp. Eval.).