Is DL easier than B&M?

>.


It's hard to say, but it's probably a combination of both. If I based my self-esteem on the feedback of my undergrad TESC instructors (excuse me, mentors) then I am simply brilliant. (who knew?)

That said, I'm not brilliant, I'm average. Also, I'm highly motivated and put a good amount of effort into securing a good grade. Meaning, I don't wait until the last minute to turn in papers (or address problems), I complete every assignment given, and I do almost all of the reading Is that what you do? In my mind, I think that at least completing the course requirements would be the minimum- HOW well you complete them should be the difference between the A's and B's...but in my experience, that hasn't been the case.

As a teacher in a community college, somewhere around 25% of my students will turn in every assignment. Most will skip a few or more! The group that turns in everything has the mathematical leverage that the rest don't enjoy. My experience as the student and as the teacher are both only at the undergrad level, but I think people are people- and behavior is consistent. Completion can simply be rewarded with full credit. My husband's program is very spelled out- x points for this, x points for that... so if you do it- you get the points. Period.

So, my best guess, is that if you are actually doing all of the work, you may occasionally have an instructor provide you with positive constructive criticism at how to improve while he gives you an A. For the rest of the time when you might have a lazy grader, simply enjoy your A. You may find the exams to be the "leveling" factor, especially if they are heavily weighted, so don't count your chickens just yet.

 

Ugh, I have had the WORST experience with my mentors there- one in particular. She is inconsistent in her grading and when I explained that I was confused because her grading didn’t match the rubric, she literally told me I could either deal with it or retake the class (yes I saved the email where she told me that). Out of 3 mentors this semester, 1 is fine, 1 is mediocre (NO interaction whatsoever with the class), and 1 is awful.

 

I'm glad you think I'm cute, I'll leave it at at that.

"When I'm in school I absolutely know how everybody is doing." maybe but i highly doubt it.

 

>>

This is possible if the class grad book is public. Many schools use numbers or pseudo-names, but grades are posted in many cases. At TESC we couldn't view grades of others by name, but the class average is always visible on the grade book. I could gather a good deal of information if I knew my own score, the class average, and how many people are in my class. In the event that you earn a grade for discussion posts, you can see if a certain student doesn't post or posts late. I also sometimes turned in my work early, so sometimes the "class average" started with my score, and diluted as the instructor started to grade more papers. I could (sometimes) calculate the next two or so papers as they came in.
I thought everyone stalked the grade book <shrug>

 

I would agree that a lot of it is just this -- your happiness and fit with the mode of delivery and the institution.

I can echo a lot of the postings in this thread -- when I first when to university right out of high school, I spent much more time partying than studying, and after just one quarter ended up on academic probation with a 1.5 GPA. After a few years in the military, I went back to college, and my lowest GPA since, in three degrees, has been a 3.91. The maturity factor definitely played a huge role in that.

For my doctoral studies, I started out at Capella, and was quite happy with the program. However, given issues with my job at the time and my personal life, I found myself constrained by the residency requirements, and ended up switching to Northcentral so I wouldn't have any residencies.

I've been struggling at Northcentral, mainly due to the format. I find that I'm a much happier and productive learner with peer interaction, and that I'm just not motivated by the one-on-one format of NCU. Hence, I'm taking a short break at the moment to consider my options, one of which is to return to Capella and figure out how to do the residencies somehow.

So, in a nutshell, I just wanted to throw into this discussion mix that not all DL institutions use the same delivery method or curriculum structure, and this is a factor that can also play a role. For me, it's easier (as in I stay more motivated and get more out of my studies) with more peer support. Okay, this doesn't mean that Capella-style delivery is easier perhaps in the OP's original meaning; I did find my classes to be challenging and enlightening. At the same time, though, I feel I did quality work and earned my "A"s.

I hope this adds to the discussion; sorry if it's just rambling and adds nothing of value . . . it's morning here and I haven't had enough coffee yet!

 

My wife graduated from TESC in 2007, she never mentioned that when I asked her tonight about this particular situation. I'll ask again tomorrow when she is awake. She also went to National University and Baker College Online and does not remember seeing this information made public either.

As far as the OP, the topic, and to address my earlier comments, Ellis College of NYIT (subject school) does not have this public option.

But honestly this is really non-issue, just a difference of opinions.

I have attended two online programs, one where I graduated with an AA degree-Dual Majors, and I took classes from Charter Oak as well and this type of information was not made public.

However, with the non-DL classes I attended did had this info on a board for all to see

adireynolds, I like what I have had contact with so far at Ellis-NYIT, but the jury is still out on it(it's an intro class). So far it's ok, and I like the way they are doing things, but getting into a real course will tell the tale of what this college is all about.

I went through the 7 pages of adjunct faculty and they have some pretty impressive folks teaching at Ellis so I am not too worried.

With my DL experience, it was easy at times, and challenging at times, I expect the same here at Ellis (hopefully).

BTW, I totally agree with your final summation, and have some more coffee too!

 

Sloan Study from 2005

http://www.sloan-c.org/publications/survey/pdf/growing_by_degrees.pdf

check out page 12 of this Sloan Foundation study. the majority of the 2,500 institutions surveyed feel that on-line requires more discipline to be successful than in a face-to-face setting.

mk

 

Yes, that finding is pretty consistent in the distance learning literature. Those of us who have taught/taken online courses can attest to that as well.

 

Admittedly, I haven't read through all the posts yet, but thought I'd chime in anyway.

Easier? How?

More flexible, certainly. More options and possibly less expensive, yes.

In terms of coursework-- depends. Just like B&M schools, this will vary by course, school, and instructor. Many DL students are now being held to equally high (if not higher) standards than their B&M counterparts, and I see this to be an increasing trend, especially in homework-intensive courses like mathematics. For some, the credit by examination route is an "easier" path, but that depends on which exam and what the student's learning capacities /inclinations are.

But where you lose in any other area you make up for in flexibility. You can usually do homework on your own schedule, and are not tied up in lectures for a set number of hours every week. For most of us who are very busy, the scheduling flexibility makes up for anything else. I can go on about the flexibility aspect-- you may not need to buy the same expensive textbooks, you may have different delivery formats you can pick from (which school? online lectures? CD? DVD? Are there online tutorials to help reinforce learning?).

Easier? Depends. Better? Quite probably for a vast portion of the student population.

 

Very interesting!