Rising Enrolment for Accredited Online Colleges

In 2004, the number of undergraduate students enrolled in at least one distance-learning course was 2.96 million, or roughly 15.5% of the total number of college enrollees. In 2008, that number rose to 4.28 million, roughly 20.4%. In fall 2010, there were 6.14 million students enrolled, constituting 31.3% of the student body. If the number indeed rises to 14 million by 2014 as experts suggest, it means that more than half of all college students will be enrolled in at least one online class.

Attitudes Towards Online Learning


There's a growing sentiment that the personalized learning environment offered by online courses may be more effective than the traditional classroom experience. Recent research conducted by the Babson Survey Research Group indicates that 67% of chief academic officers reported learning outcomes for virtual environments were "the same," "somewhat superior," and "superior" when compared with in-classroom experiences. This is a notable increase from the 57% reported in 2003.

Although an increasing proportion of chief academic officers believe that online learning is "as good as" face-to-face instruction, the adoption of online learning among faculty has been more mixed.

According to research conducted by Babson Survey Research Group, "even institutions that have the most positive attitudes toward online learning and have implemented the most comprehensive online programs often report that not all their faculty fully accept online instruction."

Online Learning Offers Customization and Accessibility


Online learning will not only enable the pace, but also the delivery of the course to be tailored to each individual student in ways that traditional face-to-face education cannot accommodate.

Online learning has also made it possible for many non-traditional students to continue pursuing their education even as they juggle multiple priorities. As more working adults return to school to complete bachelor's degrees or to obtain masters to advance their career or improve job security, there is an increasing need for courses that offer flexible scheduling.

Online Learning is Reshaping Education


Online learning has not only affected postsecondary education, but has been breaking ground in K-12 learning as well. In 2009 more than three million students in primary and secondary education participated in some type of online learning.

But as online learning begins to take on a more significant role in student learning, what does that mean for teachers? As instructions from the best and brightest in different fields become more readily available online, some educators are finding their role changing as they spend less time lecturing in front of the classroom and focusing instead on providing the detailed personalized help that only a live teacher can offer. Such a change, welcomed by some and resented by others, may indeed disrupt the teaching profession for all levels of education.

Increases in the Number of Accredited Online Programs


In addition to the new programs that are being introduced by accredited online colleges begun offering their own online programs.

Columbia University currently offers online programs through the Columbia Video Network (CVN), with Master of Science (MS) and Professional Degrees (PD) available for various engineering disciplines. The University of California, Berkeley, created its first online degree program this year. Students in 2012 will be able to earn a master's degree in public health in two-and-a-half years by doing 85% of their coursework online.

The Future of Online Colleges


More professors will offer their courses online. More education institutes will offer degrees online. Even while people debate over whether distance education is better or worse than traditional classroom education, more and more people are using the Internet to teach and to learn. For this reason, accredited online colleges and courses are here to stay. What is taught will inevitably become free (if it is not free already). How it will be taught will make all the difference.

Over the last fifteen years, the Internet has revolutionized countless industries, including retail, music, publishing, and communication. In a similar way, it will continue to revolutionize how we view education.