Online and Traditional Education 1

Compare and Contrast: Online and Traditional Education

Rene D. Vencer

Iloilo City
 Online and Traditional Education 2

Introduction

Everybody knows what a traditional classroom is. From the elementary or even

kindergarten to undergraduate (BS) degree, or even as high as doctoral we always have to pass

trough the classrooms as we see it up to today. But how does one picture the classroom of the

online educational system? It is happening today, but in the Philippines it is not yet a

classroom to reckon although it is available. However, no story or study is yet so available

(research on online education, Philippine setting). It is therefore a comparison and contrast of

online and traditional educational setting outside the Philippines that is discussed here (with little

emphasis in Philippines).

Hybrid Educational Environment

A hybrid set-up is mixture of the traditional face-to-face classroom work and online

through the various technology assisted interventions. This we could say is so prevalent in the

Philippines and elsewhere. The call it synchronous interactions when it is thru the internet

(using e-mail, browser, messenger, etc) and asynchronous interaction when it is done thru

discussions rooms ; lectures through video conferencing; examinations done in computer

laboratories where the tests are no longer paper-based but are uploaded in the computer facility;

among others. The UPOU, CAP School, De la Salle & PWU maybe partially doing these actions

and could still be hybrid (Librero, 2005, http://www.cap.com.ph/college/product.htm , Estopace,

2001, Benitez, 1993).

The traditional face-to-face classroom teaching is still the most prevalent set-up in

majority of schools, Philippines and abroad, in both public and private institutions. But some
 Online and Traditional Education 3

pioneering schools have started implementing blended and hybrid set-ups and some even went

ahead with full online learning as a result of the technological advances. A blended classroom is

one where the teacher uses the computer as part of instruction delivery either through the use of

available software like spreadsheets and powerpoints, multi-media or use of e-groups to send

lecture notes and reminders to class, or doing Internet research and other similar applications

through the web. A full online set-up is one where face-to-face classroom interaction is not

employed anymore and the instructional set-up and materials are all done through the web

(Berino, 2006).

Comparison of Traditional and Online Classroom

In as much as traditional classroom is so familiar with everyone, there will be more of the

discussion that covers online classroom or what is supposed to be online education. Words and

terms with deep meaning related to online education are further emphasized (keywords in bold).

The use of the Internet has produced a great transformation on people’s lives and on the

way that people do things. And although the changes brought about by the use of the Internet

have not transformed campus teaching and learning at the same speed as they have transformed

everyday life, there is no doubt that it is gradually producing an impact in campus-based

education. This impact is especially noticeable in three aspects: access, the definition of

classroom space and the implementation of practices that were unusual for place-based

education. However, the use of the Internet in classroom teaching is not as widespread as the use

of the Internet for information, entertainment, communication, and research. ( Scagnoli, 2005 ).
 Online and Traditional Education 4

Scagnoli have called it impact, but call this impact as a way of describing comparison

sought for online education and traditional method. Access to information is not limited to class

materials, and access to class materials is no longer limited to the class time or to the physical

space of the classroom. Online communications facilitate access to the instructor, the students,

support staff or administrators, and the class is open twenty-four hours a day. This immediate

access has had an impact in campus students’ retention and learning achievement. We could say

that traditional classroom has the same accessibility as when you are online. Internet (vis-à-vis

computer ) can be used by both the online and traditional education. Online education provides

easy access to peers, which allows the establishment of a network of scholars for the purposes of

intellectual exchange, collaboration, and collective thinking, but this is possible in traditional

education but limited by face-to-face contact.

Providing quality learning experiences is the goal and responsibility of all educational

programs, assuring student, faculty, and program success. However, it is of special importance to

distance learning programs that have historically been considered incapable of meeting the

standards of traditional education. But should our goal be to meet existing standards of education

or has distance education, and especially online education, opened the door to enhanced

strategies in teaching and learning. Ever since, people have been trying to prove that distance

education is “as good as” traditional education. New information technology and media have

added new dimensions and possibilities to the conduct of teaching and learning, creating the

potential for more interactive, interpersonal, group environments (McDonald, 2002). Actually,

online education could probably match or even exceed traditional education depends on the

student and perhaps faculty of instruction.

The second impact can be seen in the notion of classroom space ( Scagnoli, 2005),

which takes a whole different meaning as a synonym of learning space . Online education blurs

the line between distance education and traditional, place-based education, primarily because of

the opportunity for discussion, collaboration, and the potential for building a sense of community

among participants inside and outside of the classroom Faculty can choose between several

available online applications to encourage online interaction via synchronous and/or

asynchronous methods. These methods are used to extend the classroom discussions, to allow

for student insights on a new topic, to enhance a lecture, or to discuss readings. Collaboration

among students in the same class, or between students and researchers residing in different

geographical locations is possible as long as they can all share the virtual collaborative space of

the online classroom. This is the main difference, while traditional will be very limited both in

time and space.

Scagnoli describes the third element considered here as an impact of online learning on

classroom education is the implementation of practices that were unusual for placed-based

education. Distance education practices have been adopted in the face-to-face classroom

affecting design and implementation of campus-based instruction. However, distance education

turned out to be more and more noticeable as a part of the higher education family because of the

uses it makes of educational technologies and new pedagogical strategies that improve the

process of teaching and learning. Way back in 1984, I have personally made enough

documentation of my experiences and education which is ( supposed to be) credited towards

distance education and earned a Master’s degree. However, this school today was in fact not

recognized by educational authority in California. There was no internet and good tele-

communication method at that time.

The instructional insights gained in the online distance world produced a transformation

that also reached campus-based education. The developments that occurred with the

incorporation of the Web into distance education practices—such as synchronous and

asynchronous class discussion; extensive peer review of class documents; constant comments

and reflections on opinions and answers given by classmates; online collaboration; document and

application sharing—were rare or never part of (traditional) campus-based courses for very

practical reasons

Overall, research suggests that students are just as satisfied with the quality of teaching in

the virtual classroom (also online) as the actual classroom . But the differences between the two

learning arenas are significant. Cost, standardization and a consumer focus seem to be prevalent

in distance education. The student body is also different in the two classrooms. Students with

family and work obligations were more likely to take online classes than those without. Also, the

majority of students in distance classes are working toward a Master’s degree. Understanding the

history of distance education is valuable in that it shows there was more than one historical path

to distance education and that the evolution of distance education has not been easy. Many of the

same problems facing implementation and acceptance of educational innovations today have

been faced by distance education throughout its history ( Jeffries, 2006??). Now, it has gone a

very long way (as described earlier, even in the Philippines) but for full online education is still “

going on”.

The quality of the participation in online may not be as high as in the traditional method.

It is harder to engage in a debate or encourage valuable quick-thinking skills in the online

environment. Speeches and presentations in front of the classroom are rarely found in the virtual

classroom. Overall, research suggests that the success of the student depends on their own
 Online and Traditional Education 7

preferences of how to take classes. Distance education classes just offer another way for students

to earn a degree. In the face-to-face or virtual classroom there is no “better” way to learn, just

different ways to learn. whereas traditional universities focus on the educational process first.

The are so many comparison that needs to be sorted for experiences in other countries,

particularly that of the first world in online education and countries like the Philippines can learn

from it.

Contrasting Traditional and Online Classroom

Although there are differences in comparing and contrasting, the stories, experiences

and/or literature below weighs more on contrasting.

The following is the experience of Dr. Elizabeth A. Hansen (Associate Professor ,

Educational Leadership and Services). One of the major differences she noticed was when she

taught the online Psychology 101 course and the traditional Psychology 101 course, was the fact

that students were more willing to self-disclose in the online environment than in the face-to-face

interaction of a traditional classroom. She polled the students and the main reason was that they

felt more comfortable in discussing personal situations was that online no one could "look at

them." In the traditional class, perceived public opinion of the class was enough to keep many

students from jumping into a discussion. Online, she had to closely guide the discussion when

students started to treat the discussion like a therapy session. We see this phenomenon in public

chat rooms, where people self-disclose to strangers more than they would in a face-to-face

situation. Since students can post comments and answers questions whenever they sign on, the

interaction is of a more thoughtful nature - writing out the question and waiting for a written

reply such as on the discussion board feature in blackboard. In the traditional classroom,
 Online and Traditional Education 8

sometimes we talk before we think. Online features can be set up to allow students to modify or

remove a posting. It is like going back in time and changing what you said or retracting a

statement ( Hansen, 2001).

The example of curriculum of University of Washington that is fully online and

methodology is shown on http://www.onlinelearning.washington.edu/ol/intros/acctg225/ , while

the course contents are the same as that of the traditional, in contrast, it is delivered fully by

online methodology. But the evaluation ( exams) are practically given in the same manner, that

is proctored. The online course offers several advantages to the traditional classroom, including

the comprehensive Online Student Handbook, the ability to communicate electronically with

students and with your instructor, and links to a rich array of online resources. In the Philippines,

courses similar to this could be done by selected universities and selected courses. The only item

that matters most is the proctored evaluation.

There are still problems that must be solved, but these are slowly overcome as time goes

on. The online education is here to stay.

(Note: Rene D. Vencer believes that it is students’ evaluation that matters most in online

education)
 Online and Traditional Education 9

References:

Benitez, C. (1993). Inaugural Address. Retrieved December 21, 2006 from

http://www.pwu-online.net/historical.html

Berino, D. (2006). Classroom’s changing paradigm. Retrieved December 21, 2006 from

http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2006/dec/12/yehey/business/20061212bus10.html

CAP College. Retrieved December 20, 2006 from http://www.cap.com.ph/college/product.htm

Estopace, E, (2001). Inside An E-Classroom. Retrieved December 21, 2006 from

http://wise.dlsu.edu.ph/press-releases/eclassroom.asp

Hansen, E. (2001). Comparison of Online and Traditional Interaction of Students

Retrieved December 22, 2006 from

http://www.ipfw.edu/as/tohe/2001/Papers/hansen.htm

Jeffries, M. (2006 ?). Research in Distance Education. Retrieved December 21, 2006 from

http://www.digitalschool.net/edu/DL_history_mJeffries.html

Librero, F. (2005). Distance Education in UP: Options and Directions. Retrieved December 20,

2006 from http://www.upou.org/books/options.htm

McDonald, J. (2002). Is "As Good as Face-to-Face" As Good As It Gets? Journal of

Asynchronous Learning Method. Retrieved December 21, 2006 from

http://www.aln.org/publications/jaln/v6n2/v6n2_macdonald.asp
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Scagnoli, N. (2005). Impact of Online Education on Traditional Campus-Based Education.

Retrieved December 21, 2006 from http://www.itdl.org/Journal/Oct_05/article06.htm

University of Washington, (Online) Fundamentals of Managerial Accounting, Retrieved

December 22, 2006 from http://www.onlinelearning.washington.edu/ol/intros/acctg225/