Journal 2, July 13, 2008

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/education/11colleges.html?ref=technology

Dennis Whitfield
LBST 2213
July 13, 2008

High Cost of Driving Ignites Online Classes Boom
By. Sam Dillon

A student in Pennsylvania bought a Hyundai so that he could cut cost from driving his Chevy Blazer. When the price of gas kept rising he cut his cost again by enrolling in an online version of one of his courses. Thousands of college students nationwide has decided to cut cost by enrolling in online course for study instead of traditional classroom settings. The vast majority of the college students nationwide live off campus and with the rising cost of gasoline, they have chosen to find alternatives to cut their cost. Colleges have stated that they have seen an increase of 50 to 100 percent of students just this summer alone. While the universities have seen a large increase, it is the community colleges that have seen a greater increase.

What was once seen as an incidental expense of education, some students pay up to half of what they pay for tuition of commuting expense. Now that web based courses are more popular than ever. Universities find themselves having extensive waiting lists for online courses every semester.

Online courses to me are a life savior, especially during the summer sessions. Being able to take courses from anywhere at any given moment. To me it is very disappointing that our university does not offer more online courses and well as degree programs that can be achieved online. Some students in the article say that they feel they do not get as much out of the online environment versus the traditional method. But that depends on the instructor and the platform that is being used for that course. In my online course that I took last session, the instructor taped his regular lectures and posted them online. I was able to listen to them over and over to gain a better understanding of the material that we were covering.

The cost effect of taking online courses is that you will save extremely with gas prices. As well the student if they have to work will be able to take the course and study when they are off or maybe on their job. Also the educational experience is opened up to not just your local schools, but other schools that might not be in your area or state.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/education/11colleges.html?ref=technology