When it comes to learning, to say that the industry has historically been traditionally-inclined would be putting it mildly. This is a global sector that, for decades, has operated in strictly traditional education methods and models. The education sector has done its best to keep a firm grasp on the (outdated) learning models that have served it so well up until now. To be blunt, the education industry, like the rest of the world, must evolve with the way that the world is moving. Because we are more technologically inclined than ever before, the way that our industries function must evolve to embrace this technology as well.
The rise of distance education (learning based online) has been a long one, with many challenges and trials along the way. In decades’ past, learning was limited geographically. This was not necessarily an intentional movement, but nonetheless it created a decidedly divisive environment – one in which individuals who wanted to learn were not given the opportunity unless they either made the journey (no matter how long) to campus, or taught themselves. Distance education has come at a time where the education system desperately needed the liveliness of technological disruption, and solved the geography issue. Now, thanks to distance education, students anywhere can take courses and earn themselves a degree, so long as they have access to a steady Wifi connection.
The individuals going through the education system currently have a keen interest and reliance on technology. In fact, these students are likely to be the first generation that grows up to be a seasoned community of tech experts. Not only do these students have a familiarity with technological advancement and digitalisation in their everyday lives, but they also have a keen understanding of the reality that the world is going to be driven by digitalisation quite soon. So, these students naturally demand an educational experience that mimics that reality, and that can adequately prepare them for life after graduation, as they go into the workforce.
Community colleges have been the pioneering forces of the development and steady introduction of online learning, and as the learning initiative gained more traction and steadily became a modern force in education, distance education slowly became more and more popular. Investments in online education are tipped to rise to a historical $9.5 billion in the coming years, and this reality has transformed the way that distance education is approached – even by the very same schools that pushed against it so hard when it first came to fruition.
The magic about distance education is that it effectively tears down one of the biggest barriers that traditional education never could: worldwide geographical inclusion. Because of the innovation that is distance education, students around the world can take on courses and entire degrees that they would not have been able to, were traditional education the only educational outlet available to them even now. The rise of distance education speaks volumes about the impact that main industries evolving with the times can have – for all parties.