Online/Hybrid Classes (your experiences and opinions)

[xJesusFreakx]

I'm in school for education (specifically to teach high school math), and we've talked a bit in some of my classes about the growing phenomenon of online classes. These were seen as crazy just a decade or so ago, and now people can get entire degrees online. Some schools have also started offering hybrid classes, where you still meet sometimes in classrooms, but much of the work is online.

I have mixed feelings about online classes; I believe that the classroom is irreplaceable to a certain extent, but I also see some advantages to offering classes online. So, I'm just asking you this: What are your experiences with such classes? Did you like them? How much did you learn? What would you change?

[jnnlopez]

I've taken a few online classes and I'm taking a dvd corse this semester. I still have to go in the first day, midterm, and final. I think they're good convenient and you can work at your own pace and review certain things again. The only thing is sometimes its hard to get motivated to do the work when you're not actually going to a class. There are definately some classes I wouldn't take online, like math or english.

[perceptrons]

I had a math class that the professor had just moved everything online, unbeknown to all who signed up for it. If the material was harder, I would have done terrible, luckily it wasn't. I hate online classes, because the way I take in most information for a class is to pay really good attention in lecture. I don't take in information well if all the onus of taking in the material is on me.

[xJesusFreakx]

I had a math class that the professor had just moved everything online, unbeknown to all who signed up for it. If the material was harder, I would have done terrible, luckily it wasn't. I hate online classes, because the way I take in most information for a class is to pay really good attention in lecture. I don't take in information well if all the onus of taking in the material is on me.

This is why I don't like online classes. I think there is something about the classroom that is generally better for learning. Some people (myself included) learn best from lecture. Also, human interaction makes discussion easier, and discussion is an important part of learning.

[ihbneydu]

I've taken a few online classes, however, they were social studies classes. To me, these were a better idea than taking them in school because I get to learn at my own pace, rather than falling behind or being held back. If it's material that it's fine to learn on your own that you won't miss anything that's fine, however, taking a science or math class online would be difficult because you don't get the experience you would with labs or repetitive home work. Hope this helps.

[invisibletruth]

I think online courses are great for some subjects. I'm taking an online English course, and I'm finding it rather easy. I doubt I would enjoy a math class online, because I enjoy the lecture part of math.

[phil19]

im doing an online course. i think its ok, but i find that its too easy for me to get distracted. like if im bored i'll just go and surf the web.
i also actually miss the actual physical interaction of a standard classroom where you can yell over some idiot who has just said something completely stupid