Internet breaking education barriers
WOLFVILLE (CUP) — More Canadians than ever are going online to study, and universities and colleges are ready to capitalize on the emerging markets, according to a new report from Statistics Canada.
The study on Internet usage, “Learning online: Factors associated with use of the Internet for education purposes,” described how learning through the Internet enables more people from disadvantaged groups to participate in post-secondary education.
The survey, conducted in 2005, found that 43 per cent of users who accessed the Internet from home did so for education, training or school work.
Nearly 80 per cent of all full-time and part-time students reported going online for the same reasons.
Of those who went online for educational reasons, research was the most common reason at 71 per cent of responses. The second most common use was for distance education, self-directed learning or correspondence courses, at 26 per cent.
Indeed, Athabasca University, Canada's leading distance-education and online university, has doubled its enrolment in the last six years, now serving 260,000 students around the world.
The growth of distance education has meant that people who cannot move to a university town, or who must work full-time jobs while going to school, have more opportunities to participate in higher education.
Athabasca University claims to break the traditional barriers to education. On their website they note their dedication to “the removal of barriers that restrict access to, and success in, university-level studies and to increasing equality of educational opportunity for adult learners worldwide.”
Even traditional universities are embracing online course delivery.
Toronto's Ryerson University boasts more than 65,000 distance and continuing education students while on-campus students number a mere 20,000.
The cost for a three-credit course at Athabasca is $689, including books, for students living outside of Alberta. For those living in Alberta, the price drops to $591.
Comparatively, Ryerson's course fees operate on a sliding scale according to the cost of the program. A computer science course through distance education at Ryerson University costs $820, while introduction to microeconomics costs nearly half that amount at $447.
Breaking down distance barriers has proven one of the most important factors, though.
A Statistics Canada study published in 2002 found that university participation decreases with the distance from the institution. People living more than 80km from a university are more likely to attend a post-secondary institution other than a university.
Living nearby to a university is an easy way to reduce costs, since students can live at home, eliminating fresh living expenses.
The study on Internet usage, meanwhile, found that rural Canadians with no university nearby are more likely to participate in distance education than their urban counterparts.
As many as 29 per cent of respondents from rural areas used the Internet for distance education, self-directed learning or correspondence, compared to 25 per cent from urban areas.
As access to education continues to dominate discussions on post-secondary education, the Internet, with its ability to offer flexible, more affordable and accessible education, is proving able to break barriers through distance education.
The study on Internet usage, “Learning online: Factors associated with use of the Internet for education purposes,” described how learning through the Internet enables more people from disadvantaged groups to participate in post-secondary education.
The survey, conducted in 2005, found that 43 per cent of users who accessed the Internet from home did so for education, training or school work.
Nearly 80 per cent of all full-time and part-time students reported going online for the same reasons.
Of those who went online for educational reasons, research was the most common reason at 71 per cent of responses. The second most common use was for distance education, self-directed learning or correspondence courses, at 26 per cent.
Indeed, Athabasca University, Canada's leading distance-education and online university, has doubled its enrolment in the last six years, now serving 260,000 students around the world.
The growth of distance education has meant that people who cannot move to a university town, or who must work full-time jobs while going to school, have more opportunities to participate in higher education.
Athabasca University claims to break the traditional barriers to education. On their website they note their dedication to “the removal of barriers that restrict access to, and success in, university-level studies and to increasing equality of educational opportunity for adult learners worldwide.”
Even traditional universities are embracing online course delivery.
Toronto's Ryerson University boasts more than 65,000 distance and continuing education students while on-campus students number a mere 20,000.
The cost for a three-credit course at Athabasca is $689, including books, for students living outside of Alberta. For those living in Alberta, the price drops to $591.
Comparatively, Ryerson's course fees operate on a sliding scale according to the cost of the program. A computer science course through distance education at Ryerson University costs $820, while introduction to microeconomics costs nearly half that amount at $447.
Breaking down distance barriers has proven one of the most important factors, though.
A Statistics Canada study published in 2002 found that university participation decreases with the distance from the institution. People living more than 80km from a university are more likely to attend a post-secondary institution other than a university.
Living nearby to a university is an easy way to reduce costs, since students can live at home, eliminating fresh living expenses.
The study on Internet usage, meanwhile, found that rural Canadians with no university nearby are more likely to participate in distance education than their urban counterparts.
As many as 29 per cent of respondents from rural areas used the Internet for distance education, self-directed learning or correspondence, compared to 25 per cent from urban areas.
As access to education continues to dominate discussions on post-secondary education, the Internet, with its ability to offer flexible, more affordable and accessible education, is proving able to break barriers through distance education.
