Students and the Internet

One of the main objectives of E-learning is to establish if what we are doing is actually making any difference in comparison to the generic ‘old way’ of learning. A good way of testing if there is a stark difference is obviously asking for feedback but in most cases, certainly in university, students seem to avoid contact if they can. I understand I’m generalizing millions of students but since the revolution of the Internet communication has become damaged. Its great that we can talk to people from all around the world with a few clicks but do we really need to? All that we achieve is a sense of fulfillment in knowing that we can connect to people and almost feel as though we are one. Take the Internet away and we become hostile, racist, alone. Anyway I digress, the capabilities of software packages now far out way what was available 5 years ago. We are able to perform complex tasks using computers for its ‘number crunching’ capabilities. We can build mock designs of entire cities without lifting a single nail. Surely by having this time saver its already improving the way students can prepare for better things. Any academic year usually consists of working on your own and working in groups. The Internet is a great bridge for these two different tasks, on your own, endless research is at your fingertips. In a group, communication is made possible but more importantly it is cheap and fairly reliable. There are many papers available on research which begs the question how can we make learning better.

http://www.elearnmag.org/subpage.cfm?section=case_studies&article=40-1

The link above is a prime example of how universities are almost panicking at how their (students) time is being spent, literally. With the media telling us that students are failing and tests are becoming easier, surely its time to think that maybe students are finding the work either too easy or too hard? This is obviously more aimed at High school students, but if the work is too easy then students are caring because they think they know it. If its too hard they still don’t care because there are a few who can grasp it which means everyone else is expected to know it. I understand that education is difficult to pinpoint in any specific way but I feel that students are relying on the Internet more so than academics.