Guide to Online Education > Online Education Basics > Types of Online Education
- Higher education
- Online continuing education
- Online training
- Military online education
- Non-credit online learning
There is more than one way to prepare for the future. In some countries, the educational fate of a student is essentially decided before puberty. Students are tracked and tested early in their primary years. By the middle school and high school years, college-bound students are siphoned off for entry into high schools with an academic focus. The others are given little choice but to enter an educational system that teaches basic skills for independent living, and terminates with home economics or vocational instruction. For them, an associate's is a two-year terminable degree. The credits cannot later be applied toward a bachelor's degree even if the student develops the maturity, motivation, and intellectual curiosity necessary for the rigors of academic life.
Fortunately, in America, students get a second chance…and usually a third, fourth, and fifth, too! Students take many paths to college—there is no right one. One size does not fit all. Some students are home-schooled, some are tutored, some matriculate through the public education system, some enroll in private schools, some take the requisite four years to complete high school, some opt to earn their diploma early, some drop out entirely, some go to night school, and some drop back in and take the high school equivalency test in lieu of earning a diploma. It is simply never too late.
The same holds true for higher education. Some students adhere to a degree plan generated with input from their academic advisors, and choose to make steady, regular progress toward their degrees. Others may choose to reduce their course load, take a semester off here and there, or change their areas of study. Some may plan to earn an associate's degree and later apply those credits to a bachelor's degree. Indeed, the same holds true for certificates, which can, at some schools, be applied to a master's degree.
Online learning makes education accessible to virtually everyone, at any stage, on the path to achievement. Students are not bound by physical disabilities, learning disabilities, poor life choices, geographic limitations, or socioeconomic status. Online learning makes the playing field about as level as it can get. A student who is determined enough can and will succeed.
Opportunities abound. If you have landed on this page, that means you are already considering an online education experience. Congratulations. You've made a smart move. Enroll and you will be in good company. According to a 2005 survey, "Growing By Degrees: Online Education in the United States, 2005", backed by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, online enrollments increased from 1.98 million in 2003 to 2.35 million in 2004. Over 360,000 new students are expected to enroll in online courses each year. They are unlocking their potential and you can, too!
More and more schools are offering courses online. Some schools offer the opportunity for students to obtain a certificate or a degree wholly online. Faculty and institutions are recognizing that not all students fit into the 18-22 year old demographic. The Socratic method, with one teacher standing in front of a blackboard facing dozens of students, is now just one way classes are taught. Not the only way. There are mature students with life experience who have different needs and objectives. Colleges and universities are tailoring the education experience they provide to these non-traditional students.
There are as many reasons to return to school as there are for leaving. Some people voluntarily interrupt their education. They decide that upon high school graduation they are not ready for college. Others defer education out of necessity in order to join the military, raise a family, or care for a family member. Then there are those who want to take time to find out their interests, work their way up from an entry-level job, or just get life experience. Later they find that what interests them requires a degree; or that they can't be promoted to more responsibility without a degree, or that their lifestyle demands a career change and more money. All at once they have to be competitive in the job market--and in many industries that means having a degree.
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