Online/F2F learning

 

The environment in which a student is most likely to thrive depends on the individual's study preferences and habits. Older students like I am, prefer face-to-face learning environments because they are already familiar with that style of learning from ages. Face-to-face learning is the more traditional way of instruction, where students and teachers attend an in-person session at the same time. The instructor leads the class, and usually, students are passively learning. The debate about the superiority of online learning has been going on since the eighties. However, proponents of face to face learning argue that it lends a hand in organizing students and their studies. They also reason that a F2F offers an effective way to learn knowledge and skills because it often combines different learning methods, including writing, reading, discussion, presentations, projects, group work, demonstration, and practice.

One of the learning process's key elements is the dynamic relationship shared between a student and fellow students, and a student and the teacher. Face-to-face learning fosters these relationships; such dynamism may be minimized or lost when training is undertaken on a distance or virtual format. The ability to interact with the instructors and other students helps them understand the concept and is worthwhile to sharpen memory and cognitive skills. The richness of information and memorable experiences are deduced through behavior and body language, including one's mannerisms, gestures, tone, language, and voice volume. Face-to-face communication allows the entire experience not only to be heard but also seen and felt. Yes, face-to-face learning still requires self-discipline, as students are still required to go to class and participate. However, even if students do not have much self-discipline, they can still sit in a lecture and listen to their instructor.

Advocates of online learning, in contrast, argue that technology-enhanced education can lead to superior learning outcomes and that higher online dropout rates are due not to the medium per se but rather to the characteristics of students who choose online courses (see, e.g., Howell, Laws, & Lindsay, 2004). Technology has forever changed the way education is delivered. The classroom no longer refers to a physical location. Students can learn from an environment they are comfortable in. eLearning has changed the way students think about education and pursue their degrees. Proponents of postsecondary online education were buoyed by a meta-analysis commissioned by the U.S. Department of Education (2009), which concluded that student learning outcomes in hybrid-online were among the studies considered fully online courses were equal to or better than those in traditional face-to-face courses. One of the most significant differences between face-to-face learning and online learning is that face-to-face learning is synchronous or done simultaneously. All instructors and students/classmates are present in face-to-face learning. With online learning, however, that is not necessary. Online instruction can be either synchronous or asynchronous. Technology has forever changed the way education is delivered. The classroom no longer refers to a physical location. Students can learn from an environment they are comfortable in. eLearning has changed the way students think about education and pursue their degrees.

Multimedia influences learning and teaching when students may have learning preferences by taking advantage of a particular medium's characteristics to help construct knowledge, such as learning by lectures or hands-on practice. What is more, multimedia has a proven impact on motivating students' learning. The multimedia learning theory by Mayer relies on the psychology of learning.  The integration of cognition, instruction, and technology focuses on helping people learn to form the basis of this theory. Dr. Myer's adoption of dual coding theory that humans process visual and verbal information differently and in two separate channels. He postulated that people actively process information by paying attention and organizing and integrating the data to make something meaningful.

This theory's implication helps educators in their instructional planning as they integrate text, graphics, and narration to help the learner learn efficiently with different forms of multimedia. 

Distance education may adversely affect the quality of the instruction given because barriers to achieving the full extent of teacher-student interaction make some learning objectives impossible to acquire. Online education creates a blanket of anonymity that enables learners to participate in disingenuously. Without physical stimulation, they are limited to learning through watching and typing. In some cases, the online course is reduced to learners reading a book off the computer; no added value is received.

There are more instances of miscommunication and misinterpretation in virtual teaching sessions than those done face-to-face. It is not easy to properly convey emotion in a chat or email; receiving the message can be over-or under-appreciated. However, we cannot deny the benefit of multimedia learning because it takes advantage of the brain's ability to make connections between verbal and visual representations of content, leading to a deeper understanding, which in turn supports the transfer of learning to other situations.

Given the advances in technology and its role in multimedia-based education, the emphasis has shifted to focus on the benefits of media usage in the instructional world.  Changes in learning methodology have prompted a response recognizing that both the medium and the methodology contribute to learning. Lastly, when there is a large body of material presented, instructor-led blended programs remain the most effective and efficient method.