|
Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!"
|
| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
smedini
Joined: 24 Feb 2006
Posts: 178
|
 Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 1:18 am Post subject: Re: online anything equals nothing |
 |
|
| thesuitthatdidnt wrote: |
Happy to say...that online degrees are not considered valid nor worthy in any decent place of employment.
An online degree will guarantee jobs in China and Thailand for the rest of your life.
That goes for online CELTA or others....
Spend your money wisely. |
Not true at all. If you do your online degree at a reputable institution, it will be respected by those who have the foresight to see that distance education will most certainly play a significant role in the future.
My MA in Applied Linguistics was done online with an Aussie uni and is considered to be a "well respected qualification" by one of the largest college systems in the Middle East (their quotes, not mine). Online degrees are accepted by the Ministry of Higher Education in the United Arab Emirates (but not by the Ministry of Education - i.e. p-12 - in the same country).
My current position as coordinator and lead instructor for a Canadian-government-funded program for adult immigrants was given to me, in part, because of the qualification I have. The DoS of the local private institution that is the only one in the area vetted by Cambridge as a CELTA training centre and IELTS examining centre, too, has an online degree (from the U.K.).
Online degrees, again from reputable institutions, can be a very good way to become knowledgeable in certain fields and move forward. Those who can't see that, unfortunately, will either miss out on opportunities for their own futures or do their best to dissuade others from taking advantage of the potential benefits, or both.
IMHO
~smedini
PS: And as for passing just because you pay (  ), the people who failed to graduate out of the program I was in when they were due to would beg to differ. |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
smedini
Joined: 24 Feb 2006
Posts: 178
|
| Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 12:11 pm Post subject: Re: online anything equals nothing |
|
|
| santi84 wrote: |
Not true.
An online BA/BSc from Athabasca University in Alberta is well-respected and acceptable here in Canada. Whether or not there are any jobs available is a different story, but even some of the "big" Anglophone countries are fine with online degrees from reputable institutions. |
| thesuitthatdidnt wrote: |
Well I wonder what you mean 'respected', and by whom. |
One more point...
What those who are in the know know - and what those who are too shortsighted to care don't - is that unlike most schools in the US for example that offer online degrees (which are private), AthabascaU is a public university, which means it is government funded and it is held to the same standards as every brick and mortar university in Canada; no one passes just because they pay. It is the country's only completely online university and was designed and implemented so that people in rural areas and in other areas around the globe (because of military postings and the like) could get a quality education. Not to mention professionals in their fields who don't want to leave their current positions while they better their education for a chance to go higher.
One of my former students has a Doctor of Business Administration from there and, as a direct result, has a very high paying job with a great deal of leadership responsibility with the Canada Revenue Agency (our version of the IRS), and at least two B&M schools the country that I know of have Athabasca grads (EdD) in significant positions in their education departments.
Yes, there are some - nay many - online degrees that aren't worth the paper they are printed on but to paint them all with the same brush or to discourage people who are interested in learning more because you haven't learned enough - nor care to bother - really does those looking for help a great disservice and may cause them to miss out on significant opportunities.
And by the way, the DELTA is now offered completely online - with all schools offering it vetted by Cambridge and the certificate coming from the latter (obviously, or it wouldn't be the DELTA) - and I've yet to see or hear of *anyone* snubbing that.
IMHO
~smedini |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
santi84
Joined: 14 Mar 2008
Posts: 1317
Location: under da sea
|
| Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 3:25 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Thank you smedini for those comprehensive posts.
It may also interest naysayers that the Canadian government (municipal, provincial, and federal) also contributes to online university coursework at a rate of up to 40% for full-time employees, assuming it is related to the position.
I worked in a municipal police department while completing my TESL concentration degree part-time (mostly on-campus but also through some distance courses). The government paid 40% of my elective English courses - all done through SFU distance education.
So, while some may argue that online coursework is worthless, I can think of at least one decent employer who didn't share that opinion. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Kiwi303
Joined: 20 Nov 2010
Posts: 165
Location: Chong Qing Jiao Tong Da Xue, Xue Fu Da Dao, Nan An Qu, Chong Qing Shi, P. R China
|
| Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 4:58 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Something to think about, Canada and New Zealand are both countries with considerable amounts of the population in isolated rural areas. Sure there are cities with big populations, but there are also small mining and farming hamlets out in the boondocks. It is very little surprise that there is governmental support for distance education.
The Open Polytechnic in Wellington NZ is a government state run polytecnic, what the americans would recognise as a community college, offering 3 year degrees and technical training vs a University with 4 year degrees and postgraduate study. The Open polytechnic is ENTIRELY distance education, as is the primary/secondary education eqivalent, the Correspondance School.
Where there is isolation and low population density, distance education comes into it's own. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
ickle_moose
Joined: 02 Jul 2012
Posts: 15
|
| Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 12:14 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Check out the UK's Open University for online degrees and MA's. It's ranked in the top 5 Universities in the UK (overall, not an 'online only' ranking) and any qualification gained from them is highly respected. In fact, some employers (myself included) think that if you have managed to complete a qualification from the OU, motivating yourself while doing a full-time job, tending to family etc. etc, it demonstrates more strength of character and determination than boozing your way through a 'brick' university as a teenager. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
This page is maintained by the one and only Dave Sperling.
Contact Dave's ESL Cafe
Copyright © 2018 Dave Sperling. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
