Job Discussion Forums

[Zajko]

Certainly I'd agree that there are academic advantages to doing such a degree on-campus. Likewise, there are practical (and even some academic?) advantages to taking the course over a longer period of time whilst being able to teach simultaneously, put ideas into practice in the classroom whilst reflecting and researching at more....'leisure'.

With a purely 'academic' subject (theology? philosophy?) I'd agree that research issues probably make an on-site qualification more straightforward in many ways. With a more practical, applied topic such as TESOL I'd say it balances out. Certainly all universities, in my experience, mark both on-site and distance qualifications to the same criteria and standards: there's no 'allowance' made for the lack of access to materials.

And yes, those of us who take our Masters courses by this route do have to put more time, money and effort into accessing the necessary materials, but those universities which offer such courses also, as you mention, offer some pretty extensive on-line facilities these days in order to attempt to mitigate such a potential disadvantage.

[Cleopatra]

Of course, just because you are doing a 'full-time' degree on-campus, this does not mean you cannot also be putting your study into practice. When I was doing my Master's, I also taught several hours a week in a local language school.

[Zajko]

I agree, especially with the comment about research by browsing and coming across the best material 'accidentally' when not looking for it. It isn't, however, simply a question of University Library v The Internet. The net IS crucial for distance learning in many ways - most academic and professional journals are now available online via the Athens system, for example, some exclusively so. But there are many other resources which can be utilised when you're not taking a degree on campus, including sharing materials and resources with other grads via the university system, and using local amenities such as a British Council library. I also experienced no problems in being allowed to use facilities such as the library of AUS (American University of Sharjah) when dropping in to explain my situation whilst working and studying in that locality.

[007]

Distance education is not worse than traditional education. It can be an acceptable and convenient alternative to traditional education, especially for mature and part time students.

Concerning library access, one advantage of online library is that students can access the same book/reference in the same time, which is not possible with a traditional library.

[Cleopatra]

[Zajko]

How many BC libraries have you visited? Clearly a limited number if you saw nothing but Palin DVDs and cookbooks! True, they vary greatly and some are better than others: but most have at least the basic 'essential reading' coursebooks that comprise the dreaded 'professor's recommendations'. This can save you considerable money or alternately allow you to spend your own budget on more specialised / interesting texts: and Amazon deliver pretty much anything to pretty much anywhere these days.

I think we've got off track a little here: I'm not disputing everything you're saying. My point is simply that whilst there are, admittedly, some advantages to taking one's degree course on a campus, these are at least partially counterbalanced by parallel advantages in taking a course by DL. The issue of materials and access to resources IS a fair one to make, but is not of sufficient importance, with the range of internet and other facilities now available, to mean that one type of degree is therefore inferior to the other.

[spiral78]

cleo, I love libraries too, but at least (though my MA is DL from UBham), I still know how to spell 'definitely.'

Ouch. Sorry. But I've worked closely with MA holders from both on-campus and reputable DL programs for some years. Despite differences in the focuses of the course types, there is relative equality in what you can show when it's done.

Not including mail-order degrees, of course.

[The_Prodiigy]

Zajko has focused on the salient aspects of comparing these two methods.
Easy access to a reputable university library does make study easier, particularly for those used to traditional research in a library, who do not want to adjust to making effecient use of the net. One main disadvantage to using the net is the array of distractions that pop up when trying to research. The library booth offers solitude and is exclusive to academia : no YouTube, Hotmail or Dave Sperlings ESL.

Another aspect that makes on-line study more challenging is the relative isolation from fellow learners and distance that students have from any tutor, requiring them to be more self-sufficient.

A place for both kinds of study.

Inevitably more premium universities will introduce open distance as a viable option. Wonder how long it will be before this actually supercedes the traditional method.

[Van Norden]

[Cleopatra]

[Zajko]

No-one said they were. The comment was that they were one example of a facility that can sometimes be useful to DL students in finding particular books or materials for research.

I've said repeatedly that I largely agree with you over the materials issue. Where we disagree is in the resulting relative merits of on-campus v DL degrees. Beyond that, I think we've both made our points a number of times and we're now running the risk of boring everyone by going over them again and again.

[Junaid]

Zajko, you�ve argued the coequality of DL MAs and traditional MAs.
Yet, in your very first thread, you also acknowledged the need to obfuscate the true origin of a DL MA, granted, if need be. Whilst with a taught/on-campus/normal MA such deception is simply never required.

Doesn�t this in itself indicate a sharp distinction between the two and therefore, highlight the superiority of a normal MA? I think it does.

[spiral78]

Nope. Many reputable universities throughout Europe (speaking from personal contacts/connections/experience) absolutely rate DL and on-site MAs equally, and may, in fact, prefer the DL ones - always assuming they are from a reputable university.

This is because British MAs do not necessarily require a teaching practicuum. Those of us with experience + DL MAs have the classroom experience, and have used it to bridge the theory on an MA program to practice.

I've held a DL MA from UBham for some time, and have never needed to obfuscate its origin, not in Europe or in Canada.

[Zajko]

Coequality absolutely: on a both a practical and academic level. HOWEVER if for some (to my mind misguided) reason of their own the authorities of a particular country don't accept this coequality, my point was that there's nothing on the cert to say how it was obtained, therefore should one so choose, obfuscation on this issue is not difficult. To that I'd add that I'm not convinced such discrimination actually happens on a practical level, despite what some posters have been supposedly told by various authorities, and that I've never needed to utilise such tactics myself.

[Junaid]

Spiral, as this is a Saudi forum, I�m speaking in relation to Saudi Arabia. And in KSA, there is no doubt that a normal MA is better regarded, appreciated and more sought-after than a DL one. Which leads back to my point that the former is better than the latter.