Online classes can make college convenient in today’s busy society. Online classes allow many students to continue their education without interrupting their work schedules. Traditional classes make college life easier. When a student is fresh out of high school, the student can transition easier with traditional classes. Face to face classes are important for social growth, interpersonal skill building, and can make meeting new people easier. There are many strengths and weaknesses to both online and traditional classes. While they are both credible ways to earn a degree; they are also very different in their class settings.
With online classes, students have the option to pick the times they “attend” class. When it comes to traditional classes, students must follow the schedule provided to them. Attendance can be a strict rule with traditional classes. With online classes, students can study on their own time and sometimes there are no deadlines. Traditional classrooms give students the responsibility of showing up at a regular date and time. Some students do well with this form of class, where if they were in an online class they may not be responsible enough to take the tests, hand in assignments, or participate in online discussion if there is not a specific "date".
In traditional classes students are able to answer questions provided by professors and classmates right away. While in online classes, questions are posted in discussion boards or sent through email where other students or the professor can answer. Questions are not always answered immediately. In fact, there are almost always delays before a response is made, whether it is an hour or a day. Personal interaction, such as in a traditional setting, can help some students understand the material better, where as in a discussion, the written dialogue can be easily misunderstood.
Traditional classrooms give students easier access to the professor. Online classes can be frustrating if the professor is not prompt with replies to the student’s questions. On the other hand, there are students who are more vocal and involved in the discussion because it is online and they feel more comfortable stating their opinion than they normally would if it was face to face.
