The biggest proponents of online education had a similar view towards it at the start of this decade as many have had towards online retail. They felt this would totally replace the traditional brick-and-mortar model. This hasn’t happened. Instead, like the eventual balancing of the retail industry, education too is now poised between a combination of online and the bricks-and-mortar model. The number of students studying online has increased exponentially from a mere million and a half at the turn of the millennium to more than six million in the US alone. But the advantages of collaboration honed in physical classrooms studying with many other students cannot be replicated. A hybrid model developed by an online platform 2U took best advantages from both. It partnered with co-working space provided We Work and got the employees enrolled at universities such as Georgetown and USC. Since they were working professionals, so they wanted to go for Executive MBA programme. While the classes were online, since they were all working in the We Work campus, it meant that they were able to interact face-to-face with each other to keep alive the competitive and collaborative spirit. Like organized retail, education too is headed towards a path of blend of the old and the new.

Source:https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/04/college-online-degree-blended-learning/557642/

Uploaded Date:05 June 2018