Can anyone tell me the disadvantages of Distance learning?

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[SIZE="2"][COLOR="Navy"]This all depends on what type of person you are. As with everything, there are advantages and disadvantages to distance learning. However, what is a disadvantage to one person can be an advantage to another person. Here a few ideas that you may want to consider as you are making your decision.

1) Distance learning may require a higher level of self discipline than a more traditional degree path. Due to the fact that distance education was designed for busy people who may not find it feasible to complete college without a distance option, there is generally a significant degree of flexibility. As a result, the distance education student will likely need to structure his or her own path to success with very little guidance from others.

2) Virtual classrooms deliver courses in a very different format than a face-to-face classroom. For example, most of the time communication is asynchronous and written, rather than verbal. People who are predominantly auditory or kinesthetic learners may not gain as much from online delivery as they would in a traditional classroom. On the other hand, visual learners, particularly those who are also good writers, may find that they prefer the online delivery method for reasons beyond the convenience factor.

3) The availability of online delivery is also a challenge. Specifically, not all colleges offer a distance education option. The colleges that do, may not offer the specific degree that a student is hoping to earn. As a result, people who plan to complete a degree through distance education may find their options to be more limited than their traditional counterparts.

4) The majority of colleges that offer distance education as an option are also open enrollment institutions. This can be perceived as a disadvantage to the student who wants to spend his or her class time (online or otherwise) with people of similar intellectual ability. In other words, open enrollment tends to equate to varying levels of ability in the classroom, more so than in institutions that have specific standards or guidelines for the students who enroll.

5) The brand name of the college may be an issue for some people as well. It is unlikely that Harvard is going to revert to entirely online delivery anytime soon. Here in the Twin Cities, the majority of our colleges offer at least some online classes as part of its degree programs. However, you are not going to find a degree entirely online from the University of Minnesota. Certainly if the brand name of the college is important to a prospective student, he or she may be better served to apply to a B&M University and expect to attend primarily traditional classes.

6) Distance education generally offers a much lower level of social interaction. For the most part, adults have been able to get more than enough social interaction through their jobs, family, and friends. However, students who are very young, or just have poor social skills may gain much-needed "polish" by attending a college with traditional classrooms.

I think this is a fairly comprehensive summary of the potential disadvantages to distance education. I tend to subscribe to the belief that distance education should be limited to adult learners, with only a few exceptions. While the disadvantages to distance education are there, I think that they are far less profound for an adult who has already developed solid social skills and work experience. Also, bear in mind that many of these issues can be overcome by carefully exploring your options. For example, I know that Penn State University now offers degrees completely online and it is not an open enrollment college, which would discount the disadvantages that I listed in #4 and #5. You have to be at least 24-years old in order to be accepted into Penn State's online program though. I suspect that this is because Penn State also believes that distance education is more or less designed for adults. [/COLOR][/SIZE]