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Singapore, 3 April 2003
From registration to advanced degrees, E-learning broadens scope of higher
education Most universities that offer online degree programs do so as part of their continuing-education programs, which are generally geared to working adults seeking graduate degrees or career changes. These online curricula are offered as an option to traditional classroom programs. Most schools that offer online courses have limited numbers of degree programs available, mainly because of a lack of faculty to create and teach the courses. While some students attend online or distance-learning classes because they live far from college campuses, most who prefer the online curricula do so for other reasons. For many students, online learning is the only way to fit in classes. That's because many students participating in E-learning are also holding down part-or full-time jobs or have families, which restricts their ability to commute to campus regularly. Some USA states have a low unemployment rate and a tight labour market, making it even harder to take time off from work to get to class. Convenience is certainly a key reason why Michael Tigges, a full-time computer development trainer at financial services firm Janus, is working toward his third online master's degree in multimedia Web development. Tigges also holds master's degrees in organisation development and training and in management. "I'd get burned out working and going to campus for class twice a week," says Tigges. "This gives me the flexibility of developing my career, and practicing what I preach at work" to Janus employees, whom Tigges trains in IT. In a year or two, Tigges and his wife plan to relocate into the mountains of Colorado, taking him even farther from campus. And he isn't stopping at three master's degrees. He's interested in eventually working toward a doctorate in IS. "When that time comes, I'll also look for a school that has an online program," he says. The E-learning market in US is growing about 100% a year, in part because of the variety of classes being offered, says Howard Block, a financial analyst at Banc of America Securities. "Sooner or later, all students, including traditional on-campus students, will be taking a class online," Block says. "At the very least, they'll be registering for classes and buying their books online." What do companies think about employees who
get advanced degrees online? Teaching online courses also requires special commitment by faculty, who must adapt lessons and lectures for online media. When teaching an online course, there are no classrooms, no physical boundaries. It takes re-engineering and a lot of planning to present course content online, experts contend. It makes you a better teacher and not just a talking head. Although expectations vary from course to course and school to school, most universities present online material over the same time period--a semester, for example--in which classroom instruction is offered. Even though online students may be expected to attend an online class weekly, the day, time, and place they attend is left to their discretion. For universities that offer online programs, most use third-party authoring software to create the course content. Many schools also use services companies that act as application service providers, hosting the courses and providing student-tracking services. Many online courses feature multimedia elements such as threaded discussions, as well as online professor lectures. Not so at PurpleTrain.com where the Learning Management System is developed from a proprietary level and further enhanced through continuous improvement. e-Learning has come along way since the early days where content was scattered and put together haphazardly. The content of some of the major e-Learning providers have improved to the extent that many are offering multimedia enhanced lessons to give e-Learners a more memorable experience. *Adapted from an article by Sue Wanton ABOUT PURPLETRAIN.COM By combining innovative technology with world-class training content, PurpleTrain.com offers companies and individuals a high value, quality and effective on-line training solution. Over 700 on-line courses are available, offering masters, degrees, diplomas and certificates in business and IT programs. Our online learning community now stands at over 67,000 users. PurpleTrain.com is a 100%-owned venture of Informatics Holdings Limited, a leading training and education provider listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange. Informatics Holdings Limited is a world class institute for quality lifelong learning services and made the ranking among Forbes Global's 200 Best Small Companies in the world. ABOUT INFORMATICS GROUP The Informatics Group, established in 1983, is a multinational corporation providing training and educational services in information technology and business management. Through its international franchising programme and strategic acquisitions, Informatics presently has a global network of more than 550 centres spanning over 45 countries. The company presently offers six franchise products: Informatics Computer School, Thames Business School, Informatics Professional Development Centre, CAL Computer Training Centre, Cambridge Child Development Centre and RACC. For more information, please visit http://www.informaticsgroup.com. For more information, please contact : Andrew Yap All trademarks and registered trademarks are property of
their respective owners. Certain of the statements in this press release
are forward-looking in nature and, accordingly, are subject to risks and
uncertainties. The actual results may differ from those described or contemplated. |