TO THE EDITOR:
Patricia Laya was right to question the lack of camaraderie and networking in online education in yesterday’s column. But the problems with online learning are far deeper and more fundamental than she realizes.
Since the work of Marshall McLuhan in the 1960s, media experts have argued that the methods we use to communicate can alter or undermine the message of what we are saying.
As an extreme example, you’d rather use a personal telephone call than a brief text message to tell someone a relative had died. Even though the content of your message is the same, the phone call says “I care” while the text message says “I’ve got better things to do.”
Just like the careless text message, a disconnect between medium
and message is the problem with online education. As we all know, the Internet is a free and collaborative place. Anyone can publish their opinions, even if they are stupid or offensive. Sites like Wikipedia determine truth through a democratic process. The list goes on.
This is the antithesis of traditional education. In the classroom, there is one expert.
Students are not free to be stupid or unruly, but must respect the professor’s expertise and authority. Though student’s input and views certainly have a place, they are ultimately there to learn, not to contribute.
In the end, the classroom is top-down. The Internet is bottom-up. If we want to bring the two together, something will have to give.
Let’s hope it’s not the quality of education.
Dayne Batten
Graduate Student
Public Administration
