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Let us start by saying that it is predicted that by 2019 at least 50% of courses will be online

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Is online learning becoming more popular? This is the burning question? There are in fact many factors that determine its popularity....

Let us start by saying that it is predicted that by 2019 at least 50% of all classes will be delivered online! , and online learning has been slowly increasing over the past 5 years.

According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Centre, between 2012 and 2013 the number of institutions launching e-learning platforms increased by 23%.

This increase in supply clearly shows that there is an increase in demand for online learning.

If we were to look at the segmentation of learners, we would find that 34% of learners who study online are under the age of 25, that is a 9% increase from 2012! Clearly the majority of these learners are choosing to study for their degrees online as opposed to the more traditional forms of learning. In 2015 23% of students ( source) stated that they would definitely/ probably not pursue a degree if their program was not available online or partially online. With the enrollment rate for students who which to study online growing by roughly 1% per year, it is clear that as we move forward a great majority of our youth will choose to study online or partially online as opposed to traditional learning.

So what is the main reason why online learning is becoming so popular amongst the youth?

23% of students ranked the affordability of the institutions fees as there number one reason for choosing an online program. With 41% of those students choosing to do a graduate or undergraduate degree in business administration. Interestingly enough the next most popular field of online study was nursing with 10.7% of students choosing to get their graduate or undergraduate degree online. According to Udemy, a popular online learning platform that has over 10 million students and 40 000 courses, 13 million people ( source) are choosing to study development on there site and 8.5 million use Udemy to study Business.

Moving on further to look at the corporate training side of things. In 2015 the global e-learning market grew by 9.2% over a 5 year period! It is now estimated that the global market is worth roughly $107 billion ( source) with the compound annual growth rate of self-paced e-learning at 4.4%. In America roughly 77% of companies offer training online to help train their employees with 81% of learners ( source) partaking in online study for personal development.

Find more education infographics on e-Learning Infographics

All in all we can be sure that online learning will continue to grow at a fast pace and become one of the leading choices for students around the world. If you are still not convinced online learning is the future of education check out our article on the benefits of studying online.

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The Popularity of Online Courses & E-Learning in 2016 Based On Trends & Statistics - iMod Education

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Is online learning becoming more popular? This is the burning question? There are in fact many factors that determine its popularity.... Let us start by saying that it is predicted that by 2019 at least 50% of all classes will be delivered online! , and online learning has been slowly increasing over the past 5 ...

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Online course offerings, ranging from hybrid to fully online, can be critical to student retention; particularly for students who do not want to stop out or drop out due a professional or personal shift in schedule related to employment, unemployment, deployment, health, family, extended travel, etc.

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The ubiquity of technology has transformed education, making online learning part of the "new norm." Over the past three years, online enrollments in higher education have continued to grow although overall enrollments in the United States have continued to decline. From 2002 to 2014, the number of students enrolling in "at least one distance education course" increased from 1.6 to 5.8 million students according to WCET Distance Education Enrollment 2016. Online enrollments are being driven by the growing number of students who are seeking flexible formats for courses, certificates, and degree programs to support career placement, advancement, and transition as well as to pursue advanced studies. Increasingly, students enrolled in on-campus programs are also registering for hybrid to fully online courses throughout their enrollment.

Nontraditional is the new "traditional" in higher education in the United States.

For over a decade, national reports have brought increasing attention to the impending shift from traditional to nontraditional student enrollments. In 2006, the Commission on the Future of Higher Education released Hidden in Plain Sight reporting that the "stereotype of the traditional 18-22 year-old full-time undergraduate student residing on campus" represented approximately 16% of the higher education population in the United States. In 2012, the New American Foundation released Cracking the Credit Hour reporting that only 14% of all undergraduates attend full time and live on campus making the "collegiate archetype - a well prepared 18 year old.... - the exception, not the rule."

Online learning has become an integral part of the educational landscape. K-12 students grow up immersed in technology with an increasing percentage of high school graduates already familiar with online learning. In 2013-14, 75% of all school districts across America offered online or blended courses and 30 states had statewide fully-online schools ( Connections Academy, 2015).

Today's reality - online learning is here to stay. It is not a fad or a trend. However, online learning is also not a panacea since it may not be ideal for all content areas or ideal for all learners. Online learning provides institutions of higher education (IHE) with an opportunity to expand educational access to students who may be unable to come to campus on a regular schedule or at all due to employment, dependents (children, parents), disability, transportation, etc. Online learning also bridges K-12 and higher education, providing high school students with opportunities to enroll in Advanced Placement (AP), honors, and college preparation courses.

Just as it "takes a village to raise a child", it takes a campus to retain a student.

Growing enrollments should not be the primary driver for online learning. IHEs need to consider student retention and completion among several key drivers. Online course offerings, ranging from hybrid to fully online, can be critical to student retention; particularly for students who do not want to stop out or drop out due a professional or personal shift in schedule related to employment, unemployment, deployment, health, family, extended travel, etc. Research indicates that when students stop out, it can put them at greater risk of non-completion ( National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, 2015 Inside HigherEd, 2013). Online learning and student retention require an institutional commitment, including innovative approaches to program and course formats, student engagement, and support services.

Guidance and research is essential to online learning and student success. The U.S. Department of Education and accrediting agencies provide definitions and guidelines for Title IV institutions offering online learning. Non-profit organizations, such as WCET, provide extensive resources on current and emerging issues that align with these guidelines. Concurrently, research and advisory groups such as Eduventures, The Learning House, Inc., Academic Impressions, Magna, Online Learning Consortium, and EDUCAUSE provide national reports on online growth and understanding the needs and preferences of today's diverse learners.

Drexel University, which enrolls more than 7,000 unique online students from all 50 states and more than 30 countries, is taking a collaborative and student-centered approach to online learning. Faculty from different disciplines across the university are working together through research with the Office of the Provost and CONQUER Collaborative to examine cognitive and non-cognitive factors related to learning and retention with online and blended enrollments. This research, collected across undergraduate, graduate, and non-degree programs, will provide new insight through data and neuroimaging. Additionally, research on how virtual reality can augment and expand the educational experience for online and blended learners will provide insight into active learning and learning transfer. As education and technology continue to evolve, the next frontier may be at our finger tips or our virtual reality controls.
Key Resource:
2016 WCET Distance Education Enrollment Report
2016 Online College Students: Comprehensive Data on Demands and Preferences
Adult College Completion, HEI and Lumina Foundation
Cracking the Credit Hour, Complete College America
Completing College: A National View of Student Attainment Rates - Fall 2009 Cohort
Enrollment in Distance Education Courses, by State: Fall 2012
Growth of K-12 Digital Learning, Connection Academy
Hidden in Plain Sight: Adult Learners Forge a New Tradition in Higher Education
National Study of Non-First-Time Students Shows Disturbing Completion Rates, Inside Track
Repeat Non-Completers, Inside Higher Ed
Third Try Isn't the Charm, Inside Higher Ed
About Drexel:
Drexel University specializes in innovative, Internet-based education programs for working professionals, organizations and corporations. Having offered online degrees since 1996, Drexel is known as a leader in technology-enhanced education and enjoys regional accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. Learn about Drexel's new online certificate in Neuroscience, Learning & Online Instruction and the Master of Science in Higher Education program's new Secondary Concentration in Neuroscience, Learning & Online Instruction.

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The growth of online learning: How universities must adjust to the new norm

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The ubiquity of technology has transformed education, making online learning part of the "new norm." Over the past three years, online enrollments in higher education have continued to grow although overall enrollments in the United States have continued to decline.

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https://i.pinimg.com/736x/a6/bc/68/a6bc689ad0db8f3efa3e6a51574699ba--learning-theory-e-learning.jpg

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Developed by Jean Piaget
Focuses on the mental process involved in learning.
Learner is an active participant in learning who constructs a framework for understanding new knowledge.

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Knowledge is distributed socially.
Social interaction and collaboration are key elements of the socially situated learning theory.
The domain is referred to as a club or network of connections between people.

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Knowledge is built through experience.
Involves learner centred instruction.
Includes collaboration, cooperation, multiple perspective, real world examples, scaffolding, self-reflection, multiple representations of ideas, and social negotiation.