Online education has exploded over the past several years. According to the 2010 Sloan Survey of Online Learning, approximately 5.6 million students took at least one web-based class during the fall 2009 semester, which marked a 21% growth from the previous year. That’s up from 45,000 in 2000 and experts predict that online education could reach 14 million in 2014.
The Sloan study indicated that the best teaching often occurs under a blended model of online learning coupled with real face time. So there will always be a need for teachers. Second, online education integration will help teachers make a more impactful influence on students.
A blended approach combines the socialization opportunities the classroom provides with the enhanced active learning features that online learning offers. “”When education is well aligned with one’s stronger intelligences, aptitudes, or styles, understanding can come more easily and with greater enthusiasm,” say Clayton Christensen and Michael Horn, authors of the book,Disrupting Class.