I first discovered distance education in 1998 while my wife and
I were living in the eastern African country of Uganda. After
several years away from school, I had decided that it was time
to go back and work on a graduate degree. At first, I thought my
timing couldn?t be worse. My wife?s contract with her employer
wouldn?t allow us to just easily pick up and leave, and I
couldn?t see universities in the state accepting transfer
credits from a Ugandan university. During a trip home, I started
crawling around on the Internet to see which universities had
the degree program I wanted. It was while doing this that I
stumbled across an online course that sound of interest through
the University of Colorado.
Living in Uganda in 1998 provided it?s own unique challenges to
online learning. In-home Internet access was nonexistent. The
first Internet caf? in the country didn?t start up until 1999
and in 1998 there wasn?t even a hint that one might be starting.
When it did come it was 30 kilometers away in the capitol.
Fortunately, my wife?s work did have e-mail and the course I
took didn?t require any type of live chats or other forums.
Instead, once we had registered for the course we got a list of
books to read and a list of assignments. While still in the
states I e-mailed the instructor to make sure she didn?t have a
problem with the situation and she e-mailed back that she would
love to have me take the course.
The course turned out to be a huge success for me personally.
The keys to this success were the same keys that make online
learning ideal for many individuals. Most importantly at the
time was the mobility that it afforded. I could be literally
half a world away from Colorado, sitting on the equator, doing
assignments. I also needed flexibility. Anyone who has ever
lived in a developing country knows that almost nothing happens
on a strict schedule, and if there is any predictability, it?s
that things are unpredictable. One of the things that I loved
most was the convenience. I got the books while in the States,
though I could have ordered them and received them in Uganda,
and then I read them when it was convenient. Of course, because
I was in an extremely unique location the themes of the
assignments that I turned in, via e-mail, also tended to be
unique which both the instructor and I appreciated.
Would I recommend online education to others? You bet I would.
Since my days living in Uganda, I?ve gone on to get finish my
graduate degree at a traditional university, but the projects
that I completed for my distance education course are still the
most memorable. Here?s an idea find an online degree program for
a reputable college and move abroad. Guarantee you you?ll get
more out the course than staying home and sitting in a class
room.
About the author:
David recommends checking out these websites for more
information on education http://www.fmeducation.com and
http://www.educationaltec.com
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