Online ESL Classes
Online courses and even online degrees are gaining traction these days as the internet becomes more pervasive and more of a household commodity like cable and telephone. We've all seen the incessant advertisements for the "University of Phoenix" online degree program. More and more people opt to take up professional degrees online these days. If my uncle, who works for the UN and once stationed in Ukraine, pursued an online degree in public relations, why wouldn't aspiring ESL students seek out online ESL courses? For beginning ESL students, this may be a more challenging task as some knowledge of English is required to even operate a computer and navigate the world wide web. But there are clear advantages; easy access to learning anytime and anywhere and possibly a lot less costly. Some ESL programs (see news article on Rio Salado College) are offering online courses already and they view it as a complimentary offering to their existing classroom courses. Quote from the article: Online ESL is a new concept to many ESL students and may seem
intimidating," Skeen said. "If students are reluctant to start off with
an online class, a hybrid course is a perfect alternative for students
to experience the interactive components of an online course as well as
the guidance of an in-person instructor." As online offerings of ESL courses become richer in content and more sophisticated methods of pedagogical delivery are concocted, I expect such medium of teaching ESL to become a staple in the future.
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