Education is an important part of human life. It is an element that can change people and the world from past to present. As the Nelson Mandela: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Every person wants to get a good education. At this point, different forms of learning emerge such as face-to-face education and online education. Some people prefer taking face-to-face education whereas, with the development of technology, some others prefer taking online education. Even though there are many similarities between face-to-face education and online education, there are also some important differences.
To begin with, there are important similarities between face-to-face education and online education. The first similarity is that syllabus and time are clear. In both of them, teachers teach lessons at certain time and then take a break. Lessons are taught according to a program, not randomly. Additionally, the student is expected to keep up with the time. The second similarity is that in both educational models, these require a dedicated and professional teacher who knows the subject and pedagogy. For example, if students lose interest during class, a professional teacher talks about interesting things during class. So that the course is more effective. The last similarity is that students are responsible for exams and homework. Students who have studied for a certain period of time show their knowledge with exams and homework. Thus, students are given grades. To summarize, having syllabus and certain time, requiring professional teacher and holding responsible for exam and homework are important similarities between online education and face-to-face education.
Despite such similarities, online education and face-to-face education have some differences as well. The first difference is social interaction. As it is well known, while social relations are kept at a high level in face-to-face education, social relations are at a minimum level in online education. For instance, while questions may be answered quickly in face-to-face education, questions may not be answered quickly due to technical problems in online education. The second difference is location. face-to-face education requires a specific location. However, online education does not require a specific location. Anyone can join class from anywhere. The last difference is motivation. According to the research conducted by Professor Brown at Harward University in 2021, 62 percent of students who get online education do not feel motivated. That is a huge percentage. In face-to-face education, this percentage is 20 percent. In brief, social interaction, location and motivation rate are important differences between online education and face-to-face education.
To sum up, there are not only similarities but also differences between online education and face-to-face education. Comparing them based on syllabus and time, professional teachers, holding responsibility for exam and homework, social interaction, location, motivation reveals some surprising facts about these two methods of learning. In my opinion, in two forms of education, these benefits students who have the goal of learning something.