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How Virtual Learning Will Change Higher Education

The Coronavirus pandemic has altered everyone’s life in almost every aspect. The social distancing norms have pushed remote working, online shopping, and E-learning in the corporate and education sector globally. With the closures of educational institutions worldwide, about 70% of the total student population was affected drastically. 

In the higher education arena, university professors and academicians have increasingly embraced distance learning as the new normal till the pandemic gets over. 

Virtual learning has since paved the way for a pedagogical shift in the way colleges and universities functioned. PowerPoint presentations with their visual charm prove to be the best companion of virtual learning to teach a class. When teaching via virtual meeting platforms, presentations are favoured to render the educational content more engaging and captivating. Slide decks designed with professional PowerPoint templates are useful resources to hold the students’ attention. 

With the pandemic causing educational disruption across the globe, online learning emerged as a secure and viable option for education continuity. The COVID-19 turned personal and professional worlds upside down. Global higher education is one of the sectors affected by the pandemic. Even before the COVID pandemic, the global EdTech industry was already seeing massive annual global growth. The shift to the technological paradigm presents opportunities for leveraging online learning for higher education even further. 

Here’s how online education through virtual platforms will revamp higher education in numerous ways: 

Flexibility to Learn at One’s Pace

The potential of technology to steer transformation and evolution in the education sector has always been apparent. In virtual learning, teachers and instructors function as guides, while students become active collaborators rather than mere passive learners. Research Institute of America discovered that average students retain 25-60% more educational material when learning online compared to only 8-10% in a typical conventional classroom. 

The reason being students can learn faster online. E-learning requires 40%-60% less time to learn than in a classroom setting. Students grasp materials at their own pace, re-read, skip, or accelerate through concepts as they prefer. Online learning imparts vital time management skills, which promotes work-study balance. The educators as well as students can watch videos, recorded lectures, and course materials without any time-clock ticking. 

There are even private online high schools, such as Silicon Valley High School, where students can complete their studies from the comfort of their homes. This is especially beneficial for those students who have to frequently switch locations or those with health issues.

Accessibility at its Core

The majority of foreign students in colleges and universities abroad were obligated to return to their countries in the wake of the pandemic. Virtual educational modes took the front platform for lectures, in-class assignments, group projects, dissertation defence, and much more. A virtue of online learning is its accessibility. In the USA, 97% of college students have switched to online instruction. 

No matter the time-zone, it enables you to study or teach from anywhere in the world. It rules out the need to commute from one place to another or follow a rigid schedule. On top of that, not only do you save time but you also save money which can be employed elsewhere. With remote teaching, students in higher educational institutions have the opportunity to study from the comfort of their homes giving them more time to hone their professional skills through varied courses. 

Facilitate Better Learning with PowerPoint Presentations

In a traditional classroom setting, professors teach in person by interacting face-to-face with the students. But, when teaching from home, it is essential to concoct the educational material as gripping and easy to understand for the class. A virtual lecture with visual aids is a requisite to facilitate the understanding of the content for the students. PowerPoint presentations are the top choice among educators to dispense their knowledge.

Professors can host classes on online meeting platforms such as Zoom and Google Meet with striking PowerPoint presentations to expand the scope of comprehension. Many sites like SlideModel.com offer a repository of 100% editable professionally tailored templates to design the perfect slide deck that arrests the students’ attention. Templates like PhD. Dissertation Template and Master Thesis PowerPoint templates are great for scholars looking to defend their dissertation remotely.

Customized Learning Experience for Educators and Students

In a conventional lecture hall, a white-board is the often used medium through which the students learn. But, in online lectures students have diverse learning platforms to choose from according to their level of ability. There is a source of additional information for everybody. From videos to photos, eBooks to PowerPoint presentations, tutors integrate other formats like forums or discussions to improve their lessons.

There’s easy access to diverse material. All the extra content is available at any moment from anywhere that will offer you a more dynamic and tailor-made education. For an increased interaction and more feedback between you and your tutor, every virtual meeting platform provides the option of chats and polls to eliminate any residual doubts. Even for academicians, virtual learning is a boon as they can record the lecture and upload it for the students to view it anytime. 

Economical and Cost-Effective

It is no hidden fact that higher education takes a toll on finances for every college student. Along with the soaring tuition fees, other expenses of dormitories, travel, food also add to the financial toll. Unlike F2F (face-to-face) education, online education tends to be more affordable. With virtual education, college students can save money from the commute and class materials and save it for their future investments. Distance learning is a less expensive alternative to traditional campus-based courses for under and postgraduates.

In courses on EdTech online platforms, there’s also often a wide range of payment options that let you pay in instalments as well. These contribute to better budget management. A good internet connection with sufficient bandwidth is what Virtual learning demands. The monetary investment in e-learning is less, but the results are often superior to traditional classrooms. 

MOOCs for Additional Proficiency of Skills

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) have gained prominence for higher education in the last decade. A multitude of platforms online are offering distance learning courses from websites to explore your boundaries and increase your knowledge. The merit of these websites is that they provide self-paced courses. College students can enhance their intellect and acquire skills by leveraging a plethora of courses for free. 

Some educational establishments providing quality education from the best schools around the globe are Edx, Coursera, Udemy, Harvard Open Courses, Khan Academy, SWAYAM. In addition to traditional course matters, like pre-recorded lectures, readings, and problem sets, many MOOCs provide collaborative courses with user forums and social media platforms to engage community interactions among students and professors. Certificates for completed courses prove highly advantageous for college students looking to level up their resumes. 

As every nation struggles to flatten the pandemic curve, it is plausible that we also need to adapt to the new phase of teaching-learning processes. Teachers and educators in colleges and universities have adopted online strategies that range from virtual lectures, video conferencing, online laboratories, mentoring to online exam proctoring. The shift to virtual learning has tremendous implications for the future of education that it is all set to bring a metamorphosis in traditional teaching. 

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