In their tenth annual survey on the state of U.S-based online higher education, The Babson Survey Research Group reported that 6.7 million students enrolled in at least one online course during the fall 2011 term. That is nearly onethird of all students currently enrolled in some sort of higher education in the U.S.A. So, students are enrolling in online courses.
This post-secondary / higher education market is a key target for Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) or similar initiatives. The first providers in this field, Coursera-Udacity and edx, cover college or university level courses with no cost for enrollment. Nevertheless, in mature markets, specifically in the U.S. market, online courses are delivered from Universities, or similar institutions, to their students as well as to external users. According to The Babson Survey Research Group - Learning on demand, in the U.S. post-secondary market:
- Online courses are considered critical for the long-term strategy of the institution
- Institutions’ acceptance of the value of E-Learning is growing globally
- Academic leaders are starting to believe that online training is equally effective as, or more effective than, face-to-face training.
- Online training is considered strategically beneficial for students’ flexibility. While it’s difficult to reach similar conclusions for Western Europe, the world’s second most mature market, it’s safe to assume that the growth rate in this sub-sector in this region is currently slower than in the U.S.
According to recent Eurostat Data, the number of individuals in 28 EU countries who used the Internet to seek information with the purpose of learning, remained the same between 2009 and 2012. Nonetheless, there are few countries, such as Finland, where the use of the Internet for purpose of learning has grown significantly over this period. Individuals using the Internet for seeking information with the purpose of learning % of individuals aged 16 to 74.
The European education and training system is starting to embed digital technologies in its training methodologies, but full acceptance of the use of these technologies in learning still appears to be far off. Governmental surveys show that 70% of teachers in the EU recognize the importance of training in ICT-supported pedagogies, but their role in the development of a fully digitalized school is still weak. According to the European Commission, only around 30% of students in the EU are in digitally supported schools and as many as 35% of students are in schools which exhibit both weak policy and weak support for digital technology.
The European education and training system is starting to embed digital technologies in its training methodologies, but full acceptance of the use of these technologies in learning still appears to be far off. Governmental surveys show that 70% of teachers in the EU recognize the importance of training in ICT-supported pedagogies, but their role in the development of a fully digitalized school is still weak. According to the European Commission, only around 30% of students in the EU are in digitally supported schools and as many as 35% of students are in schools which exhibit both weak policy and weak support for digital technology.
A different scenario seems set to emerge in the UK. The UK Government and other institutions are playing a big role in the creation of a cultural background that is encouraging rapid growth in the market for digital technology in education.
The UK Government’s Online Learning Task Force (which includes experts from Microsoft, Apple and Pearson) recommended an investment of £100 million in online education in order to help the nation build its brand, develop better online educational resources and become a major international player in the distance learning market. In Asia, India is putting a lot of effort into becoming a mature market for higher distance education.
Economic concerns and the current high cost of tuition fees are at the heart of India’s keenness to become the most relevant player in the Asian E-Learning market for higher education. In addition, in the Asian region, China is taking steps to create good quality distance education programs. This is chiefly due to China experiencing increased demand for highly trained members of its workforce, in order to compete effectively in global markets.