There are definitely both advantages as well as disadvantages when taking courses such as this and working towards a degree. I think many people that are visual learners would agree that taking a course online can be difficult. There’s the fact that you don’t sit in on a class, listening to a lecture from the professor. I know that if I don’t hear what we need to do directly from someone then it may take a few more times till I can process what needs to be done.
Rereading, constantly referring back to the books, maybe using other references is what I find myself doing three or four times before I even start any assignment. For me, this is my first online class, as well as my first real college class that wasn’t completely guided by US Army Sgt. ’s telling you step-by-step what to do. This whole experience is very new to me so I’m still learning the ins and outs of online classes.
I think this can be a disadvantage because I’m doing this alone and there’s no one else I know that I can call up and ask their perspective if I’m a little lost. During high school or even my Advanced Individual Training (AIT) that I went through, I always had someone to turn to for clarification. That is always how I’ve been able to learn best and I think getting another opinion is beneficial for both parties. I’m in the military and I have a lot of duties that may take me away from anything school related so an online class is an ideal situation.
I feel the military holds a lot of pressure on soldiers to take advantage of the “ free” schooling it has to offer but, there are a lot of different things that can be a setback for our education. All of my prior college education was done in a room of nothing but Army soldiers and it is not structured as civilian college classes are. Everything is bunched up and combined into four parts so essentially, you’re taking 2 years of college classes and throwing it all into 6 months of book work and 6 months of “ clinicals”. There is no syllabus and there is no course guide.
The remaining classes that I need to finish my degree need to be completed through courses such as this one and should then be transferred towards my degree. But let’s say that I don’t pass my physical training test. I would then be flagged and would no longer receive tuition assistance for any other semesters. That can make it difficult for some people trying to complete a degree with any extra time they have because they’re not receiving the benefits the military has to offer. This being a valuable course, I’m willing to overcome the disadvantages and thrive on the advantages.
