Finding the Pearl Finding suitable online studies

1
Finding the PearlFinding suitable online
studies

• Mona Younes
• April 2008

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• 1987-1999---- being a ESL teacher
• ---- only two workshops
• ---- mentoring X
• ---- searching for professional
  development
• options
• June-August 2000 ----- changing career
• September 2000 ----- quitting for good

Suitable Options a big flat NO
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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• First Jump
• June 1999 Searching for a suitable online study
• Conclusion
• There are thousands of interesting studies,
  sites, universities , educational opportunities.

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• 12,400,000 results, when
  searching
• under E-learning
  
• 
  56,400,000 results, when
• 
  searching for online
• 
  education
• More than 50,000
  sites most of
• them portals to
  sub-sites

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• First lesson learnt
• There are millions of sites I have to
  narrow my
• search
• First observation
• There are sites and there are sponsored
  links, where universities and institutions try
  to sell their educational services.

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies
Example of sponsored links

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies
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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies
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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• Earn your degree
• in half the time!!!!
• What are you looking for?
  
• Management

Crazy Pop-Downs
Second lesson learnt Take care dont jump
too quickly, Because fraud degrees are not
uncommon
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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• Therefore
• Define exactly and very precisely what you are
  looking for
• Write, on a spread sheet criteria that are of
  importance
• Create a list of suitable options
• Compare the results and narrow the list
• Search deeper each of the selected options
• Take your time and dont rush into enrolling to a
  specific university

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• Important criteria
• According to a recent poll conducted by the
  Claria Corporation, a top behavioral marketing
  firm, there are five main factors that influence
  peoples decision on choosing an online
  university.
• Flexibility of Schedules
• Quality of Teaching
• Accreditation
• Financial Aid
• Overall Cost

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• Important questions to be asked
• Does the university offer transparent statistics,
  e.g. about students drop out rate? Start with
  statistics
• Does this university have a long experience in
  offering online programs? Experience
• Are the offered online programs accredited? Which
  board accredited them. Accreditation.
• Do the offered courses meet your needs?
  Specialization
• How much does the program cost? Is financial aid
  available? Cost

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• Are Student Services Set Up for Online Students ?
  Services
• Are the studies totally online? Study mode
• Will it be mentioned in the certificate that
  the degree was obtained online? Certificate
• How long will it take to get the intended degree?
  Duration
• What are the technical and technology
  requirements? Tech. requirements
• What happens if you have to leave the program
  partway? Policies

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• Will You Get Tech Support When You Need It?
  Support system/ availability of Help-desk
• Are the tutors experienced and qualified in their
  subject area as well as in online
  moderation/instruction? Instructors'
  Qualifications

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• A simple way to confirm the high quality
  educational standards at an online university is
  to make sure it is accredited by a recognized
  educational body

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• This list included the following
• Name of the educational Institution hyperlinked
• Country
• Mode of study
• Kind of Degree
• Study specification
• Accreditation
• Duration

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• Cost of unit/course
• Type of payment
• Total cost
• Total cost in local currency /specify exchange
  rate
• Requirements
• Specific technical requirements
• Communication and interaction mode (synchronous
  or asynchronous)

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ESL Teachers Proceed with your professional
development online Part 2Finding suitable
online studies

• January 2002
• A list of online degrees could be listed
  on a spreadsheet. After comparison the list could
  be narrowed down from 69 options to 15. Each of
  the 15 options was deeply investigated.
• Take a look at List One
• Take a look at List Two

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