Temptation, online courses, and FOMO
An essay…
I had plans to write about something else today. Even considered publishing my thesis piece by piece on these weekly posts. But, when I was getting ready to start, something that I read this week resurfaced in my mind. By “something I read” I do not mean a controversial topic or a news article. No. It was simply an updated term of engagement in a group discussion that is part of one of the many online courses I have signed up for.
The discussion group is one the perks of signing up but it had become large. This course opens enrollment about two or three times a year. To make room and time to engage with the new cohort, the older cohort will be deactivated. We still have access to the course but not the group.
At the time I brushed it off. Of course, time is limited and so are the resources of those who teach. As a professor, I understand the need to cycle out the older cohort. Everyone needs to move on and close certain doors to dedicate time to those who come anew. But… it bothered me. It was not an acute bother. It was more like the bother one files in the back of head to hopefully not deal with it or it is too small to pay attention. Ah… but here it was again though, knocking on my mind asking if it can come out. Don’t you love the nagging of the back of the head little thoughts?
Online education has grown significantly since 20101. I enrolled in a web design program in 2009. It was a certificate program offered by the now closed The Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division2. When I enrolled in the program, I was really impressed with the level of preparation, resources, lessons, assignments, and overall structure of it. Since then, online education has become the terrain for all. Not only are even the Ivy League schools offering online versions of their traditional programs, but it has also opened the door to career professionals to transform themselves in coaches, experts, and mentors. If we look around in our respective fields, we are sure to find friends, family, acquaintances, coworkers, and others with their version of their online offerings.
However; popularity is not the same as democratization. Though online education is popular, it is not yet accessible to all. In other words, it is not free. Some of them are, in fact very expensive. Of course, time and effort need to be compensated. But in the context of prerecorded lessons that are sold over and over, they stand to pay themselves even on the first round. Yes, there is some overhead and equipment but really, the model of reselling a prerecorded package to be updated every few years promises, at first glance at least, a high return as an investment proposition. Still, not everyone can afford them — public online elementary and high school education aside.
Being phased out of the discussion group stung for a few reasons. I had waited to sign up for this course because the first times it was offered, it was too expensive for me. There was a sale around November that tempted me profoundly. I had been watching this course, craving being able to take the class. I, however, severely overestimate how much time I really have. When you combine that with my deep craving to learn, my tendency to get bored easily, and my fear of missing out, I become the right demographic for such offerings. I am fully aware of that. Losing access to the discussion group limits me from getting timely feedback once I am able to focus on the course.
The question remains though: should the online courses — wherever they come from, limit access to feedback after a certain amount of time? The course is available for life but undoubtedly, questions will arise. If it is self paced, would not that mean that there should be some type of feedback even after a certain period of time? I am struggling with these questions but I am not sure I have a clear answer.
I should explain that since I bought the course, I have refrained of purchasing any other online courses until I am able to get through this one. It has been hard. There are so many courses I want to take and have instead closed the browser, deleted the email with regret, and/or closed the iPad. The reality is that I will not be able to resume the course until much later in the summer months. Maybe at the core of it all is the old marketing strategy of convincing me of a perceived yet unrealistic need: if I sign up in this course and learn x or y or if I sign up I will be better at____ (fill in the blank). Of course sometimes that is true. Sometimes there will be courses that are really necessary. Other times not so much.
On the other hand, maybe the best thing to do is to go ahead and create my own course library to sell? Maybe so…
Love,
Alma
A note: I do not know why this web page is up since they are gone.