20 Ways to Save Money as an Online Student

Tuition bills, textbook costs, travel expenses, and missed hours at work can be a hardship on any student. If you're looking for ways to save money, take a look at my list of 20 ways online students can save.

Here are few of the suggestions:

"Check to see if your required textbooks are available online.

Ask for a student ID card to be mailed to you for discounts at movie theaters, etc.

Sell your used textbooks to local colleges.

When buying computer hardware and software, always request the student discount.

Buy discounted textbooks and materials from auctions sites such as ebay.

Get better interest rates on your student loans by making consecutive on-time payments."

What is Blended Learning?

Not everyone agrees on the definition of "blended learning." Many schools and classrooms use the term, despite the fact that there are so many differing views on what really constitutes a blended learning environment.

Most everyone can agree that blended learning includes some face-to-face instruction and some technology-enhanced instruction. But, educators don't always agree how it's supposed to look.

The Learning Technologies Centere wiki does a good job of chronicling many possible definitions for the term:

"There is no agreement on the definition of blended learning. The term is used in a wide variety of ways, and applied to a wide range of teaching and learning approaches.

Many blended learning definitions refer to conventional face-to-face teaching and learning activities (synchronous) that are mixed or blended with technology mediated learning activities not offered in real time at a specific location (asynchronous).

It should also be noted that in most formal educational settings (credit courses) there has always been a blend of space/time learning activities. Whether in the form of homework, assignments, or studying, almost all courses require independant or group learning activities to occur beyond scheduled instructional time."

Check it out to see what different types of blended learning classrooms look like.

Open Content Alliance to Scan Boston Library Books

As if Google Books weren't enough, online learners may soon have another virtual bookshelf. The Open Content Alliance is currently scanning public domain books from several dozen libraries and Boston Library is next on the list.

Here's what Wired Campus has to say about the book scanning venture:

"The alliance was created in 2005 by Mr. Kahle, founder of the Internet Archive, who has criticized Google's digitizing project for scanning snippets of copyrighted texts and for tying material to its own search engine. Books scanned by the Open Content Alliance are public-domain texts that can be scanned in full and indexed by every search engine."

Soon, web users will be able to locate copies of public domain books via any search engine.

A YouTube Class?

If you're like me, the word "YouTube" conjures up images of bad singing and puppies on skateboards. But, one Pitzer College instructor decided to design an entire course around the popular site.

Here's what Time has to say about the new YouTube class:

"Pitzer College this fall began offering what may be the first course about the video-sharing site. About 35 students meet in a classroom but work mostly online, where they view YouTube content and post their comments.

Class lessons also are posted and students are encouraged to post videos. One class member, for instance, posted a 1:36-minute video of himself juggling.

Alexandra Juhasz, a media studies professor at the liberal arts college, said she was "underwhelmed" by the content on YouTube but set up the course, "Learning from YouTube," to explore the role of the popular site."

One of the more interesting aspects of this class is the non-student participation. YouTube viewers are all encouraged to comment and interact with students.

Northcentral University Profile

You've read the profiles about Drexel Online and Thomas Edison State College. The latest in my collection of online school profiles is Northcentral University. Here's a blurb:

"Not to be confused with North Central University in Minneapolis (owned by the Assemblies of God church), Northcentral University is a regionally accredited for-profit online college with headquarters in Arizona. Northcentral offers bachelors, masters, and doctorate degrees – all 100% online. They are known for flexibility in admissions requirements (not asking for standardized test scores) and teaching schedules (no set class times or residencies). Students are assigned faculty mentors who help them through online class material via email, telephone, fax, and regular mail."

NCU also offers competitive tuition and an extensive virtual library. Check out the NCU profile to learn more about degree programs, admissions, and costs.

San Diego State University to Provide New Online Health Care Courses

A recent press release announced that San Diego State University will be providing new online courses for those in the Health care industry. Here's a blurb:

"Online career training courses are in heavy demand. Staying on the cutting edge of this popular educational methodology, San Diego State University, College of Extended Studies, recently partnered with Gatlin Education Services to provide online career training courses in the field of health care.

Accessible online, the non-credit courses can help individuals at any stage of their health care career. Whether the student is interested in switching career paths, obtaining advanced training and certificates, or a first-time job seeker in need of specialized training, SDSU and Gatlin provide the necessary resources for workforce, corporate, vocational rehabilitation or individual career training, all from the convenience of your own home or office. These courses have been approved by the San Diego Workforce Partnership."

Online training can be a useful way for professionals to continue their education – without taking too much time away from their careers. Many fields (education, real estate, medicine, etc) require workers to renew their licenses regularly and online classes can be the most convenient way to do that.

Public Universities Dominate in Online Learning

According to a recent ClassesUSA article, public universities are steadily increasing their influence in the world of online learning. Here's a blurb:

"The common perception of online education is that it is dominated by private, for-profit institutions like those you see advertised on late-night cable TV and on the Internet. As eLearning has gone mainstream and grown, however, that perception is changing. Today, nearly all public institutions offer online programs, as do about half of private, non-profit schools, according to the Sloan Consortium (Sloan-C), an association of institutions and organizations aimed at providing quality online education.

So what does this say about the future of online learning? One thing's for sure: As more and more public universities design cyber courses, the number of eLearners will continue to increase."

This is good news: as more public universities start online programs e-learning as a whole will gain a better reputation and many students will be able to earn a diploma with in-state tuition instead of paying pricey private school costs.

How to Avoid Feeling Isolated as an Online Student

Sometimes I'll spend several days working on a project, venturing outside only to get the mail. At the end of the project I almost always feel drained and in a rotten mood – not because of all the work but because I haven't had any significant human interaction.

Isolation can be a huge problem for online learners. Some find themselves rushing home from a hard day at the office, only to spend hours in front of a computer screen away from friends and family. Unlike traditional students, online learners often find it difficult to connect to professors and peers. If you find yourself in this situation, take a look at a recent eLearner's article explaining how to avoid isolation.

Here's one of their suggestions:

"If you are truly interested in the subject you are taking, e-mail your professor some very well thought out questions about the subject. Most professors will answer and be flattered you are thinking about the course beyond the assignments and activities.

Also, many professors enjoy sharing their expertise so don't be shy!

(Hint: Online professors can become mentors, reviewers, and references for later projects just like classroom-based professors.)"

Watch Out Blackboard – A New Course Management Site is in Town

The new course management site WiZiQ is still in beta. But, it looks like a promising addition to the growing number of free educational resources.

Here's how they describe themselves:

"WiZiQ puts learners and teachers together regardless of the boundaries and enables live, online teaching for absolutely no cost to the teacher or the student. Learning live in a virtual classroom from a teacher of your choice, we believe, is the next best alternative to face-to-face teaching. Further, with all the "digital" benefits that computers offer us, teachers can explain concepts using 'learning assets' such as images, videos, PowerPoint presentations, documents etc. Unlike face-to-face classes, sessions get recorded so that teachers and students can revisit and even search for a certain topic. Real time interaction in the virtual classroom allows for live feedback from the students making WiZiQ a valuable tool for teachers."

Currently, the site allows online teachers to conduct live classes with up to 25 students. WiZiQ also has a lot of potential for virtual tutoring and group projects. Anyone can conduct an online class, so it's easy to use the program for working with fellow students.

Google Books Adds New Features

I've always found Google Books to be a useful resource for online students lacking access to an academic library. Now, Google Books has added new features to make their site even more helpful. Additions include the ability to create and share a personal library, to find shared quotes in multiple books, and to copy sections of public domain books to quote on other websites.

If you're still not sure how Google Books can help you research for papers and projects, take a look at my About.com article: How to Use Google to Find Research Paper Material. Happy studying!