You need to know
the nature, advantages, benefits and limitations of the courses you are taking before you enroll this will help ease any frustration
that may come later. Getting a good theological education no longer requires
a person to physically attend a seminary or other institution of higher learning.
Numerous theological institutions as well as seminaries are now offering courses on the World Wide Web. The degree of difficulty and the amount of time that needs to be spent taking the courses and earning
the different theological degrees varies depending upon the theological courses taken and the degree that is being offered.
In addition some
degrees can be completed totally online while others require spending some time on the college campus to augment what is learned
in the online courses. Since there are so many varying types of online theological
programs
The Nature of an Online
Theological Education
Traditionally if you wanted a high quality theological education it meant
getting traveling to a seminary or college campus as close to you home as possible with course instruction consisting of a
classroom setting with face-to-face instructions. (Locke 2002) As Bob Dylan once
sang “the times they are a changing” because now you can get a good quality theological education online from
an accredited institution and earn an Associates degree on up to a PhD all with the click of a mouse.
An online theological
education is an education that takes place away from traditional teaching. With
an online theological education the majority of the course work; reading, writing, exams and instructor’s notes will
come from information gathered through webs sites or emails that you are directed to by an instructor. In some courses you may be required to purchase a book and then answers questions or take tests concerning
your reading with the answers being submitted through an email or through a system similar to Blackboard.
A typical online course is not much different then a courses taken on a campus.
There is still the need by the student to take the classes and do the work in order to succeed, but instead of being
in a classroom a person is able to sit in the comfort of their own home in their pajamas if they like, studying at their own
leisure.
The Advantages
of an Online Theological Education
When compared with a traditional theological education an online theological education has some advantages that make
it more appealing to a certain group of people who are seeking to further their theological education. The advantages to taking an online theological education consist of, but are not limited to, the
idea that the online courses are more flexible, there are more courses that are offered, the courses allow for a self paced
workload, and the courses can be taken anytime, anywhere.
Compared to a traditional
theological education an online theological education is much more flexible in the structure of the classes as well as the
scheduling format. Most conventional classes must be taken when the class
is offered which requires trying to alter a daily or weekly schedule in order to meet the demands of the class. The flexibility in scheduling online theological courses, or any online courses, allows for the person
taking the class to study whenever their schedule allows them to get onto the Internet.
For some this will mean doing their course work at twelve in the afternoon for others it will be two o’clock
am. The clock is no longer a students enemy but their friend.
In addition to being
able to schedule courses that fit into an erratic schedule, someone pursuing their theological education online will also
have a greater flexibility in the type of courses that are being offered. The
constrictions and limitations of the traditional college catalog are taken away and are replaced with a wider variety of courses
and degrees to choose from. In fact some people might have a hard time
choosing a course to take because with online courses the possibilities for a theological education are endless
Earning a theological
degree online also allows for more flexibility in finding an affordable institution from which to take courses. There are no constraints or limitations to a certain geographical area; in fact the only limitations
are how much research is done in finding the correct institution to meet your needs.
Jim Fox in his article “Distance Education: is it Good Enough?” states that distance education is a great
way to bridge the “great chasm” that exists between those who want a good quality education and cannot find the
time or money to take conventional courses (1998)
Some of the other
advantages of taking an online theological course include but are not limited to: no loss of employment while taking the course,
no reentry into the workforce when the course is finished, and the ability to use the information now not later. For the institution administering the courses the advantages to utilizing a distance education program
are twofold on one hand the institution is able to free instructors from the constrictions of the classroom as well as giving
the theological institutions the ability to offer monitored quality courses without taking up campus space to run and administer
the courses. Another benefit to a theological intuition is that once an online
course is designed and implemented it can be easily maintained and enhanced as needed.
The Benefits of an Online
Theological Education
There are also some
benefits to taking an online theological education. One, which was already touched
upon, is that there are no constrictions to a certain a geographical location, classes can be taken at an institution in the
United States or if the student wishes they can travel over seas and choose a course of study offered by a well known theological
institution abroad. This gives the student the opportunity to choose classes
that will offer a diverse range of instruction as well as a diverse range of cultures.
Another benefit of
an online theological program and one that many people fail to take into consideration is a greater amount of interaction
between student and instructor. In a classroom setting there are any number
of students all vying for the attention of the instructor but with an online program the student and instructor communicate
one on one via email, chat rooms and any number of other means which translates into a more personal and informative theological
education
In additions students taking courses in an online theological education may be more empowered to ask questions
and speak their mind because the barriers and fears that come between student and instructor in face-to-face communication
is eliminated. Students may also be more empowered to participate because
of the additional anonymity of the online setting which can help them to become more “daring” and open minded
“regarding the expression of ideas” (Kubala 1998)
Students who desire
to seek their theological education online may also experience a greater sense of equality because the student does have the
normal classroom barriers to contend with. Theses barriers could include
race, gender, ethnic group as well as barriers that result from completion due to grades and personalities.
Some other benefits
of an online course depending on where and how your course is designed may include: immediate grading for online tests, a
cohort of other students who share and pool their resources and knowledge and a theological institution that if close by will
allow you to visit and talk to the instructor in person or use their resources to prepare and process course work. On the surface an online theological education may seem to be the best route to gaining a quick and thorough
education, but there are some pitfalls.
The Limitations of an Online
Theological Education
An online
education is very flexible and accommodating but it also has some limitations for those who are not prepared for what is to
come. The Bible says in Proverbs 13:16 that “Every prudent man acts out
of knowledge, but a fool exposes his folly” (NIV) this is especially true which it comes to pursuing an online theological
education.
The best
course of action for anyone pursuing this avenue for completing their education is to know their own limitations as well as
the limitations of the courses before enrolling. In summary anyone pursuing an
online education must research the course before doing any of the actual course work in order to minimize the difficulties
that may arise when it becomes to actually take the online theological course
An online
theological education has it’s limitation the first of which is the lack of a “living voice” and the physical “presence of a teacher” to go to for a one on one live consultation when
there is a question to be answered (Crosby 1998). This is a limitation for a number of reasons
first, each and every person has a different learning style and for those people who learn by listening and writing an online
education will be extremely difficult because an online education consists mainly of reading and writing.
The second
limitation, which is directly connected with the lack of a physical instructor, is what some consider as the depersonalization
of the theological education. A theological education for most people is a considered
an education with “direct contact” from “person-to-person” between student and instructor” (Crosby 1997). In an online education the direct contact
is taken away and so some feel is the personalization of the course of study.
Without
a classroom the instructor does not get to know the student on a personal level and the same is true of the student there
is no bonding between student and instructor. There is also no way for the instructor
to get to know the limitations or strength of their students because each student is only a file on the computer, not a physical
living, breathing human being. This also leaves the instructor wondering where
the student is spiritually not just mentally, because a theological education is supposed to be as much about the heart as
it is about the knowledge.
On the other
side of this argument is the idea that there is more contact between student and instructor not in a physical form, but in
a written form via emails and other correspondence. There is also the idea
that most instructors who have on campus classes are “burdened with heavy teaching’ that leaves “relatively
little contact “ between students and faculty which means there is not the mentoring atmosphere on campus that many
point as lacking in an online theological education (Healy 1997).
One final
limitation that is built around the lack of face-to-face contact between instructor and student is the idea of whether an
online learner will be able to “ catch” and “retain values” as much as their on campus counterparts
(Miletic 1997). Miletic also points out that in study after study students who
take courses online show “no significant differences” in learning than do students who take the same courses in
a classroom setting (1997). The results show that if the online student has the
time to take the courses then the online student should do as well as the traditional student when it comes to learning and
retaining what is taught in each of the courses.
Conclusion
Getting
a theological education has become easier with the advent of many seminaries and theological schools turning to online education
in order to fill the demands of people seeking alternatives to getting a degree the traditional way due to time constraints. This has left open vast opportunities as well as pitfalls for those who seek
to pursue this avenue in answering the call to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
To get the
most advantage and benefit from an online theological education the best thing to do is know the limitations of the course
as well as your own limitations before you begin the course this will save a lot of headaches later. Taking courses through an online theological education is actually more time consuming because of the need
to read more books, write more papers and study more information. This
is not to say it cannot be done but it will take discipline, commitment and effective time management to do the course work,
but getting the degree at the end of the course will be that much more rewarding because the course to get there is much tougher.
References
Crosby, J. F. (1997). Oral traditions and distance education. Retrieved
22, November 2004, from www.theuniversityconcourse.com/III, ,4,1-21-1998/Crosby.htm
Crosby, J. F. (1997). Doubts about de that won’t go away. Retrieved
22, November 2004, from www.theuniversityconcourse.com/III, 3,12-9-1997/Crosby.htm
Crosby, J. F. (1997). Franciscan university and distance education: some doubts.
Retrieved 22, November 2004, from www.theuniversityconcourse.com/III, 2,10-28-1997/Crosby.htm
Fox, J. (1998). Distance education: is it good enough?. Retrieved
22, November, 2004, from www.theuniversityconcourse.com/III,4,1-21-1998/Fox.htm
Graham, S.L (2002). Theological education on the web: a case study
in formation for ministry. Retrieved 22, November 2004, from www.blackwell-synergy.com/links/doi/10.1111/1467-9647.00142/abs/
Healy,
N.J. (1997). How might we improve our education for both residents and de
students? Retrieved 22 November 2004, from www.theuniversityconcourse.com/III,3,12-9-1997/Healy.htm
