Online tutoring is the process of tutoring in an online.

Online Tutorials: A tutorial is a method of transferring knowledge and may be used as a part of a learning process. Online courses are a form of distance learning.It is often referred to as e-learning among other terms. A tutorial is a method of transferring knowledge and may be used as a part of a learning process.This is a class taught through the Internet.

Online Tutorials:

An online tutorial is a self study activity designed to teach a specific learning outcome. They are usually delivered via Blackboard but can also be made available via the Internet or on a DVD. There are two main types of online tutorial which we refer to as Recorded and Interactive.online tutoring can actually give students access to better teachers than offline tutoring because geography is no longer a factor.     

A tutorial is a teaching session given to one student or a small group of students. Teachers lead classes, but tutors are educators who also help students, usually one-on-one. Tutors don't give grades: they just try to help or coach students. A session given by a tutor is called a tutorial. A tutorial is a method of transferring knowledge and may be used as a part of a learning process. More interactive and specific than a book or a lecturer, a tutorial seeks to teach by example and supply the information to complete a certain task.A tutorial can be taken in many forms, ranging from a set of instructions to complete a task to an interactive problem solving session.

Tutorial is an important teaching-learning tool. It helps learners enhance their intellectual, communication and social skills.Even those who attend tutorials do so without adequate preparation although they are given one week to study the topic.Online lessons take place in an interactive, digital classroom. They include video, audio and a chat feature for direct communication with your tutor and a shared whiteboard for viewing documents, plotting functions or working out equations.More interactive and specific than a book or a lecture, a tutorial seeks to teach by example and supply the information to complete a certain task.A tutorial can be taken in many forms, ranging from a set of instructions to complete a task to an interactive problem solving session (usually in academia).An online tutorial is a self study activity designed to teach a specific learning outcome. They are usually delivered via blackboard but can also be made available via the Internet or on a DVD. 

Recorded tutorials: are video or screencast recordings, typically of a subject expert presenting information and ideas or giving a demonstration.The tutorial is designed to teach University of Bristol (UoB) members to how use the Library Catalogue to make a reservation. It consists of an audio narration over PowerPoint slides and a demonstration of the Catalogue software.

Interactive tutorials: are a structured collection of navigable web pages. Individual pages can contain any combination of text, images, audio, video, self test questions and other interactive activities. Interactive tutorials can also contain screencasts. 

Both types of online tutorial can be provided as supplementary learning materials or as an integral part of a core activity, e.g. a prerequisite to attend a time tabled seminar. Because of the benefits they offer (see next section), online tutorials are becoming common place within both programmes of learning and on a number of support service web sites.We will be utilising and discussing interactive tutorials within this unit.Online tutoring is the process of tutoring in an online, virtual environment or networked environment in which teachers and learners are separated by time and space. The distinctions are in online content and interface, as well as in tutoring and tutor-training methodologies.

Online courses with very large enrollments have rapidly matured in the last two years, led largely by experiments outside mainstream academia by Coursera, Udacity and edX. Ambitious educators, technologists, and funders have created courses on diverse topics, and over five million students worldwide have registered for classes. And 3% have completed the courses. 

The quantity of distance learning and online degrees in most disciplines is large and increasing rapidly. Schools and institutions that offer online learning are also increasing in number. Students pursuing degrees via the online approach must be selective to ensure that their coursework is done through a respected and credentialed institution.

Why create online tutorials?

 Online tutorials can be useful:

  • to ensure your learners have a baseline knowledge in particular subjects - where for example 1st year students are not all bringing the same level of prior knowledge in certain areas
  • for creating online tutorials for the more straightforward factual aspects of your subject, thus freeing up face-to-face teaching time for the more complex or contested aspects
  • to facilitate consolidation and revision
  • to cover other aspects of the curriculum for which there is no time in the timetabled part of the course
  • for distancelearning
  • to allow learners to study at their own time and their own pace
  • scale up or make more flexible training

Principles for creating effective tutorials:

The following principles may help you to create a tutorial that is appropriate for online delivery of materials:

  1. Create a simulated conversation between learner and teacher
  2. Involve learners actively
  3. Work with what learners already know
  4. Manage the flow of the learning conversation
  5. Go from the particular to the general (at least sometimes)

The process of creating tutorials:

There are many possible processes for creating a tutorial. Much will depend on :

  1. The nature of your material and aims and objectives
  2. whether you are working from an existing tutorial or creating a new one.
  3. whether you are working on your own or collaborating with others.

Whatever you approach to creation your tutorial, our experience suggests that evaluation and user testing can help to improve the quality and usability of the materials.You are likely to need several iterations of your tutorial before you release a final version.

Online tutoring:is the process of tutoring in an online, virtual environment or networked environment in which teachers and learners are separated by time and space. Online tutoring, as a reflection of the diversity of the wider internet is practiced using many different approaches and is addressed to distinct sets of users. The distinctions are in online content and interface, as well as in tutoring and tutor-training methodologies. Definitions associated with online tutoring vary widely, reflecting the ongoing evolution of the technology, the refinement and variation in online learning methodology, and the interactions of the organizations that deliver online tutoring services with the institutions, individuals, and learners that employ the services. This form of Internet service is a classical micropublishing situation.

Online courses:

An online course (sometimes referred to as a Web-based or Web-delivered course) is a class taught through the Internet. Online courses are a form of distance learning. You take the course at a "distance". This means you will take the class with your laptop, tablet or even your smartphone. Online courses are also distant in time. This means that you do not have to be online at a specific time taking the course. Your most convenient time may be at three in the morning, at lunchtime, or in the evening. Other students may logon at different times.

The E&TP online classes are hosted through a Learning Management System (LMS) called Moodle and are between 6 and 12 hours in length meaning you are enrolled for either 2 weeks or 4 weeks. Each week requires approximately 3 hours of work. In order to take the classes, you need to have your own email account and access to the web. Typically, courses contain reading materials, discussion boards and weekly assignments which need to be finished each week.

Online courses are revolutionizing formal education, and have opened a new genre of outreach on cultural and scientific topics. These courses deliver a series of lessons to a web browser or mobile device, to be conveniently accessed anytime, anyplace.An “online course is designed as a built environment for learning. It’s constructed as an experience that can be followed sequentially or can be accessed throughout the designated time period,” says Wendy Woon, director of education at the Mueseum of modern art.Online courses can be a great way to teach (and learn) new skills. They can be small and highly personal, or scale to thousands of students.

Online Learning and Education:

Online learning means that your educationaltool is based on (and accessible from) the Internet.Online learning tools are a staple of a blended learning environment. They're most often used in the classroom during class time.Education may have several purposes, and online courses help to fulfill it. Some even say that e-learning can revolutionize education as it provides new opportunities for traditional learning. Taking online classes has a lot of advantages and below are some of the most important.

Different Types of Distance Learning:

  • Synchronous vs Asynchronous Distance Learning. The four types of distance learning fall under the categories of either synchronous or asynchronous. 
  • Open Schedule Online Courses.
  • Hybrid Distance Learning. 
  • Computer Based Distance Learning. 
  • Fixed Time Online Courses.

Future of Online Education:

Online teaching is here to stay. Many students prefer the online classroom since it offers flexibility in their busy schedules. With the proliferation of information and knowledge, students must become lifelong learners in today's world, and online education plays an important role in helping individuals access the learner-centered and self-directed instruction.

With enhanced software, hardware, and Internet access, more options for online education will become available. With student enrollments increasing faster than classrooms can be built, students becoming more proficient with technology, and students pursuing an education that meets their needs, the future of online education will continue to grow. Online degree programs will become more widely accepted as they become a more common practice.Online education has become popular among working professionals and students in higher education. These categories of online learners find immense benefit in the autonomy, and flexibility, that these courses offer.

Online learning in an education system:

Distance learning has been around for a long time, even before technology made it extremely accessible. Traditional schooling is now seeing an increased proliferation of virtual training materials and online courses. Even in a world of tried and tested schooling systems and curricula, the most successful schools are the ones who adapt to the changing times, as well as to the expectations of students, parents and the society.

If online education is here to stay, then what are its implications for traditional learning? Instead of focusing on pros and cons, the conversation we should be having today is about leveraging online learning to make our education system more conductive to learning.A learning platform is an integrated set of interactive online services that provide teachers, learners, parents and others involved in education with information, tools and resources to support and enhance educational delivery and management.

Online courses call for a greater amount of motivation and self-discipline than a classroom-based course. A classroom has one or more instructors and peers, who can hold a student accountable for their course-work. In contrast, online courses involve setting our own goals, tracking progress and meeting deadlines.One does not learn in isolation, so online courses do offer discussion forums, email, and one-on-one support. Technology also adds on to the visual experience by incorporating animations, that can be used interactively for effective teaching, and communication.

There are many terms for on-line education.  Some of them are virtual education, internet-based education, web-based education, education via computer-mediated communication. The web-edu project uses a definition of online education that is based on Desmond Keegan’s (1988) definition.  It is by:

  1. The separation of teachers and learners which distinguishes it from face-to-face education;
  2. The influence of an educational organization which distinguishes it from self-study and private tutoring;
  3. The use of a computer network to present or distribute some educational content; and
  4. The provision of tw0-way communication via a computer network so that students may benefit from communication with each other, teachers and staff.

Advantages of Online Tutorial:

1.  Availability 

Geography isn’t a limitation for online tutors, and neither, generally, is time.  If you’ve ever tried to deal with the restrictions of finding a tutor who is local, proficient in the subject ,you need help in, and can meet according to your schedule, you should be able to appreciate this immediately.  Once you remove the restrictions of geography, time zones, and commuting, finding the right tutor for your needs suddenly becomes a lot easier. 

2.  Selection 

The corollary of availability is selection.  Rather than praying to get lucky enough to find a single tutor who meets your criteria and can work with you, when searching for online tutors you are much more likely to have a selection to choose from, which allows you to be discriminating.  In addition, the broader selection also affords you the benefit of working with multiple tutors who specialize in different areas, enabling you to choose tutors who are experts in the specific areas where you need help. 

3.  Value 

The corollary of selection is value.  Being able to discriminate means that tutors have to rely on merit rather than scarcity to win your business, and you don’t have to settle for second (or third) rate.  It puts you in the driver’s seat when tutors have to compete for your business, rather than the other way around.

4.  Convenience 

Add into the mix the convenience of being able to meet with a tutor without having to leave your house (or your dorm room).  If you insist on having a face to face meeting of tutor, then one of you is going to incur the expense of travel time and fuel costs, and unless you happen to find an exceptionally altruistic tutor, chances are it will be you.  Plus, leaving the house (or having a visitor) generally means you have to change out of your jammies.

5.  Accessibility

Convenience assumes that you have a choice, but what if you don’t actually have any options for local tutoring?  For some, making the decision to seek tutoring online may mean the difference between getting help and not.

6.  Technology

Often people who haven’t experienced online tutoring fear that the technology will be a hindrance, but in many ways it is an advantage, especially for young people who are used to chatting on skype and not intimidated by new software.  When sessions are online they are easily recorded for future reference, and a good tutor will make use of technology for illustrative purposes by using photos, animations, drawings, and diagrams.  Not to mention there are resources readily available that wouldn’t be if you were sitting across a table.

Benifits of Online Learning:

  • It’s cheaper: Your users can learn with any device that is connected to the Internet. There’s no need to rent a building or pay for expensive utility bills that are required to provide students with a learning facility. In addition, students and teachers will no longer commute to class, thereby saving them money as well!

  • It takes less time: Not only does eliminating the need to commute save money, but it also saves everyone time. Moreover, the teacher or trainer doesn’t need to give the same class repeatedly to different groups of students. He or she only needs to prepare the content once and then share it with different groups at anytime necessary.

  • It allows for self-paced learning: Students or trainees can take courses from their own devices anytime and anywhere. So, those who don’t have time for traditional classes can learn online when they have the time.

  • It’s modern: Most people today prefer to consume content using the Internet. The very fact that you are reading this article online is proof of that! We now use the Internet to read the news, watch our favorite TV shows, chat with friends, book appointments, shop, and so much more. Considering all of the convenience the Internet has added to our daily lives, why should education remain strictly traditional instead of utilizing the advantages provided by the Internet?

Limitations of Online Learning:

  • It takes self-discipline: While experience has shown that online students are forced to become more self-disciplined, those that remain unengaged could be a challenge as their activities cannot be monitored in class. 

  • Plagiarism: Keeping in mind that your students are using a computer and not being monitored at all times, they could potentially plagiarize essays and other assignments.

  • Cheating: Along similar lines, it can be easier for students to cheat on online exams.

  • Isolation: Since students don’t have to be physically present in a classroom, it might be more difficult (or nearly impossible) for them to get in touch with other learners.

How can the modern learner overcome these challenges?  

Self-discipline can be acquired and is a quality that will benefit learners in ways that go far beyond learning.Plagiarism and cheating can happen in traditional learning scenarios as well, and there are ways to prevent that from happening in online exams (e.g., plagiarism checkers available online) that are not possible to use in a regular classroom.Isolation can be solved if you combine different methods of learning as with blended learning, which fosters more interaction between the students. 

Conclusion of Online Learning nad Education:

Online learning is not just a change of technology. It is part of a redefinition of how we as a species transmit knowledge, skills, and values to younger generations of workers and students. I will end this book by daring to make a few predictions of how e-learning and the functions it serves will continue to develop.

Online Education has brought a positive impact in the lives of students and working professionals. It has given an opportunity to take up additional courses along with their studies orjob as per their convenience. Online education has also helped the faculty in the institutions to ask students to study some part of syllabus online which do not require much of classroom instructions. So the online study helps the faculty to save time in which they can interact with thestudents more. The quality of education has improved by online courses and even it has become easy for students to refer the content as per their leisure. In the era of digitalization the scope of online education increase even more and will be beneficial for students, professionals and also institutions.