Virtual Campus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article has been nominated to be checked for its neutrality.
Discussion of this nomination can be found on the talk page.

This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources.
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. (help, get involved!)
Any material not supported by sources may be challenged and removed at any time. This article has been tagged since January 2007.

A Virtual Campus refers to the online offerings of a college or university where college work is completed either partially or wholly online, often with the assistance of the teacher, professor, or teaching assistant.

The University of Phoenix Online, with more than 100,000 students, is an example of the marriage between the virtual campus and physical campus. Many established and mainstream colleges and universities now offer many courses (or entire degree programs) either partially or wholly online. Other schools notable for their primary online presence include DeVry and Strayer.

Schools use a variety of tools for conducting classes - typically called Learning Management Systems (LMS) or Course Management Systems (CMS). CMS may also refer to CONTENT Management Systems. Some notable LMS' include Moodle, Sakai, Serco, Blackboard, WebCT, Angel, Desire2Learn, and eCollege. Blackboard and webCT command the lion's share of the commercial market, and Blackboard recently (as of Spring 2006) acquired WebCT.

Online learning has taken up a whole new dimension with the advent of the Internet. Professionals, students, and housewives can all get an education without changing their lifestyles. The virtual campus has allowed people around the world to have access to the same standard of education and thus, allows them to raise their standard of living without being subjected to bias. Whereas, traditionally it was claimed that laws like 'affirmative action' gave minorities a boost the introduction of the Virtual Campus defrauds that argument as the Virtual Campus is for those people who want to improve their lifestyle and never had the chance.

It's globalization at its best. While Diploma mills are to some extent giving the online degrees a bad reputation it's fairly easy for employers and accreditation agencies to validate degrees and the serious students will never be in jeopardy of having their degrees under scrutiny especially if they are gained from recognized colleges.