Evaluating the Cost Effectiveness of Online and Face-to-Face Instruction
Sharon Jeffcoat Bartley
Assistant Professor, Human Resource Development College of Business Administration, 439 Stokely Management Center University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-0570, USA Tel: +1 865-974-7392 Fax: +1 865-974-2048 sbartley@utk.edu
Jennifer H. Golek
Doctoral student, College of Business Administration 439 Stokely Management Center, University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 37996-0570, USA Tel: +1 865-974-6397 Fax: +1 865-974-2048 jhespen@utk.edu
ABSTRACT: Online instruction is gaining an increasing presence due to the benefits associated with it, including the ability to consolidate education and training across geographical and time constraints, and the claim by many that online education and training is cost efficient. This paper provides a relatively concise and useful history of online learning, and a discussion of issues to be faced by the professional who intends to move the education and training environment online in response to the current academic and business environments. It presents a cost matrix tool by which the costs of online education and training can be tabulated and/or compared with the costs of the traditional education and training medium.
Keywords: Online education, Online training, Face-to-face training, Cost matrix
[106 Kb]