It costs more to offer courses online than in a traditional classroom. Teachers must create lessons specifically for the online environment, and the college must invest in sophisticated equipment and hire programmers, web specialists and other technical personnel to ensure smooth operation. As for the student, he must shoulder the cost of computer equipment and Internet access in addition to the cost of textbooks and supplies already associated with the course.
Resistance to distance learning among college faculty may be one of the biggest challenges the model faces. Instructors often resent the extra time that must be devoted to preparation when the course is offered online, and some teachers contend that distance learners are less disciplined than traditional classroom learners. A 2007 report from the Sloan Consortium -- a group of institutions and organizations "committed to quality online education" -- notes that institutions see faculty resistance as "a barrier to more widespread adoption of online education."
In a traditional classroom, students are able to interact with the teacher spontaneously and can ask questions more easily than in an online environment. The teacher also comes to know the students in a more personal way than is possible when they must communicate solely by email and Internet technology. As a result, the distance learner may feel somewhat alienated from his peers, less accepted by the teacher and disconnected from the essence of the course.
In the early years of the distance-learning model, employers were slow to embrace it, discounting its value and only reluctantly hiring graduates. Their reluctance is fading, however. The 2007 report from the Sloan Consortium found acceptance among employers to be increasing fairly rapidly, with most survey respondents reporting a willingness to consider distance learners in hiring decisions.
People at the lower end of the socioeconomic scale may not have the same access to distance learning as people who have higher incomes. Because distance learning typically requires a computer and Internet access, people who cannot afford this equipment, or who live in areas lacking broadband coverage, cannot take advantage of online courses.