Learning is always a good thing, regardless of the method used to fulfill that goal. Face-to-face learning is the traditional way of getting an education. With the advent of the internet, online learning has become quite popular; but is it as good as face-to-face learning?

In the old days, any type of learning took place in a workshop or in a classroom environment. These days, every faculty offers a combination of in-class and online course options. These two learning systems are parallel and very dissimilar. It's not even worth trying to reconcile the difference between them to bring them to a common ground where one could conclude that one is as good as the other. Face-to-face learning has its advantages and online learning its drawback. The latter can only be considered out of necessity or because of its availability or its convenience.

Students who take online classes are at a disadvantage. The lack of interaction among students and with the teacher is quite obvious. The student is on his own to figure everything out. Most of the time, online classes take a toll on students because they are both stressful and unorthodox. Can one imagine oneself taking every engineering class online? The outcome would be a disaster, wouldn't it? At the end of every semester, the online student would have a general idea of the material but would lack the essence of the course studied. But if online learning is the only way possible for a career, it's worth the effort.

About 5.3 million students took at least one online course in fall 2013 – up 3.7 percent from the previous fall, according to "Grade Level: Tracking Online Education in the United States," an annual report by the Babson Survey Research Group. While enrollment in online courses increased at public and private schools, it decreased in the for-profit sector.

Traditionally, face-to-face learning consists of the presence of a teacher with students in a classroom. This is what we are all accustomed to. It is like a family environment where students develop camaraderie and receive the education and the guidance from the teacher. Students also have the advantage of sharing ideas and posing questions to the teacher and to one another. This is the way the standard learning mechanism operates. Considering all the privileges and the advantages of face-to-face learning, most of us can conclude that it is better than online learning.

In general, learning is the key to success. If online learning is the only way someone could have a career, it's worth taking that path. With assiduity and a strong commitment, one can be educated online even though face-to-face learning would always be recommended because the two learning systems are far from being equally good.