Online study as a successful method of education of demographically older groups on the example of a selected institution

Online study or distance learning is a new model of education in the Republic of Croatia that is gaining increasing acceptance among all age groups of students. This model is especially becoming prominent and represented in higher education institutions in Croatia. As a relative novelty in the education system of the Republic of Croatia, online study encounters various issues, and one of the basic stigmatization that this model is currently facing, is the common public perception that online study is actually an “online course.” Another novelty in the education system is the wide spectrum of required adaptation and individualization of each student. This model of Western European higher education institutions has long been implemented in their systems. The primary goal of this paper is to show the socio-demographic group of online students in a region of Croatia. The paper also aims to explain online or distance learning in the Republic of Croatia, to show the challenges, shortcomings and opportunities faced by students attending online studies and institutions that offer them. The paper presents a concrete example of a demographic group of students in one region of the Republic of Croatia through observation of a higher education institution and the reasons why they chose this model. The role and importance of such innovative models of education is increasingly expressed precisely in the form of the needs of the market or the people who attend them. Ultimately, it is the students who determine the perspective and future of such new models of education.

Online studiranje ili učenje na daljinu novi je model obrazovanja u Republici Hrvatskoj koji dobiva sve veću prihvaćenost kod svih dobnih skupina polaznika. Ovakav model posebno kod visokog obrazovanja dobiva sve veću zastupljenost kod visokoobrazovnih institucija u Hrvatskoj. Online studiranje relativna je novina u sustavu obrazovanja Republike Hrvatske koja se susreće s raznom problematikom, a jedna od osnovnih je stigmatizacija koju trenutno ovaj model prolazi, percepcija javnosti da je online studiranje zapravo „online tečaj“. Jednako tako navedeni novi i inovativan model nudi široki spektar prilagodbe i individualiziranja svakom pojedinom polazniku studentu što je novina u sustavu obrazovanja. Ovakav su model zapadnoeuropske visokoobrazovne institucije davno implementirale u svoje sustave. Primarni cilj ovoga rada je prikazati socio-demografsku skupinu polaznika online studija jedne visokoobrazovne institucije u jednoj regiji Hrvatske. Cilj ovoga rada je i ujedno objasniti online studiranje ili učenje na daljinu u Republici Hrvatskoj, prikazati koji su izazovi, nedostaci i mogućnosti s kojima se susreću studenti koji pohađaju online studij i institucije koje ih imaju u ponudi. Kroz rad je prikazan konkretan primjer demografske skupine studenata u jednoj regiji Republike Hrvatske na primjeru jedne visokoobrazovne institucije te razlozi zašto su odabrali baš ovaj model. Uloga i značaj ovakvih inovativnih modela obrazovanja sve je više izražena upravo u vidu potreba tržišta odnosno osoba koje ih pohađaju. U konačnici polaznici su ti koji određuju perspektivu i budućnost ovakvih novih modela obrazovanja.