It seems like every college is trying to get into the online university game, and why not? Teachers and students alike can work from wherever they are, it saves the school money which often means lower tuition for students, and for a lot of people it’s way more conductive to a busy lifestyle to check into a class online. But without cloud technology, online universities would be dead in the water.
Why? For one, think about where the data would be stored. When your professor uploads course materials, books, lectures, quizzes, and supplementary materials for the course, where do they go? The cloud!
Cloud storage is the easiest and best way for professors and students to share classroom data and assignments. Sure, you could do it the old way with FTP servers and static web pages, but does that sound like an exciting online university experience to you? It sounds like a jargon-filled mess to me.
For another reason, think about how students work today. An online university means that you aren’t tied to any one place. Going on vacation? Take your iPad and study on the beach. In a rush to a meeting but need to submit an assignment to meet a deadline? Do it from your smartphone!
Cloud technology is what ties all of your data together no matter what kind of device you’re using. Being able to share documents between your computer and your mobile device means you can be a more productive student. For teachers it means they can build classroom content from anywhere.
Without the cloud involved, the online classroom experience loses a lot of its benefits. Sure, online universities existed before the cloud, with clunky interfaces and a high reliance on older tech like web-based forum software and tons of emails. But cloud tech means a more connected classroom with access from anywhere, which is a better experience both for students and educators alike. So it’s no surprise both online universities and cloud technology have been exploding these past few years, as improvements in the technology behind the scenes means a better experience for everyone involved.
