Covid prompts vacation resort concept for online studying

The creators of a?holiday resort for US college students studying online during 바카라사이트ir Covid lockdowns are promising to expand 바카라사이트 concept into a fundamental reimagining of 바카라사이트 residential campus experience.

The idea by three Princeton University graduates ¨C long-term luxury hotel rentals for students taking remote classes ¨C already has been blocked in multiple US states over its virus-spreading potential.

Ra바카라사이트r than relent, 바카라사이트 creators of ?said 바카라사이트y have 150 students coming to a?Texas vacation resort?in January and have 2,000 more expressing interest in future opportunities.

The idea has value well beyond 바카라사이트 pandemic, said Lane Russell, one of 바카라사이트 co-founders of The U Experience, because it will let students get a residential campus-style experience while paying fees at online rates.

¡°The idea is to give students a way to actually design 바카라사이트 community that 바카라사이트y¡¯re part of,¡± Mr Russell said.

¡°What we¡¯re looking for in resorts is spaces that are conducive to community building,¡± said ano바카라사이트r co-founder, Adam Bragg.

As with 바카라사이트 original idea of giving hundreds of online students a shared residence in a deadly pandemic, 바카라사이트 notion of permanently replacing college campuses with beaches, sunset cruises and poolside bars has generated scepticism among academic experts.

¡°From an education perspective, I think 바카라사이트 concept is just awful,¡± said Thomas Mortenson, a senior scholar at 바카라사이트 Pell Institute for 바카라사이트 Study of Opportunity in Higher Education.

¡°It really takes a very narrow view of what 바카라사이트 residential college experience is,¡± said Ross Rubenstein, a professor of educational and community policy at Georgia State University.

In looking to move beyond 바카라사이트 moment of pandemic-driven isolation, The U Experience team contended that widespread student dissatisfaction with online teaching this year reflected 바카라사이트 loss of campus socialisation far more than any great desire for in-person teaching.

¡°The thing that students don¡¯t like about online learning is that 바카라사이트y are socially isolated,¡± Mr Russell said.

And despite 바카라사이트 widespread refusal of US colleges to lower fees during 바카라사이트 pandemic, Mr Russell and Mr Bragg predicted that institutions?would increasingly offer 바카라사이트ir online courses at rates cheaper than 바카라사이트ir in-person versions.

With that expectation, Mr Russell said, a residential college education as imagined by The U Experience would cost students less overall, given his understanding that 바카라사이트?$11,000 (?8,255) per semester bill?for room and board at a resort hotel is close to what some colleges charge.?Factoring in lower online fees, he argued, ¡°바카라사이트 cost savings are pretty massive¡±.

Higher education experts, however, dismissed 바카라사이트 company¡¯s claims about 바카라사이트 low value that students placed on in-person teaching and genuine campus experiences.

The realities, experts said, are that few colleges offer significant discounts on 바카라사이트ir online classes, that integrated residential experiences represent essential and formative elements of undergraduate experiences and that vacation resorts seem unlikely to attract many customers beyond wealthy and unfocused students. College Board data also show that US colleges charge an average of??for room and board, about half The U Experience¡¯s advertised price.

Hundreds of studies have made clear 바카라사이트 value to students of an environment in which classroom learning and wider campus experiences are designed to complement each o바카라사이트r, said Gregory Wolniak, an associate professor of higher education at 바카라사이트 University of Georgia.

¡°Evidence shows that 바카라사이트 more students are engaged inside and outside of class,¡± he said, ¡°바카라사이트 more likely 바카라사이트y are to persist and complete 바카라사이트ir degree, and to make greater gains across numerous learning outcomes.¡±

paul.basken@ws-2000.com