| If you are caught between juggling work and family, | | | | include most courses and well-known and highly |
| an online bachelor's degree program may be the | | | | regarded institutions. |
| solution you need to complete your education. Online | | | | To regulate this type of education, the government |
| degrees are also an option if you are a freshman | | | | enforces laws and guidelines to protect students. |
| college student who wants to pursue a degree from | | | | Students should be aware of these policies. There |
| a university or college in another state without | | | | are three basic rules that they should be aware of |
| incurring dormitory costs. | | | | before enrolling in an online degree program. The first |
| Distance education is not a new concept. At one | | | | is the Twelve-Hour Rule, which mandates institutions |
| time, distance learning was pursued through the mail. | | | | to provide at least twelve hours of regular instruction |
| Actors and athletes who traveled frequently pursued | | | | hours in a week. The second is the Family Educational |
| these education programs. Nowadays, distance | | | | Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), known also as the |
| education over the Internet has been revolutionized | | | | Buckley Amendment. These are guidelines that |
| by the virtual classroom and laboratory simulations, | | | | prohibit institutions from publishing the records of |
| chats, and video conferencing. Training and | | | | students for public viewing. Students, however, may |
| exchanges between professors and students, and | | | | request copies of their own records and even |
| even student-to-student interactions, now closely | | | | request a review of these records should they find |
| resemble those that take place in real classroom | | | | inaccuracies in them. The third rule is the Technology, |
| settings. | | | | Education, and Copyright Harmonization Act (TEACH |
| Because of the extent with which a classroom setup | | | | Act). This protects the rights of the instructor to |
| is simulated online, many universities and colleges | | | | present or display his instructional manuals over the |
| have branched out into distance learning. As a result, | | | | Internet. |
| options available to students have expanded to | | | | |