Online learning the new generation: case study--Empire State College & NFA partnership.(HIGHER EDUCATION FOR THE FIRE SERVICE)

Firehouse Magazine, April, 2007 by Antonellis, Paul J., Jr.

If you have spent any time around the fire service, you have heard how we resist change. It has to do with our traditions, the way we have always done things. The unknown is always worse than the known. However, the fire service is slowly changing; and online education is making a name for itself in the community.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

This article will examine a pilot online education program at the National Fire Academy. It is not my intent to debate whether online education is better than traditional classroom education. This debate has been around for some time and no clear-cut answer is available. What is known is that more and more colleges and universities are offering online education. The most recent research by the U.S. Department of...