Online learning in the Russian educational space: Advantages and risks

A sociological study using in-depth online interviews and expert interviews allowed us to identify the main advantages and disadvantages of modern online learning based on online schools and original courses. Along with the democratization of the educational space, accessibility for a wide range of users, unlimited geographical and time frames, the possibility of combining training with professional and other activities, online courses have great potential for personalization: freedom to choose the pace and time of training, intensity and media format for passing the material, content. Interactive elements of online learning stimulate the activity of listeners. The leading factors in the promotion of author’s online courses are the personality of the blogger, his/her achievements, competence and qualifications, persuasiveness as an expert, media coverage of the person, and the practical orientation of the proposed content. The duality of the status of online courses is shown. Due to the lack of a legislative framework regulating their work and quality, a number of social risks arise associated with the dissemination of “pseudoscientific” knowledge through various courses in new media. Two groups of risks for the further development of online learning were also identified: for society (digital inequality; cybersecurity threats; the spread of unscrupulous organizations implementing online courses; the lack of the social control system and a legislative framework for regulating online courses) and for the education system (insufficient training of teachers; difficulties in identifying students and monitoring the independence of completing assignments).