Hey now. I think that was a bit harsh. At least he is seeking higher education. We need to encourage more people or they'll become teachers who can't spell or be coherent
I'm not here to defend or support the school. I think the problem isn't just limited to certain schools. I can vouch for spelling errors and some inconsistencies, since I now attend this school. However, I must point out that it's no different than other schools who offer distance learning. I've taken courses at several schools -- some for extracurricular challenge and some to apply to a degree program - and I've noticed spelling errors at EVERY school, even the brick and mortar ones. It's one of my pet peeves, because I do expect so-called better schools to reflect their superiority in their quality, especially since I'm paying for it.
I originally was offered early admission and a full scholarship to one of the top public universities when I was younger, but due to family circumstances, I had to leave school 1.5 years shy of graduating from there. There are pros and cons to both online and offline schools. I found the offline schools were only somewhat difficult due to logistical reasons (finding a seat in an auditorium, taking tests on the floor because there is no seat, commuting, parking, etc.). Content-wise, they're about the same for some schools. In offline schools, I did more weekly homework (a mix of problems and papers), and in online schools, there's just much more writing. They pretty much expect mini-essays on discussion board assignments. There are a mix of people in every class that either give mediocre or excellent effort. But, that's with any school.
AMU/APU's format is almost exactly like what's being offered at most schools. So, shooting down AMU/APU will be shooting down the rest. The only difference, in my opinion, is on the graders at each school. I say graders and not teachers because it is rare to find a real teacher at any of these schools, though I get the occasional one by doing my research on teacher backgrounds and ratings. I've had self-obsessed poor teachers at offline schools as well.
The one thing that is lacking is a way to compare the grading to see if someone who gives mediocre work is getting the same grade as someone who actually puts in a good effort. There is a Statistics feature, but use of it is left up to the discretion of the instructors, and I've only seen one that actually used it. All I know is that I get good grades, but it would irritate me if I knew someone else got good grades as well but clearly put in less effort. Obviously, they're not using the statistic feature to keep the complaints down. However, I used to get good grades at the top-ranked university I used to attend, the same as I am getting now. I don't really see a difference, except in the composition of the classwork. The benefit to online schools, at least for me, is that I get to spend more time with the materials instead of having to suffer through boring lectures that didn't add to my knowledge. So, in this regard, my time is spent more efficiently. However, some people who attend these online schools have no discipline and would probably do better at offline schools. I think that explains some of the drop-out rates. Did they really drop out, or did they transfer?
I have also known offline schools give good grades to people I know who barely speak English. For example, one person received her M.A. in teaching somehow from George Mason University with a 3.5 GPA, when she barely speaks English. I've read her papers and spoken with her, and both the papers and the person were difficult to understand. My guess is that she found a way to have someone else do most of the work for her. Hey, it happens at offline schools, too. I have a relative that used to manage a copy center where students were always there faxing papers back and forth between parents and other family members or tutors, and it was obvious those people were writing their papers for them (back in the day before the Internet boom). Another person I know says that it's how students at some of the Ivy league schools operated as well. And like some of the other posts here insinuate, apparently you can still graduate with higher level degrees even if you can't spell, proofread, or form sentences well -- and those people received their degrees at offline schools.
I've worked with several people with higher level degrees who have been clear idiots. For example, I was tasked to train one person on a super easy system. I figured the training would fly by, but she made it a very long day for me. She would stare at the screen and ask me, "So what do I? I'm all confused." Then, I would tell her, "Well, where the field says [Name], you need to type in your name. Where the field says [Date], you need to type in today's date....(SIGH)" This person had a master's degree from a top university and couldn't figure this out??! She now works for the feds, so go figure - that's why we have the problems that we have. So, it's a problem with most schools and not just AMU/APU.
P.S. Many, if not all, of the top universities have regional accreditation. So, what does that say about them? Cheating also happens at all schools because "honor codes" basically allow a student to take un-proctored tests. I've personally seen it happen, reported it, and the professors did nothing. All they seem to care about is taking your money. There's no integrity at any of these schools anymore.
