Introduction
The positive contributions internet has played and continues to play in daily lives cannot be underestimated. In fact, it constitutes one of the most important tools for greater information capacity. The reasons behind these assertions are not particularly hard to point out. Internet has not only brought the greatest amount of learning in information capacity, it has also revolutionized communication models, data storage, capacity building, information sharing and a host of endless positive outcomes. The role of internet in education and business remains pivotal to the very existence of these two critical facets of life. In education, internet is one of the most important tools that significantly improve learning. In business and specifically in marketing, internet offers the largest market place to advertise and sell products and services. However, within this cacophony of endless benefits, internet comes along with a number of problems. This essay seeks to examine the potential benefits and problems of using Internet for business and education.
Potential benefits of Internet in Business and Education
Globalization and intense competition have made business visibility as the biggest factor in growth and development. In fact, in today’s business environment, product promotion and placement are the key determinants of business success. The product promotion and placement call for better communication and interaction with the clients and customers. Internet brings in the modern tools of effective communication and interaction such as chat, email, SMS, and voice SMS. As opposed to the traditional settings when quantity and quality were the determining factors of business growth and development and global reach demanded huge investments in marketing, internet enables a brand to reach the a global market with minimal costs.
In education, internet is hailed as the most important tool in improvement of learning. A number of articles posit that there are several benefits of using internet in education. First, flexibility of the internet offers user friendly approaches to teaching and learning in online education. Secondly, the ease and low cost access to educational materials remove the traditional barriers in knowledge acquisition and career advancement. The times spent on travelling from home to schools are spent studying in that it is no longer necessary for one to commute in order to physically attend class sessions.
The two groups of people who have immensely benefited from the application of internet in education are the disabled and the working professionals. Students with disabilities are able access lecture materials, develop and deliver assignments in real time, and attend simulated meetings within the comfort of their homes. With the increasing levels of motivation and responsibilities, multi-tasking has become a common mode of life for most working professionals. It is not hard for one to take up active employment while at the same time advancing in career.
Internet has provided a platform in which students can interact with lecturers and earn degrees that are critical in the advancement of their careers within their work places. This is a win/ win situation for both the student and the company because the company achieves the retention of highly skilled labour while the student advances in knowledge and skills. Third, information contained in academic resources available in the internet is easy to update. Old materials can be easily enriched with new information and the changes are reflected instantly.
Potential Problems of Using the Internet for Business and Education
In business, internet has exposed important and personal information into the wrong hands. This underlines the reason behind increase in online fraud in the recent past. Companies are losing millions of dollars to online fraud and money laundering schemes. In fact, online fraud has been pointed out as one of the biggest threats to companies operating online. The second concern is the problem of spamming. Businesses and individuals receive millions of unsolicited emails that do not necessarily serve the purpose, but are intended to clog the system.
Within the education sector, internet comes with a number of problems. The first is information overload. The existence of billions of pieces of information on the internet deters the capacity of one to retrieve relevant and important information with speed. This is because important information is lost within millions of other irrelevant information. Effective utilization of academic tools on the internet demands better information skills. Last, pornography remains a real and serious issue in the internet. This is more poignant when it is examined from the position of children who flock the internet daily in search of information. Thousands of pornographic sites are freely available on the internet and can be detrimental to young children.
Conclusion
Whereas the examination of the role of internet in business and education indicates mixed results of pros and cons, the reality is that internet plays a critical role in our daily lives and will continue to provide avenues for growth and development of most business and advancement of education. The only path to achieving the best out of the internet is laying focus on minimizing problems and making internet a safe place for business and learning.