The Internet has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception as ARPANET in the late 1960’s. From the humble 4 terminal beginning to the explosion of the World Wide Web, the Internet has created unbridled opportunities for the dissemination of information. Some of the most fundamental aspects of human existence have been brought online to have an “e-component.”

Social networking sites like Myspace.com and Facebook.com have created entire communities of “virtual friends.” The last presidential election saw President Barack Obama use massive social networking to his advantage in my.barackobama.com. It’d be hard to make an argument that his early adoption of the social networking technology in 2007 did anything but connect him to the young base that helped elect him.
ZDNet

Take social networking a step further and you have online dating. While it took some time to shed the social stigma of finding a mate online as we roll into 2009, that stigma is nearly gone.
Detroit Free Press

The Internet has been recognized for what it is, a tool. It’s not a separate world for nerds any longer. Well, it still is, but they have to share that world with every day netizens who are trying to advance their corporeal lives without any thought given to ever having an avatar. The Internet is for more than just playing World of Warcraft.

I can understand why an online education would have drawn the ire of academics 15, even 10 years ago, but in 2009? Absolutely not. The advances in technology have gone a long way in removing the distance from distance learning. I believe the next big stigma to go the way of the dodo online is the one attached to an online education.

Trust me, going into this whole project, I was extremely skeptical. I went to a traditional undergraduate University (Go Aztecs!) to obtain a degree in Philosophy. I’m extremely familiar with the Socratic method that is traditionally associated with ABA approved law schools. When someone asks me about the online program I’m in, one of their first questions is how can you have the back and forth when you’re so far away?

The answer? The technology has closed that gap. Two way chat sessions and lectures have virtually forced me into the front row. There is no substantive way to hide in the back of the classroom. Although, if you’re hiding, what’s the point in going in the first place?

This category is going to chronicle the advances in the technology associated with distance learning, new and exciting online learning opportunities as well as the state of that academic stigma that was attached to an online education in the beginning.

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Or, digiprudence as I like to call it.

I’ve decided that a blog or hopefully blog based community dedicated to the study of law online was going to be something worth doing. In fact, prior to about a year ago, I had no idea that studying law over the Internet was anywhere near a viable option. The more I looked into it, the more impressed I became.

Prior to enrolling at Abraham Lincoln University (”ALU”), I had absolutely no chance of going to law school. It was something that I had wanted to do for a long time, but finances and a less than stellar sophmore year of undergrad pretty much ruled out any reasonable possibility of going.

I took the plunge.

A legal education and the legal profession has enough pitfalls without adding the additional modifier, “online.” Currently, online education is looked down on by most everyone, especially the legal community. I’m seeking to change that and a portion of this blog is going to be devoted to changing the perception of learning online.

Additionally the blog is going to tackle success in law school and specifically success in online law school. After all there are certain issues and concerns that are unique to the online experience that we’ll take a look at.

Lastly, since online programs are all currently part time programs, chances are you are working like I am. So personal productivity, structuring your career and managing time are all going to be topics covered here with regularity.

As time goes on, I hope this project will provide some useful information and contribute a purposed voice to the legal and education communities. This is a project I’ve been thinking of launching for almost a year, so I’m extremely eager to get rolling. Enjoy.

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