Module 2: Elements of Distance Education Diffusion

Elements of Distance Education Diffusion

George Siemens discussed the growing acceptance of distance education in today’s corporate and educational spheres, including three possible elements of distance education that are creating more effective learning experiences and giving distance education an identity of its own distinct from F2F courses: (a) global diversity, (b) communication, and (c) collaborative interaction. Do you agree or disagree with his view?

I am in total agreement with Siemens analysis above. Global Diversity, Collaborative Interaction and Communication are major keys to unlock the world of distance education. Without these three components, distance learning could not possibly succeed in today's high technology driven world. 

Out of the three elements above I feel that the Collaborative Interaction has evolved by leaps and bounds as it relates to distance education. With the creation of companies like LinkedIn and online universities across the globe, collaboration is a must have to keep peers and students actively engaged in the content of the subject matter. Wiki's and educational blogs allow people from all circles of life to not just view your thoughts and views but also creates and avenue for constructive criticism and the sharing of different perspectives. 

Some great tools that available today to facilitate Collaborative Interactions are Facebook, LinkedIn, Skype, Google+ and Prezi to name a few. I utilize these tools actively for both communication and collaboration purposes. I find that these tools make distance learning very simple, yet also provide a high level of collaboration with my peers across the globe. I plan to use these and many of the newer technologies on a regular basis to become more familiar with them.

Module 1: The Next Generation of Distance Education

In my Principles of Distance Education course we have the opportunity to blog and reflect on our experiences within the class and the topic of the current module every two weeks. This week’s topic is the Next Generation of Distance Learning. My objective for this week is to compare and contrast the reasons the authors believe there is a need to evolve distance education to the next generation.

I read a three-part article by Coleman, Foshay, Huett, and Moller entitled "The Evolution of Distance Education: Implications for Instructional Design on the Potential of the Web". I found these articles particularly interesting because I am an Instructional Designer and am always attempting to acquire as much knowledge as possible.

In part one of the article, the primary focus is Training and Development. The authors put a lot of emphasis on the importance of having a highly skilled instructional designer to design quality education in the e-learning environment. The authors state that “the challenge for ID professionals is not only to evolve the field, but also to assure that the products of sound professional design practice lead the e-learning enterprise". (Moller et al., 2008).

In part two of the article, higher education is the focal point. The authors discuss how education has evolved and the overall need for distance education has become greater by the year. The authors state "Distance learning is rapidly becoming a popular choice for continuing professional education, mid-career degree programs, and lifelong learning of all kinds". (Moller et al., 2008). This article further showcases the importance of the instructional designer but also discusses how often ID's tend to violate the basics principles that we have been taught.

Part three of the article focuses on the k-12 environment within distance education. The instructional designer’s role is highly discussed in this capacity as well.

As an instructional designer, I can relate to all of the statements within the article. I have been given the opportunity to design effective instruction in the past and have seen process first hand. It’s unfortunate to see a botched up level of design with poor quality. In the end the learner suffers because of it.  There is a high need to evolve distance education for the next generation and based on the authors review, the highly skilled instructional designer is the perfect person to do the job. I guess the question remains though....Will more qualified and educated designers continue to enter the field to meet the ever-growing demand ?

Resources:

Huett, J., Moller, L., Foshay, W. R., & Coleman, C. (2008). The Evolution of Distance Education: Implications for Instructional Design on the Potential of the Web. Techtrends: Linking Research & Practice To Improve Learning, 52(5), 63-67. doi:10.1007/s11528-008-0199-9

Moller, L., Foshay, W. R., & Huett, J. (2008). The Evolution of Distance Education: Implications for Instructional Design on the Potential of the Web. Techtrends: Linking Research & Practice To Improve Learning, 52(4), 66-70. doi:10.1007/s11528-008-0179-0

Moller, L., Foshay, W. R., & Huett, J. (2008). The Evolution of Distance Education: Implications for Instructional Design on the Potential of the Web. Techtrends: Linking Research & Practice To Improve Learning, 52(3), 70-75. doi:10.1007/s11528-008-0158-5