Elements of Distance Education Diffusion
The element of online communication has evolved rapidly over the years. As Dr. Siemens’ points out on the DVD (2008) as recently as five years ago people would not have believed that video conferencing could have the clarity and reliability that it does today. Thanks to the multitude of online communication tools used for socializing, people are becoming more and more comfortable with online communication. Dr. Siemens’ believes that if we can get learners to be more comfortable with online communication, if we can “bridge the comfort gap”, then that, with the development of newer better communication technologies will have a tremendously favorable effect on distance education. I agree with this thinking.
The improvements in online communications tools have greatly enhanced my educational experience overall. The new tools allow me to access more information that is relevant to me and interesting to me. I can quickly find clarifications to things I don’t quite understand and in the process I very often come across other pieces of information and knowledge that I find quite useful. I can employ a variety of tools to meet my different learning styles in order to be sure I understand what I am learning. The instantaneous connection with a professor or other classmates at any time is more useful to me than waiting for the weekly class meeting or making an appointment with the professor during “office hours”.
Jane Hart (2010) has complied a “Top 100 Tools for Learning 2010” this list and her blog are dedicated to the new and best online tools available for communication. As I looked through her list I was just amazed at the tools that are out there that I never knew about. And the development and usage of the tools I do know about. With all of these different types of communication tools available, it’s easy to see how distance education can be so much more valuable than ever before. Sarah Sorensen (2010) comments on how the “mobilization”, “personalization” and “virtualization” trends in distance education illuminate the impact of online communication tools for distance learners.
More and more people communicate daily in some form of online method. It naturally makes sense that education should strive to embrace and utilize this opportunity to the best of their advantage. Online communication tools have had a great impact on social presence in distance education. Social presence impacts students’ satisfaction and feeling of connectedness which is vital to their online success. Online communication equalizes students. Those who have a lot to say and need to say it now can. Those who are shyer or more reserved and need more time to sort out their thoughts and comments can. Through this type of communication we are able to interact with people much different from ourselves, to experience their thoughts and views of things and provide new ways of thinking about things. This connection is very powerful. I know from my own experiences, there were students in my brick and mortar classes that I never ever spoke to. In my online experience, it has been much easier for me to have an interaction with everyone in the class in one form or another. Already the benefit is there, I’ve interacted with people I might not have in another setting. I’m benefitting and learning.
Reference
Hart, J. (2010, June 25). Jane’s pick of the day. [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://janeknight.typepad.com/
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). The future of distance education featuring Dr. George Siemens. United States: Walden University. Podcast retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=4199707&Survey=1&47=4862829&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1
Sorensen, S. (2010, June 18). Technology trends transforming higher education. [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://broadcast.oreilly.com/2010/06/online-learning.html
*********************************************
For Module 2, I responded to the following blogs:
Richard Wasserman
http://principlesofdistanceeducationwaldenu.blogspot.com/2010/06/module-2.html
Bill Goldstein
http://billgoldstein.blogspot.com/2010/06/elements-of-distance-education.html
*********************************************
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Module 1
Module 1: Next Generation of Distance Education
All four authors in question (Moller, Huett, Foshay, Coleman and Simonson, 2008) advocate that distance education (DE) needs to evolve. They all agree that DE is powerful, useful and can save on resources like time, energy, location etc. They agree that DE isn’t going to go away and nor should it; it would be a wasted asset not to focus on enhancing such a tremendous resource and learning tool.
Moller et al. (2008) advocate strongly for an assessment piece to be developed. They espouse that for quality success for both the learner and the instructor of DE there needs to be a concrete was to evaluate the processes being utilized in DE; to be able to adequately assess the outcomes and the learners’ experiences with DE and to measure whether or not the desired goal is reached by utilizing such a program.
Simonson advocates more for the development of DE. He contends that DE needs to take into account the learner, the teacher and the resources while being mindful of the fact that all three of these aspects are separated by geography and time. He states that we cannot “duplicate” what is being done in the classroom. That DE needs to develop an “equivalency” (Simonson, 2008) for student learning. That location, time, resources, culture, education, etc. all play a part in DE and that without the face-to-face contact, the instructor is left to address these somehow. Developing an “equivalent” experience for learners is Simonson’s contention.
I think that all the authors have valid points. I completely agree with Simonson, that DE cannot be conducted or construed the same as face-to-face learning environments. They are not the same and therefore should not be treated the same. I also think that Moller et al. (2008) are correct in that we need some valid way of assessing/measuring the effectiveness of DE. Using the same measurements we use for face-to-face learning is not adequate, nor comparable. I think taking these ideas and utilizing them together is the next step for DE.
References:
Huett, J., Moller, L., Foshay, W., & 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.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Distance education: The next generation featuring Dr. Michael Simonson. United States: Walden University. Podcast retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=4199707&Survey=1&47=4862829&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Equivalency theory featuring Dr. Michael Simonson. United States: Walden University. Podcast retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=4199707&Survey=1&47=4862829&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1
Moller, L., Forshay, W., & 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.
Moller, L., Foshay, W., & 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.
*************************
For Module 1, I responded to the following blogs:
Amy Cantymagli
http://acantymagli.blogspot.com/
Lynne Butkiewicz
http://waldentechnology.blogspot.com/
*************************
All four authors in question (Moller, Huett, Foshay, Coleman and Simonson, 2008) advocate that distance education (DE) needs to evolve. They all agree that DE is powerful, useful and can save on resources like time, energy, location etc. They agree that DE isn’t going to go away and nor should it; it would be a wasted asset not to focus on enhancing such a tremendous resource and learning tool.
Moller et al. (2008) advocate strongly for an assessment piece to be developed. They espouse that for quality success for both the learner and the instructor of DE there needs to be a concrete was to evaluate the processes being utilized in DE; to be able to adequately assess the outcomes and the learners’ experiences with DE and to measure whether or not the desired goal is reached by utilizing such a program.
Simonson advocates more for the development of DE. He contends that DE needs to take into account the learner, the teacher and the resources while being mindful of the fact that all three of these aspects are separated by geography and time. He states that we cannot “duplicate” what is being done in the classroom. That DE needs to develop an “equivalency” (Simonson, 2008) for student learning. That location, time, resources, culture, education, etc. all play a part in DE and that without the face-to-face contact, the instructor is left to address these somehow. Developing an “equivalent” experience for learners is Simonson’s contention.
I think that all the authors have valid points. I completely agree with Simonson, that DE cannot be conducted or construed the same as face-to-face learning environments. They are not the same and therefore should not be treated the same. I also think that Moller et al. (2008) are correct in that we need some valid way of assessing/measuring the effectiveness of DE. Using the same measurements we use for face-to-face learning is not adequate, nor comparable. I think taking these ideas and utilizing them together is the next step for DE.
References:
Huett, J., Moller, L., Foshay, W., & 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.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Distance education: The next generation featuring Dr. Michael Simonson. United States: Walden University. Podcast retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=4199707&Survey=1&47=4862829&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Equivalency theory featuring Dr. Michael Simonson. United States: Walden University. Podcast retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=4199707&Survey=1&47=4862829&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1
Moller, L., Forshay, W., & 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.
Moller, L., Foshay, W., & 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.
*************************
For Module 1, I responded to the following blogs:
Amy Cantymagli
http://acantymagli.blogspot.com/
Lynne Butkiewicz
http://waldentechnology.blogspot.com/
*************************
Monday, June 7, 2010
Welcome!
Well, this is a first for me, which is pretty funny considering I have no problem telling people what I think! One would think I would be a huge blogger, but I'm not!
I look forward to seeing how this turns out.
I look forward to seeing how this turns out.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
