Distance Learning: My Definition

Distance learning: My definition

Before starting this course, my definition of distance education was, “A learning program that offers curriculum to learners all over the country and/or world through the use of the internet and other technology resources.” However, after visiting our resources this week, I realized that distance education must and can be more than resources on the internet. Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, and Zvacek (2012), helped me to see that there are four main components to distance education. Distance education must be institutionally- based, use interactive telecommunications, involve a separation of teacher and students, and include a sharing of learning experiences,” (pg. 33). In my initial definition of distance education, I failed to include participation with peers and interactivity, which is so important in a successful distance education course. My initial definition sounded more like self-learning, which is only a component of distance education. In distance education, students take it upon themselves to learn what they can from the curriculum, and their learning is then expanded and/or challenged through interactions with their peers and instructor.


I was also reminded this week of the fact that distance education can be used in conjunction with a face-to-face program. During my bachelor’s program, I was attending face-to-face classes, but was required to post to an online discussion panel that was open to students enrolled in the class who lived in different parts of the country. We also participated in web conferences with the students who were not attending the face-to-face classes. This allowed the university to reach more students, with less cost than it would be to expand the physical campus.


It was interesting to see the history of distance education as it progressed from mail correspondence, telegraphs, radio, television, phone, video, satellite, and eventually to online programs, (Distance learning timeline continuum, n.d.). A person’s definition of distance education will obviously continue to shift slightly as the technology behind distance education changes, and the way that the learners are able to interact with each other and the instructor. 100 years ago, a person doing correspondence learning, would not have believed that a great sharing of learning experiences would be possible with a person on the other side of the country. However, I believe that distance education has become much more meaningful to learners as they participate with their peers in the creation of their knowledge through the use of telephone, satellites, and now the internet.

Conclusion

As I reflect on all that I learned this week about distance education, my new definition is, “Distance education is an institutionally based learning scenario where the learner, the learner's peers, and instructor participate in the actions of the teaching and learning through interactive technology, and are separated by geography or time. Distance education can be used alone, or in conjunction with other formats of learning, (face-to-face classes). Teaching in distance education includes having discussions with students, sharing interactive learning resources, creating meaningful assignments related to the content, and assessing students throughout the process, all through the use of technology. Learning in distance education requires participation in discussions, sharing viewpoints on the learning resources, and completing all required assignments through the use of technology. “


As distance education continues to evolve, I believe that it will become more commonly used in conjunction with traditional schooling, (Morrison, n.d.). In my current profession as a 2nd grade teacher, I see online learning resources being assigned to students for remedial support in certain subjects. This is because struggling students in a face-to-face setting need more time with the content, or need the content presented in a different way. Also, online resources can be more interactive for younger students than a typical face-to-face lesson, especially if it is in the format of a game. I can see distance education becoming more commonly seen as enriched education as our technology advances, and instructional designers/educators are able to create strong learning modules for all types of learners.

Distance education: a mind map

References

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance:   Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.

Distance learning timeline continuum. (n.d.) Laureate education, inc. Retrieved on April 29^th, 2012 from: https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_549515_1%26url%3D

Simonson, M. (n.d.) Distance education: the next generation. Retrieved on April 29^th, 2012 from: https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_549515_1%26url%3D