First and foremost, I know this is lengthy but the reading is easy.
Education – an interesting word that when said aloud elicits an action – a verb, if you may. However, the word itself education” is a noun that acts like a verb as it connotes “the ac t of process…” (Dictionary.com, 2012). On the other hand, its origin “educate” is a verb that signify development of information by trained teachers and enables one to be qualified “…for a particular calling, practice, etc.” (Dictionary.com, 2012).
Now toss in the word “Distance” to the existing noun “Education” and you get a marriage of Distance Education a word that is a robust noun that has a gamut (breadth or scope) of meaning. Overall, accredited organizations like the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) research center, the questionable Wikipedia, and Dictionary.com surmise the term to be a computer base learning that does not require presences at a standard brick-and-mortar school. Students in Distance Education reside in various geographical locations and meet asynchronously or synchronously at one central location on the Internet. It is this online central location that Distance Education students gather resources, read, communicate, and share ideas through some sort of electronic device connected via the Web.
Now that we are all educated (adjective) on the term Distance Education. Lets discuss what Moller, Foshay, and Huett have to say about the design of distance learning. Additionally, what Dr. Simonson from Nova Southeastern University has to say about distance education and Equivalency Theory. First, Moller et al brought up an excellent point about qualified teachers and faculty in online education. They argue that while online learning is pertinent to the sustainability of education in the 21st century there appears to be a lack of professionally trained teachers in K-12 grades and faculty in higher education who qualify for online education. Better yet, Moller et al emphasize the need for institutional administrators to provide skill training on Instructional Design methodologies.
Like wise, Simonson (as cited in Laureate Education, Inc., 2008, Podcast) compared distance education to a two-sided coin and elaborated on Equivalency theory in online classes. Dr. Simonson compared distance education to a two-sided coin stating on one side there is distance teaching and on the other side lies distance learning – implying differences in terms and meaning. Similar to the general definition of Distance Education, Simonson recognizes distance education to be learning in an electronic platform and at different global locations. Simonson also concluded that distance education derived from separation of learner, resources, and teachers. In the video segment “Principles of Distance Education”, Dr. Simonson explains Equivalency Theory as an additional process teachers must assume in order to successfully share information and ideas with their online classes versus lecture style in face-to-face classes. Lastly, Dr. Simonson stress the importance of equivalent teaching is to provide a means for increase access to resource materials for online students. At the end of the day, Equivalency Theory state that if in a face-to-face class students have immediate access to learning materials than so to should online students but from a different venue.
References
Dictionary.com, LLC (2012). Dictionary. Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com.
Laureate Education, Inc. (2008). Principles of Distance Education. Baltimore,MD: Author.
Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008, May/June). The evolution of distance education: implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (Part 1: Training and Development). TechTrends, 52(3), 70-75.
Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008, May/June). The evolution of distance education: implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (Part 2: Higher Education). TechTrends, 52(4), 66-70.
Lynda Marshall_Sunday, June 17, 2012
