OMDE 601: Foundations of Distance Education & E-Learning
Assignments and Course Work
OMDE 601 Learning Journals
September 18, 2013:
As my first entry for the OMDE 601 course, I would like to include my initial definition of distance education. This definition is based on my limited knowledge and the reading assignments for the first week of class. As I progress through my MDE, I'm hoping that my definition will evolve as I develop a clearer understanding of distance education.
"Distance Education is the use of discipline-specific materials and technologies through the course of teaching and learning, where the student and professor are in different geographical locations"
September 27, 2013
Upon completion of the first two weeks of class, my understanding of distance education has totally changed. Enrolling in the course, I assumed I would learn teaching techniques and how to properly utilize the technologies available in the most efficient ways possible. However, I learned that the whole concept of distance education goes much deeper than simply teaching and learning. Looking back, it makes total sense. How else could a university develop an entire master's degree program without approaching distance education from an interdisciplinary perspective. Instead of viewing distance education simply from the perspectives of teacher and student, I'm slowly starting to see it from a variety of perspectives. Going forward, I feel I will eventually be able to develop a clear understanding of the concepts that embody distance education..
I consider myself a "professional online course-taker". In the last few years, I've taken well over 30 online courses. In addition, I've taken these courses at three different schools, and each school used a different program. I've been able to observe what works well in a program, and I've seen what doesn't work well. Mostly, I've been able to imagine my own online program that utilizes the successful aspects of each program, creating what I consider to be the "ultimate online classroom". While there is much I have to learn about distance education, from a technical aspect, I believe that I have valuable insight that will benefit me as I delve deeper into the MDE program.
I am a visual and hands-on learner who doesn't benefit from simply reading and retaining information. In order to learn, repetition is vital and I must take what I learn and apply it on a personal level. From a learning perspective, the online environment is perfect for me. I tend to be easily distracted, and creating a successful learning environment for myself has helped me exponentially. Having responsibilities and a family, I can't always commit to being "in class" on a consistent basis. With online courses, I am able to "attend class" whenever and wherever I choose. One of the greatest benefits, in my opinion, is the ability to reflect on the material presented each week in order to develop an insightful discussion posting. In a traditional environment, discussion includes a lot of "on the spot" communication that oftentimes lacks any true reflection or thought. In addition, you have a chance to review what you will say, ensuring you are respectful to the faculty and students in the class. Having taken classes online for as long as I have, I feel I am undoubtedly prepared for learning in an online environment. The online learning preparedness test agreed, confirming that I am a great fit for distance education. It stated that I have a pronounced sense of autonomy and self-direction. Overall, I am excited to see what the next few weeks have in store for me.
October 1, 2013: (Early Evolution of DE)
In the first two weeks of class, I've been presented with a great deal of information. The majority of the information has included different definitions for the term distance education, and has included a detailed history that chronicles how far distance education has come. One thing I didn't realize was that distance education can be traced back as far as 100 years, which was when correspondence education came about. Previously, I was unaware that correspondence education was considered an early form of distance education. I simply related distance education with the Internet and online learning. As a matter of fact, correspondence education has lasted through the first half of the 20th century. In the course readings, authors have referred to time periods within the realm of distance education as pre- and post-industrial. Regardless, it is clear that distance education has been evolving with the comings and goings of innovation and technology. In fact, with the development of the Internet and World Wide Web, distance education saw a dramatic increase in both interest and enrollment. Before this technological advance, one of the greatest obstacles was geographical separation. Really, the only way to communicate was over the phone lines or by mail. The introduction of learning online essentially eliminated this hurdle and education became a possibility for so many people worldwide. Through a pedagogical use of technology to support the overall delivery of distance education, an opportunity arose for new demographics of people to pursue higher education. Currently, new theories and ideas surrounding the potential of distance education have many excited about what the future has in store for this form of education, including myself.
I think it is important to add a list of people that generated theories and ideas that help us understand where distance education began. Two professionals of distance education who agreed on the importance of empathy and the guided didactic conversation were Borje Holmberg and Otto Peters. They realize how powerful empathy and personalized relationships are in a learning environment and how they can help in the learning process. In addition, Peters explains that making content relatable and relating with the student is essential to grasping the audience’s attention, especially during lecture.
October 25, 2013: (Second Wave of Distance Education)
The second wave of distance education brought about great changes, especially regarding theory and technology. Personally, I find this wave to be the most dynamic and interesting. The research professionals have done on this period of distance education history is overwhelmingly innovative. During this time period, there are two distance education professionals that I found the most inspiring: Otto Peters and Börje Holmberg. Otto Peters, a distance education pioneer and theorist, is responsible for his ideas regarding didactical structure and comparative analysis (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 208). In addition, his theory of industrialization contributed to the overall theory of distance teaching. Another author and theorist of distance education, who contributed to theories that developed the second wave, is Börje Holmberg. His theory of guided didactic conversation helped to conceptualize relationships between instructors and students. He explained how an empathetic demeanor can help to humanize the online experience.
During wave 2 there was a great transition in the technologies utilized in distance education. During this time, printed texts became prevalent in all content areas. In addition, there was a conversion to information shared via radio, audio, television, video, telephone, and transmitted via satellite. As a result of these innovative tools, audio and teleconferencing became among the most popular technologies used for dialogue between instructor to student, and student to student (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, pp. 208-210). Around the mid-1980s the first Internet-based courses appeared and in 1990 the World Wide Web launched and, once more, the distance education world was transformed. Distance education was finally at a point where it could serve a larger population of students that longed for higher education, but faced obstacles attending universities in a traditional sense.
One important theory that came out of the second wave was derived by John Dewey, and known as the theory of transactional distance. Moore and Kearsley (2012) define the theory of transactional distance as “the interplay between people who are teachers and learners in environments that have the special characteristic of being separate from one another” (p. 209). Ultimately, the theory explains that the interaction between learners and teachers at a distance is a pedagogical phenomenon (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 209). The theory of transactional distance is broken down into dialogue and structure. Before the development of the Internet and World Wide Web, dialogue was rare as courses through correspondence relied solely on the performance of the student. Now that it is easier to communicate with the instructor and students, dialogue is vital for the overall effectiveness of the course. The other important element of transactional distance is structure; the learning objectives, content themes, information presentations, case studies, pictorial and other illustrations, exercises, projects, and tests (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 211). In order to create a learning environment that is both efficient and inspiring, the structure of the course must be carefully composed by a team of
professionals.
While there is much more that occurred during the second wave, I believe that the more important discoveries involved theory and technology. Professionals like Peters, Holmberg and Moore and Kearsley helped to define a major turning point in distance education history. The theory of transactional distance has been used as the theoretical framework for distance education. As a novice student of distance education, I can only begin to understand the contributions of so many respected professionals of distance education. However, I hope that by learning from those before me, I will be able to make my own contributions one day as well.
Regarding this wave in particular, the group grid we are doing has been a very good learning tool. I found the most interesting aspect of this wave to be Otto Peters. I found his theory of didactical structure and the comparative analysis of distance education to be very interesting. In addition, his contributions to this wave also include his organizational-type theory, which states that distance education is best understood as the application of industrial techniques in the delivery of instruction, and that unless industrial methods are used, distance education will not be successful (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 208). The aspects I found least interesting on the group grid include those situations where government and politics influenced distance education. While I understand that some good came out of their accomplishments, at this moment I am extremely unhappy with our government and would rather not spend time reading about their influences.
I had a couple "a-ha" moments during this wave. One in particular that stands out is the great advances in technology during this period of time. During the second wave, technology grew leaps and bounds compared to the innovations of the first wave, and it was exciting to see how distance education professionals and students reacted to these new tools. It was at this point that I realized just how commanding technological tools are to successful distance education programs. The other "a-ha" moment occurred when I worked on the second writing assignment. Learning how societal issues influence institutions within developed and developing countries was eye-opening. I was unaware that the institution that serves, for example, the majority of Africa enrolls students that have probably never seen a computer, or who may not live in an area where Internet access is available. While working on this assignment, I found myself wondering how I might solve some of the issues that plague students from developing countries.
As far as my original definition goes, I think after studying wave two I may want to make some revisions. My original definition certainly doesn't address some of the aspects of the constructivism theory, which states that the individual has the responsibility for participating in internal and external dialogue to generate knowledge and meaning. My definition doesn't cover the importance of the relationship between instructor and student, which in my opinion is an important aspect when determining whether or not a course is successful. While I address the importance of technology, I think I could go a bit deeper and express how it drives overall program construction and content delivery.
I especially enjoyed the time with Alan Tait in the discussion postings. Mostly, I found myself reading and re-reading his biography. His journey in distance education is fascinating, and I love hearing about other people's adventures. In another course, I had the opportunity to speak with Greville Rumble. With both professionals, I tried to get their perspectives on the following questions: how do you feel about the student/teacher relationship, what was a turning point in their distance education journey, and what advice can you give someone who is pursuing an education in distance education? Because I am hoping to pursue a career teaching distance education courses, I want to get as much information from these professionals as possible.
Going back through the objectives we covered so far in this course, I'm amazed at how much information has been covered. While I'm finding the writing assignments to be a bit difficult, I feel as though the objectives are being fulfilled completely. The reading tasks, skill builders, discussions, and assignments adequately supplement the material in each objective. I feel as though these extra tasks help to reinforce what we are learning, and I feel that it undoubtedly helps me retain what I am learning. I am eager to see where wave three takes us in the distance education world!
References
Moore, M. G., & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance education: A systems view of online learning. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.
November 10, 2013: (Third Wave of Distance Education)
Wave three is exceptionally exciting because it is during this period in distance education history that the Internet emerges as tool that changes the way education is viewed worldwide. In addition, this wave sees a blending of synchronous and asynchronous communication forms. Two of the driving professionals Randy Garrison and Terry Anderson, helped to theoretically define this period of time with a constructivist perspective to teaching and learning. Garrison and Anderson focused on learner autonomy and its relationship to dialogue, concentrating on the learner-teacher relationship in terms of control (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 214). Their sights were set on finding a balanced relationship between facilitator, learner, and curriculum. Students had to construct meaning out of the content while exhibiting socially worthwhile knowledge. With their associate Archer, Garrison and Anderson developed the Community of Inquiry (CoI) Theory, that states there are three types of presence within the online classroom: cognitive presence, social presence, and teacher presence. Any interaction that occurs in a classroom can be attributed to one of the three types presence.
Building on Moore’s three-part model of interaction, Garrison developed six types of transactional relationships, including learner-content, learner-instructor, learner-learner, teacher-content, teacher-teacher, and content-content (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 215). Garrison was concerned with the self-directedness and collaborative construction of new knowledge in the online learning world. Anderson focused more on the economic aspects associated with the three principle modes of interaction. Overall, he felt that one type of interaction could be substituted for another at the same level. However, if two or more of the interaction types are superior than the others, then the student benefits greatly and is more satisfied with their learning experience. This was labeled the Interaction Equivalency Theorem, and claimed that this substitution would result in little loss of educational effectiveness and efficiency. I found the work of these two professionals to be extremely interesting and relevant.
During the third wave, society experienced an increased demand for education in this post-industrialized era. While this meant great things for adults pursuing higher education or additional training in their careers, there was also an increasing demand for education in the realm of K-12 online learning. In addition, the presence of the Internet resulted in changes in the traditional face-to-face classrooms, as teachers utilized technological tools to enhance the learning experience of their students. With the advances, professionals began reassessing teacher-student relationships. Earlier waves focused on student-teacher and student-content interactions, but this wave brought about group interaction. Students were able to work together, bringing about a more community-like feel to the online classroom. This can be accomplished through mediums like teleconferencing technologies, where learning can be stimulating and motivating (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 133). This type of interaction can be extremely valuable, as students create a new dimension of learning that hasn’t been seen in distance education before.
I’m not sure if I had an “a-ha” moment in this wave, but I certainly became enthralled learning about how the Internet transformed distance education. It made me wonder what future advances will change distance education again, and if there is some technology out there to take distance education to the next level or wave. If put in perspective, there have been phenomenal changes in distance education in such a short period of time. The possibilities distance education provides to students like me is nothing short of amazing. Without distance education, I would not have been able to obtain a bachelor’s degree and continue on with my master’s. As I learn more about the history and theories behind today’s distance education, I gain more and more appreciation for this type of learning.
Looking back at my definition and having learned about wave three, I find that there are some additional discrepancies with my definition. Personally, I think it is interesting to be able to reflect upon my initial definition of distance education after learning more and about the topic. However, I’m wondering how I am going to incorporate everything I’ve learned into a one or two sentence definition. With that said, I find that I’ve excluded an important aspect of distance education in my original definition. I wasn’t aware of the importance of relationships and interactions between students, teachers, and content, and I feel the definition should include something that involves that aspect. I’ve realized that with each technological advance, the distance between students-instructors and students-students becomes smaller and smaller. It’s absolutely fascinating, and is exactly why I decided to pursue a degree in distance education.
This week I experienced something that relates to the wave our class is currently working on. According to Norman Vaughan’s (2010) application of the Community of Inquiry (CoI) in an online blended learning environment, he applies the CoI theory to an online learning environment that utilizes both asynchronous and synchronous technologies to contribute to building community in an online environment. Currently, I am enrolled in three graduate-level courses as I pursue my graduate degree in distance education. In all three course, I am actively working on group projects that are all worth a substantial part of my final grade. In OMDE 601, I am utilizing Google docs to work on a project that defines the different waves of distance education. In OMDE 603, we are using Wiki to develop a definition for a term in distance education. In OMDE 606, we are using the collaborative aspect in WebTycho to create a cost analysis project. In each class, we are using technologies to contribute to a more community-like feel in our online classrooms. I am quickly realizing how many different tools can be utilized to enhance group projects and student-student interaction/relationships. While in my OMDE 606 course I am finding that communication is holding our group back, the other two courses are proving to be quite successful and great learning experiences. Synchronously, I am able to actively communicate to my group members with the Google docs technology. It almost feels as though we are working on the project while right next to each other; asking questions and contributing to an active dialogue. It’s amazing that current technologies allow students to be a part of more humanized distance education environments.
References
Moore, M. G. & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance education: A systems view of online learning. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.
Vaughan, N. D. (2010). Blended learning. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison (Eds.), An introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era (pp. 165-178). New York & London: Routledge.
November 21, 2013: (Current Trends)
Throughout this course I was required to work with a few other students to create a revolutionary grid that focused on how distance education has progressed over the years. First of all, I thought this assignment was a great tool to not only help learn the material, but to get the chance to get to know the other students in the class. After the first grid, I quickly realized that we all approached the grid in some very different ways. Some jumped on the assignment quickly, while others waited to fill in where others may have been lacking. Where some of us may have struggled with some of the more technical aspects (APA format, grammar, or even style), others were better at finding those lucrative bits of knowledge that the rest of us couldn’t locate. Throughout the semester I’ve referred back to this grid for help with conference postings and written assignments, and I will be posting a copy of our grid to this ePortfolio so I am able to refer back to it in the future. Overall, this has been a great collaborative learning experience that has been enjoyable to work on.
When it comes to study groups I find myself very torn. I think they are an extremely effective method to create a sense of community among students. This type of activity comes closest to what would be experienced in a face-to-face setting. In order to accomplish a project in a group setting, students have to communicate effectively and often. There has to be a sort of give and take as far as dividing up responsibilities, and oftentimes there are clashes of personalities that must be worked through. In this particular group assignment, I couldn’t have been happier with how it all worked out. At the beginning, there was one student who sort of “took the reins” and filled the role of leader. Responsibilities were divided between the group members, and each of us did a great job, not just with our own responsibilities but with helping each other out as well. I honestly can say that everything worked in this group and there was nothing I would change or suggest to make group projects better learning tools.
With that said, I have had some very unfortunate experiences with group projects in other courses this semester. One of the biggest problems I faced was having member that did not participate or did not complete the job they were assigned to do. In addition, there were also group members that waited until the last minute to try to contribute, putting the rest of the group in uncomfortable positions. In a group assignment for my OMDE 603 course, I was the only one that did any work out of a group of 5. At 6pm on the due date, a few group members had posted comments, but had not completed any of the actual work. Prior to the due date I had sent numerous emails and posted dozens of comments trying to get people involved in the project. Since I go to bed fairly early, the only way I could ensure that the assignment would be complete was to just do the whole thing myself. Fortunately it was an easy assignment, and I was able to complete it in a couple hours. A few days later we received our grade, an 88, and I was not only upset that the grade could have been higher had I received some help, but I was also upset that the rest of the group also received an 88 and had not done any of the work. What I like about this course is that the professor required us to submit a paragraph listing the exact contributions provided by each group member. I feel this tool allows instructors to see who has done what. In addition, it was great that a portion of the grade was based on the contributions of each member; that way fair grades are distributed among the members in a group.
November 25, 2013: Final Reflections
This week we are looking towards the future, imaging what new innovations will bring about change in the distance education world. In the readings this week, it seems as though the majority of change will likely come from a technological standpoint. Recently I watched a speech given by Sherry Turkle, and she reminds us that the Internet is fairly new. We are only beginning to tap into what the Internet and technology as a whole has to provide us. However, she warns of the dangers of totally enveloping oneself into technology so much that we forget to communicate with each other face-to-face. She explains that nowadays people would rather text than talk, send an email instead of placing a call. We are losing touch with the relationships around us. While I agree with her to a certain extent, I don’t feel that I fit into this type that she describes. I have, though, met many people that are exactly how she describes, so she’s not that far off on her description.
In addition this week I enjoyed reading a piece by Evans and Pauling in the Cleveland-Innes and Garrison (2010) text that explains future changes in distance education. Of the changes, they list possibilities like overlapping technologies that connect people, databases and objects; diversity of infrastructure like broadband, broadcasting, smart radio systems, sensor and mesh networks, and satellite services; connectivity through the information processing in everyday objects and activities; enhanced content and network management capabilities driven by content filtering technologies with improvement in security; emerging social web activity as a platform and database, which encourages innovation and creativity by users and service providers; and continuing scientific and technological innovations that drive advances in power, display technologies, artificial intelligence and nanotechnology (p. 201). Evans and Pauling (2010) also state the following regarding technology and DE: “effectively distance education, and higher education generally, are entangled in a double helix of spiraling technological change linked with perpetual obsolescence as ‘continuing scientific and technological innovations’ create discontinuity, and uncertainty and risk in what is becoming an increasingly technologically dependent sector” (p. 201).
In addition to technology, there will be great changes in educational institutions that will affect DE and higher education. Evans and Pauling (2010) state that with the effects of globalization, there will also be effects related to political, economic and cultural changes facing individuals and society as a whole. The pressures are generational, technological and cultural, and some believe this could lead to dangerous changes, though not everyone agrees (Evans & Pauling, 2010, p. 210). However, some believe that education, or the business of higher education, is governed by three elements: number of enrollments, cost of gaining students, and student retention (2010, p. 210). Evans and Pauling (2010) add that “bricks and mortar” institutions may only be part of the knowledge-producing centers, better able to cope with technological obsolescence and other legacy issues, a better understanding of screen technologies that consume young people’s time and the resources to attract and keep a young audience (p. 212). Personally, I find all of this absolutely interesting, and can’t wait to become a part of it.
I found another of the required readings to be so interesting that I wanted to post the link here so I can refer to it in the future. The link is: http://www.box.com/shared/2m5j941mub The link takes you to a written piece by Ulrich Bernath and Eugene Rubin (2003), titled The Online Master of Distance Education (MDE): Its History and Realization. The part I thought was the most important was “1.2 Experiences from the Virtual Seminar”(p. 13). It includes experiences like team-teaching across time zones, knowledge-building communities, cross-cultural dialogue, new interpretations of “activity” in a virtual seminar, and the impact of new technology (pp. 13-17).
This is the last week of my first semester pursuing my MDE, and I’ve learned much more than I ever imagined I would. My experience in this class alone has been wonderful, and I’m looking forward to another semester in the spring. I feel that this course has prepared me for the courses to come, and I’m hopeful that my experiences will continue to be more amazing than I had anticipated. I want to send a big thanks to the instructor and those that supported her throughout the semester. I’m grateful for your guidance and support, and will continue to use what I learned in this course in the future and for the rest of my life.
References
Bernath, U.,& Rubin, E. (2003). The online master of distance education (MDE): Its history and realization. In U. Bernath, & E. Rubin (Eds.), Reflections on teaching and learning in an online master program: A case study (pp. 9-50). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg. Available from http://www.box.com/shared/2m5j941mub
Evans, T., & Pauling, B. (2010). The future of distance education. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison (Eds.), An introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era (pp. 198-223). New York & London: Routledge.
Turkle, S. (2013, November 20). Why we expect more from technology and less from each other [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtLVCpZIiNs
November 27, 2013: Distance Education Definition
At the beginning of the semester we were required to write, what we thought, was the definition of distance education. Throughout the semester I found that my definition was lacking some vital components that would make my definition more accurate. The original definition I wrote was:
"Distance education is the use of discipline-specific materials and technologies through the course of teaching and learning, where the student and professor are in different geographic locations."
My new definition encompasses a great deal of what I learned was important to distance education as a whole. I'm hoping that I was able to define distance education in a way that is clear and respectable. I am very proud of this definition, and feel it is the product of all I have learned this semester. My new definition is:
"Distance education is the use of discipline-specific materials and fluid technological innovations through the course of teaching and learning, where distance is made irrelevant and relationships between participants are vital in the quest to develop meaningful understandings that transcend the limitations of an online environment."
As my first entry for the OMDE 601 course, I would like to include my initial definition of distance education. This definition is based on my limited knowledge and the reading assignments for the first week of class. As I progress through my MDE, I'm hoping that my definition will evolve as I develop a clearer understanding of distance education.
"Distance Education is the use of discipline-specific materials and technologies through the course of teaching and learning, where the student and professor are in different geographical locations"
September 27, 2013
Upon completion of the first two weeks of class, my understanding of distance education has totally changed. Enrolling in the course, I assumed I would learn teaching techniques and how to properly utilize the technologies available in the most efficient ways possible. However, I learned that the whole concept of distance education goes much deeper than simply teaching and learning. Looking back, it makes total sense. How else could a university develop an entire master's degree program without approaching distance education from an interdisciplinary perspective. Instead of viewing distance education simply from the perspectives of teacher and student, I'm slowly starting to see it from a variety of perspectives. Going forward, I feel I will eventually be able to develop a clear understanding of the concepts that embody distance education..
I consider myself a "professional online course-taker". In the last few years, I've taken well over 30 online courses. In addition, I've taken these courses at three different schools, and each school used a different program. I've been able to observe what works well in a program, and I've seen what doesn't work well. Mostly, I've been able to imagine my own online program that utilizes the successful aspects of each program, creating what I consider to be the "ultimate online classroom". While there is much I have to learn about distance education, from a technical aspect, I believe that I have valuable insight that will benefit me as I delve deeper into the MDE program.
I am a visual and hands-on learner who doesn't benefit from simply reading and retaining information. In order to learn, repetition is vital and I must take what I learn and apply it on a personal level. From a learning perspective, the online environment is perfect for me. I tend to be easily distracted, and creating a successful learning environment for myself has helped me exponentially. Having responsibilities and a family, I can't always commit to being "in class" on a consistent basis. With online courses, I am able to "attend class" whenever and wherever I choose. One of the greatest benefits, in my opinion, is the ability to reflect on the material presented each week in order to develop an insightful discussion posting. In a traditional environment, discussion includes a lot of "on the spot" communication that oftentimes lacks any true reflection or thought. In addition, you have a chance to review what you will say, ensuring you are respectful to the faculty and students in the class. Having taken classes online for as long as I have, I feel I am undoubtedly prepared for learning in an online environment. The online learning preparedness test agreed, confirming that I am a great fit for distance education. It stated that I have a pronounced sense of autonomy and self-direction. Overall, I am excited to see what the next few weeks have in store for me.
October 1, 2013: (Early Evolution of DE)
In the first two weeks of class, I've been presented with a great deal of information. The majority of the information has included different definitions for the term distance education, and has included a detailed history that chronicles how far distance education has come. One thing I didn't realize was that distance education can be traced back as far as 100 years, which was when correspondence education came about. Previously, I was unaware that correspondence education was considered an early form of distance education. I simply related distance education with the Internet and online learning. As a matter of fact, correspondence education has lasted through the first half of the 20th century. In the course readings, authors have referred to time periods within the realm of distance education as pre- and post-industrial. Regardless, it is clear that distance education has been evolving with the comings and goings of innovation and technology. In fact, with the development of the Internet and World Wide Web, distance education saw a dramatic increase in both interest and enrollment. Before this technological advance, one of the greatest obstacles was geographical separation. Really, the only way to communicate was over the phone lines or by mail. The introduction of learning online essentially eliminated this hurdle and education became a possibility for so many people worldwide. Through a pedagogical use of technology to support the overall delivery of distance education, an opportunity arose for new demographics of people to pursue higher education. Currently, new theories and ideas surrounding the potential of distance education have many excited about what the future has in store for this form of education, including myself.
I think it is important to add a list of people that generated theories and ideas that help us understand where distance education began. Two professionals of distance education who agreed on the importance of empathy and the guided didactic conversation were Borje Holmberg and Otto Peters. They realize how powerful empathy and personalized relationships are in a learning environment and how they can help in the learning process. In addition, Peters explains that making content relatable and relating with the student is essential to grasping the audience’s attention, especially during lecture.
October 25, 2013: (Second Wave of Distance Education)
The second wave of distance education brought about great changes, especially regarding theory and technology. Personally, I find this wave to be the most dynamic and interesting. The research professionals have done on this period of distance education history is overwhelmingly innovative. During this time period, there are two distance education professionals that I found the most inspiring: Otto Peters and Börje Holmberg. Otto Peters, a distance education pioneer and theorist, is responsible for his ideas regarding didactical structure and comparative analysis (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 208). In addition, his theory of industrialization contributed to the overall theory of distance teaching. Another author and theorist of distance education, who contributed to theories that developed the second wave, is Börje Holmberg. His theory of guided didactic conversation helped to conceptualize relationships between instructors and students. He explained how an empathetic demeanor can help to humanize the online experience.
During wave 2 there was a great transition in the technologies utilized in distance education. During this time, printed texts became prevalent in all content areas. In addition, there was a conversion to information shared via radio, audio, television, video, telephone, and transmitted via satellite. As a result of these innovative tools, audio and teleconferencing became among the most popular technologies used for dialogue between instructor to student, and student to student (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, pp. 208-210). Around the mid-1980s the first Internet-based courses appeared and in 1990 the World Wide Web launched and, once more, the distance education world was transformed. Distance education was finally at a point where it could serve a larger population of students that longed for higher education, but faced obstacles attending universities in a traditional sense.
One important theory that came out of the second wave was derived by John Dewey, and known as the theory of transactional distance. Moore and Kearsley (2012) define the theory of transactional distance as “the interplay between people who are teachers and learners in environments that have the special characteristic of being separate from one another” (p. 209). Ultimately, the theory explains that the interaction between learners and teachers at a distance is a pedagogical phenomenon (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 209). The theory of transactional distance is broken down into dialogue and structure. Before the development of the Internet and World Wide Web, dialogue was rare as courses through correspondence relied solely on the performance of the student. Now that it is easier to communicate with the instructor and students, dialogue is vital for the overall effectiveness of the course. The other important element of transactional distance is structure; the learning objectives, content themes, information presentations, case studies, pictorial and other illustrations, exercises, projects, and tests (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 211). In order to create a learning environment that is both efficient and inspiring, the structure of the course must be carefully composed by a team of
professionals.
While there is much more that occurred during the second wave, I believe that the more important discoveries involved theory and technology. Professionals like Peters, Holmberg and Moore and Kearsley helped to define a major turning point in distance education history. The theory of transactional distance has been used as the theoretical framework for distance education. As a novice student of distance education, I can only begin to understand the contributions of so many respected professionals of distance education. However, I hope that by learning from those before me, I will be able to make my own contributions one day as well.
Regarding this wave in particular, the group grid we are doing has been a very good learning tool. I found the most interesting aspect of this wave to be Otto Peters. I found his theory of didactical structure and the comparative analysis of distance education to be very interesting. In addition, his contributions to this wave also include his organizational-type theory, which states that distance education is best understood as the application of industrial techniques in the delivery of instruction, and that unless industrial methods are used, distance education will not be successful (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 208). The aspects I found least interesting on the group grid include those situations where government and politics influenced distance education. While I understand that some good came out of their accomplishments, at this moment I am extremely unhappy with our government and would rather not spend time reading about their influences.
I had a couple "a-ha" moments during this wave. One in particular that stands out is the great advances in technology during this period of time. During the second wave, technology grew leaps and bounds compared to the innovations of the first wave, and it was exciting to see how distance education professionals and students reacted to these new tools. It was at this point that I realized just how commanding technological tools are to successful distance education programs. The other "a-ha" moment occurred when I worked on the second writing assignment. Learning how societal issues influence institutions within developed and developing countries was eye-opening. I was unaware that the institution that serves, for example, the majority of Africa enrolls students that have probably never seen a computer, or who may not live in an area where Internet access is available. While working on this assignment, I found myself wondering how I might solve some of the issues that plague students from developing countries.
As far as my original definition goes, I think after studying wave two I may want to make some revisions. My original definition certainly doesn't address some of the aspects of the constructivism theory, which states that the individual has the responsibility for participating in internal and external dialogue to generate knowledge and meaning. My definition doesn't cover the importance of the relationship between instructor and student, which in my opinion is an important aspect when determining whether or not a course is successful. While I address the importance of technology, I think I could go a bit deeper and express how it drives overall program construction and content delivery.
I especially enjoyed the time with Alan Tait in the discussion postings. Mostly, I found myself reading and re-reading his biography. His journey in distance education is fascinating, and I love hearing about other people's adventures. In another course, I had the opportunity to speak with Greville Rumble. With both professionals, I tried to get their perspectives on the following questions: how do you feel about the student/teacher relationship, what was a turning point in their distance education journey, and what advice can you give someone who is pursuing an education in distance education? Because I am hoping to pursue a career teaching distance education courses, I want to get as much information from these professionals as possible.
Going back through the objectives we covered so far in this course, I'm amazed at how much information has been covered. While I'm finding the writing assignments to be a bit difficult, I feel as though the objectives are being fulfilled completely. The reading tasks, skill builders, discussions, and assignments adequately supplement the material in each objective. I feel as though these extra tasks help to reinforce what we are learning, and I feel that it undoubtedly helps me retain what I am learning. I am eager to see where wave three takes us in the distance education world!
References
Moore, M. G., & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance education: A systems view of online learning. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.
November 10, 2013: (Third Wave of Distance Education)
Wave three is exceptionally exciting because it is during this period in distance education history that the Internet emerges as tool that changes the way education is viewed worldwide. In addition, this wave sees a blending of synchronous and asynchronous communication forms. Two of the driving professionals Randy Garrison and Terry Anderson, helped to theoretically define this period of time with a constructivist perspective to teaching and learning. Garrison and Anderson focused on learner autonomy and its relationship to dialogue, concentrating on the learner-teacher relationship in terms of control (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 214). Their sights were set on finding a balanced relationship between facilitator, learner, and curriculum. Students had to construct meaning out of the content while exhibiting socially worthwhile knowledge. With their associate Archer, Garrison and Anderson developed the Community of Inquiry (CoI) Theory, that states there are three types of presence within the online classroom: cognitive presence, social presence, and teacher presence. Any interaction that occurs in a classroom can be attributed to one of the three types presence.
Building on Moore’s three-part model of interaction, Garrison developed six types of transactional relationships, including learner-content, learner-instructor, learner-learner, teacher-content, teacher-teacher, and content-content (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 215). Garrison was concerned with the self-directedness and collaborative construction of new knowledge in the online learning world. Anderson focused more on the economic aspects associated with the three principle modes of interaction. Overall, he felt that one type of interaction could be substituted for another at the same level. However, if two or more of the interaction types are superior than the others, then the student benefits greatly and is more satisfied with their learning experience. This was labeled the Interaction Equivalency Theorem, and claimed that this substitution would result in little loss of educational effectiveness and efficiency. I found the work of these two professionals to be extremely interesting and relevant.
During the third wave, society experienced an increased demand for education in this post-industrialized era. While this meant great things for adults pursuing higher education or additional training in their careers, there was also an increasing demand for education in the realm of K-12 online learning. In addition, the presence of the Internet resulted in changes in the traditional face-to-face classrooms, as teachers utilized technological tools to enhance the learning experience of their students. With the advances, professionals began reassessing teacher-student relationships. Earlier waves focused on student-teacher and student-content interactions, but this wave brought about group interaction. Students were able to work together, bringing about a more community-like feel to the online classroom. This can be accomplished through mediums like teleconferencing technologies, where learning can be stimulating and motivating (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 133). This type of interaction can be extremely valuable, as students create a new dimension of learning that hasn’t been seen in distance education before.
I’m not sure if I had an “a-ha” moment in this wave, but I certainly became enthralled learning about how the Internet transformed distance education. It made me wonder what future advances will change distance education again, and if there is some technology out there to take distance education to the next level or wave. If put in perspective, there have been phenomenal changes in distance education in such a short period of time. The possibilities distance education provides to students like me is nothing short of amazing. Without distance education, I would not have been able to obtain a bachelor’s degree and continue on with my master’s. As I learn more about the history and theories behind today’s distance education, I gain more and more appreciation for this type of learning.
Looking back at my definition and having learned about wave three, I find that there are some additional discrepancies with my definition. Personally, I think it is interesting to be able to reflect upon my initial definition of distance education after learning more and about the topic. However, I’m wondering how I am going to incorporate everything I’ve learned into a one or two sentence definition. With that said, I find that I’ve excluded an important aspect of distance education in my original definition. I wasn’t aware of the importance of relationships and interactions between students, teachers, and content, and I feel the definition should include something that involves that aspect. I’ve realized that with each technological advance, the distance between students-instructors and students-students becomes smaller and smaller. It’s absolutely fascinating, and is exactly why I decided to pursue a degree in distance education.
This week I experienced something that relates to the wave our class is currently working on. According to Norman Vaughan’s (2010) application of the Community of Inquiry (CoI) in an online blended learning environment, he applies the CoI theory to an online learning environment that utilizes both asynchronous and synchronous technologies to contribute to building community in an online environment. Currently, I am enrolled in three graduate-level courses as I pursue my graduate degree in distance education. In all three course, I am actively working on group projects that are all worth a substantial part of my final grade. In OMDE 601, I am utilizing Google docs to work on a project that defines the different waves of distance education. In OMDE 603, we are using Wiki to develop a definition for a term in distance education. In OMDE 606, we are using the collaborative aspect in WebTycho to create a cost analysis project. In each class, we are using technologies to contribute to a more community-like feel in our online classrooms. I am quickly realizing how many different tools can be utilized to enhance group projects and student-student interaction/relationships. While in my OMDE 606 course I am finding that communication is holding our group back, the other two courses are proving to be quite successful and great learning experiences. Synchronously, I am able to actively communicate to my group members with the Google docs technology. It almost feels as though we are working on the project while right next to each other; asking questions and contributing to an active dialogue. It’s amazing that current technologies allow students to be a part of more humanized distance education environments.
References
Moore, M. G. & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance education: A systems view of online learning. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.
Vaughan, N. D. (2010). Blended learning. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison (Eds.), An introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era (pp. 165-178). New York & London: Routledge.
November 21, 2013: (Current Trends)
Throughout this course I was required to work with a few other students to create a revolutionary grid that focused on how distance education has progressed over the years. First of all, I thought this assignment was a great tool to not only help learn the material, but to get the chance to get to know the other students in the class. After the first grid, I quickly realized that we all approached the grid in some very different ways. Some jumped on the assignment quickly, while others waited to fill in where others may have been lacking. Where some of us may have struggled with some of the more technical aspects (APA format, grammar, or even style), others were better at finding those lucrative bits of knowledge that the rest of us couldn’t locate. Throughout the semester I’ve referred back to this grid for help with conference postings and written assignments, and I will be posting a copy of our grid to this ePortfolio so I am able to refer back to it in the future. Overall, this has been a great collaborative learning experience that has been enjoyable to work on.
When it comes to study groups I find myself very torn. I think they are an extremely effective method to create a sense of community among students. This type of activity comes closest to what would be experienced in a face-to-face setting. In order to accomplish a project in a group setting, students have to communicate effectively and often. There has to be a sort of give and take as far as dividing up responsibilities, and oftentimes there are clashes of personalities that must be worked through. In this particular group assignment, I couldn’t have been happier with how it all worked out. At the beginning, there was one student who sort of “took the reins” and filled the role of leader. Responsibilities were divided between the group members, and each of us did a great job, not just with our own responsibilities but with helping each other out as well. I honestly can say that everything worked in this group and there was nothing I would change or suggest to make group projects better learning tools.
With that said, I have had some very unfortunate experiences with group projects in other courses this semester. One of the biggest problems I faced was having member that did not participate or did not complete the job they were assigned to do. In addition, there were also group members that waited until the last minute to try to contribute, putting the rest of the group in uncomfortable positions. In a group assignment for my OMDE 603 course, I was the only one that did any work out of a group of 5. At 6pm on the due date, a few group members had posted comments, but had not completed any of the actual work. Prior to the due date I had sent numerous emails and posted dozens of comments trying to get people involved in the project. Since I go to bed fairly early, the only way I could ensure that the assignment would be complete was to just do the whole thing myself. Fortunately it was an easy assignment, and I was able to complete it in a couple hours. A few days later we received our grade, an 88, and I was not only upset that the grade could have been higher had I received some help, but I was also upset that the rest of the group also received an 88 and had not done any of the work. What I like about this course is that the professor required us to submit a paragraph listing the exact contributions provided by each group member. I feel this tool allows instructors to see who has done what. In addition, it was great that a portion of the grade was based on the contributions of each member; that way fair grades are distributed among the members in a group.
November 25, 2013: Final Reflections
This week we are looking towards the future, imaging what new innovations will bring about change in the distance education world. In the readings this week, it seems as though the majority of change will likely come from a technological standpoint. Recently I watched a speech given by Sherry Turkle, and she reminds us that the Internet is fairly new. We are only beginning to tap into what the Internet and technology as a whole has to provide us. However, she warns of the dangers of totally enveloping oneself into technology so much that we forget to communicate with each other face-to-face. She explains that nowadays people would rather text than talk, send an email instead of placing a call. We are losing touch with the relationships around us. While I agree with her to a certain extent, I don’t feel that I fit into this type that she describes. I have, though, met many people that are exactly how she describes, so she’s not that far off on her description.
In addition this week I enjoyed reading a piece by Evans and Pauling in the Cleveland-Innes and Garrison (2010) text that explains future changes in distance education. Of the changes, they list possibilities like overlapping technologies that connect people, databases and objects; diversity of infrastructure like broadband, broadcasting, smart radio systems, sensor and mesh networks, and satellite services; connectivity through the information processing in everyday objects and activities; enhanced content and network management capabilities driven by content filtering technologies with improvement in security; emerging social web activity as a platform and database, which encourages innovation and creativity by users and service providers; and continuing scientific and technological innovations that drive advances in power, display technologies, artificial intelligence and nanotechnology (p. 201). Evans and Pauling (2010) also state the following regarding technology and DE: “effectively distance education, and higher education generally, are entangled in a double helix of spiraling technological change linked with perpetual obsolescence as ‘continuing scientific and technological innovations’ create discontinuity, and uncertainty and risk in what is becoming an increasingly technologically dependent sector” (p. 201).
In addition to technology, there will be great changes in educational institutions that will affect DE and higher education. Evans and Pauling (2010) state that with the effects of globalization, there will also be effects related to political, economic and cultural changes facing individuals and society as a whole. The pressures are generational, technological and cultural, and some believe this could lead to dangerous changes, though not everyone agrees (Evans & Pauling, 2010, p. 210). However, some believe that education, or the business of higher education, is governed by three elements: number of enrollments, cost of gaining students, and student retention (2010, p. 210). Evans and Pauling (2010) add that “bricks and mortar” institutions may only be part of the knowledge-producing centers, better able to cope with technological obsolescence and other legacy issues, a better understanding of screen technologies that consume young people’s time and the resources to attract and keep a young audience (p. 212). Personally, I find all of this absolutely interesting, and can’t wait to become a part of it.
I found another of the required readings to be so interesting that I wanted to post the link here so I can refer to it in the future. The link is: http://www.box.com/shared/2m5j941mub The link takes you to a written piece by Ulrich Bernath and Eugene Rubin (2003), titled The Online Master of Distance Education (MDE): Its History and Realization. The part I thought was the most important was “1.2 Experiences from the Virtual Seminar”(p. 13). It includes experiences like team-teaching across time zones, knowledge-building communities, cross-cultural dialogue, new interpretations of “activity” in a virtual seminar, and the impact of new technology (pp. 13-17).
This is the last week of my first semester pursuing my MDE, and I’ve learned much more than I ever imagined I would. My experience in this class alone has been wonderful, and I’m looking forward to another semester in the spring. I feel that this course has prepared me for the courses to come, and I’m hopeful that my experiences will continue to be more amazing than I had anticipated. I want to send a big thanks to the instructor and those that supported her throughout the semester. I’m grateful for your guidance and support, and will continue to use what I learned in this course in the future and for the rest of my life.
References
Bernath, U.,& Rubin, E. (2003). The online master of distance education (MDE): Its history and realization. In U. Bernath, & E. Rubin (Eds.), Reflections on teaching and learning in an online master program: A case study (pp. 9-50). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg. Available from http://www.box.com/shared/2m5j941mub
Evans, T., & Pauling, B. (2010). The future of distance education. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison (Eds.), An introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era (pp. 198-223). New York & London: Routledge.
Turkle, S. (2013, November 20). Why we expect more from technology and less from each other [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtLVCpZIiNs
November 27, 2013: Distance Education Definition
At the beginning of the semester we were required to write, what we thought, was the definition of distance education. Throughout the semester I found that my definition was lacking some vital components that would make my definition more accurate. The original definition I wrote was:
"Distance education is the use of discipline-specific materials and technologies through the course of teaching and learning, where the student and professor are in different geographic locations."
My new definition encompasses a great deal of what I learned was important to distance education as a whole. I'm hoping that I was able to define distance education in a way that is clear and respectable. I am very proud of this definition, and feel it is the product of all I have learned this semester. My new definition is:
"Distance education is the use of discipline-specific materials and fluid technological innovations through the course of teaching and learning, where distance is made irrelevant and relationships between participants are vital in the quest to develop meaningful understandings that transcend the limitations of an online environment."