"Distance Learning Defined"

DISTANCE LEARNING

The definition of distance learning continues to change for a couple of reasons.

First, I think any learning process has to adapt to the learner. In the 21^st century, the learner has changed the way they acquire and process information. They are more versatile and flexible. Most seem to be more hands on and apt to learn by doing and learning from their peers in groups. They view videos and learn information in real time. Since teachers have to be more creative to keep students interested in the material being taught, teachers develop assignments that require the student to be more creative.

Second, as technology continues to evolve, so will the various ways to use it for educational purposes. As I reviewed the Distance Learning Timeline Continuum, in our resources this week, I never thought distance learning spanned from the 1800’s to present day. I thought it had evolved in the late 1980’s, when I assisted in piloting a course for a class at a former employer. “In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the development of fiber optic communication systems allowed for the expansion of live, two-way, high quality audio and video systems in education”. (Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S., 2015).  As an Interior Communication Electrician in the military during this time, we began the installation of fiber optic systems to implement this type of learning and technology to use as well. We were preparing for the 21^st century teacher and leaner, professionally and personally.

I think the changes are based on a person’s profession, technical knowledge and of course, money. I’ve noticed on job announcements where companies solicit specific knowledge that match the technology and programs that they currently use. For example, web design and Captivate are a few skills that some companies are looking for in the instructional design arena. The skills that an Instructional Design (ID) professional acquires are the skills that they currently use at work, school or voluntarily.

The company has pre-determined how much money they are willing to spend on additional programs/ technology because the end result is to develop a quality product with a small budget. More cynical practitioners observe that it often seems that managers or customers care only about the appearance of training. These practitioners argue that managers promote e-learning only because it is relatively cheap to deliver, and it absolves them from the obligation to provide potentially more expensive or involved training. (Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J., 2008).

My personal definition of distance learning is learning that occurs when the instructor and learners are in various places but are connected by some sort of technology. Before this course, I had so many variations of this definition because there are so many phrases that refer to distance learning. I’ve heard people call it distance education, e-learning, on-line learning, webinars and video conferencing just to name a few but they are referring to the same type of learning.

This week the term “distance learning” refers to the method and technology in which it is used to connect the teacher and students. Even though there are many phrases that are used for distance learning they all mean the same thing. Each learning environment has its underlying reasons why they use distance learning but they all want the students to have the best available resources to be successful.

As we move forward with this type of learning and gather information from best practices, this type of learning will become more widely used and will eventually be turned into a blended learning environment. I say that because no one method of teaching will be the ultimate method used. To teach students. More technology to communicate between learners will be needed to simulate the classroom environment in real time. New technology is developed everyday so one of our most difficult challenges will be to keep up with the latest and greatest technology used.

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 (Part 3: K12). TechTrends, 52(5), 63–6 7.

Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (Part 2: Higher education). TechTrends, 52(4), 66-70.

Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008). 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.

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education: Chapter 2, "Definitions, History, and Theories of Distance Education" (pp. 31-40)

Video Program: Laureate Education (Producer). (n.d.). Distance education: The next generation [Video file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu