OMDE 601 - Distance Education
My definition of distance education is instructing and learning conducted at a distance. It is the ability to receive and respond to instruction and this interaction exists between the student and professor/educator located in different places and time zones.
First Wave
Journaling is not an activity that I practice in my everyday life. However, I think it plays an important role in one’s
professional and academic life because it is a means of reflecting on one’s learning and professional growth and may be used as a gauge for both. Two weeks into my MDE program I have been learning about the history of Distance Education (DE) in OMDE601 and have been gaining an understanding and appreciation for the complex field of DE. Five years ago my conversations regarding enrolling in a DE course always ended in “absolutely no way!”, because I thought I was the type of learner who needed face-to-face (f2f) instruction in order to learn effectively. While I feel that blended learning would be better suitable for me, it would be extremely difficult to transfer to a traditional classroom again because of my schedule as a working single mom.
I was rather intrigued however, with the idea of instructing and learning conducted at a distance where professors and peers could be thousands of miles away from each other. That was basically my definition of distance education which has since evolved to include different facets of this style of teaching and learning. For example, I only associated DE with the internet and online learning having no idea of the historical context of this mode of teaching and learning. DE has evolved over several generations or waves beginning with print in the first wave when the technology was the postal service. This was known as correspondence education at the time. Though this form of education is still in existence today, it has evolved greatly to include the use of the internet as I am experiencing it today and it will continue to evolve as technology advances. Through the readings and discussions I learnt what it really meant to be a correspondent student in the early (and humble) beginnings of DE. I tried to imagine being in a program that I had to wait on snail mail to deliver my studies both ways and have such a huge lag time in between, not having the luxury of receiving feedback from my professor in a timely manner.
There have been much discourse about DE among scholars to the point where it became a topic in itself. A few of the terms used to refer to DE were already familiar to me such as online learning and e-learning. Moore and Kearsley (2012) stated that DE is “superior” and is the umbrella under which all other terms are covered (p. 3). My peers and I had the opportunity during this first wave to interact with one of the DE scholars, Professor Otto Peters over the course of a few days. That in itself was an honor and I remember his interview and writings on his theory of industrialization in the evolution of DE helped to put things in perspective in a way that made sense to me. I have a great appreciation for the early pioneers of this field of education who have conducted much research and tested theories that are used today by practitioners in the field. In my opinion they have made it possible to understand the various systems necessary to create effective DE programs and to present a historical context to the many facets of DE.
The course also required us to work collaboratively as a team and though we’ve had our challenges within our group, we always seemed to be able to come together to get the job done. I’ve had my challenges since the beginning of this course with computer and personal issues but have tried to stay on top of my tasks within the group even at the risk of putting my individual work on the back burner. Withe the responsibilities of being working adults and with children in most cases. it can be quite challenging to be assigned to group assignments because every member is at a different pace in their studies and learning and life's demands and time zones makes it difficult to meet obligations and deadlines. However, I think my group has a great dynamic though it has been proving a bit challenging to synchronize our schedules to have meetings and meet deadlines.
Reference
Moore, M. G.,& Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance education: A systems view of online learning. USA:
Wadsworth-Cengage Learning.
professional and academic life because it is a means of reflecting on one’s learning and professional growth and may be used as a gauge for both. Two weeks into my MDE program I have been learning about the history of Distance Education (DE) in OMDE601 and have been gaining an understanding and appreciation for the complex field of DE. Five years ago my conversations regarding enrolling in a DE course always ended in “absolutely no way!”, because I thought I was the type of learner who needed face-to-face (f2f) instruction in order to learn effectively. While I feel that blended learning would be better suitable for me, it would be extremely difficult to transfer to a traditional classroom again because of my schedule as a working single mom.
I was rather intrigued however, with the idea of instructing and learning conducted at a distance where professors and peers could be thousands of miles away from each other. That was basically my definition of distance education which has since evolved to include different facets of this style of teaching and learning. For example, I only associated DE with the internet and online learning having no idea of the historical context of this mode of teaching and learning. DE has evolved over several generations or waves beginning with print in the first wave when the technology was the postal service. This was known as correspondence education at the time. Though this form of education is still in existence today, it has evolved greatly to include the use of the internet as I am experiencing it today and it will continue to evolve as technology advances. Through the readings and discussions I learnt what it really meant to be a correspondent student in the early (and humble) beginnings of DE. I tried to imagine being in a program that I had to wait on snail mail to deliver my studies both ways and have such a huge lag time in between, not having the luxury of receiving feedback from my professor in a timely manner.
There have been much discourse about DE among scholars to the point where it became a topic in itself. A few of the terms used to refer to DE were already familiar to me such as online learning and e-learning. Moore and Kearsley (2012) stated that DE is “superior” and is the umbrella under which all other terms are covered (p. 3). My peers and I had the opportunity during this first wave to interact with one of the DE scholars, Professor Otto Peters over the course of a few days. That in itself was an honor and I remember his interview and writings on his theory of industrialization in the evolution of DE helped to put things in perspective in a way that made sense to me. I have a great appreciation for the early pioneers of this field of education who have conducted much research and tested theories that are used today by practitioners in the field. In my opinion they have made it possible to understand the various systems necessary to create effective DE programs and to present a historical context to the many facets of DE.
The course also required us to work collaboratively as a team and though we’ve had our challenges within our group, we always seemed to be able to come together to get the job done. I’ve had my challenges since the beginning of this course with computer and personal issues but have tried to stay on top of my tasks within the group even at the risk of putting my individual work on the back burner. Withe the responsibilities of being working adults and with children in most cases. it can be quite challenging to be assigned to group assignments because every member is at a different pace in their studies and learning and life's demands and time zones makes it difficult to meet obligations and deadlines. However, I think my group has a great dynamic though it has been proving a bit challenging to synchronize our schedules to have meetings and meet deadlines.
Reference
Moore, M. G.,& Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance education: A systems view of online learning. USA:
Wadsworth-Cengage Learning.
Second Wave
Wave 2 of DE that highlighted the development of open universities, technological advancements and a shift in teaching and learning. Just prior to starting this program I had been hearing bits and pieces about open courseware (or to be more exact, “free online courses”) and I did not quite understand the whole concept and if that was the case, why was I paying for an education. So what was the catch? There must be a catch. However, through the required readings and videos with scholars like Professors Tony Bates as well as Alan Tait, I have a much clearer understanding of the purpose and history of open universities. Professor Bates gave the history in his short video and I took away so much from what he stated. In his industrialization theory, Peters (2010) described the OUs as the greatest achievement of that era. I compare the struggles and emergence of the OUs to the civil rights movement; for the uplifting of those who were under-represented and prohibited from seeking a higher education.
There is so much more involved in DE than it just being instruction and learning conducted at a distance as was my original definition. It is a much larger complex field of education that has so many different parts making up the whole. Different authors research different aspects of DE and there are so many theories and pedagogies related to the field and various system approaches that need to be considered. It makes me rethink my definition of DE and although I know there is so much more involved, I’m still not sure how to best reword my definition to incorporate the full essence of what DE really entails. Because in essence, it still is instruction and learning conducted at a distance. Still thinking…
This phase of completing our group grid was also a challenging one for us because so much seemed to be happening in the personal lives of the members of our group making it a challenge to meet deadlines. I understand this falls within the constructivist theory of DE and while it is rather important in the pedagogy of the field, it is also one aspect of online education I’m not particularly fond of. Why? Not because I am a selfish or anti-social person, not in the least, but because it can be stressful wanting to meet deadlines and
not disappointing the group when one is under a lot of personal pressure to stay on task. It is important to keep in constant communication with group members so each member knows what’s happening and work as a team to get the task done if someone is having a harder time staying on task.
The planned goals and objectives for this class are very clear and specific and in reviewing them against what we have accomplished so far in the course I can say that we have been on task and accomplishing each one. I have acquired a few more new skills and tools for my toolbox and have revisited some old ones as well. I have introduced the idea of mapping to a friend who wants to incorporate the idea for brainstorming on projects and I have actually been required to use twitter and have become more open to the idea of incorporating it in my professional life. My area of weakness is in research and writing which are two very critical areas in
higher education and of such I was not very keen on the annotated bibliography which I have done before in my library class in 2009. However, these are areas in which I hope to become stronger as my education progresses. As such, I also find the learner support area of the conferences to be very useful.
There is so much more involved in DE than it just being instruction and learning conducted at a distance as was my original definition. It is a much larger complex field of education that has so many different parts making up the whole. Different authors research different aspects of DE and there are so many theories and pedagogies related to the field and various system approaches that need to be considered. It makes me rethink my definition of DE and although I know there is so much more involved, I’m still not sure how to best reword my definition to incorporate the full essence of what DE really entails. Because in essence, it still is instruction and learning conducted at a distance. Still thinking…
This phase of completing our group grid was also a challenging one for us because so much seemed to be happening in the personal lives of the members of our group making it a challenge to meet deadlines. I understand this falls within the constructivist theory of DE and while it is rather important in the pedagogy of the field, it is also one aspect of online education I’m not particularly fond of. Why? Not because I am a selfish or anti-social person, not in the least, but because it can be stressful wanting to meet deadlines and
not disappointing the group when one is under a lot of personal pressure to stay on task. It is important to keep in constant communication with group members so each member knows what’s happening and work as a team to get the task done if someone is having a harder time staying on task.
The planned goals and objectives for this class are very clear and specific and in reviewing them against what we have accomplished so far in the course I can say that we have been on task and accomplishing each one. I have acquired a few more new skills and tools for my toolbox and have revisited some old ones as well. I have introduced the idea of mapping to a friend who wants to incorporate the idea for brainstorming on projects and I have actually been required to use twitter and have become more open to the idea of incorporating it in my professional life. My area of weakness is in research and writing which are two very critical areas in
higher education and of such I was not very keen on the annotated bibliography which I have done before in my library class in 2009. However, these are areas in which I hope to become stronger as my education progresses. As such, I also find the learner support area of the conferences to be very useful.
Third Wave
It's becoming very evident to me that no matter how many technological tools or theories emerge, they are in effect building upon their predecessors. Synnchronous and asynchronous technologies that emerged during the second wave are just evolving during the third wave with faster more effective tools that are used in DE. Had it not been for such technological advancements I would not have been able to use this medium for my ePortfolio nor would I have the benefit of achieving a higher education via UMUC's Webtycho platform. The biggest technology that emerged and utilized to transform this educational landscape is the Internet. At least that is my opinion and I'd love to hear an argument to refute that.
The emergence of the internet has opened up a whole world of opportunities not just on the educational landscape and although each technology builds upon the first, the internet has made a major impact on DE. This is where there seemed to be some confusion for some (ok, maybe just me) about the thin line between DE and online learning which Karen Swan (2010) separates as pre-industrial and post-industrial education. Garrison and Cleveland (2010) also pointed out that communications technology paved the way for the application of the constructivist theory and that was where the line was drawn between pre and post-industrial eras. Swan's reading allowed me to see the reason for the separation. The possibilities are now endless with self-paced, self-directed learning and constructivist learning among other theories on learning. The internet brought with it a major pedagogical shift where teaching and learning moved fom being teacher-centered to more learner-centered. It allowed for the constructivist model of learning which was simply collaboration between learners facilitating active learning.
The constructivist theory in DE is am important one in DE although I know of peers who would rather work autonomously than having to depend on and work with other members of a group. The group work for me really helps to facilitate my understanding of concepts in some cases and in some group experiences there were those of us who maybe didn't quite grasp an assignment or completely understand the approach and other members were able to help with clarifying. The collaboration aspect of the theory while engaging in activities and reflection that demonstrate learning is important in DE.
I thought about my original definition of DE and wondered if there was anything I needed to change about it. Not much catually. I have learned a lot about the development of the field across the different waves and theories that helped to shape the landscape from early DE to online learning. There is so much involved. So much to think about when designing and planning a DE course and I have a great respect for the scholars and educators in the field who are so dedicated to helping others achieve their goals through effective higher education instruction. I still like the simple definition that Moore and Kearsley (2012) used to describe DE and I think the main difference between theirs and mine is one word: planned. The authors explained that by definiton, learning in the educational field is planned; designed by a body of experts. They went on to describe looking out a classroom window may lead one to learn something but that learned is not a part of the process unless it was planned by the instructor. Their argument is that within DE there is a deliberate intention to learn and that is facilitated by someone else who deliberately designs various activities to achieve that goal.
Garrison, D. R. & Cleveland-Innes, M. F. (2010). Foundations of distance education. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison, An introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era (pp. 13-25). New York and London: Routledge.
Moore, M. G.,& Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance education: A systems view of online learning. USA: Wadsworth-Cengage Learning.
Swan, K. (2010). Teaching and learning in post-industrial distance education. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison, An
introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era (pp. 108-134). New York and London: Routledge.
The emergence of the internet has opened up a whole world of opportunities not just on the educational landscape and although each technology builds upon the first, the internet has made a major impact on DE. This is where there seemed to be some confusion for some (ok, maybe just me) about the thin line between DE and online learning which Karen Swan (2010) separates as pre-industrial and post-industrial education. Garrison and Cleveland (2010) also pointed out that communications technology paved the way for the application of the constructivist theory and that was where the line was drawn between pre and post-industrial eras. Swan's reading allowed me to see the reason for the separation. The possibilities are now endless with self-paced, self-directed learning and constructivist learning among other theories on learning. The internet brought with it a major pedagogical shift where teaching and learning moved fom being teacher-centered to more learner-centered. It allowed for the constructivist model of learning which was simply collaboration between learners facilitating active learning.
The constructivist theory in DE is am important one in DE although I know of peers who would rather work autonomously than having to depend on and work with other members of a group. The group work for me really helps to facilitate my understanding of concepts in some cases and in some group experiences there were those of us who maybe didn't quite grasp an assignment or completely understand the approach and other members were able to help with clarifying. The collaboration aspect of the theory while engaging in activities and reflection that demonstrate learning is important in DE.
I thought about my original definition of DE and wondered if there was anything I needed to change about it. Not much catually. I have learned a lot about the development of the field across the different waves and theories that helped to shape the landscape from early DE to online learning. There is so much involved. So much to think about when designing and planning a DE course and I have a great respect for the scholars and educators in the field who are so dedicated to helping others achieve their goals through effective higher education instruction. I still like the simple definition that Moore and Kearsley (2012) used to describe DE and I think the main difference between theirs and mine is one word: planned. The authors explained that by definiton, learning in the educational field is planned; designed by a body of experts. They went on to describe looking out a classroom window may lead one to learn something but that learned is not a part of the process unless it was planned by the instructor. Their argument is that within DE there is a deliberate intention to learn and that is facilitated by someone else who deliberately designs various activities to achieve that goal.
Garrison, D. R. & Cleveland-Innes, M. F. (2010). Foundations of distance education. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison, An introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era (pp. 13-25). New York and London: Routledge.
Moore, M. G.,& Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance education: A systems view of online learning. USA: Wadsworth-Cengage Learning.
Swan, K. (2010). Teaching and learning in post-industrial distance education. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison, An
introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era (pp. 108-134). New York and London: Routledge.
Current Trends
If I had to change or reword my original definition of DE it would probably read: distance education is planned teaching and learning through interactions among learners and instructors that transcends all boundaries. That is as simple as I can put it but I feel like a lot is intertwined within that and deliberately simple definition.
These last couple weeks of the course have been overwhelming to say the least but that encompasses my own personal life mix and not just the stress of preparing an essay, completing the group grid and keeping up with the readings and reflections. Reflections are good. I have come to appreciate them though I am not someone who journals on a regular basis. In fact, I don't and I'm not sure why because I did keep a 'diary' when I was younger. However, the idea of looking back over what I have learned and who stands out in my mind, has actually grown on me.
There are so many things I could have and would have done differently. One of the activities during this course that has left me a little bit frustrated at times was the group grid. At first I couldn't really understand the point of it besides allowing us to work collaboratively but remembering that technology must not just be used for the sake of using it. That reaction could have also been as a result of having a somewhat disjointed or disconnected group for the most part. I felt like there was a major lack of communication when members could not join a chat or post the task and although we managed to get the work done (after much empathy on the part of the professor), I felt like there was too much resting on the shoulders of one of the group members. As a learning tool however, I have come to appreciate the grid when looking back over some key points in the different waves. I am actually thinking of how to incorporate the idea at work. I have learned a lot in the program so far. The course objectives were clearly stated and achieved with the excception of vimeo which seems to be a tool used for documenting and content creation. Overall, everything has been covered and extensivley discussed within the conferences and I was able to glean a lot not only from the professor but from my peers as well.
This is it!
This was quite a journey! My initial thoughts were that this class would have a plethora of required readings that would not grab my attention (ok..that would be boring) but as it turned out, yes there was a lot of readings but I actually enjoyed the class and the readings as well. Of course there were times when I thought I may have to drop out of the course because of illnesses and added demands of work which caused me to fall behind on almost all my assigned tasks and had it not been for an empathetic professor who understands the rigors of managing work and school life, I would have failed miserably. This is where Holmberg's theory of empathy comes in and I hope that more professors will adopt that reasoning.
What was different from my last program here at UMUC were the visits from the DE scholars and the interaction we were able to engage in on the various phases and issues in DE. It was nice to connect a face to a book or article and I appreciated the time they took to visit our online classroom. Discussions were rich and I gleaned a lot from my classmates as previously mentioned and from the intro to each conference topic by the professor as well as the way in which she facilitated and steered the discussions deeper with thought-provoking questions generated from responses. I have a great respect for the field of distance education and the scholars who brought it to the forefront.
It has really been interesting learning about the evolution of distance education over the different periods. I think the component I never thought of was the pedagogical changes that had to be made to support each transition and the various theories that arose from the different waves. I am curious to see where technology will take us in the future as well as what new theories will emerge with the new waves.
What was different from my last program here at UMUC were the visits from the DE scholars and the interaction we were able to engage in on the various phases and issues in DE. It was nice to connect a face to a book or article and I appreciated the time they took to visit our online classroom. Discussions were rich and I gleaned a lot from my classmates as previously mentioned and from the intro to each conference topic by the professor as well as the way in which she facilitated and steered the discussions deeper with thought-provoking questions generated from responses. I have a great respect for the field of distance education and the scholars who brought it to the forefront.
It has really been interesting learning about the evolution of distance education over the different periods. I think the component I never thought of was the pedagogical changes that had to be made to support each transition and the various theories that arose from the different waves. I am curious to see where technology will take us in the future as well as what new theories will emerge with the new waves.
Tweet Something
"Tweet something" are the last words that will stick with me from my professor. The twitter activity felt more like a 'drag' to me at first because I don't usually send tweets and I thought I would have to really fake "getting into" this exercise. I had created a personal twitter account before this class but had purposely forgotten about it. I was easily irritated by the constant non sensical tweets people sent of any and everything that would come across on facebook because they had the accounts linked together.
As it turned out though, twitter is an amazing social networking tool and can be a great teaching resource if used appropriately. I am following some very interesting distance education scholars and enthusiasts and came across some enlightening articles though I must admit, I mainly remembered to check in when the professor gave little reminders or the occasional email I would receive about who I may be interested in following. Well, I will continue to follow the DE greats and if you haven't already created a twitter account do so and tweet something....
As it turned out though, twitter is an amazing social networking tool and can be a great teaching resource if used appropriately. I am following some very interesting distance education scholars and enthusiasts and came across some enlightening articles though I must admit, I mainly remembered to check in when the professor gave little reminders or the occasional email I would receive about who I may be interested in following. Well, I will continue to follow the DE greats and if you haven't already created a twitter account do so and tweet something....