Distance
Education
The Solution Has Arrived
Today's
busy Shedules mean that many people do not physically
have the time to take up full-time, or even part-time,
or even part-time education - workload, lifestyle or
commitments simply don't allow for it. However,
the new influx of distance learning programs means that
now even the busiest of people can have interactive
access to courses worldwide from the comfort of their
own home.
Beth
anxiously glanced at her watch as she hurried to finish
the day's filing. In just a few minutes, she would leave
the office where she works as a legal secretary, pick
up her children, grab a fats food meal, get the evening
babysitter, settle everyone in at home, and then drive
30 minutes to the local college where she takes night
classes to earn a bachelor's degree into a paralegal
position would be a great career move for Beth, but
this hectic schedule was really creating a stressful
lifestyle for both her and her family.
Jeff
stared outside at the blowing snow drifting across his
driveway. Another class missed, he thought with frustration.
Jeff was working on his MBA at a university in a nearby
city. Unfortunately, getting to class this winter was
not an easy task. Jeff had really been looking forward
to tonight's discussion, too. He enjoyed interacting
with his classmates and learning from their experiences.
Jeff thought about all the class sessions he has missed.
He wondered how he could ever succeed in earning an
MBA, when he couldn't even succeed at getting to class.
Melissa
and Steve spent hours looking at next
semesters class schedule. But, as hard as they tried,
they could not find enough classes to complete their
schedules. Both of them worked twenty hours per week
to pay for living expenses during college. Everything
they looked at conflicted with their work hours. Neither
Melissa nor Steve knew what they would do if they could
not remain full-time students. Neither one could afford
to quit work, but without a full class load, they would
not qualify for necessary financial assistance.
Ahmed
lives in Malaysia, where he works with a variety of
U.S. firms marketing his company's products. Ahmed has
a good position, but to really advance in his company,
he would need to learn about American Business practices.
As much as Ahmed would like to further his education,
he does not want to leave his family to attend college
in the United States. Ahmed wonders how he could advance
his career for the benefit of himself and his family
without leaving his home country.
Do
these dilemmas sound familiar? Today, there is an
effective solution that allows Beth, Jeff Melissa, Steve
and Ahmed to achieve their educational goals. That solution
is Distance Education and it seems to be the buzz word
for the late 1990's. What exactly is it, and how can
it be used to facilitate the learning process?
Distance
Education comes in a variety of formats: correspondence
courses, telecourses, interactive television, and web-based
instruction.
Correspondence
courses have been an education option for many years.
Students receive course information via mail, complete
assignments at their own pace, and then mail the assignments
back to the instructor. Correspondence courses offer
flexibility to students in scheduling their coursework.
However, a student may feel as if he or she is taking
the class in isolation.
Many
correspondence courses do not provide interaction between
the instructor and the student, other than times when
assignments are graded and returned to the student.
Students also do not have the opportunity to be in the
community with other students, which can greatly enhance
the learning experience.
Telecourses involve viewing videotaped lectures.
Exams are either proctored or administered in a take-home
format. As with correspondence courses, telecourses
offer flexibility to the student. In addition, students
view video presentations that assist in explaining the
written material. However, as with correspondence courses,
telecourses and student / student interaction, which
may cause student to feel isolated.
Interactive
television is a relatively new option that allows
students in geographically distant classrooms to participate
in the same class with one instructor. Because students
and the instructor can see and hear each other via interactive
television, this format allows much of the interaction
that is available in a traditional classroom. However,
because students must attend class at a specified time
and location, this medium lacks the flexibility offered
by other distance learning options.
Web-based
instruction allows students to participate in courses
over the Internet.
This recently developed course delivery system provides
a viable solution to many scheduling dilemmas. With
web-based instruction, students can access their course
from any computer with Internet conductivity at any
time of the day or night. Assignments are submitted
by email or via special Internet programs designed for
web-based instruction. Students can interact with their
on-line classmates through synchronous or asynchronous
discussions.
During
synchronous discussions, students interact with instructors
and other students during a designated time period.
It's basically a chat room with access limited to course
participants. Asynchronous discussion is similar to
a bulletin board, where students post their comments
and their responses to other student's comments. The
result is a 'threaded' discussion that evolves as students
think about the topic of discussion. Students can receive
assistance by simply sending off a quick email or calling
their instructor.
The
solution has arrived! Distance education can solve the
dilemmas of Beth, Jeff, Melissa, Steve, and Ahmed. Traditional
forms of education will continue to exist, but distance-learning
options that meet the needs of fast-paced lifestyles
are becoming more popular every day. Quality distance
education courses, especially those offered in a web-based
format, give students an excellent education option,
with the benefit of flexibility.
When
searching for a web-based course, be sure to look for
the following features:
