Distance Learning and its Future…. A reflection

The 21st century learner is more sceptical and more critical in many ways. This also comes when choosing learning experiences. It is evident that computer literate people are more keen on taking on board online courses and are less sceptical towards these learning set ups. However, this is not the people that you would like to target when offering online courses. People who have had frustrating experiences in technology tend to be more apprehensive if not impatient working in these scenarios. Most people think that distance learning courses are easy and fast to do. Unfortunately in my experience, it is time consuming. Without superb organisational skills and a good dose of self-motivation, it can be a nightmare.

Challenges face me as a future instructional designer. I foresee myself creating training workshops in the near future and I know for sure that a participant in a workshop will always seek other ways to extend one’s knowledge through supplemental courses either online or on hard copies like books or training materials. I once gave a workshop to a group of teachers on implementing a social constructivist classroom for early language learners. It was only a one day workshop but the supplemental resources were crucial for about half of the participants as most of them had decided to take on online courses to enrich their knowledge of this strategy.

I believe that I can make a huge difference in changing misconceptions of distance learning education by first of all providing an excellent experience and at the same time bring honesty and integrity into whatever I am doing. I strongly feel that the learner must both have a positive and an enriching “technology experience”. This does not mean that everything will work out well. I suppose it is also important to let the learner understand and accept that technology does not have the solutions to all our problems. There will be issues on connectivity or software installations which can be frustrating. For as long as it is part of the learning curve, then it should be welcomed as part of the learning experience. Most of the people I interviewed were keen on using technology but were apprehensive in solving problems especially on hardware ones.

How will I foresee Distance Learning Education in the future? Siemens says that the signs of the times are changing and that more people will turn to technology to communicate and keep in touch with friends and family as the world moves towards globalisation. Even children of small ages will learn quick how to use technology to play games, to watch videos, to listen to music and most especially to communicate with their peers. Social networking sites will continue to flourish. As a consequence, distance learning will be an easier option for technology users who move around the world for leisure or for work. Distance learning will be an offshoot of communicating and networking with other people as well as enriching one’s professional development.

In my current experience, I have found distance learning education my lifeline to gain more knowledge even if at times it can be challenging to let work and studies reconcile. It continues to nurture my quest for a lifelong learning experience as well as creating a network of professionals I can “converse with”. It took me time to understand the makings of a distance learning course and I am getting there. This course has also helped me understand the ‘behind the scenes’ of what happens in each course. It was an interesting eight weeks but at times over loaded with projects that helped me less to do proper scaffolding of how to create my own Orientation Project. It would have been better to have lesser tasks that led you gently to a good Orientation Project.

In conclusion, I hope everyone tries at least an online course for 6 months to see how things work out. It has been an enriching and exciting learning experience for me so far and I would recommend it to anyone who is willing to take risks to make mistakes and to learn from them because it the most important part of a wholesome and a well-rounded learning experience.

References:
Video Program: "Facilitating Online Learning", Laureate
Education 2010.

Durrington, V., Berryhill, A., & Swafford, J. (2006). Strategies for enhancing student interactivity in an online environment. College Teaching, 54(1), 190–193.

Lambert, J., Kalyuga, S., & Capan, L. (2009). Student perceptions and cognitive load: What can they tell us about elearning Web 2.0 course design? E-learning and Digital Media, 6(2), 150–163. Retrieved from http://
www.wwwords.co.uk/rss/abstract.asp

Win-win Guide to Blended Courses

Here is a guide I created for those considering Blended courses. It talks about what to consider before converting from face-to-face to Blended format.

Open Sources – Excellent supplement to Online Learning

Browsing through the Open Sources listed on the resources, I chose Stanford on iTunes U: http://itunes.stanford.edu/ . I found it extremely organised and most especially the quality of the podcast or videos have been carefully selected to suit the listener whether he may be a beginner or a seasoned user. I suppose everyone at this point of time uses iTunes which facilitates an easy access to the site. If you do not have the application, it prompts you to download the application to your pc.

While browsing through the website, I continuously asked myself why did Stanford utilise iTunes for an Open Sources venue. As I clicked from course to course, podcast to podcast and watched some videos, I understood that it was a brilliant place on the internet to reach a lot of users since iTunes has been one of the most widely used music and video providers especially for the young people. What a better place to find an Open Source site than on iTunes?

The site presents itself well because it takes the format of iTunes which has optimum graphics and easy access to courses especially to a beginner. You can download the podcast or the video into your iPod or iTouch or pc and listen to it another time. The site also takes you to other related websites where similar lectures can be downloaded along with a video and the transcription of the lecture you choose to listen. The possibilities presented by Stanford University Open Source are endless allowing users to navigate and enjoy lectures to augment or compliment what they are doing at the moment at any time it suits them. It can take a form of an audiobook to listen to in a car while driving or a short movie one can use while in a waiting room.

I find this site innovative while respecting the classical lecture – podcast format which most users are familiar with. It provides different perspectives and allows the user to choose as well as decide for himself how to make connections using his previous and current acquired knowledge.

Obviously, this way of learning requires a lot self-motivation and initiative on the part of the learner. To give this option will surely enhance the teaching and learning on online courses. As Beldarrain (2006) states that new technology must first of all encourage interaction between faculty and students which leads to reciprocity amongst students. Utilising an asynchronous delivery of the subject matter, I do not believe that there is an option for the users to interact with each other therefore discussion boards should be added support this aspect. Lastly, since none of the courses are obligatory, chances are most learners will use them willingly and intrinsic motivation is the key to lifelong learning.

Malu

Reference
Stanford on iTunes U: http://itunes.stanford.edu/

Beldarrain, Y. (2006). Distance education trends: Integrating new technologies to foster student interaction and collaboration. Distance Education, 27(2), 139–153.