Module 2

Module 2 Discussion Prompt:

Select and reflect on one of  the following elements: (a) global diversity, (b) communication, and (c) collaborative interaction and respond to the following in your blog: 

-How has this element evolved?

-What online tools are available today to facilitate these interactions among learners?

Find at least two blog posts by other educators on this topic and reflect on their positions in your blog. Include links to these other blogs as you critique their ideas.

The element I chose to focus on for this module's blog post is communication. According to Dr. Siemens (Laureate Education 2008), communication in a distance learning community is no longer limited in comparison to the communication in a traditional face-to-face classroom environment. He attributes the ability to facilitate distance learner communication to the "growing comfort with online discourse." According to Siemens, this comfort is a result of the expanding communication channels. For example, opposed to being limited to face-to-face communication, distance learners can communicate through online tools  such as social networks, blog sites, online classrooms, and video technologies such as skype. Although I agree that online communication has evolved in this regard, there are still limitations and challenges that occur in tandem with online learning. One of those limitations is limited rapport among students. According to Palloff and Pratt (2005), networking is only successful when the members of a learning community have established a relationship and sense of trust for one another. Due to the 'participate at your own convenience" nature of online learning, many students do not have the opportunity to establish that connection prior to completing collaborative work with members in the online learning community.

On the Accredited Degrees website, I read a blog in which the author described '10 Things That Increase Your Intelligence' (retrieved from  http://www.accrediteddldegrees.com/blog/). One of those 10 things was accessing a learning community in which participants live in close approximation to each other. In accordance with this blog, I agree that relationships tend to be more personable and meaningful when they are face-to-face interactions. The close proximity allows for those face-to-face interactions and communications to occur; whereas online learning obviously does not. Furthermore, distance learners have no control over communication since they can not control when participants of their distance learning communities will be available online. However, in the classroom you are able to anticipate regular communications due to the daily attendance that is required in a face-to-face setting.

On the New York Times website, I read another blog in which the author discussed the degree to which 'Online Education Beats the Classroom' (retrieved from http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/19/study-finds-that-online-education-beats-the-classroom/). This blog, in accordance with Dr. Siemens, acknowledged that the communication within distance learning is rapidly evolving and directly correlates with the expansion of social networking technology. However, there is still no indication that online communication, regardless of its capacity, is as effective as face-to-face communication.

Resources

Laureate Education, Inc. (2008).  Diffusion and Integration of Technology in Education

            Baltimore: Author
Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2007). Building online learning communities: Effective strategies for the virtual classroom. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Discussion Prompt: After reading the three articles by Moller, Huett, Foshay and Coleman, and listening to the Simonson video programs, compare and contrast the reasons these authors believe there is a need to evolve distance education to the next generation. Do you agree with their positions? Why or why not?

As I reflect on this week's resources, I notice there is alot of overlap in terms of striving to establish distance education that promotes optimal student learning. In this week's video program, Dr. Simonson (2008) states that once an innovation, such as distance education has been widely accepted to the "point of critical mass," there is no longer a need to promote this innovation. Instead, he suggests there is a need to maintain and nurture the innovation. In accordance with this statement, Moller, Huett, Foshay, and Coleman (2008) also aknowledge that the expansion of distance learning has been "explosive" and therefore requires maintenance in terms of quality control with regards to the caliber of service distance learners receive.

Although the enhancement of distance learning is the focus of both parties, the approach to achieving that enhancement somewhat differs. On one hand, Simonson believes that distance education should be evolved according to the equivalency theory. This theoretical approach suggests that although distance learning may not be identical to traditional classroom learning, it should still yield the same results; Hence, the term equivalent.

In conjunction with the Siomonson's views, Moller, Huett, Foshay, and Coleman (2008) also note that the distance education that is based on technological innovations may facilitate learning strategies that are not available in traditional classroom environments. Yet, like Simonson, they believe that regardless of the "theoretical currency," (p. 74) comparable learning should still take place.

In addition, Moller, Huett, Foshay, and Coleman (2008) also implicate distance learning should evolve based on individual learning needs. They suggest evolving distance education into a learning experience that "adopts potentially individualized strategies" that consider the fact that some learners are most comfortable with student-content or student-instructor platforms in lieu of student-student learning communities.

I agree with all of the above positions. It is definitely critical to maintain the quality and caliber of service students receive via distance education. In addition to convenience, distance education programs must provide students with quality learning experiences that will allow them to function competently in their field of work. This involves providing students with current and updated course materials that include but are not limited to resources based on research-based theories and learning experiences based on best practies. In addition, I agree that a cognitve approach should be used to consider how students best learn. And to be honest, some students prefer certain forms of interactions over others. Thefore, there should be a balance to address the diverse learning needs of each student.

Resources

Laureate Education, Inc. (2008). Principles of Distance Education. Baltimore: Author

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