Selecting Distance Learning Technologies

Selecting Distance Learning Technologies

Example 1: Collaborative Training Environment   A new automated staff information system was recently purchased by a major corporation and needs to be implemented in six regional offices. Unfortunately, the staff is located throughout all the different offices and cannot meet at the same time or in the same location. As an instructional designer for the corporation, you have been charged with implementing a training workshop for these offices. As part of the training, you were advised how imperative it is that the staff members share information, in the form of screen captures and documents, and participate in ongoing collaboration.

 

Collaborative Training Environment Scenario

I would like to consider the needs and requirements of the learning context presented in Example 1: Collaborative Training Environment below and recommend which technologies could provide solutions in this situation. 

Let’s review the needs of Example 1: Collaborative Training Environment:

Example 1: Collaborative Training Environment

 

A new automated staff information system was recently purchased by a major corporation and needs to be implemented in six regional offices. Unfortunately, the staff is located throughout all the different offices and cannot meet at the same time or in the same location.

As an instructional designer for the corporation, you have been charged with implementing a training workshop for these offices. As part of the training, you were advised how imperative it is that the staff members share information, in the form of screen captures and documents, and participate in ongoing collaboration.

To enhance and tailor a distance learning experience to fit the needs and requirements of the learning context itself presented in the Collaborative Training Environment in Example 1, let’s develop a needs or requirement list to choose the applicable technology-based solution for the scenario.

Assessment Needs:	Solution:
Cannot meet at the same time	Asynchronous Delivery
Cannot meet in the same location	Internet based
Staff members must share information, such as screen captures and documents	Forum to share information
Must be able to participate in ongoing collaboration	Forum to Communicate

 

This scenario is really is pretty straight forward in the distance learning community.  As a matter of fact, the last two Universities formatted their online learning courses using the same solution as would apply to this case. This is a constantly growing trend in instruction for schools and business alike.

“The demand for distance education will only continue to grow. The ever-evolving nature of technology will continue to push distance educators to use new tools to create learning environments that will indeed prepare students to be life-long learners, who can problem solve through collaboration with global partners” (Beldarrain, 2006, p. 150)

 What we are talking about here is a CMS. 

“Course management systems (CMSs), also called learning management systems or virtual learning environments are software systems designed to assist in the management of educational courses for students, especially by helping teachers and learners with course administration” (Simonson, 2012, p. 162).

We will need an internet-based software for this case.

“Ullman and Rabinowitz (2004) more succinctly define course management systems as “Internet-based software that manages student enrollment, tracks student performance, and creates and distributes course content” (Simonson, 2012, p. 162).

Both universities use Blackboard for their delivery method to satisfy the needs of online learners.  It might be helpful to explain the background of Blackboard for those who are new to its use.

“Blackboard is used by more than 70 percent of the U.S. colleges and universities named to the Forbes.com Most Connected Campuses’ List. As of June 2006, the Blackboard empire includes over 12 million users in over 60 countries. Products are offered in 12 languages to over 2,200 learning institutions and contain more than 2,500 supplements from educational publishers” (Bradford, 2007, p. 2).

Ok, so what is Blackboard exactly you may ask?

“A brief history of Blackboard. Blackboard LLC was founded in 1997 by two education advisors, Matthew Pittinsky and Michael Chasen, as a consulting firm to provide technical standards for online learning applications. Blackboard LLC was contracted to the IMS Global Learning Consortium, a worldwide non-profit organization within the National Learning Infrastructure Initiative of Educause. Blackboard’s vision  was to provide a user-friendly means by which college professors could put course information, including syllabi, reference sites, and study guides, on the Web” (Bradford, 2007, p. 1)

CourseSites, which is powered by Blackboard is the applicable technology-based solution for this scenario that I would choose.  Here are some of the features of Course Sites from their website:

“Interactive, Free Online Learning Platform

CourseSites is a free, hosted online course creation and facilitation service that empowers individual K–12 teachers, college and university instructors and community educators to add a web–based component to their courses, or even host an entire course on the Internet. You even choose your own URL, so students can find your page easily.

Engage Your Students Anywhere, Anytime

Imagine having your own interactive elearning platform, that allows you to post and update course material, interact with students, promote collaboration, as well as assess and improve performance –– anytime, anywhere, 24/7. All the online teaching tools you need in one place!

Powered By Blackboard's Latest Technology

CourseSites is powered by the latest and greatest technology from Blackboard, including Blackboard Learn™, Release 9.1, Blackboard Collaborate™, Blackboard Mobile™, and Blackboard Connect™” (COURSEsites, https://www.coursesites.com/webapps/Bb-sites-course-creation-BBLEARN/pages/index.html).

CourseSites is one solution for our scenario this week. In it we have an asynchronous instruction vehicle that provides a venue for: discussion forums or blogs, podcasts, and document sharing.  This permits a participant to engage in the course at different times, in different places, collaborate with classmates and instructor, share information such as screen captures and documents while being able to review the information multiple times for understanding. The following sites could augment the course, all for free:

Wiki Sites: Wikispaces; wetpaint.com; PBWorks

Blog Sites: blogger.com; classblogmeister.com; Edublogs.org; wordpress.com; teachersfirst.com

Screen Captures and Documents: Jing, http://www.techsmith.com/

In addition ,I  would like to  provide examples of the use of these technologies by searching the Internet for two external resources that showcase how these technologies have been successfully used in distance learning.  Many Universities such as Walden (www.waldenu.edu) and Ashford (www.ashfordu.edu) use the Blackboard CMS delivery system for their classes.  I am confident that this will work well for our scenario this week.

References

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

Bradford, P., Porciello, M., Balkon, N. & Backus, D. The blackboard learning system. (2007). The Journal of Educational Technology Systems. Retrieved at http://uupinfo.org/research/working/bradford.pdf

COURSEsites
https://www.coursesites.com/webapps/Bb-sites-course-creation-BBLEARN/pages/index.html

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson

 

 

EDUC-6135-3, Distance Learning.2013 Summer Sem 05/06-08/25-PT2

WK1BlogAssignRooks

DISTANCE LEARNING

So, what is Distance Learning all about?  We might start by trying to define it: 

·        “Distance education [is] institution-based, formal education where the learning group is separated, and where interactive telecommunications systems are used to connect learners, resources, and instructors" (Simonson, 2012, p. 32).

Or

·        “Distance education is a method of education in which the learner is physically separate from the teacher. It may be used on its own, or in conjunction with other forms of education, including face-to-face” (Simonson, 2012, p. 35).

Or

·        “Distance Learning is the adaptation of ubiquitous resources presented in numerous venues in which the student is not face-to-face with the instructor/teacher or other students in the course...  It most often incorporates the use of technology as a delivery method do to its economy of scale. Distance learning can be synchronous (at the same time) or asynchronous and usually incorporates interaction of students as well as instructors alike” (Rooks, 2013J).  

 

·        Why do you feel the definition of distance learning is always changing and what factors drive that change?

 

The definition of distance learning is always changing because it is an ever evolving subject.  The factors drive that change are the profit motive, technological advances, and our evolving understanding of how to effectively implement technology to enhance deeper learning.

 

“For many institutions, a principal motivator is the relatively unfamiliar force of competition.

For-pro­fit, private-sector competitors are breaking the monopoly of conventional institutions, provoking a fast-moving entrepreneurial response by some schools while leaving others at a standstill. Since distance education programs theoretically can serve remote learners as well as they serve local ones, even institutions with isolated service areas are in competition” (Moller, 2008, p. 66).

 

As we develop new applications of distance learning, the assessment of the marketability is driven by the profit motive.  Both internal and external distance learning applications are valuable instruments that corporations and institutions alike see as a way to increase their ROI (return on investment) with every new opportunity that evolves. “Educators in the distance medium are faced with new pedagogical issues surrounding student interactions, course content design and delivery, multiple levels of communication, defining new types of assignments and performance expectations, and different assessment and evaluation techniques (to name a few)” (Moller, 2008, p. 67).

 

·        Do you think these changes are based on a person’s profession or by how much technical knowledge he/she has?

One’s profession, experience, and technological know-how all influence how we interface with distance learning.  The driving factor behind this question is not a person per say, but a universal evolution somewhat like the Reissuance period in Medieval Europe.  The mere idea of instructional design is in a sense a systematic approach of how to harness technology and marry it to how humans’ learn best.   “Bringing instructional designers into “the fold” allows us to move away from individual initiatives and more toward a collaborative approach where instructional designers partner with teachers to create dynamic and engaging distance learning environments” (Huett, 2008, p. 65).

 

•A summary of my vision for the future of distance learning as it continues on a path of evolution and change.

 

            Think about it for yourself for a moment, technology is constantly changing and a person’s profession demands them to remain concurrent to adapt so that they can keep a competitive advantage not wanting to be left behind by competitors in any industry or institution.  “What we are witnessing with the current evolution of distance education and the technologies that support it is nothing less than the single most important reorganization of how we will engage learners since we started to gather students together in school buildings” (Huett, 2008, pp. 64-65).  My vision for the future of distance learning as it continues on a path of evolution and change is one of a revolution in how we attain knowledge. I keep thinking back to a time in which technology has impacted mankind in a similar manner. With the invention of the printing press, mankind transformed the way in which we learned in the Reissuance period in Medieval Europe.  This, to me, is like stage two of the thrusters of a spaceship.   Knowledge is doubling at shorter and shorter intervals. In the timeline of history, we were still riding horses not that long ago.  In perspective, technology has advanced the vehicle of distance learning to the masses of the world. “The growth of online distance learning (elearning) is explosive in almost all sectors, and in many developed and developing countries. We believe that the dominant approach now realizes very little, if any, of e-learning’s transformational potential, nor can we be assured that high instructional quality is recognized and valued” (Moller, The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (Part 2: Higher education). , 2008, p. 70).

•What are the potential benefits/opportunities of distance learning in your current position in education, industry, or as an online student?

           Just to be clear about what Distance Learning is, let’s look at this quote from this week’s reading : “Distance education is a method of education in which the learner is physically separate from the teacher,. It may be used on its own, or in conjunction with other forms of education, including face-to-face” (Simonson, 2012, p. 35). I work in inside sales for an industrial fastener company. There are many opportunities for asynchronous distance learning training modules for all areas of operation. Some of these areas would include: ordering, invoicing, quoting, inventory control, and communication (internal/external).

       The benefits of the venue of distance learning would allow any employee to train at times between busy tasks without leaving the office. Another benefit would also be to be able to view the training more than once if needed for comprehension. Refreshing or even updating training procedures is made easy by the use of distance learning.
Of course, as an online student at Walden University, I am able to complete my coursework in my free time when it is convenient for me to complete it. “Distance learning is rapidly becoming a popular choice for continuing professional education, mid-career degree programs, and lifelong learning of all kinds. As so-called “non-traditional” students become an increasingly large segment of the student body at the post-secondary level, campus-based programs, residential or otherwise, may be leveling off in enrollment” (Moller, 2008, p. 66). It would be impossible or at least not practical for me to attend face-to-face classes.

•What are the potential challenges/impediments of distance learning in your current position in education, industry, or as an online student?

       The potential challenges/impediments of distance learning in my current position in industry and as an online student is not with its modality, but with individual discipline. Having the liberty to engage in online distance learning also demands the discipline to do so. I like this quote from this week’s reading: “However, Rice (2006) suggested that the effectiveness of distance education has more to do with who is teaching, who is learning, and how that learning is accomplished and less to do with the medium” (Huett, 2008, p. 63).

       I have enjoyed my online learning experience, yet I can see that this may not be well suited for everyone. At work, taking time to train can be a challenge. At home you have to focus on what is important and not all the distractions available to us all. “It also seems plausible that the type of learner who typically engages in web-based educational courses (adult, independent learners with higher internal loci of control) have goals and preferences when it comes to online learning that may not lend themselves well to learning communities (Navarro & Shoemaker, 2000; Reisetter & Boris, 2004)” (Moller, 2008, p. 52).

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 1: Training and development). TechTrends, 52(3), 70–75.

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.

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.