Tag: College of Distance Education

Facts About Distance Education

Distance education has been with us for some time. Since its introduction more than a decade ago, many students are availing of the system for convenience and accessibility. Other students are not carved out for distance education. They have a hard time adjusting to the program, including its schedule and instructors at times. But let us examine facts about distance education.

They Are Everywhere
It is fast becoming the thing for modern education. In fact, the percentage at times of availing of these said programs outweigh the conventional ones. Modern living is life on a fast lane, and that is quite fitting with distance education.

They Vary
Even nursing courses are into distance education. This is unheard of in the past. Not only that, platforms of this type of education vary depending on the preference of the student.

They Offer Better Results
Distance education can be a surprise. The results of state exams prove that despite being enrolled in a distance education program, students still excel compared to their classroom counterparts.

They’re Perfect for Adults, Too
A significant number of senior students are doing well with distance education.  And besides, this makes for easy access on education since older students are working most of the time.

They are Cheaper (not with fees)
Yes, distance education is cheaper than the conventional one. The amount of expenses you have with distance education is quite minimal compared to the costs when attending a traditional classroom.

They’re Not a Threat at All
There are students who have techno phobias. They should not worry with distance education. The subjects discussed in it are quite the same as in a classroom, but with a difference. You can study, take the exam and go over your assignment from a distance.

Long Distance Learning

The idea of online education was unheard of in the past. Now, a significant number of students are using of this type of education to higher education degrees. It is accessible, hassle-free, and flexible.

Convenient to say the least because it enables you study your lessons while cooking your early morning breakfast perhaps, and at your own pace at times. The benefits of availing for that distance education is that you could do two or three things all at the same time while being educated online.

That is the concept Distance Learning System (DLSI) wanted to perpetuate. The flexibility of giving their students enough time to do other things while studying under their care is unique and cost-efficient.

DLSI is considered to be America’s foremost educational publishing firm, and has expanded its services to provide learning programs and study modules for students and professionals alike. With their mission of providing convenient access to higher education, DLSI has, in itself, given distance learning the necessary boost since they have the highest national passing rate in the country with 97%.

Their online video classrooms are easy to understand with lively and structured discussions for you to have, thus, embracing the idea that you could be educated at a distance and in the shortest possible time.

DLSI provides real instructors, recorded video class session in case you miss the scheduled live class, personal coaches, and course materials to compliment the lessons provided online. Many other companies are considered by their clients as “a box of books.” And once you have your books, that is the end of the relationship with you. That is not the case with DLSI – we stay with you until your entire course work is complete.

Distance education is growing in numbers. So why suffer yourself with the prospect of getting that degree inside that conventional classroom? You can always have that career you’ve always wanted through DLSI’s distance education.

Distance Education  

The origins of distance education can be traced to mid-19th century Europe and the United States. The postal system was the best technology that pioneers could use in their day. It was started to open educational opportunities to people who wanted to learn but were not able to attend conventional schools. Those with physical disabilities, women who were not allowed to enroll in institutions open only to men, people who had jobs during normal school hours, and those who lived in remote regions where schools did not exist are the people who most benefitted from distance education.

In 1872, American university level distance education began at Illinois Wesleyan University. Bachelor and graduate degrees could be obtained in absentia. The Chautauqua movement in about 1882 gave the popular push to correspondence education.

In 1915, accreditation of college and university distance programs fell to the National University Extension Association. And in 1926, the National Home Study Council (NHSC) was formed to address the issues of quality and ethical practice that arose due to the popularity of the teaching of academic and vocation courses by correspondence in 1900.

Distance Education has developed as technology changed. The invention of education radio in the 1920s and the advent of television in the 1940s created important new forms of communication for use in distance education. The development of reliable long-distance telephone company in the early 1900s also increased the capacity of distance educators to reach new student population. But telephone systems only played a prominent role in distance education with the development of teleconferencing technologies in the 1980s and 1990s. And, with the spread of computer-network communication in the 1980s and 1990s, it allowed teachers to communicate in conferences through computers.

Today, distance education makes use of the internet where teachers and students present text, pictures, audio, and video. File sharing and communications tools like email, chats, and audio and video conferencing are integral part of the internet setup.

Distance Education: Another Way of Learning

It would surprise you that distance education started as early as mid-19th century Europe and the United States. During those times, the best technology that the distance education pioneers can use was the postal system. Today, distance education has become increasingly popular and one of the reasons is the technology we have available, the internet.

To open educational opportunities to people who wanted to learn but are not able to attend conventional schools, distance education was established. Geographical or time concerns are mainly the reasons that prevent the student from attending an on-campus course. This gap is bridged by electronic means and by distributing educational materials through distance learning programs using printed and mailed materials.

Today, most distance education takes place using the internet because it is the vastly accessible means for majority of the students. Through the internet, the learning materials can be distributed, students can keep in touch with teachers, and provide access to communication between students. Other technological formats are also used in distance learning like television, DVDs, teleconferencing, and printable material. However, distance education through the web is the first choice for many learners.

Distance education makes it much easier for a student to complete a degree or get additional job-training while balancing work and family commitments because class work hours are flexible. Most distance education programs allow their students to work at their own pace and on their own time. Distance learning is also great for students who do not have readily available access to educational facilities or those who want to explore opportunities not offered by their local schools.

In the past decade, distance education has become an increasingly popular way for students to learn about topics and get degrees they might not otherwise be able to pursue. And this allow students to enhance career prospects wherever they may be.

Distance Education For Engineering Students

Advanced technology has made distance education a good alternative for aspiring Engineers. A number of online programs are offered. Graduates from these courses are embraced by employers with arms wide open. This acceptance have grown immensely over the years due to quality of the curriculum and qualified students from online schools.

Learning engineering principles at any level (bachelors and masters) can be done online. The increasing number of colleges offering online courses has made it more accessible to get a degree while meeting other personal needs, most especially financial. Students, who pay for their studies, can work and study all at the same time. When they graduate, they won’t have to worry about landing on a job. This is because employers are less concerned of where an applicant’s degree was completed from – traditional on-campus or online. This motivates many students wanting to earn online engineering degrees.

Well, how does this work? By leveraging technology, distance education brings integrated course materials, dedicated websites, teleconferences, and chat rooms in class directly on to your personal computer or lap top – anywhere at anytime. Because distance learning lets students work while completing a degree, many have see that they can directly apply what they’ve learned on-the-job long before they graduate.

Online engineering programs are the best option for those who are looking to get a degree, or for those adults who want to go back to school and acquire master’s or an associate’s degree in engineering. The learning process is quite easy. Students learn through tools such as DVDs, recorded lectures, videos, and live streaming. Instructors give assignments or projects by posting them on virtual blackboards or send them through email, or on a virtual blackboard. Assignments may be done at student’s own time, but during exams, they will need to log into the school’s system at a particular time.

Tutoring on Distance Education

Distance education nowadays is an important learning method to reach students in distant locations and to remove geographical and cultural barriers. It offers education in online classrooms and set schedules that will meet the needs of its students who are busy with their work or career. The teacher will be behind the program, communicating with his students through programs and applications and provide lectures, assignments and activities.

Though learning is much easier since the internet provides a lot of references and learning materials, it may also need the help of a tutor. The problem with distance learning is that it lacks motivation for students to study, work on their activities or join group discussions. This is because they are just online and may lead them to do other things than going to their classes. In this case, tutor support is vital. Teachers must be able to help motivate, remind, guide and help students. They must be available to tutor students with the topics that can be hard to learn without actual explanation.

Distance education also requires alterations in behavior of the teacher and also the student. The effective student evolves persistence and self-motivation. The effective distance education teacher becomes fluent with new technology and evolves new training styles to effectively help students. Today, using the most advanced technology and also the effective multimedia interactions between instructors and students, information is easily transmitted. Efficient tutor support in distance learning is basically determined by how quickly a distance education instructor can learn new technology, devise new teaching techniques and manage student expectations.

By being passionate with the job, any instructor can be the best tutor support in distance learning courses. They must bring enthusiasm, promote involvement and curiosity and develop student’s skills and learning. Distance education can be as good or surpass the quality of classroom learning by providing enough, sufficient and effective tutoring support to students.

Distance Education and Industrialization

Industrialization has been a feature of distance education for many years. Otto Peters, a pioneering theorist, described when technology is used to reach learners in mass, education assumes commercial features, such as, standardization of services and huge manufacturing of academic products (Keegan 1994). To the level that letters knowledge trusted huge production of academic materials (e.g. books) it was a commercial business. Another sign of industrialization in distance education is division of labor. The course team as initially designed by Charles Wedemeyer and applied by the British Open University is an example of division of labor in online learning. The contemporary university is also gifted with a bureaucracy, by definition is a commercial operation, although the educating methods both in the class room and at a distance, mostly, remain pre-commercial (pre-modern) and craft focused.

Industrialization to train and learn is particularly suitable when the need of many learners for access is at stake. Daniel (1996) focusing the failure of “campus” education to meet such a need, particularly in developing nations, compared the function of “mega-universities,” or those serving the needs of at least 100,000 learners, with that of “campus” colleges. He said: “The mega-universities vary from campus universities in their manufacturing procedures. The operations of the mega-universities owe much to commercial methods, whereas academic procedures on campus are similar to a cottage industry.”

It is worth noting here that Daniel’s idea of a “cottage industry” is different than that of Toffler, who imagined a “cottage industry” as a “third wave phenomenon.” Daniel’s referrals to a “cottage industry” here is a pre-industrial operation with employees who work alone and perform their projects without the benefit of a supporting staff providing them the advantages of industrial division of labor. Introduction of the Internet with its potential for a post-industrial form to train and learn has led to a review of industrialization. Daniel (1996) making referrals to the disadvantages of the pre-commercial, and commercial operations, said “It is likely that neither strategy will be particularly well designed for the third generation of online learning technologies: the knowledge media.”

New Developments in Distance Education

The U. S. army has been at the leading edge of new improvements in distance education and is one of its biggest users throughout the world. In the 70’s, the U.S. Army’s Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) use of correspondence education and studying had improved to a point that it was working one of the biggest U. S. post offices in Fort Eustis, Virginia to keep up with the requirement globally. These days, The Army Correspondence Course Program (ACCP) is approved by the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) and is accountable for the official nonresident expansion curricula of the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command.

In the last two years, all branches of the military have intensely implemented the use of telecom satellite and the internet to provide various kinds of training and education and studying via video conferencing and web-based applications. In inclusion, the Distance Education Program (DEP) at the US Military War College provides an extensive program of training that result in the award of the Graduation Certificate as well as the Master of Strategic Study degree. The DEP is approved by the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, as a program for joint education and studying, Phase I Senior Level (JPME I). The Distance Education Program needs 15 hours of study weekly that is provided via the internet.

The College of Distance Education (CDE) is the academic outreach program of the Naval War College.  It provides executive-level education and studying to officers of the various military services and to senior workers of the Department of Defense and other Government departments.  Three distribution techniques widely-used to by the College: faculty-led night workshops, a web-enabled program, and a CD-ROM centered correspondence program. These programs mirror, to a degree, this method of research provided to resident learners at the College’s Newport campus. The Air Force Institute for Advanced Distributed Learning (AFIADL) was recognized in 2000 “to display identification of the significance of online and advanced distributed education” according to Kim Bowling, then the Colonel of USAF and Commander of AFIADL.