Module 2- Elements of Distance Education Diffusion

The element that I chose of distance education is global diversity. Distance education has created a new form of diversity.It is not only about race or socio-economic status anymore, its about what state or even country one lives in. George Siemens(2011) discusses what the growing acceptace of distance education is fueled by, and one of the things he discusses is the "ability to communicate with diverse and global groups" (Laureate Education Inc., 2011). It has evolved so quickly simply beacuse it gave education new opportunities and insight to communicating and collaborating in a diverse manner.

There are so many online tools that are available now to make this collaboration easier and more convenient. Some of these tools are skype, wikis, blogs, and chats. Technology is rapidly developing and there are new innovations developed all the time to continue to make global diversity more convenient particularly in distance education.

References

Siemens, G. (2008). Assessment of collaborative learning. Vodocast. Laureate Education, Inc.

Module 1- Distance Education Evolution

Distance education has quickly became the future of education. It does not matter whether you are in kindergarten or you are going back to school to further your degree, you are now able to do it all online. However, Huett, Moller, Foshay, and Coleman (2008) believe that distance education needs to develop further to reach its full potetial and to become the way of education in the future. There are many careers that are now beginning to look down on degrees that one has obtained through an online university. These degrees may have the same accredidation as a state university but they are not being viewed the same in a career aspect. These authors all agree that distance learning has some evolving and developing to do in order to have the equivalency to state university programs. The main concern is that it is not providing the proper training individuals need in order to perform their job up to expectations.

While Simonson(2000), feels that distance education is a great addition to the education field and in some way it has been around for decades. Although he does not think that it will ever replace the traditional school environment, it will continue to grow and develop becoming more and more common.

Distance education has given many adults the opportunity to continue their education when they may have not been able to previously due to life's commitments. It has been a great new method of education and I hope it continues to evolve and become even more effective. However, I do not want it replace traditional schools. I love teaching in the classroom and it provides so many other life skills to children.

References

Huett, J., Moller, L., Foshay, W.R., & Coleman, C. (2008). Implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (part 3). Tech Trends, 52(5), 63-67.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008a). Distance education: The next generation [Video program]. Available from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5260640&Survey=1&47=7338982&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008b). Equivalency Theory [Video program]. Available from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5260640&Survey=1&47=7338982&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1