Making the Connection from Here to There: Distance Education Delivery Options

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Making the Connection from Here to There
Distance Education Delivery Options

• An Overview ofCommonly Used Technologies
• James D. Lehman, School of Education
• Dean Brusnighan, Office of the Dean of Students

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Distance Education
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Distance Education

• Refers to organized instruction in which learners
  are physically separated from teachers, and
  learning resources are distributed via a medium
  or media.
• Related terms are distance learning, open
  learning, open education, distributed learning,
  and distributed education.

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Learning Settings Matrix
Same Place
Different Place
Traditional ClassroomInstruction
Synchronous Distance Learning
Same Time
Time-ShiftedClassroom Learning
Asynchronous Distance Learning
Different Time
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Learning Settings Matrix
Same Place
Different Place
Same Time
Different Time
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The Same or Different?

• Some people claim that distance education is no
  different than traditional education.
• Others argue that it is different a unique form
  of education.
• What do you think?

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Planning
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Planning

• PLANNING is the key to success in a distributed
  learning environment.
• Determine what you want to teach, to whom, and
  how you will do it.

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Planning for Accessibility

• Assume that persons with disabilities will enroll
  in your distance education course.
• Incorporate accessibility features into your
  course during the development phase.

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This Sessions Focus

• Delivery Systems
• What delivery system (e.g., videotape, live
  video, Internet) is available?
• Which delivery system offers the best fit with
  your content and your audience?
• How easy or difficult will it be to prepare your
  course for this delivery system?

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Pedagogical Functions
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Information Presentation

• Printed text
• Visuals
• Voice, music, other sounds
• Full motion images

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Student-Teacher Interaction

• Question and answer
• Practice with feedback
• Office hours
• Testing and evaluation

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Student-Student Interaction

• Discussion
• Group projects

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Learning Resources

• Printed materials
• Audiovisual materials
• Real objects and models
• Computer databases

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Delivery System Categories

• Print
• Audio
• Video
• Computer
• Combination

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Accessibility IssuesPrint, Audio and Video

• Definition of accessibility
• Examples
• What do I do when ...?
• Refer students to DSS office if accommodations
  are needed for print, audio, or video.

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Print
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Print

• Forms of print-based instruction include
• textbooks
• other books
• study guides
• pamphlets/booklets
• manuals
• worksheets
• Web pages

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Print

• Print has been a staple of distance education
  since its beginnings in the first correspondence
  courses.
• Today, while print is sometimes still used as the
  sole means of distance learning delivery, it is
  most often used to support another technology.

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Print

• Advantages
• Readily available
• Flexible
• Stable
• Portable
• Easy to use
• Economical

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Print

• Limitations
• Requires adequate levels of literacy
• Requires adequate prior knowledge and vocabulary
• Lacks interactivity
• Limited effectiveness in depicting dynamic
  information

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Audio
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Audio

• Forms of audio delivery include
• audio cassettes
• radio (broadcast and shortwave)
• audio teleconferencing
• audiographics

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Audio

• Radio was the first telecommunication system
  adapted to distance learning in North America it
  has become a popular option in some developing
  countries.
• Use of audio cassettes and audio teleconferencing
  remain popular low-cost options today.

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Radio

• Advantages
• Less costly than TV
• Can reach a broad geographical area
• Stimulates imagination
• Useful for content including music, dramatics,
  and discussion

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Radio

• Limitations
• More costly than audio cassettes
• Fixed broadcast schedule
• May be subject to interference
• Limited capability for interaction

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Audio Cassettes

• Advantages
• Inexpensive and widely available
• User controlled
• Easily distributed through postal mail
• Can augment print material with taped
  lectures/guides
• Good for foreign language study

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Audio Cassettes

• Limitations
• Require access to a cassette player
• Lack any visual element
• Time-consuming to produce and duplicate

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Audio Teleconferencing

• Advantages
• Relatively inexpensive
• Can be point-to-point or multi-point
• Easy to use
• Interactive
• Good for discussion, meetings, and other
  interaction

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Audio Teleconferencing

• Limitations
• Lacks any visual information
• Requires a speaker phone may be audio
  difficulties
• Sometimes awkward for participants

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Audiographics

• Advantages
• Adds visuals to audio teleconference
• Relatively inexpensive

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Audiographics

• Limitations
• Requires added equipment (fax, slow-scan TV, or
  computer)
• Older systems may be slow to transmit images may
  disrupt audio

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Video
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Video

• Video options for distance learning include
• video cassettes
• one-way video with one-way audio
• one-way video with two-way audio
• two-way interactive video

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Video

• There are multiple methods of transmitting video
  for distance learning, including
• broadcast television
• satellite transmission
• microwave transmission (ITFS)
• closed-circuit television (CCTV)
• cable television (CATV)

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Video

• Land-based transmission of video can occur over
  fiber optic cables or copper wires.
• Compressed video is a relatively recent
  development that permits video to be transmitted
  in less bandwidth this permits transmission, for
  example, over telephone lines.

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Video

• Video is one of the primary delivery systems for
  distance education today. Most institutions doing
  distance education use some form of video
  delivery.

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Video Cassettes

• Advantages
• Inexpensive and widely available
• User controlled
• Easily distributed through postal mail
• Can present dynamic processes
• Good for many types of content

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Video Cassettes

• Limitations
• Require access to a VCR
• Quality deteriorates with use
• Require time and effort to produce and duplicate

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One-Way Video with One-Way Audio

• Advantages
• Can reach a broad geographical area
• Students can see and hear instructor
• Familiar technology
• Can be videotaped
• Applicable to many different subject matters

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One-Way Video with One-Way Audio

• Limitations
• No capability for student questions or
  interaction
• Fixed schedule

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One-Way Video with Two-Way Audio

• Advantages
• Provides capability for students to ask questions
• Can reach a broad geographical area
• Students can see and hear instructor
• Can be videotaped

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One-Way Video with Two-Way Audio

• Limitations
• Students may be reluctant to ask questions
• Fixed schedule

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Two-Way Interactive Video

• Advantages
• Can be point-to-point or multi-point
• All participants can see and hear one another
• Can often be done without a full television studio

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Two-Way Interactive Video

• Limitations
• Requires costly and complex equipment
• Expensive to operate
• Subject to technical difficulties
• Participants may find interaction via the medium
  awkward

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Two-Way Interactive Video

• Lets view a short video concerning the use of
  two-way video in Purdues Doctoral Cohort Program
  in Educational Administration.

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Computer
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Computer

• Computer-based distance delivery systems include
• diskettes and CD-ROMs
• computer conferencing and e-mail
• World Wide Web

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Computer

• The computer, especially the World Wide Web,
  represents the fastest growing delivery system
  for distance education.
• Many people see the Web as a vehicle that offers
  many advantages and few limitations for distance
  learning.

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Accessibility IssuesComputers

• What do I do when ...?
• A student who is blind needs to access my course
  CD-ROM?
• A student who is deaf needs to access a video
  clip on my web page?

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Accessibility IssuesComputers

• Adaptive technology is helpful for persons with
  disabilities to access information.
• The information must be formatted so that it is
  compatible with adaptive technology.

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Diskettes and CD-ROMs

• Advantages
• Inexpensive and widely available
• User controlled
• Easily distributed through postal mail
• Interactive instruction possible
• Good for many types of content

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Diskettes and CD-ROMs

• Limitations
• Require access to an appropriate PC
• Demands a level of technical expertise
• Difficult and costly to produce
• Must be designed for a particular platform
  quickly outdated
• Interaction limited to what is programmed into
  the software

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Computer Conferencing and E-Mail

• Advantages
• Inexpensive and now widely available
• Available at all times
• Stores content for ready access and reflection
• Can foster depth and breadth of discussion

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Computer Conferencing and E-Mail

• Limitations
• Requires access to an appropriate PC
• Demands a level of technical expertise
• Relies on reading and writing
• Subject to technical difficulties
• Can produce information overload

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World Wide Web

• Advantages
• Inexpensive and now widely available
• Available at all times
• Capable of using text, graphics, audio, and even
  limited video
• Can link to outside resources

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World Wide Web

• Limitations
• Requires access to an appropriate PC and an ISP
• Demands a level of technical expertise
• Difficult and costly to produce content
• Bandwidth limits what can effectively be done
  today

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WebCT

• Lets take a brief look at WebCT, a web course
  development and support tool that has become one
  of the most popular options not only at Purdue
  but throughout the universities of the Big Ten.

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Accessibility IssuesWorld Wide Web

• Assume that persons with disabilities will use
  your web site.
• Web page development software has limited
  built-in accessibility features, so you must be
  an active participant.

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Accessibility IssuesWorld Wide Web

• Incorporate accessibility features into your Web
  pages during the development phase.

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Combinations
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Combinations

• It is becoming increasingly common for more than
  one delivery system to be used for distance
  learning (e.g., e-mail and the Web can augment
  video-based courses).
• The strengths of the various systems combine to
  offer better options for distance learning.

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The End
Delivery Systems