United States Distance Learning Association

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distance education courses and Internet access provided at the regular high school, high school students are able to begin their higher education while attending a public high school at no out-of-pocket expense. Access to the distance classes provided by the community college is provided by the regular high school during school hours to allow high school students the ability to use the public school transportation to and from regular high school while attending college courses. “Dual Enrollment provides accelerated high school seniors and eligible juniors the opportunity to simultaneously earn college credit while earning credit toward a high school diploma. Public and private high school students as well as home-schooled students are served by this program that was created by Florida Statute 1007.271 and is governed by state law” (St. Johns River Community College, 2006). CHARACTERISTICS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION VERSES TRADITIONAL CLASSROOM EDUCATION In the past, it was expected and accepted that students would enter the classroom and listen attentively to the teacher as the lesson began with direct instruction or some other form of face-to-face contact with an educator. It was also expected that each student would achieve at the approximate same level and within the same approximate timeframe. It has become increasingly obvious that learners differ in their learning styles and in their ability to grasp a concept and with this new awareness was the realization that distance education was an opportunity for learners to learn at their own pace in the learning style best adapted to their needs. Distance education allows a student to enter the virtual class at the time the student chooses (with the exception of synchronous chats or conferences) and allows the student to complete his or her work independent of other students, distractions, or traditional settings. The traditional classroom operates for the good of all of the students at the expense of a few. When the traditional classroom teacher begins class he or she must develop a teaching meter that is consistent with the amount of material or concepts to be covered and the amount of time allotted for a particular skill or concept. The traditional classroom is fraught with distractions and interruptions that limit the amount of instructional time, and the number of students in a class is also a driving factor as to how much or how little of a concept or skill will be achieved. In the traditional classroom, learning is more abstract and can occasionally happen by chance rather than by design. In contrast, the distance education classroom is the place the learner chooses to access the class and the distractions are controlled by the distance learner. Education and learning is back in the hands of the learner with distance education, and learning is dependent on the learner and his or her active participation in his or her own education. GETTING THE MOST FROM EDUCATION THROUGH DISTANCE EDUCATION There is a distinct need for high school students to achieve at a higher level than ever before, and with distance education the level and quality of education has increased through the quantity of education being offered. In a study released in 2005, Thomas and Bowler noted that “Eighty percent of public school districts said that offering courses not available at their schools is one of the most important reasons for having distance education … [and] half cited distance learning as very important in making advanced placement or college-level courses available to all students” (para. 1). Volume 4, Issue 4 Distance Learning 31
FLEXIBILITY AND TIMEFRAMES OF DISTANCE EDUCATION Distance education brings with it the element of flexibility and the ability of high school students to be involved in many different areas of their own education while utilizing the financial benefits of online education at a distance. Distance education frees many students of the burden of overloaded schedules crammed into a few hours each day and has the added benefit of being accessible when the student is ready to learn. QUALITY OF EDUCATION IN DISTANCE EDUCATION Quality of education is more than taking many classes, it is the ability of the student to retain and learn the concepts being offered in the classes that will give them an edge when they enter college or the job force. The regular high school can no longer meet the demands for higher and higher level classes while combating the need to remediate the lower level achievers. As classes are slowed down to accommodate the lower-achieving student, more higher-achieving students are permitted to sit uninspired and unchallenged. Distance education puts quality and value back into education as it offers upper level students the opportunity to learn in a challenging self-paced format. FACING THE CHALLENGES OF DISTANCE EDUCATION High school is a challenging endeavor for most students and compounding the challenges are the lack of interesting and diverse classes. With distance education offered at the local high school many students are able to take advantage of the high quality classes offered at a distance. Students are no longer limited to a single language class, but have the opportunity to take any one of a number of languages offered through the varying venues of distance education. Upper-level AP and honors classes are no longer being “squished” into the best time frame for the institution, but rather are being taken by students with the drive to succeed and the opportunity to take the class when it is best for the learner. INDEPENDENT LEARNING IN DISTANCE EDUCATION There are challenges directly associated with distance learning and, for some, the challenges make distance education all but impossible. Distance education is typically a form of education in which the learner is isolated from other learners. This does not mean that other students are not present while the student is engaged in the course; the contrary is true. In a typical classroom developed and maintained for the distance education student, there are many students present; however, few are engaged in the same class at the same time and rarely if ever are two or more students at the same place in the course. The distance learner must be a motivated and self-regulated learner. The isolation of distance learning can mean that a good student will not always find success, and a student who found the distractions of the classroom created an environment in which it was impossible to learn will be able to achieve at a higher level. INDIRECT COMMUNICATION IN DISTANCE EDUCATION Another challenge of distance learning is the inability to immediately confer with the teacher. Although many classes taken at a distance provide communication links through telephone or instant messaging, there is not the ability to walk up and show a teacher what one is experiencing problems with. As Arsham (2002) noted, “Some students may struggle with independent learning and feel insecure with an amorphous teacher” (para. 6). There is also the 32 Distance Learning Volume 4, Issue 4
Page 2 and 3: DISTANCE LEARNING FEATURED ARTICLES
Page 4 and 5: DISTANCE LEARNING MAGAZINE SPONSORE
Page 6 and 7: SPOTLIGHT ARTICLE Barriers and the
Page 8 and 9: THE EMERGENCE OF A NEW ECONOMY A de
Page 10 and 11: Table 4. Rank Order of the 10 Facto
Page 12 and 13: ORGANIZATIONAL PERSPECTIVE STRATEGI
Page 14 and 15: Table 5. Solutions to Barriers to D
Page 16 and 17: Table 5. Continued Social Interacti
Page 18 and 19: management. In L. Lau (Ed.) Distanc
Page 20 and 21: compensation, incentives and releas
Page 22 and 23: Pedagogy --Course Development --Cou
Page 24 and 25: Quality in Distance Education A Tri
Page 26 and 27: ability to understand and apply tec
Page 28 and 29: CONSTITUENCIES IN DISTANCE EDUCATIO
Page 30 and 31: control and responsibility for the
Page 32 and 33: Kirtley, K. E. (2002). A study of s
Page 34 and 35: Distance Education in the Public Hi
Page 38 and 39: need, in a distance education class
Page 40 and 41: Using IT-Based Distance Education f
Page 42 and 43: to participate and share and exchan
Page 44 and 45: to a teacher and get to get filled
Page 46 and 47: Online High School Courses Preventi
Page 48 and 49: students. Fourth, a program that in
Page 50 and 51: independently (November, 2001). Thi
Page 52 and 53: tion. Both classes had a 100% compl
Page 54 and 55: that allow instructors and students
Page 56 and 57: own graduate experience as being fa
Page 58 and 59: tional delivery. The knowledge that
Page 60 and 61: APPENDIX B: WIMBA LIVE CLASSROOM IN
Page 62 and 63: Access to College for Nontraditiona
Page 64 and 65: coast through by quietly sitting in
Page 66 and 67: institutions. According to Shanika,
Page 68 and 69: Distance Education at the Universit
Page 70 and 71: Figure 1. UF/IFAS IT’s relationsh
Page 72 and 73: Figure 2. IFAS 2005-06 operating bu
Page 74 and 75: ida Division of Continuing Educatio
Page 76 and 77: Institute of Food and Agricultural
Page 78 and 79: Learning Objects What Are They, and
Page 80 and 81: Table 1. Goals of Learning Object D
Page 82 and 83: easoning as to how they are built,
Page 84 and 85: INTERVIEW The Perils and Promise of
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4. Limiting the enrollment in dista
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esponsibility to make sure that thi
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ence since it did not figure in the
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INTERVIEW Here Come the Marines! An
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demonstrate, within a set of proced
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and this is significant, the Corps
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Ends and Means Developing a Digital
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artifacts one wants to include in t
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New Media, New Learning School for
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And Finally … continued from page
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United States Distance Learning Association

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