United States Distance Learning Association

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Distance Education at the University of Florida’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences William C. Byrd, Mari Jayne M. Frederick, and Angeline Yoder INTRODUCTION The University of Florida (UF) is Florida’s largest university and the fourth largest university nationally (University of Florida Facts, 2007). The university’s annual enrollment is approximately 50,000 students. UF is composed of 16 colleges and more than 150 research centers and institutes. The university is actively engaged in distance learning enterprises. Currently, two undergraduate and 30 graduate programs, 26 of which are master’s degree programs, are offered at a distance (Distance Learning at the University of Florida, 2007). This analysis will focus on the graduate programs offered at a distance by the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS). William C. Byrd, Visiting Assistant Professor, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale Carbondale, IL, 62901. Telephone: (402) 306-6190. E-mail: cbyrd@siu.edu Mari Jayne M. Frederick, Information Technology Expert, University of Florida Tropical Research and Education Center, 18905 SW 280 th Street, Homestead, FL 33031. Telephone: (305) 246-7001, Ext. 352. E-mail: mmfrederick@ifas.ufl.edu Volume 4, Issue 4 Distance Learning 63
OVERVIEW OF THE COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURAL AND LIFE SCIENCES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA The College of Agricultural and Life Sciences has approximately 4,800 students, including more than 1,100 graduate students (College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, 2007). In addition to the traditional programs offered on the main campus at Gainesville, the college offers baccalaureate degrees, professional graduate degrees, and teacher certification courses at six satellite sites. The College of Agricultural and Life Sciences offers over 80 courses via distance education (University of Florida Distance Education Degrees, 2007). Additional live and distance education courses are offered at various locations around the state. The mission of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences is to provide undergraduate and graduate students with a high-quality education that results in knowledge and abilities for gainful employment and additional education, productive citizenship, and lifelong learning in the areas of food, agriculture, natural resources, and life sciences as they relate to human resources, the environment, individual communities, and a global society (College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, 2007) HISTORY OF THE COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURAL AND LIFE SCIENCES The University of Florida and the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences entered into a “federal-state-county wide partnership federal-state-county partnership dedicated to developing knowledge in agriculture, human and natural resources, and the life sciences, and enhancing and sustaining the quality of human life by making that information accessible” (Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, 2007a, para. 1). This partnership is commonly known as UF/IFAS. In 1964, a reorganization of UF’s College of Agriculture, School of Forestry, Agricultural Experiment Station, and the Cooperative Extension Service into a single unit occurred and UF/IFAS was born. Today, UF/IFAS includes extension in each of the state’s 67 counties, 13 research and education centers throughout Florida, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, School of Forest Resources and Conservation, the School of Natural Resources and Environment, Center for Tropical Agriculture, portions of the College of Veterinary Medicine, the Florida Sea Grant Program, and the International Program for Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources (Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, 2007a). UF/IFAS locations are depicted in Figure 1. Angeline Yoder, Business Education Teacher, Tamaqua Area High School, 500 Penn Street Tamaqua, PA 18252. Telephone: (570) 668-1901. E-mail: ayoder@tamaqua.k12.pa.us TECHNOLOGY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA The University of Florida’s Office of Informational Technology (OIT) serves faculty, students, and staff by providing a computing environment that applies technology. UF OIT strives to provide that technology 64 Distance Learning Volume 4, Issue 4
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DISTANCE LEARNING FEATURED ARTICLES
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DISTANCE LEARNING MAGAZINE SPONSORE
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SPOTLIGHT ARTICLE Barriers and the
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THE EMERGENCE OF A NEW ECONOMY A de
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Table 4. Rank Order of the 10 Facto
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ORGANIZATIONAL PERSPECTIVE STRATEGI
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Table 5. Solutions to Barriers to D
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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 36 and 37: distance education courses and Inte
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 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
Page 86 and 87: 4. Limiting the enrollment in dista
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Page 92 and 93: INTERVIEW Here Come the Marines! An
Page 94 and 95: demonstrate, within a set of proced
Page 96 and 97: and this is significant, the Corps
Page 98 and 99: Ends and Means Developing a Digital
Page 100 and 101: artifacts one wants to include in t
Page 102 and 103: New Media, New Learning School for
Page 104 and 105: And Finally … continued from page
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