Distance Education Technology
Definition - Where the learning environment includes a learning group with teacher, students, and resources separated by combinations of geography, time, and intellect. All linked together through technologies,both instructional and communication (Simonson, 2012).Coursera.org
https://www.coursera.org/
This is an online distance education organisation where many of the worlds most prestigious universities are offering a selection of their classes online. There are now 33 universities involved offering 20 categories of classes. Some courses are now being recognised as college credits. Course duration may last from 4 weeks up to 8 week. Participants receive a certificate of completion from the University they have been taking the course through. This ted talk given by one of the founders explains the creation and purpose of the organization, and predictions for its future use.
Daphne Koller: What we're learning from online education
http://www.ted.com/talks/daphne_koller_what_we_re_learning_from_online_education.html
I believe this use of technology is a wonderful example of what can happen when education, technology, research, and good teaching practices combine. As Dowes (2011) points out when open educational resources (OERs) are part of a large picture that “includes volunteers and incentives, community and partnerships, co-production and sharing, distributed
management and control” then it is likely to be sustainable, affordable, and usable.
In my advanced Adult ESL classes often the students are looking for ways not just to improve their English but to improve their education. This site provides them with opportunities to practice participating in tertiary level education without having to pay. Often these students are more computer literate than I am and love that they can complete a set of studies using the technology they currently own. These types of classes could be integrated into the actual curriculum of an advanced group or set up as extension classes.
Open Education Technology
Definition - Open educational resources are materials used to support education that may be freely accessed, reused, modified and shared by anyone (Downes, 2011).
The Open University - Institute of Educational Technology
http://www.open.ac.uk/iet/main/
The Institute of Educational Technology at the Open University aims to connect innovation and expertise in learning and teaching. It’s philosophy is to use this collective power to change the face of education. One aspect of this organisation is the development of OER’s through creating groundbreaking projects in this new field of education. The link provided is the portal to all of the current projects they have running, both research and development. I have included this as a resource as for teachers wishing to learn more about using these technologies. There are often budget constraints that make adopting new technology into the classroom, especially when it comes to Professional Development for the teachers using the technology. These kinds of open source Institutes can be a viable solution to this problem. Perraton’s (2010) report concludes that on the whole “the evidence on costs shows that open and distance learning can be at an economic advantage as compared with conventional education”.
I have met Adult ESL learners that have been teachers who are required to teach their home countries curriculum subjects in English. Open educational technologies and the associated resources are most advantageous to them.
References
Coursera (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.coursera.org/
Downes, S. (2011). Free learning: Essays on open educational resources and copyright. Retrieved fromhttp://www.downes.ca/files/books/FreeLearning.pdf
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009b). Distance education: The next generation. Baltimore, MD: Author. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu
Perraton, H. (2010). Teacher education: The role of open and distance learning. Retrieved from http://www.col.org/PublicationDocuments/pub_TeacherEd_Role_ODL.pdf
The Open University - Institute of Educational Technology (n.d.). Welcome to Open Educational Resources at The Open University. Retrieved from http://www.open.ac.uk/about/open-educational-resources/
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