The Next Generation of Distance Education

Module 1-Blog 1

Distance education is growing fast in education and in the business sectors. Moller, Foshay, Huett, and Simonson agree that in order to meet the needs of learnes, distance education must evolve in the next generation. According to Moller, Foshay, and Huett (2008), in order for distance learning to improve, there is a need for more training for instructors and better instructional designs. According to Simonson (2008), distance education must provide learning experiences with new technologies equivalent to those in face to face environments to achieve learning outcomes. I agree with both of these positions because distance education is becoming the school of choice for k-12 and higher education for many reasons, to include easy accessiblity, flexibility in course selection, and simply convenience. As a result, instructors need to be trained to effectively design courses to provide meaningful learning experiences similar to the traditional setting. Appropriate technologies should also be considered to aid learners in achieving learning outcomes.


References

Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008, May/June). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the Web (Part 1: Training and Development). TechTrends, 52(3), 70–75.

Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008, July/August). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the Web (Part 2: Higher Education). TechTrends, 52(4), 66–70.

Huett, J., Moller, L., Foshay, W. & Coleman, C. (2008, September/October). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the Web (Part 3: K12). TechTrends, 52(5),63–67.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). Equivalency Theory.[Video]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

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