Reflecting on the Future of Distance Education

Perceptions of Instructional Design

Distance education is a field that is constantly changing.  With new technologies that are created, people are given new opportunities for distance education as well as experiences that are enhanced by the evolving technology.  As a result, I do not think that distance learning is something that is going to go away.  Instead, over the next 5 to 10 years, I think that distance education will continue to gain momentum and acceptance in both the academic and corporate worlds.  Since 1990, distance education has gone from the edge of practice in the field to a mainstream way of educational practice (Saba, 2005).  George Siemens points out that one reason for the growing acceptance of distance education is that more and more people are having experiences communicating online.  He goes on to say that distance education will be impacted by:

·         New communication technologies

·         Contribution by experts around the world

·         Increased use of multimedia games and simulations (Siemens, 2012).

With today’s generation growing up alongside distance education, they will eventually be in positions for decision making and be comfortable with and accepting of distance education courses. 

10 to 20 years from now, I think that distance education will become common place and accepted.  As a result, as new technologies continue to be developed over time and people that are separated by time and/or space are better connected, the term distance may be dropped.  I do not think that traditional classroom courses will completely disappear, but technological aspects will be incorporated and as a result, the instructors in all types of courses will take on more of a facilitator role. It is important to remember that distance education is not for everyone and some people may learn better in a more traditional format which is why I do not think that distance education will completely take over. 

Improvement of Perceptions

As an instructional designer, an individual has a responsibility for improving societal perceptions of distance learning.  The way that people perceive distance education is greatly dependent upon the way that the course is designed.  There are a variety of good instructional practice principles that give structure for involving students in quality learning experiences.  These include:

·         Communicating with students

·         Collaboration among students

·         Active learning experiences

·         Prompt feedback

·         High expectations

·         Respecting diversity (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, & Zvacek, 2012)

If these things are taken into consideration during the instructional design of a course, I think that it will naturally help societal perceptions of distance education.  In general, perceptions that individuals form about things throughout life are often formed by the previous experiences that the individual has had. By taking the time to carefully preplan a distance education program, an instructional designer can help ensure that experiences are successful and as a result, learners will see the value of distance education programs.

Needs for Continuous Improvement

To be a positive force in regards to continuous improvement in the field of distance education, it is important to stay up to date with the changes in technology that take place.  As new technologies are developed, alternative and possibly better learning experiences could be created compared to what an instructional designer may have already developed.  As a result, it is important to monitor and adjust learning experiences.  As a result, as I am created lesson in my current job as a classroom teacher I will try to keep up to date with new technologies as they develop as well as make sure that I follow the guidelines and recommendations for effective instructional design.  When designing experience it is important to make sure that experiences are embedded to make the learner comfortable.  If the learner is comfortable with the learning environment, they are more apt to take to it (Siemens, 2012).

 

References:

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2012). The Future of Distance Education. Baltimore, MD: Dr. George Siemens.

Saba, F. (2005).  The Future of Distance Education: Research, Conceptual Development and Practice.  Retrieved from http://www.uwex.edu/disted/conference/Resource_library/proceedings/03_29.pdf

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.