Planning for the Future: Coming Technology in Distance Education With Implications for Adult Education

1. Planning for the Future: Coming Technology in Distance Education With Implications for Adult Education Bill McNutt • Technology specialist, university of Tennessee Division of Outreach and Distance Education – mcnutt@utk.edu - www.outreach.utk.edu/mcnutt • Duren Thompson Research associate for technology training, university of Tennessee center for literacy studies – solveig@utk.edu

2. What is DE? • Learning that happens when the instructor and student are in different physical locations • First ‘distance education technology’

3. Why DE? • To reach more students • Because Time = $ • Kids/family • Job issues • Transportation • Course accessibility, e.g. ESOL courses • Confidentiality

4. The Problem? • How do we provide effective instruction at a low cost for students who cannot attend traditional classes?

5. Traditional Correspondence Audio/Video Tapes Stock Production Television Broadcast Traditional DE Modalities

6. Video Teleconferencing Electronic Mail WWWeb Delivery Virtual Classrooms Internet Teleconferencing Digital DE Modalities

7. One Solution • Virtual Classrooms with support from Internet Delivery Systems • E-mail • CourseInfo • Centra

8. Learning/Teaching Activities • Our solution met these needs well: • Meet/greet students • Teacher – peer & peer-peer networking time • Teacher lecture • Write on chalk board/overhead • Students respond to questions • Students “write on board” or read aloud • Class discussion • Small group discussion/work • Worksheets/Handouts/writing activities, etc. • Complete & turn in assignments

9. Learning/Teaching Activities • Our solution can meet these needs, minimally • See students • See teacher • Show a video • Hands-on activities • Experiments • Art projects • Role-play

10. Demonstrate Course Info • Under construction

11. Let’s Take a Look at Centra • Under Construction

12. Discuss Instruction • At this point in the presentation we give participants an opportunity to interact with an experienced instructor and briefly discuss the impact of moving from a traditional mode of instruction to a Distance Education mode of instruction.

13. Comparison • Video Teleconferencing (high expense) • Internet Teleconferencing (low quality) • Virtual Classrooms (expense, low visual) • Web Courses (asynchronous, no visual)

14. Implications for AE

15. For Further Reference Jackson, Robert (2001). Web Based learning Resources Library, University of Tennessee Division of Outreach and Distance Education. http://www.outreach.utk.edu/weblearning Additional Sources: • Cahoon, Brad, Ed. (1998, summer). Adult Learning and the Internet, New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 78, 1-82. • Klass, Gary (2000, July). Plato as Distance Education Pioneer: Status and Quality Threats of Internet Education, First Monday, 5, 1-16. http://www.firstmonday.dk/issues/issue5_7/klass • Phillips, Vicky (1998). On the Evils of technology in Academia, Get Educated, 1-5. http://www.geteducated.com/articles/eviltech.htm • Spencer, Bruce (1997). Adult Education On-Line, 1997 AERC Proceedings, 1-6. http://www.edst.educ.ubc/aerc/1997/97spencer.htm

16. For Copies of the Presentation Copies of this presentation available via the WWW at either location: • http://cls.coe.utk.edu/literacy_resources/ libraries/coabe01.html • http://www.ce.utk.edu/McNutt/ • Contact the Presenters: • Bill McNutt – mcnutt@utk.edu - www.outreach.utk.edu/mcnutt • Duren Thompson – solvieg@utk.edu