Distance Education and International Education

From Zimbabwe to MOOCs With Iowa, Egypt, Jamaica, Trinidad and Korea, too

Michael Simonson, Ph.D. Program Professor

Instructional Technology and Distance Education

Fischler School of Education

Nova Southeastern University

North Miami Beach, FL

Agenda

• Distance Education – the international traditions

• Distance Education – a domestic re-invention

• Distance Education – a story

• Distance Education – current events

• Distance Education – the future?

Registered MOODLE sites

USA: 12097 sites total (4266 are private and are not shown

Distance Education – Trends and Traditions

What is a MOOC?

Massive Open Online Course

Zimbabwe?

A country in East Central

Africa, formerly called

Rhodesia and formerly a part

of the British Commonwealth.

"When I was a kid, I had to walk three miles each

way to school. The snow drifts were seven feet

high, and I had no shoes."

"Gee, Granddad, that's nothing. Today I had to

go to Paris for my French class, MIT for

computer science and the New York Stock

Exchange for economics"

Welcome to the world of distance learning.

- Paul Butera, Ameritech Magazine

ST SP

DT SP

ST DP

DT DP

Coldeway's Quadrants

Industrialization & Distance Education

• Mass Production - Many learners at many locations learning concurrently.

• Planning and Preparation - D.E. is characterized by extensive planning by senior staff.

• Standardization - D.E. teaching is constant for all learners.

• Functional Changes and Objectification - The functional role of the teacher is split into:

1. provider of knowledge (unit author)

2. evaluator (tutor)

3. counselor (advisor)

• Monopolization - Concentration and centralization within state or nation are common.

Industrialization & Distance Education

• Rationalization - teacher's knowledge and Skills are delivered to unlimited numbers of students at a distance and with uniform quality

• Division of Labor - a fundamental prerequisite for D.E. to be effective (Course developers are not course evaluators).

• Mechanization - conventional education operates at a pre-industrial level. D.E. applies technologies

• Assembly Line - D.E. staff remain at their posts but materials are passed on.

• Mass Production - Many learners at many locations learning concurrently.

The Royal Harare

MOODLE sites in Zimbabwe

"The powers not delegated to the United

States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it

to the States, are reserved to the States

respectively, or to the people."

Distance Learning Classroom Teaching Site

D

Characteristics of Distance

Education in the USA

1. Live, two-way interactive

2. Locally controlled and funded

3. Classroom teacher oriented

4. Shared programming

5. Decentralized planning

6. State supervised and accredited

7. Small class size

Custer

Aberdeen Groton

Frederick

Leola

Ipswich

Warner

Roslyn

Sisseton

Britton

Langford Veblen

Tulare

Hitchcock

Bristol Webster

Waubay

Conde

Watertown

Mellette

Redfield Doland

Clark

South Shore

Volga

Ramona

Madison

Sioux Falls

Lennox

Onida

Highmore

Porcupine

Oelrichs

Shannon County

Kadoka

Waverly

Florence

Mitchell

Stickney

Ethan

Wilmot

Chamberlain

Gregory

Miller Wessington

Wolsey Iroquois

Huron

Woonsocket

Artesian

Howard

Montrose

Chester

Colton-Tri-Valley

Hartford

Plankinton

Avon

Helca

GettysburgHenry

Mt Vernon

Salem

Kimball

White Lake

De Smet Lake Preston

Martin

Hot Springs

Hayti

Castlewood

Arlington

Brookings

Flandreau

Colman

Dell Rapids

Beresford

Faulkton

Phillip Midland

Cresbard

Edgemont

Bison

LemmonMcIntosh

McLaughlin

Rosholt

Summit Big Stone City

Milbank

Willow Lake

Alpena

Tea

YanktonVermillion

Tyndall

Boonsteel/Fairfax

Wagner

Harrisburg

Canton

Alcester

Gayville

Elk Point

Dakota

Valley

Hurley

Emery

Canistota

Alexandria

Bridgewater

Freeman

Menno

IreneViborg

Wakonda

Scotland

ParkstonPlatte

Corsica

Tripp/Delmont

ArmorGeddes

Winner

Colome

Mission

White River

Lyman

Murdo

Pierre

Ft.

Pierre Harold

New Underwood

Rapid City

Hill City

Box Elder

Lead/Deadwood

Sturgis

Newell

Spearfish

Belle Fourche

Faith

Buffalo

Wakpala

Mobridge

Pollock

Selby

Herreid

Edmunds

Central

Bowdle

Eureka

Rosco

Willow

Lake

Revillo

Clear Lake

EstellineWhite

Elkton

Rutland

Stephan

St. Francis

11

2

2

2

2

8

2

2

2

12 2

2

4

4

13

6

2

2

2

3

2

Dupree

Eagle Butte

Isabel

Timber Lake

4

Hoven

2

Characteristics of MOOCs

1. Huge class size-little interaction

2. Institution controlled, often private

3. Content centered

4. Distance delivery

5. Centralized planning

6. Modest levels of control

7. Free and open

About Coursera

We are a social entrepreneurship company that partners with the top universities in the world to offer courses online for anyone to take, for free. We envision a future where the top universities are educating not only thousands of students, but millions. Our technology enables the best professors to teach tens or hundreds of thousands of students.

Through this, we hope to give everyone access to the world-class education that has so far been available only to a select few. We want to empower people with education that will improve their lives, the lives of their families, and the communities they live in.

What Was Learned?

• Distance Education – probably inevitable

• Culture and tradition are critical to implementation of Distance Education

• MOOCs? Who knows, but I doubt it!

• ?

The World is Flat

Thomas Friedman

“…companies will go where the knowledge is…”

Coefficient of Flatness

“…the flatter one’s country is – that is, the fewer natural resources it has – the better of it will be in

a flat world…”