Publisher: Prentice Hall - Merrill Education - A Division of Pearson Education
The purpose of the book, Distance Learning: Making Connections across Virtual Space and Time, by Anthony G. Picciano, relates to the purpose of schools and education in general. Most of the views on the purpose of schools and education relate to the intellectual and emotional development of children. Fundamental to these views is a sense that children, as a result of an education, will come away with a desire to learn more about themselves, others, and the world about them. Once a desire to learn has been instilled in them, children will learn a great deal on their own. Seymour Sarason describes this purpose as:
"If when a child is motivated to learn more about self and the world, then I would say that schooling has achieved its overarching purpose....[T]he student knows that the more you know, the more you need to know....To want to continue to explore, to find answers to personally meaningful questions, issues, and possibilities is the most important purpose of schooling."
Sarason's description is apt for all forms of education and learning. However, when discussing distance learning, the purpose of schools and education needs to be expanded for the adult learner. Malcolm Knowles, generally regarded as the founder of adult learning, posited that adults learned differently than children and that programs directed to them have a different purpose. Adult learners whether they seek an education they were not able to pursue earlier in their lives, wish to enhance their professional skills, or want to satisfy their curiosity about some subject, are different than children. Programs for adults should be designed for students who have already made decisions regarding careers and occupations, who are spouses and parents, and who must be taught in their own social context. Distance learning programs must take into account their special situations and combine the vision of Sarason with the practical needs of adults. Furthermore, the very nature of these programs are being redefined as distance learning takes a major step in its evolution by making greater use of digital communications and virtual systems to connect teachers and students.
The purpose of this book is to provide the theoretical framework as well as the practical considerations for planning and implementing distance learning programs. Fundamental concepts of distance learning, planning, program development, and the basic technologies used are presented. Emphasis is placed throughout this book on the distance learning application and program development in total and not on any single component. Most importantly, this book is meant to provide a foundation from which educators throughout the world will view distance learning as an appropriate approach for meeting the ever expanding needs of students. As the information age progresses, as demand for highly-skilled workers and professionals grows, and as life-long learning is routinely accepted, distance learning will proliferate and eventually become a necessity for meeting these needs.
The material is designed for administrators, managers, teachers, distance learning coordinators, chief information officers, and media specialists who are involved in initiating and supporting distance learning in schools and private businesses. This book is most appropriate as a text in a pre-service or in-service course on distance learning.
This book is organized into nine chapters plus a guide. While each chapter can be read independently, the material is presented in a logical sequence. Chapter 1 is an introduction to the main topic. Chapter 2 provides a review of planning and applies a modified social process model to planning for distance learning. Using this planning model, Chapters 3 through 7 explore the components of the model including distance learning technology, instructional development, student perspectives, faculty development, administrative support, facilities, and finances. Chapter 8 brings some of the material in the previous chapters together and explores the evolving Web-based virtual model that relies extensively on digital and computer networking technology. Chapter 9 takes a brief glimpse at the future. The book concludes with A Guide to Designing a Web-Based Distance Learning Course which illustrates the features and components of a typical Web-based course. This guide can be used in conjunction with the material in other chapters especially Chapter 8.
This Web site is a companion for the book and is specifically designed as a resource for instructors planning course activities. In the Chapter Resources, each chapter is summarized, suggestions are made on how to use the end-of-chapter case studies, and links to additional on-line resources are provided. This companion is not meant to replicate the material in the book which also contains a number of instructional resources such as bibliographies at the end of each chapter, a glossary, and an appendix of on-line sources of information on distance learning