A Virtual TripTik to Distance Learning

A triptek provides comprehensive driving directions for trips close to home or across the country. They provide information such as routes to and from the airport, nearby restaurants, attractions, sporting venues, and more (“AAA  Ohio auto,” n.d.). Similarly, instructional designers help provide similar services to those who embark in the journey of distance education. The role of the instructional designer is to consider all aspects of the instructional environment, following a well-organized procedure that builds a relationship among the instructor, the learners, the material, and the technology (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, and Zyacek, 2012).  The emergence of new technologies can have a reciprocal relationship with teaching, and with technological tools such as Skype, social media, blogs,  email, and wikis, that distort the concept of distance between the learner and the instructor, learning can happen anywhere, from anywhere, at any time ((Klopfer, Osterweil, Groff, & Haas, 2009; Beldarrain, 2006).

Suppose a high school history teacher enlists the assistance of an instructional designer to guide her students in a distance learning experience because he or she is located on the west coast, and wants her students to experience two new exhibits being held at two prominent New York City museums. In the past, students would need to have traveled to New York City in order to experience the exhibit in person. However, because of technology, these exhibits can be made available to learners in a few different ways, the first being a streamed video tour. Live streaming, which refers to sending video and audio signals in real time over the Internet, is a technology that can be used to bring people face to face despite physical distance. Unlike some technologies, streaming does not require learners to download plug-ins, is a relatively easy technology to use, is inexpensive, and has the ability to be recorded (Huang, Sisk, Kirk, Coryell, & Stewart, 2007).  Through email communication, the instructor could work with the museums’ curators to determine the exhibits of the museum she would like to tour with her students, and set up an appointment to take a customized “guided tour.” However, because there is a time difference, live streaming may or may not be a viable option, but there are other opportunities to connect New York City to the west coast. One simple, asynchronous way students could explore the museum is through a virtual tour, if it is offered on the museum website. While not nearly as personal as a live streamed tour, online virtual museums allow for collaboration between classrooms and schools to support collaborative learning interactions (Jones, 2002). For example, should the instructor wish to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City to see the Unicorn tapestries, they could visit the museum website and choose to take an interactive tour through the MetMedia link and choosing the “interactives” option from the menu (http://www.metmuseum.org/metmedia/interactives/adults-teachers/the-unicorn-tapestries ). Then following the virtual tour, using tools such as Skype, a session with the museum curator could be scheduled so that students could ask questions they may have about the exhibits.

Also following the “tour,” students can participate in discussion groups set up through a CMS (content management system) to critique specific pieces from the exhibits. In pre-determined groups, initiated with prompts from the instructor, students can voice their thoughts in a non-confrontational  online environment while still interacting with their peers. But the options do not stop there. With the large variety of web 2.0 tools such as wikis, blogs, and social media, the instructor could choose to have learners create a group wiki, or post their thoughts about the works to a personal blog, which their classmates can comment on and share their opinions. While the concept of blogging can be overwhelming to some, the key thing to remember is that it is about conversation, and is a medium, not a genre (Black, 2008). The blog post titled “33 Ways to use blogs in your classroom and in the educational setting” offers suggestions of how blogs can be used to enhance learning experiences and allow for student interaction ( http://web20intheclassroom.blogspot.com/2008/10/ways-to-use-blogs-in-your-classroom-and.html ).

Education is the most powerful weapon, which you can use to change the world (Mandela, n.d.). It is a means to challenge, learn, inspire, master, and believe yourself, and as an educator, those around you. At the same point, education isn’t how much you have committed to memory, or even how much you know (France, n.d.). Instead, it is how one chooses to dramatize and contrive experiences to involve the learner in a multisensory experience through representations of reality that determines one’s destinations (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, and Zyacek, 2012).

References:

AAA Ohio auto club. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://ohio.aaa.com/road-trips/triptik.html?zip=45013&devicecd=PC&referer=travelinformation.aaa.com

Beldarrain, Y. (2006). Distance education trends: Integrating new technologies to foster student interaction and collaboration. Distance Education, 27(2),139–153.

Black, J. (2008, Octiber 21). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://web20intheclassroom.blogspot.com/2008/10/ways-to-use-blogs-in-your-classroom-and.html

France, A. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_education.html

Huang, E., Sisk, J., Kirk, T., Coryell, G., & Stewart, J. (2007). Searching for anideal live video streaming technology. Retrieved from http://www.iupui.edu/~nmstream/live/introduction.php

Jones, G., & Christal, M. (2002). The future of virtual museums: Online immersive, 3d environments. Manuscript submitted for publication, Retrieved from http://www.created-realities.com/pdf/Virtual_Museums.pdf

Klopfer, E., Osterweil, S., Groff, J., & Haas, J. (2009). Using the technology of today, in the classroom of today: The instructional power if digital games, social networking, and simulations and how teachers can leverage them. Manuscript submitted for publication, Massachutsetts Institute of Technology, Retrieved from http://education.mit.edu/papers/GamesSimsSocNets_EdArcade.pdf

Mandela, N. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_education.html

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

The unicorn tapestries. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.metmuseum.org/metmedia/interactives/adults-teachers/the-unicorn-tapestries

Learning About Distance Learning

As an educator, I am constantly seeking opportunities to learn and grow professionally. I have often dreamed of obtaining a master’s degree, and while my geographical location allows me to seek educational opportunities at several high quality institutions, I had only considered each of the them briefly as the fearing of having time to be successful was always at the forefront of my mind. Being a music educator for grades Kindergarten through Sixth grade is very demanding, as the day often does not end at 3:30 PM when the bell rings. It consists of evening performances, weekend commitments, and often afterschool workshops and in-services; many things that would have hindered my ability to regularly attend classes and complete coursework. It seemed that a master’s degree would have to wait.

When someone first suggested attending classes through “distance learning,” the image that came to my mind is one using video-conferencing tools to telecast an instructional session to learners who were simultaneously streaming the live broadcast in their own homes. I explored the concept more, and as information from various online institutions flooded my inbox, I decided to pursue information from some of them. Truthfully, the concept of attending class via a video screen entertained me, especially if I could do so while sitting in my pajamas before bed, if I timed everything right. After careful consideration, I decided to become a distance learning student at Walden University.  

The first eye-opening surprise of distance learning came when I received a phone call, not an email, from an admissions counselor. When I chose an institution for undergrad, one of the things that I sought was a small learning community where I was treated less than as a number, but more that I was a person. The phone calls from the admissions counselor reminded me of that experience, and soon I was enrolled in a program. As I began my orientation course through Walden, I realized distance learning was much more than what I have always envisioned it to be. While my vision is sometimes correct, I have also learned this image is only a small piece of the overall distance learning picture. Distance learning is institution-based, formal education that focuses on learner to learner relationships, learner to instructor relationships, and learner to content relationships through the use of interactive telecommunications systems (Tracey and Richey, 2005; Simpson et al., 2012). It is access to libraries, academic support, and help desks through simple key strokes made on a computer. It is small discussion groups amongst peers, feedback from instructors, and the application and evaluation of newly acquired skills, while at the same time allowing for learners, who are separated by time and distance, to be flexible about when and where they learn.

I have learned that to be successful as a distance learner, intrinsic motivation is key, and motivation can be found everywhere! For example, many distance learning programs, by utilizing common web 2.0 tools such as wikis and social media, offer learners are not only an opportunity to interact with learners inside the classroom, but also with those learners outside of the classroom, through devices such as tablets, smartphones, and, of course, the traditional computer. As I have been allowed flexibility, I find myself more willing to participate in discussions, ask questions, and complete coursework because I never feel forced to succeed.

While I only am beginning to understand the impacts of distance learning, I can only wonder what tomorrow holds for this fascinating, evolving institution. While far from a new concept of education, as today’s distance learning stems from correspondence courses once offered via mail, this educational avenue will only continue to grow as technological tools increase. As an educator, these tools have the potential to help supplement classroom instruction to personalize learning for every student, while still experiencing a traditional learning environment, as these environments provide many other non-academic skills, such as socialization. As an instructional designer, I see these tools as ways to cost effectively create learning modules for clients that could be used worldwide. Distance learning, as we know it today, has the potential to be very different in terms of tools for the distance learners of tomorrow, but overall, its future will still be deeply rooted in its practices experienced by the learners of today.

REFERENCES:

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

Tracey, M. and Richey, R.  (2005).  The evolution of distance education.  Distance Learning, 2(6), 17-21. 

A Glimpse at the Web of Distance Learning