An Introduction to Distance Education is a comprehensive look at the field of distance education, outlining current theories, practices, and goals that are essential to effective design, delivery, and navigation. As an alternative pedagogical approach, distance education is posited to meet the evolving demands for access, affordability, and quality in higher education. This fully revised and updated second edition reviews the history of distance education while addressing its current influence on the education sector. Utilizing a student-guided approach, chapters offer pedagogical features to engage and support the teaching and learning process, including: questions for reflection, review, and discussion: students can use these questions as triggers for further thoughts related to the topic. Instructors can use these questions for classroom and online discussion key quotations: strategically placed throughout the text, these points act as a springboard for further reflection and classroom discussion concept definitions: central concepts discussed in the text are defined for students at the end of each chapter. Driven by seminal contributors who are researching and shaping our understanding and practice of distance education today, An Introduction to Distance Education offers a solid foundation from which to explore and develop new approaches to designing and implementing online courses.

The world of education is being radically altered with the change being driven by technology, openness, and unprecedented access to knowledge. Older correspondence-style methods of instructional delivery are passé and “classroom adapted to the web” approaches to learning are often ineffective and do little to harness the transformational potential of technology. E-Learning scenarios, mobile technologies, communication and information access, and personal learning environments are becoming mainstream and, as a result, control of the learning process is shifting away from institutions and into the hands of learners. This volumes promotes a forward-thinking agenda for research and scholarship that highlights new ideas, deep insights, and novel approaches to “unconstrained” learning.

Distance Learning is for leaders, practitioners, and decision makers in the fields of distance learning, e'learning, telecommunications, and related areas. It is a professional journal with applicable information for those involved with providing instruction to all kinds of learners, of all ages, using telecommunications technologies of all types. Stories are written by practitioners for practitioners with the intent of providing usable information and ideas. Articles are accepted from authors - new and experienced - with interesting and important information about the effective practice of distance teaching and learning. Distance Learning is published quarterly. Each issue includes eight to ten articles and three to four columns, including the highly regarded "And Finally..." column covering recent important issues in the field and written by Distance Learning editor, Michael Simonson. Articles are written by practitioners from various countries and locations, nationally and internationally. Distance Learning is an official publication of the United States Distance Learning Association, and is co?sponsored by the Fischler School of Education at Nova Southeastern University and Information Age Publishing.

Online education, both by for-profit institutions and within traditional universities, has seen recent tremendous growth and appeal - but online education has many aspects that are not well understood. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Online Education provides a thorough and engaging reference on all aspects of this field, from the theoretical dimensions of teaching online to the technological aspects of implementing online courses—with a central focus on the effective education of students. Key topics explored through over 350 entries include: · Technology used in the online classroom · Institutions that have contributed to the growth of online education · Pedagogical basis and strategies of online education · Effectiveness and assessment · Different types of online education and best practices · The changing role of online education in the global education system

The Quarterly Review of Distance Education is a rigorously refereed journal publishing articles, research briefs, reviews, and editorials dealing with the theories, research, and practices of distance education. The Quarterly Review publishes articles that utilize various methodologies that permit generalizable results which help guide the practice of the field of distance education in the public and private sectors. The Quarterly Review publishes full length manuscripts as well as research briefs, editorials, reviews of programs and scholarly works, and columns. The Quarterly Review defines distance education as institutionally-based formal education in which the learning group is separated and interactive technologies are used to unite the learning group.

In recent years, distance education programs have grown to allow greater educational opportunities to a diverse set of learners from all over the world. As remote learning becomes a widespread practice, universities too must adapt to this changing educational landscape. Critical Examinations of Distance Education Transformation across Disciplines provides an interdisciplinary look at the development of distance learning in higher education. This reference work bridges the gap between disciplines by offering practical tools and solutions for successful distance education implementation. Educators, administrators, and researchers across academia will find this publication a timely and relevant resource.

As more postsecondary faculty become engaged in designing online learning environments, research conducted on distance education program quality becomes increasingly important. Measurements in Distance Education is a concise, well-organized guide to some of the many instruments, scales, and methods that have been created to assess distance education environments, learners, and teachers. Entries are organized according to the qualities these measures attempt to gauge—such as engagement and information retention—and provide summaries of each instrument, usage information, the history of its development, and validation, including any reported psychometric properties. Offering more than 50 different surveys, tests, and other metrics, this book is an essential reference for anyone interested in understanding distance education assessment.

"This encyclopedia offers the most comprehensive coverage of the issues, concepts, trends, and technologies of distance learning. More than 450 international contributors from over 50 countries"--Provided by publisher.

The term Inclusive Online Education has generated great interest within and across educational levels and contexts, yet practical applications of it remain elusive in many institutional settings. Chapters in this book highlight define and interrogate definitions of inclusion. The research studies reported here focus on moving the conversation about inclusive online education away from individual accommodations for which students must qualify, to models where learning experiences are designed for the success of all students and teachers—both technically and relationally. While some authors do mention the need to know and understand the Universal Design for Learning (UDL), the authors in these chapters go beyond UDL to include understandings about historical challenges with inclusive education, emerging understandings about designing strong online instruction, and how placed-based thinking and social settings provide resources from which to draw in creating online learning environments and experiences that are not only humanized but humane. This book highlights research focused on moving the conversation about inclusion away from individual accommodations for which students must qualify to models where learning experiences are designed to address historical inequities and promote success for all students and teachers. Collectively, the chapters underscore the need to choose materials, design assessments, plan instruction, and engage with students in accordance with relational commitments to equity. Inclusive Online and Distance Education for Learners with Dis/abilities will be a great resource for academics, researchers, and advanced students of Education, Education Policy, Educational Research, and Disability Studies in Education. The chapters included in this book were originally published as a special issue of Distance Education.