Distance Education
Part I: Distance Education – Theory (The Literature)
Part I is a formal writing task and requires that the guidelines as stated in APA 6thedition are followed, and that citations and references are included as appropriate. In this part of the paper, summarize and critically analyze the tenets most emphasized in the articles you read and discussed in this course. Feel free to include additional literature examples in order to further situate any point(s) you wish to make; this is appropriate if such additional citations provide further evidence supporting any claims you make. Emphasize the following articles (discussed repeatedly and at length in class):
1. Anderson, 2003: Getting the Mix Right Again: An updated and theoretical rationale for interaction.
2. Garrison & Cleveland?Innes, 2005: Facilitating Cognitive Presence in Online Learning: Interaction Is Not Enough.
3. Miyazoe& Anderson, 2010: The Interaction Equivalency Theorem.
Part II: Distance Education – Reflection
This part of the final paper is reflective in nature. During this semester, you had opportunities to engage directly and iteratively in becoming more grounded in the theories informing distance education, as well as in experiencing distance education in varied ways as a participant in face?to?face and varied online interactions. In particular, you experienced an immersive 3D virtual learning environment, Second Life (SL). This emergent technology environment provides some opportunities and challenges that are similar to more traditional distance education settings, but also opportunities and challenges that are unique and less explored in the literature of the field.
Respond to the following anchoring prompts for your reflection (feel free to add to those, but, as a minimum, address all of prompts given here. NOTE: Use these prompts as sub?headers in your response):
1. Which of the tenets of the literature (part I) do you personally give a high priority to and why?
2. Looking back at the beginning of the semester,
a. how has your thinking about distance education changed since then ?and why?
b. what in your thinking has remained unchanged and why?
3. What are you taking away from your own in?class presentation?
4. Which of your peers’ in?class presentations stands out as very ?important to you and why?
5. What are you taking away from your experiences as an online learner ?in Second Life and why?
6. What open questions about distance education in emergent technology ?environments remain for you and how will you seek to find answers to those?