The question about the effectiveness of distance learning programs was asked for a long time. Many people say that distance learning programs are not efficient as conventional classroom programs. The authors state that there is no place for this question now. There is no evidence to suggest that classroom instruction is the optimum delivery method. Distance education is often more individualized and personal than face-to-face instruction. The assumptions made by Moore and Kearsley are based on two directions of studies: case studies and learner achievement research.
The case studies represent a descriptive way for research that is more controlled and systematic and that can therefore lead to results that can be generalized and applied to improve practice in the field (p. 61). The author mention the existence of hundred of reports about experiences of using technology to teach at a distance.
The learner achievement represent a more systematic and controlled approach for testing the effectiveness of distance education. Moore and Kearsley found that there is no difference in learner outcomes in conventional learning environment and distance learning environment. According to them, studies in the last 50 years show that there are no significant differences between learning in the two different environments, regardless of the nature of content, the educational level, or the media involved. In studies about the value of distance learning degree, majority of student or employees who were involved in distance learning programs indicate that distance leaning is: more easier, course materials are satisfactory, enjoyment of learning, worth the effort, superior, encouraging, etc.
According to the authors, there is no evidence that classroom instruction is the optimum delivery method, instruction at a distance can be as effective in bringing about learning as classroom instruction, the absence of face-to-face contact is not in itself determinal to the learning process, and what makes any course good or poor is a consequence of how well is it designed, delivered, and conducted, not whether the students are face-to-face or at a distance.
The authors put a question about the effectiveness of media in distance education. They mention that for any group of students, the environment in which learning occur and the medium of communication between teacher and learner as not significant as predictors of achievement. In his article, "The effectiveness of teleconferencing in fostering interaction in distance education" by Joan Robson, indicates that "using teleconferencing, a distance learning delivery technology, in teaching mathematics by distance education gives the students access to a flexible educational medium. Results confirm that this technology can support interaction between teacher and students similar to that in a conventional school. The investigation concludes that using teleconferencing in teaching mathematics by distance education gives the students access to education that, although different from that available in a traditional classroom, forms part of an effective teaching and learning environment. It also highlights the need to address pedagogical issues to maximize interaction within this environment." (Distance Education Vol 17 No. 2, Nov. 1996). Even though this paper focuses on one technology, and in a specific field, it is an indicator about the role of technology in distance education.
Course development provides a process and framework for systematically planning, developing, and adapting instruction based on identifiable learner needs and content requirements. This process is essential in distance education, where the instructor and students may share limited common background and typically have minimal face-to-face contact. Although instructional development models and processes abound ( Dick & Carey, 1990;), the majority follow the same basic stages of design, development, evaluation, and revision. In their system approach model for course design, Dick and Carey define the traditional instruction process as a process that involves instructors, learners, and textbooks. The content to be learned is contained in the textbook, and it was the instructor's responsibility to "teach" that content to the learners. Teaching could be interpreted as getting content from text into the heads of learners in such a way that they could retrieve the information for a test. Dick and Carey then define another view of instruction, the systematic process. In this approach, every component (teacher, students, materials, and learning environment) is crucial to successful learning. This perspective is usually referred to as the systems point of view, and advocates of this position typically use the systems approach to design instruction.
For a distance education system, course design plays the same rule as in face-to-face educational system. Course design is one of the components that Dick and Carey define in their systematic design. The studies that Moore and Kearsley present as examples of effective course design present the procedures used in the design mostly, not the model or the approach. No doubt that course design of distance learning program is a very important component in the way to the success of this program.
1- Dick and Carey, The Systematic Design of Instruction, Harper-Collins Publishers, 1996.
2- Joan Robson, "The effectiveness of teleconferencing in fostering interaction in distance education", Distance Education Vol 17 No. 2, Nov. 1996.