Distance Education

     After viewing the presentation on distance education the thing that surprised me the most was the fact that it began in the 1700's. It never occurred to me that people could utilize snail mail as a means of distance learning. I was proud to learn that the University of London started distance education because I studied there this past summer. Distance education is described as learning that takes place when the student and instructor are separated by time or space. So that means that our EME class has participated in distance learning this semester, especially while Ms. Merryman was abroad. The number one advantage to distance education is that students can work at their own pace, but this advantage is actually a double-edged sword. Students can easily fall behind if they are not extremely self-motivated. So it's great for people with strict work schedules for example, but to keep up they have to keep themselves accountable. I do like the idea of having monthly phone calls like the Florida Virtual School to help keep students on task. I also think it's great that teachers make themeselves so readily available throughout the week.
     Many of my PR professors use blended distance learning. We, the students, submit online assignments in conjunction with our weekly class meetings. My teachers also use the e-learning website to update grades. So it is very applicable to my major. As for professional distance learning use in PR, companies could offer their employees free access to distance learning courses pertaining to their line of business. It could be an excellent resource for companies to utilize to enhance their employees' knowledge.
     My outside source for this week is this youtube video. It makes light of all that a distance education atnosphere has to offer as opposed to a physical classroom atmosphere. It made me laugh and made DE seem extremely attractive. This particular video is about distance education opportunities in Australia. Distance learning really is happening all over the globe!