Learner Support in Distance Education and Training (OMDE 608)
Course description:An introduction to the theories and concepts of support for learners in distance education and training. The various types of learner support including tutoring and teaching; advising and counseling; and library, registrarial, and other administrative services are examined. Discussion addresses management issues, such as planning, organizational models, staffing and staff development, designing services to meet learner needs, serving special groups, and evaluation and applied research. Assignments include designing a learner support model for a particular context (e.g., public or private educational institution or corporate or military training).
(From: http://www.umuc.edu/academic-programs/masters-degrees/distance-education-with-teaching-and-training-specialization.cfm)
Reflection
The MDE has been my first experience as a DE student. I had never thought about learner support and how it plays a significant role in a student’s experience taking a course at a distance. This course informed how learner support is a complex topic that incorporates administrative, academic technical and financial aspects.
Secondly, learner support in distance education means that teachers, librarians and technology experts are involved. Any DE institution takes learner support seriously because it has a direct impact on student retention. There are many factors contributing to the success of students in a DE environment, however for me learner support plays a considerable role. I have used the variety of support UMUC provides, from help with enrolling in class to librarians helping me to find a book. Sometimes DE students feel isolated and having a comprehensive learner support system helps the students to get over the obstacles and letting them know they have an extensive support system within the school.
The assignments for this course were highly beneficial to my learning. On assignment 2 I had to take position for one of the readings from the course. I decided to talk about teacher training and how distance educators must be trained before they start their job. I was pleased with the assignment because I learned how UMUC teachers are trained before they start teaching us. Assignment 3 was collaborative. We had to discuss some case studies and decided to examine a university’s learner support system. All the assignments were meaningful and made me more aware of how important it is to have a system in place/
While taking this course I was teaching at a distance and with the knowledge I had acquired I decided to write a proposal for the Distance Learning Division to improve the learner support center. Even though, the Division did not consider most of my ideas the instructors received some training to redirect students to the proper experts on specific technological and academic questions.
I truly enjoyed the individual and collaborative work I did in this class and I had a marvelous experience working with my teammates on assignment 3.
Artifact
Assignment 3 was an individual response to a case study which was prepared before in a collaborative group. The objective of this assignment was to describe a student support system of a particular university.
Course description:An introduction to the theories and concepts of support for learners in distance education and training. The various types of learner support including tutoring and teaching; advising and counseling; and library, registrarial, and other administrative services are examined. Discussion addresses management issues, such as planning, organizational models, staffing and staff development, designing services to meet learner needs, serving special groups, and evaluation and applied research. Assignments include designing a learner support model for a particular context (e.g., public or private educational institution or corporate or military training).
(From: http://www.umuc.edu/academic-programs/masters-degrees/distance-education-with-teaching-and-training-specialization.cfm)
Reflection
The MDE has been my first experience as a DE student. I had never thought about learner support and how it plays a significant role in a student’s experience taking a course at a distance. This course informed how learner support is a complex topic that incorporates administrative, academic technical and financial aspects.
Secondly, learner support in distance education means that teachers, librarians and technology experts are involved. Any DE institution takes learner support seriously because it has a direct impact on student retention. There are many factors contributing to the success of students in a DE environment, however for me learner support plays a considerable role. I have used the variety of support UMUC provides, from help with enrolling in class to librarians helping me to find a book. Sometimes DE students feel isolated and having a comprehensive learner support system helps the students to get over the obstacles and letting them know they have an extensive support system within the school.
The assignments for this course were highly beneficial to my learning. On assignment 2 I had to take position for one of the readings from the course. I decided to talk about teacher training and how distance educators must be trained before they start their job. I was pleased with the assignment because I learned how UMUC teachers are trained before they start teaching us. Assignment 3 was collaborative. We had to discuss some case studies and decided to examine a university’s learner support system. All the assignments were meaningful and made me more aware of how important it is to have a system in place/
While taking this course I was teaching at a distance and with the knowledge I had acquired I decided to write a proposal for the Distance Learning Division to improve the learner support center. Even though, the Division did not consider most of my ideas the instructors received some training to redirect students to the proper experts on specific technological and academic questions.
I truly enjoyed the individual and collaborative work I did in this class and I had a marvelous experience working with my teammates on assignment 3.
Artifact
Assignment 3 was an individual response to a case study which was prepared before in a collaborative group. The objective of this assignment was to describe a student support system of a particular university.
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