Using Collaboration in Support of Distance Learning

Trends in pedagogy and in technology are converging to make distance learning environments of the twenty-first century meet the needs of the learner of the 2-15` centuty. Trends in pedagogy have encouraged the movement away from the learner as a passive recipient of information and toward a more active model of learning. Earlier generations of distance learning media and methods were ill-suited to the active learning model. More recent technologies of distance learning, most notably computers, the Internet, and interactive video, have the potential to support the new model of learning. This paper describes different strategies to integrate activities to support this new model of learning into courses in two distance learning programs. An integral component of higher education in the new millennium will be collaborative learning, not only because it supports active learning, but also, because it is required for the workplace for which we prepare our students. Moreover, as more corporations become global, collaboration will be mediated by technology. The paper also discusses ongoing research being conducting to measure the effectiveness of technology-mediated collaborative learning. Collaboration will be the hub in the wheel of pedagogical strategies necessary for success in the new millennium. The 21'1 century will see a great expansion in the use of distance learning in the education environment. The teacher-student relationship is increasingly mediated by the use of technology. No where is this more evident that in distance learning. The typical distance learner is a mature person with a substantial number of commitments in addition to furthering his/her education. This paper investigates the implications of the reliance upon technology by distance learning programs. It addresses such questions as, what pedagogical shifts teachers should make to achieve effective learning outcomes and what changes institutions need to make to support the distance learner in order for this type of program to succeed. The authors report on findings derived from their joint research, from current literature, and from the practice of teaching in and supporting distance learning programs at their institutions. The initial driving force behind distance learning programs was the desire to provide opportunities for learning to individuals who are not able to attend an educational institution, to increase the number of educational experiences available to individuals, and to provide educational opportunities to individuals at times and places of their convenience. This third reason for distance learning programs has taken on increased importance in proportion to the number of working adults seeking higher education. The early modes and media of distance education met these needs by providing educational opportunities for students who did not reside nor commute to campus. [Edelson 97]. These modes and media included correspondence courses, courses on audio and video tapes, and courses broadcast via satellite and cable television. Distance learning programs employing these media can successfully deliver the educational programs based on the lecture-text-exam model of education to the distant student. According to this model of education, the two primary activities that produce successful learning are attending lectures delivered by content experts and reading texts written by content experts. Evaluation is accomplished by examination. In this model the learner is the passive recipient of information absorbed through listening, seeing, and reading. Shifts in learning theory, especially in adult learning theory, challenge the lecture-text-exam model of learning [Knowles 84]. They indicate that learning is achieved when the learner is actively engaged in the creation