VOLUME 10, NUMBER 2, 1996
Guest Editorial
Dan O Coldeway
Lead Article (for summary,
click here)
The Evolution of Distance Education: Emerging Technologies and Distributed
Learning
Chris Dede
Reviews of Lead Article
Computer-supported Collaborative Learning and Distance Education
Philip C. Abrami and Eva Mary Bures
Emergence for Whom? A Commentary on Chris Dede's "The
Evolution of Distance Education"
Gary McI. Boyd
Toward Emerging Technologies and Distributed Learning:
Challenges and Change
Chère Campbell Gibson
A Response to Chris Dede
Peter Holt
Education as Usual: Comments on "The Evolution
of Distance Education"
Greg Kearsley
Some Possible Reality Therapy for Would-be Innovators:
A Response to Chris Dede
Roger Kaufman
Keeping Fixed on the Objective: Relfections on Distance
Education's Future
Michael P. Lambert
A Response to Chris Dede
Farhad Saba
Revisiting the Medium/Design Debate . . . Again: A
Response to Chris Dede
Erv Schieman and Tom Jones
A Response to Chris Dede
Thomas W. Smith
Author's Response
Chris Dede
Interview
Speaking Personally with Dan O Coldeway
Ellen L. Bunker
Book Review
The Virtual Classroom
by S. R. Hiltz
Zane L. Berge
Conference Report
The VI International Conference on Technology and Distance Education
Al P. Mizell
GUEST EDITORIAL
Dan O Coldeway
Welcome to this special issue of the The American Journal of Distance Education. In many ways this edition is more than just a special issue; in effect, it is an experiment to determine whether alternative means of journal communication enhance the exchange of information in distance education.
The concept for this special issue evolved from a suggestion I made at the Third Symposium on Research in Distance Education at Penn State University. It is not, however, an idea exclusive to me. Other scholarly journals use the format I am about to describe on a regular basis, and my experience reading those journals suggested to me its appropriateness for distance education.
This special issue begins with a major paper by Dr. Chris Dede. After hearing Chris speak on two occasions, I asked him if he would consider writing a paper for this issue based on ideas he has presented in his talks. Chris agreed and submitted his paper, which-with minor editorial revisions-appears as the lead paper of this issue. I then systematically compiled a list of experts in distance education, computer applications in education, educational psychology, and instructional design as potential reviewers/discussants. Chris added a few more names to my initial list. The people selected were asked to review the final paper and were told that their remarks, both positive and critical, potentially would be published in this issue. As you will see from the table of contents, several people in the above fields responded to my request and provided reviews. After very limited editing I submitted all the reviews to Chris for his consideration and asked him to write a brief general response to the reviewers of his work. That rejoinder appears as the final contribution to this issue.
The concept of this issue represents a potentially significant benefit for readers of The American Journal of Distance Education: they receive not only a substantive article on distance education but also the opportunity to compare their views on that article with those of professionals and experts in the field. This contrasts with the conventional format of publishing several articles and leaving the readers to create their own views having never seen the reviewers' comments on any of the articles.
I found the process of implementing this experimental concept to be quite interesting and productive. Soliciting input from reviewers was not difficult, although some of my potential reviewers were unavailable, and two declined. I also found Chris's paper interesting; in concluding this editorial, I would like to make a few comments regarding his work.
First, I have typically downplayed technology as a solution to distance education problems. I felt that educators should have learned their lessons with the "hype" of television, computer-assisted instruction, interactive videodisc, and other innovations over the past thirty years. If technology is the answer, I often cannot construct the question, and I remain skeptical even after reading Chris's paper.
Second, I was impressed that Chris did not appear to be "selling" something or trying to convince readers that his way of thinking was the only course to follow. His opinions are based on research findings, evaluative information, and a careful analysis of both the context for the solution and the nature of the content and learning population. For these reasons I believe his work has increased merit.
Third, Chris's paper is not presented as the exhaustive or final word on the subject; nevertheless, it is a major contribution to a rapidly growing trend in education in general, and distance education in particular. It is obvious to me that follow-up papers could discuss issues of instructional design methodology, learner-support alternatives, and future trends in the technologies discussed in the paper. It is to be hoped that scholars and students of distance education will be prompted to explore these areas in more detail and to expand upon the views presented here.
Finally, Chris has the unique ability to go beyond the confines of distance education-or even education in general-in exploring alternative ways to improve education and to maximize learning. His reference list is an excellent example of inter-disciplinary scholarship, and many of us in distance education can benefit from this difficult "blended" approach. For that matter, the reviewers also contribute a level of multi-disciplinary thought to the mix. All in all, the topic presented in this edition receives very in-depth treatment.
Before concluding I would like to thank Dr. Christopher Dede for his dedication and hard work on this issue. Chris was very accommodating to my requests and schedule and very easy to work with; I thank him for all of his efforts. I also thank the reviewers for their contributions and for making my job easier by following instructions and keeping to a somewhat rigid schedule. I offer thanks to Dr. Michael Moore and to the Editorial Board of The American Journal of Distance Education for allowing me this opportunity. I enjoyed the benefits of being trusted to pull this edition off, and I appreciate both the trust and the flexibility afforded me by AJDE and its board.
Finally, I would like to thank Dr. Melody Thompson for her help and editorial assistance. Melody is a fine editor and her contribution, although indistinguishable in the final product, is critical to the success of AJDE and this special issue. Given the experimental nature of this issue, it would be of interest to me and of benefit to AJDE if you would let us know your opinion of this style of publication and of this special issue. If you wish to comment, you can write to me via e-mail (dano@cs.athabascau.ca) or land mail at the address provided in the "Notes on Authors." I will gladly pass on all comments to Michael Moore, editor of The American Journal of Distance Education; perhaps in a future issue Michael and I can report the results.
The Evolution of Distance Education: Emerging
Technologies and Distributed Learning
Chris Dede
The promotion of new media forms, for instance the WWW and virtual reality (VR), is occurring because of the advent of high performance computing and communications. The resulting new media make possible new kinds of messages and experiences, e.g., "interpersonal interactions across network channels lead to the formation of virtual communities." Dede believes that an alternative instructional paradigm, distributed learning, will result. He maintains that the potential is there to create shared "learning-through-doing environments" that will be at students' disposal any time and any where.
The article theorizes about how both distance and face-to-face education could be reshaped as a result of these emerging technologies. "Its purpose is to delineate a three-part conceptual framework (knowledge webs, virtual communities, and shared synthetic environments) for understanding the new types of instructional messages that enable distributed learning." This article is a position/discussion piece which stresses the need to enlarge the reader's conceptualization of distance learning instead of just "proving the validity of specific pedagogical practices."
Since these technologies are still in formation, methods of study include case studies and formative evaluations. Distance educators need to consider now, even before this evolving situation is completely understood, how the resulting standardized plan for new approaches can be developed. What Dede is trying to do with his article is "to draw readers into a dialogue on how the field of distance education should invent its future by rethinking fundamental assumptions about teaching and learning."
Dede stresses balance in this article: balance between
virtual interaction and direct people interaction.
