Virgil Varvel, distance education guru, presents ongoing commentary and notes on educational research, issues, and publications.« May 2006 | Main | July 2006 »
June 28, 2006
Lincoln and Guba - Naturalistic Inquiry
I've been reading up on qualitative methods, especially naturalistic inquiry, case study, action research, etc., lately. Naturalistic Inquiry by Lincoln and Guba is oft cited and was referenced as supplemental in a course I recently took. So I picked up a copy and had a little read. I found it to be a very accessible read at even a beginner level, which was nice. I had my usual comments against and for such research that I embedded within my notes presented here.
Posted by vvarvel at 02:28 PM | Comments (0)
June 26, 2006
Building Learning Communities
I haven't posted any of my reading notes for a while, so thought that I would put at least one up today. Here are notes from Palloff and Pratt's Building Learning Communities book.
Posted by vvarvel at 11:16 AM | Comments (0)
Blackboard moves into course evaluation
Blackboard, in what could just be vaporware advertising though, is apparently making plans to make a strong move into course evaluation software.
Read full story at Inside Higher Ed
Posted by vvarvel at 08:04 AM | Comments (0)
June 22, 2006
San Juan College to deploy VBrick
"San Juan College in Farmington, New Mexico is deploying VBrick for on-demand classroom video and streaming presentations across campus. San Juan College is using powerful VBrick capabilities to provide authorized students with video-on-demand access on any networked computer while centralizing digital video management across the college campus, which encompasses nearly one million square feet and 11 buildings."
Posted by vvarvel at 09:13 AM | Comments (0)
June 20, 2006
No to Diploma Mills
A new law in Wyoming is starting to remove the state's reputation as a home for diploma mills.
Posted by vvarvel at 08:29 AM | Comments (0)
June 19, 2006
Origins of Distance Education
What are the origins of distance education? This was a question recently asked on DEOS. Here is the answer that I came up with. These are just excerpts from more complete notes I have from a few references.
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Here is what I have in my notes on the subject regarding distance education in general.
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Distance Education and Training Council - http://www.detc.org/downloads/DETC%20History%20Book.pdf
" Although distance education can plausibly claim its roots in Plato's instruction to Dionysius and St. Paul's letters to early Christian churches, most historians trace the beginning of the modern idea of distance learning to Caleb Phillips of Boston and his "Shorthand by Mail" course first offered in 1728."
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From http://www.degreeinfo.com/timeline.html - No sources cited though.
Circa 50-60 A.D.
St. Paul's epistles provide instruction to church members at a distance.
March 20, 1728, Boston Gazette contains an advertisement from: Caleb Phillipps, "Teacher of the New Method of Short Hand," advising that any "Persons in the Country desirous to Learn this Art, may by having the several Lessons sent weekly to them, be as perfectly instructed as those that live in Boston." [I do not have access to this issue in order to verify this information]
1840 Isaac Pitman begins teaching shorthand, using Great Britain's Penny Post.
1852 - Pitman's brother Benn Pitman founds the Phonographic Institute in Cincinnati, Ohio, and teaches shorthand through correspondence courses in the U.S.
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Here are excerpts from my notes from Renée F. Erdos on behalf of UNESCO, (1967). Teaching by correspondence, UNESCO source books on curricula and methods #3. London: Longmans, Green & Co. Limited. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
* Could date back to the first letter with directions from one to another such as Plato's epistles to Dionysium and letters of Elder Pliny to the Younger Pliny.
* 1856 - Charles Toussaint, Frenchman teaching French in Berlin and Gustav Langenscheidt, member of the Society of Modern Languages in Berlin - cofounded school for teaching language by correspondence
* 1891 - Thomas J. Foster, newspaper proprietor and editor in Pennsylvania directed course on mine surveying and machinery designed to teach safety measures. Course began International Correspondence Schools of Scranton, Pennsylvania
* 14 July 1891 - Regents of the Univ. of WI approved faculty resolution for development of university extension correspondence study courses
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From Garrison, D. Randy, & Shale, Doug (Eds.), (1990). Education at a
distance: From issues to practice, Malabar, FL: Robert E. Krieger Publishing Company.
Ch. 2: Origins of Distance Education in the United States, Sheila Sherow & Charles A. Wedemeyer, 7-22
Pg. 8 - Mid 1850's "Reverend W. Sewell of Exeter College, Oxford, suggested off-campus study through a series of lectures."
* 1873 - inspired by English "Society for the Encouragement of Home Study", Anna Elio Ticknor started a similar system for women from home in Boston.
Posted by vvarvel at 09:17 AM | Comments (0)
June 15, 2006
Free and Open Source Software Fuss
Andy Carvin presents the second part of his look at Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) and what the fuss is all about.
Posted by vvarvel at 10:23 AM | Comments (0)
June 14, 2006
Net neutrality fight returns to Senate
The political tussle over Net neutrality shifted back to the Senate's turf Tuesday, taking center stage at the last public hearing before a mammoth communications bill goes up for a preliminary vote.
Posted by vvarvel at 02:57 PM | Comments (0)
June 13, 2006
House Rejects Net Neutrality Rules
In other words, you may be paying more for your Internet soon as a tier system of access leans closer to reality.
See http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/060906T.shtml and http://www.educause.edu/PressReleases/1175&ID=1347.
Posted by vvarvel at 10:49 AM | Comments (0)
Internet Pioneer Dies
Revered computer scientist Alan Kotok, known for his work on the groundbreaking DEC PDP-10 computer, for being on the team that invented the joystick, and his more recent involvement with the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), died over the Memorial Day weekend.
Posted by vvarvel at 10:14 AM | Comments (0)
June 08, 2006
Are you ready for personal nano displays?
Well, you still have some time before they come to market, but this story from ZDNet reminds us that wearable technologies continue to expand. Soon, your glasses may be your TV.
See http://blogs.zdnet.com/emergingtech/?p=230&tag=nl.e550
Posted by vvarvel at 02:21 PM | Comments (0)
June 01, 2006
Free Music for going to college
Saint Joseph College, a four-year women's college in Connecticut, is offering students 3 free iTunes downloads once they have registered on the admissions site.
Posted by vvarvel at 10:00 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack