Course Syllabus
Course Goals/Objectives
The goals of the course are to provide the student with a foundation of knowledge, skills and attitudes that are required by a competent practitioner of distance education. Students will learn to:
- identify the characteristics of distance education;
- outline the history of distance education from its early beginnings to today's
IT-based practices;
- specify a series of methodological issues relevant to distance education;
- understand the pedagogic structure of distance education and its relevant
elements;
- reflect on institutional aspects in distance education;
- analyze the impact of digitization on the pedagogical structure of distance
education.
Course Materials
Holmberg, B. (1995). Theory and practice of
distance education. London/New York: Routledge.
(Will also be supplied online in class.)
Holmberg, B. (2001). Distance education in
essence - An overview of theory and practice in the early twentyfirst century.
Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
(Distributed in North America by UMUC's "Learning
Market Place".)
Moore, M. G., & Kearsley, G. (1996). Distance education: A systems view. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Peters, O. (1998). Learning and teaching in distance education - Analyses and interpretations from an international perspective. London: Kogan Page.
Peters, O. (2002). Distance education in transition
- New trends and challenges. Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem
der Universität Oldenburg.
(Distributed in North America by UMUC's "Learning
Market Place".)
We highly recommend purchasing the following book since it contains a number of recommended readings for this course and will be used in other program courses as well:
Bernath, U., & Rubin, E.
(Eds). 2003. Reflections on teaching and learning in an online master program
- A case study. Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
(Distributed in North America by UMUC's "Learning
Market Place".)
In general, journal articles and papers referenced in this syllabus will be supplied online in class.
It is strongly recommended
that students purchase the Publications Manual of the American Psychological Association
(5th Ed.). As noted below, the ability to write to APA standards is a Graduate
School requirement.
Grading Information
Three to four assignments are required. Each of the assignments contributes to the final grade.
According to the Graduate School's grading policy, the following symbols are used: A -- excellent; B -- good; C -- passing; and F-- failure.
The following scale will be used for the purposes
of this course:
A = 90 to 100
B = 80 to 89
C = 70 to 79
F = below 70.
The grade of "B" represents the benchmark for the Graduate School. It indicates that the student has demonstrated competency in the subject matter of the course, i.e., has fulfilled all course requirements on time, has a clear grasp of the full range of course materials and concepts, and is able to present and apply these materials and concepts in clear, reasoned, well-organized and grammatically correct responses, whether written or oral.
Only students who fully meet this standard and, additionally demonstrate exceptional comprehension and application of the course subject matter, merit an "A".
Students who do not meet the benchmark standard of competency fall within the "C" range or lower. They, in effect, have not met graduate level standards. Where this failure is substantial, they earn an "F".
The Grade Of "I" (Incomplete): The grade of "I" is exceptional and given only to students whose completed coursework has been qualitatively satisfactory but who have been unable to complete all course requirements because of illness or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control. The grade of "I" may be considered only for students who have completed at least fifty percent (50%) of the total coursework requirements and who have received a passing grade on all the coursework which they have completed. The instructor retains the right to make the final decision on granting a student's request for an "I", even though the student may meet the eligibility requirements for this grade.
Effective managers, leaders, and teachers are also effective communicators. Written communication is an important element of the total communication process. The Graduate School recognizes and expects exemplary writing to be the norm for course work. To this end, all papers, individual and group, must demonstrate graduate level writing and comply with the format requirements of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th Edition. Careful attention should be given to spelling, punctuation, source citations, references, and the presentation of tables and figures. It is expected that all course work will be presented on time and error free. Work submitted online should follow standard procedures for formatting and citations.
Course Schedule
Your instructor may have provided some or all of this
material as a website. If so, you may view the complete text online from the
Syllabus sub-menu in your classroom.
Additional Information
Understanding and navigating through WebTycho is critical to successfully completing this course. All students are encouraged to complete UMUC's Orientation to Distance Education and WebTycho Tour at http://www.umuc.edu/distance/de_orien/.
The online WebTycho Help Desk is accessible directly in the classroom. In addition, WebTycho Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at 1-800-807-4862 or webtychosupport@umuc.edu.
Each Masters student will
work towards the development of a personal portfolio. The goal of the portfolio
is to demonstrate your qualifications gained in the field and to provide evidence
of your competencies and skills in a variety of disciplines/roles. The portfolio
contains formal documents, such as appropriate assignments and other contributions
to the final grades in each course; and voluntary documents, which may show any
other kind of active participation while enrolled in the Masters program. These
voluntary contributions allow students to show their proficiency and skills as
a professional distance educator.
This portfolio is a requirement for successful completion of the final Distance
Education Project course and each student is responsible for keeping a permanent
copy of the various assignments and documents from each course.
Academic Policies
Academic Policies are not course specific and are therefore
created and housed separately from this syllabus. You may access and print Academic
Policies from the Syllabus sub-menu in your classroom.