Marilyn Bender's Comments from 700:Web Conferencing / Distance Education

Having read this article last semester for 700: Web Conferencing, here are my thoughts about distance education.

To faciliate learning at a distance, it is important to narrow that distance through collaboration and interaction. Technology can bridge that distance if used appropriately. The facilitor/instruction must be able to:
1. Organize materials and information and clarify performance expectations to help students manage their own learning experience.
2. Master the technology and attend to user issues with the technology because it can become a barrier rather than a aide in the learning process.
3. From a corporate learning perspective, recognize the need to evolve our practice from ansynchronous learning and lecture dominated webinars to more collaborative learning experiences.

Currently, we are creating interactive webinars using a number of polls, chat interaction and case study or scenario based discussions. But, we have an opportunity to connect with the audience before and after the event, build a learning community and provide more learning guidance for continuing learner directed exploration of the topic outside of the event.