The journal “Distance Education” is calling for proposals for the development of a guest-edited themed issue that will need to go to press in early May 2012. Guest editors should send a short proposal using the following guidelines to the Executive Editor, Som Naidu, on or before March 31st, 2011.

All Expressions of interest in developing a themed issue of the journal will be carefully considered by the editors for the appeal and timeliness of the theme and its alignment with the scope and coverage of the journal. Proposals could be revised or combined if that strengthens it, and/or the editorial team.

Guidelines

• Names and affiliations of guest editor(s),
• A clear and concise statement of the special edition theme,
• Its relevance to the scope and coverage of the journal,
• The need for a focus on the theme at this time “Distance Education” publishes research and scholarly articles in the fields of distance, open and flexible learning. Its focus is not on technology alone, but on how technology supports these processes.

“Distance Education” is owned by the Open and Distance Learning Association of Australia, Inc., and it is published by the Taylor and Francis Group. The journal was first published in 1980, and as such it is the oldest of all journals currently being published in the field.

Past themed issues include:

• Volume 26, Number 2 (2005): Theme: Distance Education: Past contributions and possible futures. Guest editor: Peter Smith, Deakin University, Australia.
• Volume 27, Number 2 (2006): Theme: Online distance education – New ways of learning; new modes of teaching? Guest editor: Rod Sims, Capella University, USA and Knowledgecraft, Australia.
• Volume 28, Number 2 (2007): Theme: Distance education technologies – An Asian perspective. Guest editor: Jon Baggaley, Athabasca University, Canada.
• Volume 29, Number 2 (2008): Theme: Distance education and e3-learning (effective, efficient and engaging learning). Guest editors: Michael Spector and David Merrill, Florida State University, USA.
• Volume 30, Number 2 (2009) Theme: Researching learning design in open, distance and flexible learning: Guest editors: Sue Bennett, Shirley Agostinho, Lori Lockyer and Barry Harper, University of Wollongong, Australia.
• Volume 31, Number 2 (2010) Theme: Mobile Learning and distance education. Guest editor: John Traxler, University of Wolverhampton and Jon Gregson, University of London External System.
• Volume 32, Number 2 (2011) Theme: Distance Education for empowerment and development in Africa. Guest editors: Neil Butcher, Monica Mawoyo, Colin Latchem, and Lisbeth Levey.

Source: Tonybates.ca

Learning Technologies @ UBC, 2005 (8 mins)
A vision for teaching and learning with technology in higher education
1 meg/sec 56 kbs/sec

The next group are ‘statements’ about the challenge we face as teachers in the 21st century:

A vision of students today (5 mins)
Michael Wesch and Kansas State University

Academia 2.0 (10 minutes)
Another from Michael Wesch and Kansas State University: a good statement of the challenge

Education Today and Tomorrow (2 mins 30 secs)
Sets use of educational technology within the needs of 21st century work

The iPhone in a university setting (approximately 15 minutes)
A vision from Abilene Christian University on the use of the iPhone for teaching and learning

Education 2.0 (7 mins 19 secs)

Carlos Morales Socorro talks about the relationship between IT and problem-based learning (Spanish, with English sub-titles)

And lastly, a humorous look at how it used to be.
Technical support in the Middle Ages

Tony Bates: Interviews and Keynotes

The implications of Web 2.0 for teaching and learning

Keynote delivered by video-conference to conference at the University of Leicester, UK, January 2008

Interview with Mike O’Donoghue of Lancaster University, U.K., 2006, 45 minutes
(recommend the audio version):

Audio Version
Video version

Topics:
strategic planning of e-learning
strategic use of e-learning
barriers to e-learning
is e-learning a useful term?
face-to-face vs online: how to decide?
why come to campus?
teaching skills for a knowledge-based society
exploiting IT infrastructure for administration
what’s the use of lectures?
training for professors in e-learning
my favorite technology and why
implications of Web 2.0
will all learning be through technology?
IT in schools vs IT in universities
do we still need teachers?

Centralised or decentralised distance education at dual mode universities?

This video interview with Tony Bates discusses the factors at play and the advantages and disadvantages of faculties being responsible for distance education, based on the experience of the University of British Columbia, which unsuccessfully moved to decentralise services in 2003. The interview was done for the University of Wisconsin 2009 Annual Conference on distance education

Lastly, for many more videos on e-learning go to http://video.google.com and type in ‘e-learning’ in the search box.

Source: tonybates.ca

Secondly, if you are looking to join a distance education program to further your career, it is important to know the opinions of employers of respected companies, as it would be pointless to acquire an accredited degree that does nothing to raise your chances of getting a better job in a reputable company. Keeping this in mind, we have compiled a small list of three of the most prestigious accredited universities with distance learning programs.

University of Phoenix

The University of Phoenix is probably one of the most well known and reputed of all accredited universities with distance learning programs in the US. This university boasts of over 17,000 highly qualified instructors and over 99,000 students that have graduated in diverse fields including Business, Technology, Education and Healthcare through it’s gigantic network of educational partners operating through out the world encompassing over 140 campuses. The University is also a member of several educational organizations, including the American Association for Adult and Continuing Education, the American Council on Education, the Association of American Colleges, the American Association for Higher Education, the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. Course instructors average 16 years of practical industry experience in their respective fields in addition to being highly qualified. This is definitely one of the universities that you should consider for getting your online degree.

Capella University

Capella University is one of the accredited universities with distance learning, accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. It offers high quality bachelors, masters and doctoral degree programs to an average of around 8,500 students and professionals every year. What’s more, Capella University has education alliances with over a hundred top corporations, including Boeing, Johnson & Johnson, Farmers Insurance, and Xerox. The value of a degree from this university is held in high esteem in the industry.

Walden University

Like Capella, Walden University is also an accredited universities with distance learning, accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association. Founded in 1970, Walden University has earned a reputation for itself in academia for imparting quality distance education to students and working professionals alike. Its courses are known to be flexible and well designed. It also makes available several financial aid options to students. Subject to the fulfillment of academic pre-requisites, one can choose from a range of degree programs at the graduate, masters and doctoral levels, in diverse fields such as Education, Health Sciences, Psychology, Management and Engineering.

Source: accreditedonlineuniversitiesnow.com

In this way CIDER is a forum for online networking – amongst participants – academics, researchers, practitioners and Athabasca University alumni. By providing connections between people, ideas, publications, websites and research resources, CIDER aims to become a dynamic network and a central source for distance education research in Canada, continuously being shaped and re-shaped by its members.

CIDER ’s distance education research scope is broad, ranging from learning and teaching application, financial and issues of access, the strategic use of technology in distance education settings, and other factors that influence distance education in Canada.

CIDER has many speakers from across Canada. You may wish to attend their sessions through the Web site. Check back often, as this list of upcoming events will be expanded. Slides and the audiographic recording of all Past CIDER Sessions are available for downloading in the archive.

The basic premise of CIDER is that Distance Education research in Canada needs support in many ways – financially, methodologically, academically, and so forth. The aim of CIDER is to be part of a solution. As part of this support, we think the research community needs a virtual space to grow into. Good communities, though, are more focused than on ‘everything related to Distance Education’ – thus the CIDER Special Interest Groups (SIGs). This is a space for posting resources, suggestions and discussions relative to CIDER members’ research special interests

eLA is the largest gathering of professionals of eLearning and distance education sector in Africa.  The conference allows the attendants to simultaneously develop multinational and cross-functional contacts and partnerships with key actors in the industry, and to develop their knowledge, assessments and abilities.

Delegates are high-level decision-makers and practitioners with experience from the three main eLearning and innovation key areas: education, enterprise and public sector.

E-Learning Africa 2010 is a bilingual event, languages are English and French. It  includes complete sessions with world most famous experts,  smaller presentations and special focus sessions, as well as functional demonstrations and debates on specific issues. Moreover the conference offers various networking opportunities in which practitioners share their experiences, ideas, knowledge and perspectives.

Part of the program is an exhibition and a demonstration area where international eLearning manufacturers, suppliers and providers present their latest products and services. From the participant’s view, the exhibition has become a strategical meeting point for all professional.

Preceding the conference is a full day event dedicated to workshops and lead by practitioners of the eLearning sector. These intensive sessions offer attendees a unique opportunity to update their qualifications and acquire new ones.

More special events will be held alongside the conference:  product launches, special interest group meetings, sponsored workshops, best practice presentations and many more.

This Year’s conference has four main themes:   Conceptual frameworks– Sectoral – Policy, planning and Design  – Solutions and Technological innovations.

In order to create the most comprehensive and cohesive program, eLearning Africa offers multiple types of sessions.

If you are interested and concerned, please visit the registration page and the attendance fees page.

Source: eLA

“Distance Education” publishes research and scholarly articles in the fields of distance, open and flexible learning. Its focus is not on technology alone, but on how technology supports these processes.

Guest editors should send a short proposal using the following guidelines to the Executive Editor, Som Naidu (snaidu@csu.edu.au) on or before April 30, 2010.

Guidelines:

Names and affiliations of guest editor(s)
A clear and concise statement of the special edition theme
Its relevance to the scope and coverage of the journal, and
The need for a focus on the theme

“Distance Education” is owned by the Open and Distance Learning Association of Australia, Inc., and it is published by the Taylor and Francis Group. The journal was first published in 1980, and as such it is the oldest of all journals currently being published in the field.

Recent themed issues include:

• Volume 26, Number 2 (2005): Theme: Distance Education: Past contributions and possible futures. Guest editor: Peter Smith, Deakin University, Australia.
• Volume 27, Number 2 (2006): Theme: Online distance education – New ways of learning; new modes of teaching? Guest editor: Rod Sims, Capella University, USA and Knowledgecraft, Australia.
• Volume 28, Number 2 (2007): Theme: Distance education technologies – An Asian perspective. Guest editor: Jon Baggaley, Athabasca University, Canada.
• Volume 29, Number 2 (2008): Theme: Distance education and e3-learning (effective, efficient and engaging learning). Guest editors: Michael Spector and David Merrill, Florida State University, USA.
• Volume 30, Number 2 (2009) Theme: Researching learning design in open, distance and flexible learning: Guest editors: Sue Bennett, Shirley Agostinho, Lori Lockyer and Barry Harper, University of Wollongong, Australia.
• Volume 31, Number 2 (2010) Theme: Mobile Learning: John Traxler, University of Wolverhampton and Jon Gregson, University of London External System.

Contacts:

Associate Professor Som Naidu, PhD
Director, Teaching & Learning Quality Enhancement and Evaluation Services.
Learning and Teaching Services, Charles Sturt University, Gordon Bevan Building, Level 4, Thurgoona NSW 2640, Australia.
Phone: +61 2 6051 9171: Email: snaidu@csu.edu.au; Web: http://www.csu.edu.au/division/lts/

Source: tonybates.ca

Today, I’m writing about someone who has been giving a lot to the e-learning community: Dr. Tony BATES.

Tony Bates is President and CEO of Tony Bates Associates Ltd, a private company based in Canada specializing in consultancy and training in the planning and management of e-learning and distance education. The company was started in 2003, and since then has served over 30 clients in 18 countries.

Currently he is on contract to the Government of Alberta, assisting with the development of strategic directions for information technology management in the post-secondary education system.

In recent years he has been Chair of the International Experts Panel for the Open University of Portugal, advisor to the Universidad de Guadalajara’s Maestría en Tecnologías para el Aprendizaje (Mexico) and to Universidad Tecnologica Metropolitana’s Magíster en Educación a Distancia (Chile). He is also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Advisory Council on Technology and Education.

He was part-time Chair of Research in e-Learning at the Open University of Catalonia in Barcelona, Spain between 2003-2006, and was on the Academic Advisory Board of the Volkswagen AutoUni, based in Germany, 2003 -2007. From May 2004 to September 2005, he was part-time Cisco Systems Chair of e-Learning at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology in Calgary, where he led a strategic planning process for e-Learning throughout the Institute.

Tony is offering very interesting e-learning resources through his personal blog, together with information about his own publications and he is currently developing a section called: “International Developments”. In this section, Tony has been writing about the use of e-learning and distance education in different countries, based on his personal experiences when visiting those countries. He has already blogged about his experience in South Africa.

Tony has a Ph.D. in educational administration from the University of London, England. He was awarded the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa by the Open University of Portugal in 1995, Doctor of Letters, Honoris Causa, from Laurentian University, Canada, in 2001, Doctor Honoris Causa from Athabasca University, in June 2004, Doctor of Social Sciences, honoris causa from the Open University of Hong Kong in December 2004, and Doctor Honoris Causa from the Open University of Catalonia, Spain, in June, 2005.

His hobbies include golf, skiing and flying a small plane. He is married, with two sons, three grandsons and a grand-daughter.

Tony has recently posted information about e-Taalim on his blog with a nice picture about a Tunisian “Souk”.

Many thanks Tony for the post!!!