Krathwohl, (1998) writes that rapid
developments in technology are leading many teachers and students to experiment
with distance education. Best Practices are meant to assist
schools in planning distance education activities regarding the electronically
offered courses, and to provide a self-assessment framework for those already
involved. For the accrediting agencies they constitute a common understanding of
those elements which reflect quality of technologically mediated instruction
offered at a distance. As such they are intended to inform and facilitate the
evaluation policies and processes of each agency.
Best Practices have been developed by the NCPSA Commission on Technology and Distance Education, in cooperation with CITA, in response to the emergence of technologically mediated instruction offered at a distance as an important and growing component of K-12 education. Expressing in detail what currently constitutes best practice in distance education, specifically electronically offered courses, they seek to address concerns that regional accreditation standards are not relevant to the new distributed learning environments, especially when those environments are experienced by off-campus students.
The Best Practices, however, are not new evaluative criteria. Rather they explicate how the well-established essentials of school quality found in regional accreditation standards are applicable to the emergent forms of learning; much of the detail of their content would find application in any learning environment. Taken together those essentials reflect the values which the accrediting agencies foster among their affiliated schools.
The U.S. Department of Education, 2004) support the continued expansion of distance learning opportunities aimed at elementary- and secondary-school students. As pressure on decision-makers to implement distance learning opportunities for K–12 students continues to grow, so do questions concerning the effectiveness and scalability of existing programs, and the costs, needs, and barriers in creating new programs (Freedman, Darrow,& Watson, 2002).
Blackmar,
L (1998) Best Practices For Distance Education in K-12 Schools
http://www.ncpsa.org/client_data/files/2011/57_bestpracticesfinalrevisedinteractive.pdf
Freedman,
G., Darrow, R., & Watson, J., (2002). The California virtual school report:
A national
survey of virtual education practice and
policy with recommendations for the state of California. Santa Cruz, CA: University of California.
Krathwohl,
D. R. (1998). Methods of educational and social science research: An integrated
approach. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.
U.S.
Department of Education. (2004). Toward a new golden age in American education:
How
the internet, the law and today’s students
are revolutionizing expectations. Washington DC: National Educational Technology Plan 2004.
Hi Eric!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy reading your last post for this week assignment on best practices. You pointed out some vital information about best practices. You laid a clear foundation of how it was started and its or-gin of how it begin. Since education is so importance to our lives it has over the years shown much remarkable changes through history. Education in the 21st Century have shown effectiveness on improving how students are learning and the valuable of an eduction. Effectiveness is one of main goal in encouraging student and individual to learn. Also so it is importance not only see student learn information, but to duplicate what each students are learning throughout the process.
Hi Eric,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your post regarding best practices. You included some very promising resources regarding best practices. The 57 best practices provided by the NCPSA are very thorough. The list of best practices is not narrowly scoped with the view of only the instructor or student as most are. The fact that they break the practices down into the five categories is very beneficial. It ensures that the approach is a holistic one and all involved parties are given clear expectations.
Best,
Brittany