SED EM-680 Distance Education Research & Design is a 4-credit, graduate level online course at Boston University where students engage with important topics related to distance education and especially online education.  Students develop a robust mental model of distance and online education through examining research that informs the design of online and other forms of distance education.  Topics studied include teaching and learner effectiveness when at a distance, theories of distance education, and case studies.  Learners demonstrate their knowledge through preparing a distance education course or workshop design of their own that they can use in their work, among other assignments that inform the design.


The course is completely online using Blackboard Vista and Wimba conferencing technologies.   To register contact the Boston University Office of Distance Education at http://www.bu.edu/online/index.html  or Deb McCullough at the School of Education (SED) Office of Student Records at either 617-353-4235 or by email at <mcculld@bu.edu>.  For more information about the course, contact Prof Whittier at <whittier@bu.edu> or <dbwhittier@gmail.com>.

The next edition of EM-680 Distance Education R&D begins January 17, 2012. 

Weekly Schedule of Topics:

1.   A Brief History of Distance Education;
2.  The Scope of DE, Definitions and the Systems Approach;
3.   Technologies and Media
4.   Course Design and Development
5.   Distance Education Teaching
6.   The Distance Education Learner
7.   Management, Administration, and Policy
8.   The Theory and Scholarship of Distance Education
9.   Case Study Presentations
10. Case Studies Review 
11.  Research on Effectiveness in Distance Education
12. The Global Span of Distance Education – International Case Studies
13. Distance Education: Past, Present, and Future - Challenge and Change.
14. Final Project: Student Distance Education Course Design Projects and Presentations


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