'Distance+education'+and+'e-learning'+-+Not+the+same+thing

=Sarah Guri-Rosenblit [|'Distance education' and 'e-learning': Not the same thing]=

Higher Education, Vol. 49, No. 4 (Jun 2005) pp. 467 - 493

=Abstract.=

This article examines the distinct differences between 'distance education' and 'e-learning' in higher education settings. since the emergence of the new information and communication (ICT), many have related to them as the new generation of distance education, and some have referred to their implementation in academia as challenging the very existence of campus-based universities. Many policy makers, scholars and practitioners in higher education use these two terms interchangeably as synonyms. But the fact is that distance education in most higher education systems is not delivered through the new electronic media, and //vice versa// - e-learning in most universities and colleges all over the world is not used for distance education purposes. 'Distance education' and 'e-learning' do overlap in some cases, but are by no means identical The lack of distinction between e-learning and distance education accounts for much of the misunderstanding of the ICT roles in higher education, and for the wide gap between the rhetoric in the literature describing the future sweeping effects of the ICT on education environments and their actual implementation. The article examines the erroneous assumptions on which many exaggerated predictions as to the future impact of the ICT were based upon, and it concludes with highlighting the future trends of 'distance education' and 'e-learning' in academia.

=Argument.=

E-learning exerts global outreach. Distance education is literally learning away from the physical location of the University.

Together they can play apart of each other, but they are different in principal.

=Key Passages.=

"Many studies in the last decade show clearly that most students prefer to attend classes even when provided with the opportunity to get video-taped lectures, exercises and intimate tutoring through the electronic media." (479)

"Unlike the clear obstacles and barriers which traditional distance teaching technologies were designed to overcome, the new technologies offered multiple uses with no clear relation to any existent or future problem in the teaching/learning processes in campus universities." (483)

"E-learning will promote the growth of both academic trade and academic philanthropy. More universities and new for-profit companies will export academic and professional programs as a commodity to a variety of student populations." (489)

=Works Cited.=

The works cited for this article are too extensive to list, please visit [|this link.]