RESEARCH PAPER

North American University

Education Department
M.Ed. in Curriculum & Instruction
EDUC 5324: INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGY INTO EDUCATION

Name: Murat Karaoglu Date: 7/27/2019

Topic Selected:
What does the research say about advantages and disadvantages of distance
education?

1. LITERATURE REVIEW:
What does the literature/research say about this issue/topic? By using NAU
Library or Online Search engines, conduct a literature review.
 You need to include 5 different sources (book, journal article, web article
etc.) in your review. Try to use current sources as much as possible.
 You need to summarize and synthesize your sources by discussing a
common theme or issue.
 You don't need to critique your sources
 You don't need to evaluate your sources (if the sources are trustworthy,
weather the author has a bias or not)
 You need to provide background information such as history and
definitions

Brief Literature Review:

Introduction
One of the major trends in today’s education is distance learning. Advantages of
distance education overweigh its disadvantages. It is certain that distance
education opened an opportunity to learners of all ages and backgrounds to
continue with their academic pursue. In order to better understand the
advantages and disadvantages of this approach to education, it is important to
examine the definitions associated with it as well as its development in time.

According to Sampson, distance learning refers mainly to a “mode of delivery

where independent learning takes place at a distance through the means of self-
study texts and non-contiguous communication” (as cited in Ustati & Hassan,
2013, p.292). Distance education has been around for at least 160 years based
on the 2006 study of Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, and Zvacek (as cited in
Taylor, 2007). Traditionally, distance education includes a variety of activities
from correspondence program using postal services; courses broadcasted using
the radio, distributed video lectures, or other materials to enhance instruction.
Today, with the rapid increase in technology, more attention is given to online
distance education. Medium of distance education has changed from paper-and-
pencil to online technology. This literature review on the advantages and
disadvantage of distance education mainly focuses on three common themes,
student-centered characteristic of this mode of learning, interactions that happen
during the course of distance learning and technologies utilized by distance
learning.

Student-centered Learning
The most important common theme regarding the pros and cons of distance
education focuses on the fact that it is student-oriented. According to Dumitrescu
(2013), it is accessible to students who cannot attend regular classes due to their
medical conditions, full-time jobs, and family conditions. Because students can
work from anywhere as long as they have internet, online education saves
commuting costs, time, and effort. In her 2007 study on the pros and cons of
distance education in small Caribbean islands, Taylor states that distance
education allows high school graduates pursue higher education courses that are
not available on the islands. With the flexibility of the asynchronous system,
students can work on their own pace. On the other hand, if the students are not
motivated enough, the strict schedule of online learning programs may
discourage them (Dumitrescu, 2013).

Dumitrescu (2013) emphasizes that the cultural characteristics of a society affect

students’ response to distance learning. Romanian students see their teachers
as authority who initiates communication with them, delivers his/her knowledge
and wisdom to them and provides guidelines for them to follow. Students usually
don’t speak up for themselves in class uninvited, nor do they contradict their
teacher. These cultural characteristics are at odds with the student-centered
aspect of distance education unless a blended type of education is used with the
addition of face-to-face learning to distance education.

Interactions
Interactions in distance education can be considered as another common theme
with its advantages and disadvantages. Research shows that interaction affects
academic achievement in distance learning (Joksimovica, Gasevic, Loughin.
Kovanovic, & Hatala, 2015; Ustati & Hassan, 2013).
Moore identifies three major interactions that occur in distance learning: student-
content, student-instructor, and student-student (as cited in Joksimovica et al.,
2015). Recent constructivist approaches in education result in a shift from the
student-content interaction to student-student interaction because the latter type
is a crucial component of healthy, socially developed community. With the help of
strong facilitation and scaffolding, all types of interactions can increase qualitative
student engagement so meaningful learning can occur.
However, Ustati and Hassan (2013) argue that if the interactions are not
synchronous, immediate feedback is delayed. This affects the learning process in
a negative way. Also, students who are taking online classes want interactions
not only with the students in their course but also with the students in other
programs to enhance their learning.
Moreover, students of distance learning might sometimes need to show more
motivation and concentration effort due to the absence of regular interaction with
a teacher who would normally encourage them and tell them “keep up the good
work” (Taylor, 2007)

Technologies of Distance Learning

Distance learning certainly requires knowledge and skills associated with internet
and computer literacy as well as the use of new computer technologies, apps,
different interaction and communication formats such as audio and video.
Dumitrescu (2013) emphasizes that distance learning helps students improve
their computer and Internet skills that can later be put to good use in many other
areas and activities of their lives. On the other hand, experiences of distance
learning may result in some challenges to students who are not familiar with the
structured format of e-learning programs and platforms. Also, some students
might be reluctant to use new technologies or find it technically difficult to deal
with the applications available on an e-learning platform. Slow internet
connections or computer glitches would create frustrations for all parties of
distance learning.
Since distance education depends on technology, it opens new professional
development avenues for teachers who need to make sure that they create
effective online learning environments and both synchronous and asynchronous
interactions for their students. Students themselves need to either improve their
technology skills or learn new skills to be able to deal with the technical
requirements of online courses. Indeed, Taylor states that distance education
requires learning of a new set of technology skills for both teachers and students
(2007).

Summary
Distance education makes learning accessible for students due to its student-
centered characteristic. It creates opportunities for different types of interactions
to enhance learning. Moreover, students and teachers can benefit from new
knowledge and skills they need to learn for distance learning. Some important
drawbacks of distance education might be the lack of face-to-face interaction,
delayed feedback from the teacher or peers, and not meeting the cultural needs
of certain communities. There is a strong agreement in literature on the fact that
the advantages of the distance education overweigh its disadvantages.

2. REFLECTION:
 What is your personal opinion on this issue? Do you agree with the
research? If you agree or disagree, please explain why?
 Provide examples/experiences regarding this issue from school
perspective or If you are not working in a school, from your profession. Be
specific with your examples. You can mention software/hardware names,
specific methods that you plan to use, etc.
 How would you implement this research in your career? (At least 1
paragraph)
Reflection:
I totally agree with the research on the advantages and disadvantages of
distance education. I think the biggest advantage is that taking online courses
are very convenient for anyone who cannot pursue their academic career
otherwise. It saves time and money for commuting. Students can work on their
own pace based on their schedules. It is great for those who are shy to have
face-to-face conversations due to their non-proficient or fluent level of speaking
or social anxieties but good at explaining their ideas in writing. On the downside,
I believe that distance education might not be good for younger students in
elementary school who cannot manage their time and need extra academic
support. Some students can easily get distracted while using computers by
playing games or using search engines. Moreover, in my opinion, English
Language Learners can benefit more from face-to-face courses since the
immediate feedback is crucial for them.

I have taken online graduate Math and Education courses. All of these courses
have been unsynchronized and offered by out-of-state universities and I really
liked the flexibility. All the homework and other assignment submissions were
online using Canvas or Moodle. For some of these courses, I had to go to the
testing center of a local college, make a payment, and take the tests under the
supervision of a proctor. This sometimes created some inconveniences and it
was not so much flexible when compared to some other online courses that have
had their tests online. I also think that the work load for online classes has been
more than the regular face-to-face classes and time management skills play a
crucial role for the success.

I want to use this research and my own experiences with distance education if I
teach any online courses in the future but I will do it in my way. Students taking
online classes get frustrated when they cannot get timely help, support or
feedback from their instructors. Therefore, I would create some instructional
videos on the Math concepts or skills that I teach and post them online so that
students can refer to them whenever they need. I think the videos created by the
instructor of the course work better than the ones that can be found in YouTube
or somewhere else online. Transactional distance that occurs in online education
is described by Moore as “psychological and communicational distance that may
arise in any instructional context and which needs to be minimized to increase
student understanding, outcomes, and satisfaction” (as cited in Best &
Conceição, 2017, p. 138). I believe that my own instructional videos might reduce
the transactional distance by showing my presence to the students and help
them succeed.

3. REFERENCES:
 Cite at least 5 References in APA.
  You may use http://www.citationmachine.net/apa/cite-a-journal for citing
your sources in APA style.

References:

Best, B., & Conceição, S. C. (2017). Transactional Distance Dialogic Interactions

and Student Satisfaction in a Multi-Institutional Blended Learning
Environment. European Journal of Open, Distance and E-Learning, 20(1),
139-153. doi:10.1515/eurodl-2017-0009

Dumitrescu, V. (2013). The effectiveness of combining e-learning and

classroom interaction in distance education at the Bucharest Academy of
Economic Studies. E-learning and Software for Education, (1), 537-542.
doi:10.12753/2066-026X-13-087

Joksimović, S., Gašević, D., Loughin, T. M., Kovanović, V., & Hatala, M. (2015).
Learning at distance: Effects of interaction traces on academic
achievement. Computers & Education, 87, 204-217.
doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2015.07.002

Taylor, N. (2007). Education leaders’ perspectives: Pros and cons of distance

education in a small caribbean island. Distance Learning, (4)3, 37-45.

Ustati, H., Hassan, S. (2013). Distance learning students’ needs: Evaluating

interactions from Moore’s theory of transactional distance. Turkish Online
Journal of Distance Education, 14(2), 292-304.