Module1 was extremely useful in giving me a understanding of the foundations of distance education. It was important for me to understand the relationships within distance education. Whether it was between teacher and student via the distance education platforms, or between students and students. Finding a way to fill the need for meaningful discussion and contemplation that students are used to getting in a classroom was key. Also student’s relationship with the websites and online databases are important as well. If these aren’t conducive to a students learning style it will be counterproductive.  It may be an adjustment for some students who haven’t taken online classes before.

Module 2 was probably my favorite out of all the modules. Otto Peters was incredibly informative the idea of autonomous learning was not only informative for my formal education but for my personal gains as well. Being able to ask Mr. Peters details about Distance Education was very insightful and reading others responses was very insightful as well. Reading materials is helpful in starting to learn the materials and writing papers is great for reinforcing it but discussing it with Mr. Peters brings insight that I would otherwise not have been able to accomplish.

Module 3 showed me what kind of an impact that distance education has had in the world. Being able to categorize the different institutions shows me the differences between teaching methods from institution and also shows a progression of distance education as well. Seeing according to where in the world a university is and where it is located made me see that resources have a huge impact how distance education is implemented. The infrastructures tend to be less complex if a university has less resources then staffing is minimal but as a result a large number of students attend these institutions. While I don’t have any grounds to prove this, it could be an interesting topic to research. My wife who grew up in Brazil said she can remember as a child seeing the distance education tv programs early in the morning for people trying to get their GED’s. It is amazing how even in a short period of time of 15-20 years how far distance education has come.

I believe that this course has given me a great foundation to continue learning about distance education and have learned a lot, not only about distance education and its implementation but about my own learning habits. Not only on how I learn using distance education but how to become a better student as well. I believe this course has giving me a few of the necessary skills I will need to succeed in my own distance education endeavors.