INTRODUCTION
History tells us “how the west was won.” The advocating of a new order, the establishment of fundamental principles was all achieved through the strong arm of the maverick. A revolutionary renegade, he refused to abide by the stagnant dictates of the past. This independent logician exhibited the qualities that spun the wheels of change. Today we have changed the metaphor from the image of the “lone gun” to Rogers’ (1962) diffusion of innovations change agent—the “innovator.” Portrayed as the venturesome risk-taker, the innovator is the revolutionary seeking to apply a unique skill set with the mission of effecting change in an exclusive environment. In the field of instructional technology and distance education (ITDE) Michael Beaudoin is the quintessential innovator. Having devoted his entire academic career to the advancement and delivery of innovative programs, this trendsetter is a prime example of leader in his field.
Beaudoin’s constant discourse on the need for grounding the field in the literature and on the importance of the pedagogy over the technology of teaching at a distance has been an inspiration to many graduate students. His experience is in line with Boyer’s (1990) definition of a scholar. Boyer defines four functions of a scholar: teaching, application, integration, and discovery.
Scholarship of teaching. Teaching refers to sharing the knowledge with students and empowering them to continue to teach themselves after school is over. Beaudoin has been teaching primarily adult learners since 1963. In his quest, he has utilized various pedagogical approaches and delivery methods, and has served as mentor to hundreds of students.
Scholarship of application. Application refers to the engagement as the scholar seeks a responsible way to apply knowledge to consequential problems, and ways of making it helpful for individuals and institutions. For 40 years, Beaudoin has held progressively demanding executive-level positions in academia, including being the founding dean of a college. He has also been active in a variety of professional service roles, including the U.S. Department of Education.
Scholarship of integration. Integration refers to making connections across the disciplines. It implies interpretation, fitting one’s own research or that of others, into larger intellectual patterns. It is the quest for the meaning of the findings. Beaudoin has participated in over 50 invited presentations at state, regional, national and international conferences, including keynote talks, and best paper awards.
Scholarship of discovery. Discovery refers to research; the search for new knowledge: the quest for what is to be known, what is yet to be found. Beaudoin is a widely published author. His publications surpass 40, and include articles in refereed journals, book chapters, reports, planning and evaluation studies, and even two books. His work has been widely cited by other scholars.
In addition to his contribution as a scholar, he finds enough time to travel, play sports, and other interests. Beaudoin has traveled extensively throughout the world and is a competitive master athlete. His hobbies include jazz, classical music, antique house restoration, and wine collecting.
During our e-mail interview, Beaudoin spoke with us about the present and future of the ITDE field, what it takes to become a scholar in ITDE, and when will distance education enter the mainstream.
INTERVIEW
Q:We understand you joined the instructional technology and distance education (ITDE) field in 1985. What attracted you to it?
DE and IT are, of course, two different things, so I make a distinction here in responding. Actually, I first became involved in DE in 1980, as first dean of a rapidly expanding DE program at a private college in Maine, which was farsighted enough to recognize the potential of new DE enrollments to save the traditional campus-centric institution (Sometimes, people make the right decision for the wrong reason). The program grew to then become one of the largest in the U.S. My involvement with the IT end of DE began in 2000, when I designed and taught my first fully online course for University of Maryland University College; I still serve as an adjunct teaching in its Master of Distance Ed program.
My entire career as an educator has been focused on the development and delivery of innovative programs intended to serve adult students not served by traditional programs. So, like many other DE-types, I first got involved in continuing education, then gravitated toward DE, as it was a logical extension of my earlier work. Since then, I have moved back and forth between CE, DE and other forms of adult education, mostly at the graduate level.
Q:The field of ITDE has changed over time with expanded research and new technology, but how has the field of ITDE changed you since you have been involved with it?
Since, as I indicated above, I have always been sort of an educational maverick, I’m not sure getting into DE really did change me, but rather just changed my focus to the distance dimension of teaching and learning. I was able to utilize many of the same skills acquired earlier (e.g., planning, management, evaluation, course design, etc.). But I suppose the focus on DE did require me to play a stronger advocacy role, often feeling like a pioneer trying to introduce change into resistant settings. I also was forced to adapt to the online environment, having begun in DE using earlier modes; though I have always been more interested in pedagogy than technology.
Q:From your perspective, what are three of the most noticeable trends in the field of ITDE?
One of the more obvious trends is that more faculty are now using IT, although the majority do so by incorporating selected elements into their face-to-face courses. Many of these colleagues would never admit to teaching via DE and in fact, most don’t. I might note that at my home institution, I am the only full-time professor who teaches entirely at a distance.
Another noticeable trend, of course, is the rapid increase in online course enrollments, not only at mega-institutions like UMUC, but even at more traditional and even more elite colleges that were late comers into DE. Frankly, much of this new interest and activity in DE was not because of any genuine commitment to this new mode, but to generate new enrollments.
A third trend/tendency is for those getting engaged in ITDE to focus too much on the IT aspect and too little on the DE aspect of the field. An example is that most folks doing faculty training in ITDE assume it all has to take place in a computer lab; when I do faculty training, the first session never has a computer in sight.
Q:What are the most essential characteristics needed for a professional in the field of ITDE?
I think the key attributes for this field depend on the role to be played. If one aspires to be a leader, then one needs a certain repertoire of skills that differ from those of an instructional designer. However, regardless of the role taken, one should always see him/herself as an educator first and foremost. In the leadership role, one really must have a lot of perseverance, as many wannabe DE venues still require a near existential struggle against the forces of traditional teaching systems and structures. I introduced DE at my current institution nearly 15 years ago, yet even today, there remain far more in-house skeptics than supporters, despite our success. Effective DE leaders must have the capacity to manage change by creating the conditions that support innovation, and they need to focus on both micro and macro elements of DE, i.e., details as well as big picture.
Q:Currently, what is your biggest concern within the field of ITDE on a national scale?
One concern I have is that there are suddenly too many ITDE “experts” around, especially on campuses and at conferences. At my university, the IT dept. is always assumed to provide the expertise, but quite frankly, they don’t really have a clue as to what teaching with technology in this digital age is really all about! Another example is that a colleague in my dept. developed and taught her first online course ever, and was then immediately seen as the dept. expert in all matters re: online teaching and course design. I see the same phenomenon played out at conferences that tout themselves as major DE sessions. Sadly, it seems that far too many presenters are like my colleague mentioned above—limited practice in the field and no knowledge of the theory, so they are reduced to a “show and tell” session that contributes nothing to the audience or to the field.
Q:Is this concern also of international importance, or are there other more pressing concerns at the international level?
I am just completing a major research/writing piece on the diffusion of e-learning in Sub-Saharan Africa, and for sure, there are many issues at the international scene, though perhaps different from what I note above. Perhaps my greatest concern is that there is much talk about ITDE in Africa, but with the exception of a few promising activities, little real progress is being made. There is plenty of dual-mode DE going on, primarily print-based with face-to-face sessions at regional study centers, but movement to the next generation of ITDE is slow. Most folks here say the problem is lack of resources (specifically money and computers), but I believe a big part of the problem is overdependence on external grants, lack of leadership, lack of planning, lack of IT systems management. I also have a real concern that once IT finally becomes a more prevalent delivery mode for DE in Africa, it will simply overlay the traditional colonial era mode of instruction that is not very learner-centered.
Q:You have said that distance education has the potential of providing better access to learning opportunities and can potentially impact an entire country. In what ways do you think that ITDE has the capability to contribute to the globalization of education?
I fear that the predicted globalization of education, primarily through IT-based DE is somewhat overoptimistic. The barriers to this happening in the near-term are enormous, as noted in my prior response, and includes high cost of bandwidth, unreliable power, slow service, lack of computers, etc. DE certainly provides broader access to learning in developing countries, but it is still limited to selected individuals and groups, and does not necessarily have a transforming impact on an entire nation. My piece on e-learning diffusion is not especially sanguine regarding the future of an electronically connected world community. My colleagues in Ghana often use the phrase “Ghana has a long way to go” and frankly, when it comes to ITDE, they are quite correct.
Q:What is the challenge of dealing with cultural beliefs? How may we make sure that we respect cultural beliefs when designing online classes?
Spending time in Africa has provided me some insight into how strong culturally-driven barriers against online teaching and learning can be. For instance, as noted earlier, instruction in most of postcolonial Africa is a very teacher-centered activity, which is contradictory to DE pedagogy. Also, the lack of effective planning, managing, and sustaining of DE initiatives makes if very difficult to move to the next generation of DE, so old means and methods prevail. There seems to be a lot of attention given to ITDE concepts, but when it comes to the actual implementation of these, complacency with the status quo, as well as an attitude that “Africa has so many problems” seems to stall any real progress toward innovation and change. The way that day-to-day business on a university campus in Africa is conducted is very much culturally-driven, and it is the same in a classroom or online course.
Q:What are some important contributions the field of ITDE has made to education?
One of the most significant, but unanticipated, consequences of DE has been to enhance face-to-face practices. It took many teachers a long time to get involved in ITDE, but when they do, most are positive about the approach and often end up applying new insights they learned from DE into their face-to-face courses. Also, as noted, though it cannot take all the credit, DE has advanced the notion of learner-centered pedagogy that has influenced instructional approaches in more conventional venues.
Q:What progress would you like to see in the future of distance education?
I have recently completed an essay which I’ve just submitted for publication that deals with a so-called “tipping point” for DE and asks if we are close to reaching this point. The piece suggests that when consumers of educational products choose a DE course over a face-to-face course, even when both are available; when providers are willing to state that their DE courses are as good or better than face-to-face courses; and when institutional planners and decision makers finally recognize that the future of higher education is not in more classrooms and parking lots, then we may be edging closer to that elusive tipping point. That will be one way I might define future progress in DE.
Q:What do you think are the most important ethical principles that should guide the ITDE profession?
As I mentioned earlier, any DE professional should see him/herself as an educator first and foremost, and this should guide their practice. A secondary role should be that of being a leader, regardless of the specific job one holds in DE. The DE educator/leader must be guided by their own Principles of Good Practice, crafted as they mature in their career. Initially, they might accept the “truths” of the profession, as they have acquired these from other professionals; then as they mature, they should explore alternative “truths” by reflecting on their practice and seek ways to improve. Finally, the veteran DE professional ideally serves a role model for others, defining new “truths” that can guide others entering the profession.
Q:What is the most enjoyable feature of your career?
Despite all the struggles, I have enjoyed the role of “pioneer” far more than the typical academic role of “settler.” There is something very satisfying about knowing you played a key role in creating a new program that might otherwise not have happened and its graduates might not have otherwise had that learning opportunity. This realization came to me 2-3 years ago while sitting through the lengthy commencement exercises of my university. To pass the time, I started counting all the graduates listed in the program who had completed their studies in one of the programs I had started; to my astonishment, the number was 41% of all graduates in that particular year, and that percentage has been fairly constant since then. This has got to be one of the peak experiences of anyone’s career!
Q:When someone at a party asks you “What do you do for a living?,” how do you summarize your occupation for someone who knows little about ITDE?
A colleague once referred to me in a complimentary way as the institution’s “incubator” implying that I was the one person who was always concocting new ideas, and who also had the ability to operationalize those ideas into successful outcomes. But I usually don’t refer to myself as an incubator; rather, I simply say I am involved in helping people have meaningful learning experiences without having to come to a campus at a fixed time and place and sit in rows of chairs and dutifully listen to a professor profess for an hour or two. I should also note that my role has changed in the past 10 years, so in an earlier period, I was more of an activist-administrator in the DE arena, while currently, I am more engaged in teaching, research, and writing in the field. I suspect my dear old mother still cannot to this day explain to her friends what exactly her son does for a living.
Q:What advice would you give to a student who wants to become involved in ITDE?
Recognize that this field, like others, has a distinct body of knowledge, including research, writing, and practice, which one must become familiar with to be a true professional.
Be resilient, have stamina, believe in what you are advocating, be articulate, have vision, build alliances, realize that the success may be modest, that recognition may be scarce.
Always be guided by the knowledge that you are doing important work, and that you have the capacity to make a significant contribution to the field.
Q:Is there anything you would like to add that has not been mentioned?
No, it’s all been covered, with excellent questions, and hopefully, worthwhile responses.
Q:We truly appreciate you giving us the opportunity to learn from you. Thank you for your time.
Thank you for the opportunity to share whatever wisdom I can impart regarding this exciting field.
CONCLUDING REMARKS
Michael Beaudoin is an innovator. He is an independent thinker who demonstrates the ability to understand and apply complex technical knowledge relevant to the field of ITDE. The fundamental ability to cope with a high degree of uncertainty early on in his carrier in a then uncertain field characterizes him as an innovator according to Rogers’ Diffusion of innovation theory. Beaudoin is a true role model for other members in the ITDE domain. As members in the discipline continue to seek stabilizing forces in the professional community, Beaudoin can be called on to help set the agenda in the restructuring of the field.
