It has been 11 years since we introduced the Ends & Means column in Distance Learning. During that time we have seen tremendous growth and remarkable changes in distance learning. When we started there was no Facebook or Twitter, there was not even social media. At the time distance learning was still very much a niche market and the very notion of massive open online courses (MOOCS) was beyond even the bravest of predictions.
At the same time, many of the challenges and opportunities for those working in the field of distance learning have remained the same. Learners still come to courses often unprepared to learn in the online environment. Instructors continue to struggle to create engaging and interactive learning environments while also keeping up with technology changes, and institutions still mistakenly hope that distance learning will become a “cash cow.”
Given these dynamics of a field that is constantly evolving, we believe that now is an appropriate time to revisit several of the articles that we have offered readers in the Ends & Means column. The name of the column is borrowed from a recurring column that Roger Kaufman published in Educa-tional Technology Magazine in the 1980s, and it provides a focus for our articles in that we try to make distinctions between what we do in distance learning (e.g., teaching, interacting, grading, etc.) and what we, and more importantly our learners, accomplish as a results of those activities. In our articles we discuss both dimensions of distance learning, trying not to confuse the two.
Natalie B. Milman, Associate Professor of Educational Technology, George Washington University, 2134 G ST, NW, Washington, DC 20052. Telephone: (202) 994-1884. E-mail: nmilman@gwu.edu
Natalie B. Milman, Associate Professor of Educational Technology, George Washington University, 2134 G ST, NW, Washington, DC 20052. Telephone: (202) 994-1884. E-mail: nmilman@gwu.edu
Ryan Watkins, Associate Professor, George Washington University. E-mail: rwatkins@gwu.edu Web: www.ryanwatkins.com
Ryan Watkins, Associate Professor, George Washington University. E-mail: rwatkins@gwu.edu Web: www.ryanwatkins.com
In looking back at the 46 articles we have contributed to the column, what follows in this special issue are some of our
personal favorites. The selected articles cover a very wide variety of topics related to distance learning, and capture both the parallel and distinctive perspective we each have as authors in the field. As with our children, we tried not to show favoritism, so the articles appear in reverse chronological order and hopefully illustrate how our ideas matured along with the field.
Some of the articles may be new to you, and some you may remember from their original publication. In either case, we hope that you enjoy these articles as much as we enjoyed writing them.
