The Evolution of Communication (Module 2)

It would be very hard to deny the fact that online, distance education has evolved into a new creature with characteristics that are different from traditional, face-to-face education. While it is true that there are overlaps in the two forms of education, the means by which students participate and reach their academic goal are drastically different.  One of the glaring differences between the two forms of education is the system of communication that is necessary to participate.  This not only means the communication from the instructor to the student, but also from the student to the instructor, and from student to student.

As technology has evolved so has the ways that people communicate.  This has never been more evident than in distance education programs across the globe.  The fact that there are programs across the globe equipped to educate people at a distance lends validity to the fact that communication has evolved.  Without turning this blog into a history of communication, it is important to see how it has evolved to the point that distance education programs are becoming ultra successful and an equivalent option to traditional, face-to-face academic programs.

Communication has evolved from drawings on cave walls to the invention of the printing press, from telegraphs to telephones, and from letters to emails.  However, communication extends past those to includes real time video communication from the smallest hand held devices. This evolution has given rise to a number of ways that students and instructors can communicate with each other throughout the course of study.  Some example of online tools that exist today are video conferencing programs such as Skype, but also hand held applications such as Facetime.  Of course these programs are in addition to traditional online forms of communication such as email, instant messaging tools, and social networking sites.

Not only is it important to have an idea of the types of communication that are available, but it is equally important to know what type of experience will be elicited from the form of communication used. As mentioned in Jill Schiefelbein's blog (linked below) the online forms of communication provide a richness to the experience that outweigh those from simple forms of written communication.  In the context of a distance education program this is vital to ensuring that the student has a positive learning experience, but also that the forms of communication used promotes learning.  Steve Wheeler compiles numerous documents and presentations in his blog to show the future of online, digital communication and its effect on the world of education.  Based on the previous history of communication and its effect on learning, as communication continues to progress, so will the ability of humans to use those forms of communication as a means of educating others.

http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/media-richness-and-communication-in-online-education/

http://steve-wheeler.blogspot.com/2012/12/communication-and-learning-in-digital.html