Teaching and Learning at a Distance is written for introductory distance education courses for preservice or in-service teachers, and for training programs that discuss teaching distant learners or managing distance education systems. This text provides readers with the basic information needed to be knowledgeable distance educators and leaders of distance education programs. The teacher or trainer who uses this book will be able to design courses, evaluate programs, and identify issues and trends affecting the field. In this text we take the following themes: The first theme is the definition of distance education. Before we started writing the first edition of Teaching and Learning at a Distance we carefully reviewed the literature to determine the definition that would be at the foundation of our writing. This definition is based on the work of Desmond Keegan, but is unique to this book and has been adopted by the Association for Educational Communications and Technology and by the Encyclopedia Britannica. The second theme of the book is the importance of research to the development of effective courses and programs offered at a distance. The best practices presented in Teaching and Learning at a Distance are validated by scientific evidence. Certainly there are “rules of thumb,” but we have always attempted to only include recommendations that can be supported by research. The third theme of Teaching and Learning at a Distance is derived from Richard Clark’s famous quote published in the Review of Educational Research asserting that media are mere vehicles that do not directly influence achievement. Clark’s controversial work is discussed in the book, but is also fundamental to the book’s advocacy for distance education—in other words, we authors do not make the claim that education delivered at a distance is inherently better than other ways people learn. Distance delivered instruction is not a magical approach that makes learners achieve more. Equivalency theory is the fourth theme of the book. Here we present the concept that instruction should be provided to learners that is equivalent rather than identical to what might be delivered in a traditional environment. Equivalency theory helps the instructional designer approach the development of instruction for each learner without attempting to duplicate what happens in a face-to-face classroom. The final theme for Teaching and Learning at a Distance is the idea that the book should be comprehensive—that it should cover as much of the various ways instruction is made available to distant learners as is possible. It can serve as a stand-alone source of information.

Distance education, combining the use of correspondence texts, broadcasting and limited opportunities for face-to-face study, has been used in at least a hundred teacher training programmes over the last 25 years. Distance Education for Teacher Training is the first comparative review of the use of distance education and open learning for the training and upgrading of teachers. The book contains case studies using a broadly common format both to describe and analyse distance teacher training programmes in eleven countries across five continents. The case studies describe the methods used to examine how far the craft of teaching can be studied at a distance. Using a standardised microeconomic framework, they provide unique data on the comparative costs of training teachers by distance and conventional methods. The authors then draw general conclusions about the advantages and drawbacks of using distance education or open learning, about the conditions for success, and about comparative effects and costs. Distance Education for Teacher Training will be of value to all concerned with teacher education, whether in developing or industrialised countries, and to those working in and planning for distance education and open learning.

Open and distance learning has the potential to strengthen and expand the teaching profession of the 21st century and to help achieve the target of education for all by 2015. This text examines the case for using open distance learning and ICT to train our educators.

Regardless of the field or discipline, technology is rapidly advancing, and individuals are faced with the challenge of adapting to these new innovations. To remain up-to-date on the current practices, teachers and administrators alike must constantly stay informed of the latest advances in their fields. Teacher Training and Professional Development: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications contains a compendium of the latest academic material on the methods, skills, and techniques that are essential to lifelong learning and professional advancement. Including innovative studies on teaching quality, pre-service teacher preparation, and faculty enrichment, this multi-volume book is an ideal source for academics, professionals, students, practitioners, and researchers.

"This comprehensive, six-volume collection addresses all aspects of online and distance learning, including information communication technologies applied to education, virtual classrooms, pedagogical systems, Web-based learning, library information systems, virtual universities, and more. It enables libraries to provide a foundational reference to meet the information needs of researchers, educators, practitioners, administrators, and other stakeholders in online and distance learning"--Provided by publisher.

A new reality of teaching and learning through technology is continually on the rise creating the need for governments, organizations, teachers, students, and families to adapt. Students are realizing the need to become more autonomous, parents are having to become more present, and teachers are assuming new roles in virtual education. Although this new era of education is marked by innovation at all levels, most of these changes have not been thoroughly planned or structured, thus creating a difficult experience for all the educational stakeholders. Impact of Digital Transformation in Teacher Training Models conducts a critical discussion on teacher preparedness in the digital transformation of teaching practices. It promotes practitioner reflections on the role of institutional policies, teacher digital literacy, the digital divide, and how the ongoing digital transformation of society will induce the need for a paradigm shift in teacher training models. Covering topics such as emergency remote education, emerging pedagogies, and massive open online courses, this book is an essential resource for policymakers, government officials, education administration, pre-service teachers, educators, researchers, and academicians.

Distance education, combining the use of correspondence texts, broadcasting and limited opportunities for face-to-face study, has been used in at least a hundred teacher training programmes over the last 25 years. Distance Education for Teacher Training is the first comparative review of the use of distance education and open learning for the training and upgrading of teachers. The book contains case studies using a broadly common format both to describe and analyse distance teacher training programmes in eleven countries across five continents. The case studies describe the methods used to examine how far the craft of teaching can be studied at a distance. Using a standardised microeconomic framework, they provide unique data on the comparative costs of training teachers by distance and conventional methods. The authors then draw general conclusions about the advantages and drawbacks of using distance education or open learning, about the conditions for success, and about comparative effects and costs. Distance Education for Teacher Training will be of value to all concerned with teacher education, whether in developing or industrialised countries, and to those working in and planning for distance education and open learning.