Guidelines for Development of Courses for Delivery Over The Iowa Communications Network

• Main Author: Hasman, Gary F.
• Format: Others
• Published: NSUWorks 2001
• Subjects: Computer Sciences
• Online Access: http://nsuworks.nova.edu/gscis_etd/570; http://nsuworks.nova.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1569&context=gscis_etd

This paper examines the quality of education as it relates to the Iowa Communications Network (ICN). It reviews the literature to determine a working definition of quality that was used to create a list of characteristics desirable in teachers who use technology. A list of such teachers was solicited from three administrative committees of the ICN and from the directors of the state's 15 area education agencies. Four teachers were selected from the list and their approach to creating programs for delivery over the ICN was examined. Personal interviews were used to discover commonalities among the four teachers' approaches to distance education that had led to their success. These commonalities, along with the working definition of quality, were used to develop a set of guidelines that can be used by developers of future ICN offerings. The guidelines contain information on designing courses for distance education, overcoming obstacles, use of collaborative techniques, and distance learning methodology. The guidelines were developed into a small booklet that will be distributed to teachers and administrators across the state of lowa.