Distance Learning –
Considerations for
Course Design in Extension
Tamara Meredith
9/15/2015
Main Discussion Points
Adult learners and learning theory
Delivery – synchronous, asynchronous, blended
Micro-lessons vs. longer reflective assignments
Transactional Distance
Use of Multimedia and Cognitive Load Theory
Adults and Distance Ed Learning
 Minimum “instruction” and more
hands-on exploration
 Bite-sized lessons for daily life (in
the car, at soccer practice, etc.)
 Fast and efficient
support/response if issues arise
 Facilitate learner involvement in
determining course topics,
outcomes, and/or evaluations if
possible
http://elearningindustry.com/9-tips-apply-adult-learning-theory-to-elearning
Types of Content Delivery
Asynchronous
Synchronous
 Face-to-face in one location
 Online only, work at your own pace
 F2F in classroom PLUS others
attending via web conference
 Online only, deadlines and
threaded discussions
 Web conference/streaming video
 Watch recorded videos of F2F class
Blended
 F2F plus online discussions and work
 Web conferences plus online
discussions and work
Course and Lesson Length
Thoughts on time…
In short sessions/lessons, especially
synchronous meetings, learners are
usually best able to practice and show
“lower order thinking skills” –
remembering, understanding, retelling
(from previous readings), selecting,
applying, demonstrating, etc.
Over longer periods of time, especially
during asynchronous coursework,
students are able to use “higher order
thinking skills” – analysis, evaluating,
creating, designing, reflecting, etc.
The most successful online courses take
these into consideration as part of the
course’s design.

“Before smartphones, we went online roughly five times a day,
in long chunks, according to Joe Kraus, a partner at Google
Ventures. Today, with smartphones, it’s 27 times, in much
shorter bursts.”

“Today’s online courses basically consist of reading
assignments, lecture videos, homework problems and quizzes.
They might be broken up into short lessons, but they still follow
the same old linear, 14- to 20-week long structure of a
semester.”
http://qz.com/65408/the-dirty-little-secret-of-online-learning-students-arebored-and-dropping-out/
Transactional Distance
 According to Moore (1980), transactional distance is “a psychological and
communication space to be crossed, a space of potential
misunderstanding between the inputs of instructor and those of the
learner”. If learning outcomes in any distance education course are to be
maximized, transactional distance needs to be minimized or shortened.
 There are three key interactive components that have to work together to
shorten the transactional distance and provide for a meaningful learning
experience:
 dialogue, or interaction between learners and teachers
 structure of the instructional programs
These two you can
control – the third,
you cannot…
 autonomy, or the degree of self-directedness of the learner .
Borrowed straight from Wikipedia! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transactional_distance
Multimedia and Cognitive Load Theory
 Each learner has a unique
and fixed amount of working
memory to process
information before it can be
stored in long-term memory.
 The challenge is to increase
the Germane as much as
possible while decreasing
the Extraneous.
 The Intrinsic load cannot be
changed.
http://eet.sdsu.edu/eetwiki/index.php/Split_attention_effect
Recommendations for Using Media
 How to reduce cognitive load?
 Dual channel – give some info aurally,
some visually
 Smaller/shorter segments
 Get rid of non-essentials
 Words go next to graphics
 Don’t narrate on-screen text verbatim
http://elearningindustry.com/5-ways-toreduce-cognitive-load-in-elearning
http://www.slideshare.net/ranihgill/learningdesign-for-the-brain-multimedia-principles