Distance Learning

The term Distance Learning obviously has something to do with learning from a distance. But, what do we mean? Well, there are two major applications for distance learning in the school environment. The first involves a large institutional network where all the technology for the school is housed in one room on campus. This prevents theft and centralizes control of all the computer and AV (audiovisual) gear. Centralized systems allow a single AV director to handle the scheduling (done by the instructors from their classrooms or offices) of dozens and potentially hundreds of classrooms needs with respect to computer hardware and presentation equipment. For example: Let's say a teacher needs to show a videotape to a class on Monday at 0800 hr. Well, he or she simply uses scheduling software to reserve a VCR to play a tape that will be displayed on a monitor in the classroom. Then, it just happens (well, the AV guy loads the tape and plays it). In addition, what's more, that tape could be simultaneously viewed by every student in every classroom on campus.

The other application of Distance Learning is in distance education. Through Distance learning tools (i.e. videoconferencing, audio conferencing, satellite TV and Cable TV - and soon the Internet), an instructor can teach people all over the world. The traditional model for teaching is to gather all the students in one classroom or auditorium and teach them a subject. With Distance Learning, however, a teacher can be teaching students all over the world simultaneously. The instructor "broadcasts" his/her class from anywhere (a classroom, a studio, an office) using a camera and a PC (for the visual images) and a microphone (for the audio). That video and audio feed is sent through any of the aforementioned broadcast methods. The most popular method today is through a videoconference. For example, a professor from Harvard University can broadcast a class to students in Universities all over the world and even interact "live" with the students as if they are all there in one room together. He can see all of them through the videoconferencing camera and monitor.

But, in the future, it will be done inexpensively and easy. How? Obviously, the Internet. In only five years the Internet has gone from an on-line catalog and company advertisement to a place where we can listen to almost any radio station live, listen to TV stations live, see the Academy Awards live, see "streaming video" broadcasts of news and special events and even communicate with anyone in the world, anywhere for FREE (well, for the cost of a monthly on-line charge). OK, the video quality isn't quite good enough to use it for many distance learning applications, YET, but look how far we've come in only five years. It will be, soon.

Education as Advertising

Certainly education is not confined to the schools and kids of the world. The corporation is realizing that education is the best form of advertising. Education is establishes credibility in any market, loyalty to those that were educated and a better understanding of any company's products or services. The trend in many corporations is to add educational as a marketing and advertising expense and many of them have even developed corporate educational centers.

Many corporations offer training on their own products or services, but some of them even go beyond that. American Airlines, in fact, has a corporate training conference center campus just south of their US hub operations at the Dallas/Ft. Worth Airport. This conference facility houses over 20 classrooms and conference rooms that American regularly uses to educate their staff on operations or job skills, but they rent out the facility to local corporations that need an educational hub but can't afford to build one themselves. Companies like Andersen Consulting and Lucent Technologies have rented the facility.

Each room is a complete AV (audiovisual) training facility within itself. Complete with a Sony projector in the ceiling, a lighting and room control system, a BOSE audio system, a document camera, room camera, videoconferencing and a computer, each room is renting including use of all the gear in the room. This helps subsidize the cost of the room and the facility for American Airlines as they only rent the rooms when they are not in use by the airline itself. In fact, there's even a hotel at the facility and free shuttle busses to and from the airport for guests. This facility is rumored to have paid for itself in just a few years!

Let's not forget the traveling sales presenter and corporate spokesperson - sometimes referred to as the road-warrior. Who travels on a regular basis without a laptop? No one. And, if you travel with a laptop, you're more than likely making presentations using PowerPoint or some graphics package or at least presenting stats from your PC. So, now we even have projectors that weigh less than three pounds . That's amazing as it's lighter than most laptops themselves. So, in the same carry-on bag, you can pack a laptop, the projector and a wireless mouse.

In the Church too?