Distance Education - the Future of Independent Learning
Sarah Watson

Taking college classes in your own home? Receiving a degree without ever setting foot on a campus? 20 years ago, this was nearly impossible. Today, wider acceptance of alternative education methods, The Internet and our desire for convenience have opened the doors of many colleges to worldwide students of all ages. I discovered the future of home education at my local library when a guide to Brigham Young University's Independent Study Program caught my eye in the throw-away box. As I glanced through it, my usual smile turned into a grin. "Imagine earning college credits while still in high school," I thought, "or applying college courses towards my high school credit requirements!"

As homeschoolers graduate at increasingly young ages, correspondence college courses offer a way to start working towards a degree without sacrificing the freedom and flexibility of homeschooling, which even a community college can't provide. The student can then finish at a conventional school, more mature and prepared to deal with the many issues raised by college life.

Or, college courses can be taken to fulfill high school requirements. If an Algebra credit is needed for high school, why not enroll in a basic College Algebra course and receive college credit as well? In grade 11/12, I fulfilled my high school English IV requirement by taking Mass Media and Communications through BYU and simultaneously earned 3 college credits.

Currently, I'm studying at home to become a certified Nutritional
Consultant and looking forward to earning a Graduate Gemologist diploma through the Gemological Institute of America's distance education program. Meanwhile, I'm able to continue classical piano lessons, work, attend EMT classes, pursue other interests and (best of all!) study on the hammock!

Of course, there are drawbacks to taking college courses in your own home. The cost per credit is the same amount you would pay if enrolled as a full-time student. But taking into consideration the price of transportation, housing, etc., and the convenience factor, college-at-home is not a bad deal.

Also, taking a distance course requires motivation and discipline. Granted, you wouldn't be interested in taking a course if you weren't motivated to do the work but being able to set goals and manage timeleads to more enjoyable learning experience.

If you plan on eventually attending college, make sure your future school will accept the credits you earn. Find out whether the course you're considering is listed as a distance education course on the transcript, and with whom the school is accredited.

And remember to fully investigate your options: some courses rely solely on the postal service for communication while others allow students to fax or email assignments and chat with instructor/classmates online. A proctor (usually a librarian, school official or teacher) is often required for exams, and textbooks may be online if you choose a web-based course.
Here are a few resources to aid your foray into this new educational dimension. Good luck!

Bears' Guide to Earning Degrees by Distance Learning By John B. Bear, Ph.D. & Mariah P. Bear, M.A.

This book is the most insightful, informative and comprehensive book on distance education available. And guess what? It's even entertaining! If the humorous captions on the antique drawings throughout the book don't make you smile, the amount of easily accessible, invaluable information will. The Bears cover everything you need to know, from deciding whether a degree is worth the effort to in-depth descriptions of worldwide distance programs. Highly recommended!

MindEdge http://www.mindedge.com

MindEdge.com is your number one guide to finding courses "around
the world or around the corner." Here, you can search for accredited courses and online degrees by school or by categories ranging from accounting to zoology. In all, over 700 online courses provided by 30+ colleges and universities are available here, plus links to research and articles.

Distance Learning on the Net: http://www.hoyle.com/distance/mision.html

The goal of this site is to "provide a listing of quality distance learning resources on the Internet," according to Glenn Hoyle, who started the site in 1995. "...Today, there are thousands of excellent resources--but the issue remains the same: how do I find the distance education class, college, program or resource that I need?" says Hoyle. With a Ph.D. in Continuing and Vocational Education and over 24 years experience in distance learning, program and curriculum development, instructional design and web course development, he decided to help solve this problem. Thanks, Glenn! The site contains links to colleges and distance course databases, FAQ's, accreditation issues and more.

www.distancelearn.about.com/mbody.htm
Here's another great guide from About.com, this time on distance education. A comprehensive click on evaluating schools, the history of distance education, student resources, and accreditation plus interesting commentary.

Distance Education Virtual Library
http://www.cisnet.com/~cattales.Deducation.html
Although not as thorough regarding curriculum as other databases, this site boasts links to numerous journals, newsletters, newsgroups and other valuable sources of information. There is also a large list of articles on various aspects of distance education, which are worth perusing.

About the author: Sarah Watson who lives with her family in Vermont, and has homeschooled from birth through high school, finished high school in 3 years (graduating at 16 y.o.) through Royal Academy. Her tailor-made program included distance learning courses at the college level. She went on to become Miss Vermont 2006. She continues to learn and explore interesting options in education and is indeed a life-long learner.