An Introduction to Distance Education: Understanding Teaching and Learning in a New Era

Abstract

The second edition of this textbook on distance education is a book of essays by well-known Canadian distance education scholars and their colleagues from Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, and the United States. Some of the authors appeared in the original 2010 edition of the text, and because their work is noted as seminal by the editors, they provide updated views on their research and its implications within the current educational context. The second edition, like the original, is organized in chapters nested under four themes, with a lively foreword written by Richard A. Schwier, Professor Emeritus from the University of Saskatchewan. As a textbook designed to support a course on distance education, it is well organized with concept definitions in each chapter and questions for reflection, review, and discussion. In addition, a “significant contributor” is highlighted at the close of each chapter, with a brief summary of their contributions to distance education theory and practice.