Distance Education Policy and Management
DEPM 604 - Management and Leadership in Distance Education and E-Learning
(Formerly OMDE 604.) An introduction to the organization, management, and administration of distance education and e-learning training programs and systems. Topics include management theory and practice, organizational behavior and change, leadership roles and styles, and planning and policy. Discussion covers education and training in academic and corporate settings and the knowledge and skills necessary for a distance education practitioner to function effectively in either type of organizational environment. Assignments include individual and group case-study analyses, brief essays, and literature searches related to distance education and e-learning leadership.
DEPM 609 - Distance Education and E-Learning Systems
(Formerly OMDE 609.) Prerequisite: OMDE 601, OMDE 603, and OMDE 608. An introduction to frameworks for analyzing the nature of distance education from a functionalist, interpretive, or emancipatory systems approach. Appropriate diagramming techniques are used as a means to examine the organization and management of distance education systems.
DETT 611 - Library and Intellectual Property Issues in Distance Education and E-Learning
(Formerly OMDE 611.) An overview of the development and delivery of digital resources for distance education. Discussion covers the intellectual property issues affecting the use of copyrighted works in distance education, developing and delivering library resources online to a faculty and student population, and the future of digital information delivery and the impact of digital rights management (DRM) technologies and social networking.
DETC 630 - Emerging Technology Trends and Issues in Distance Education and E-Learning
An examination of emerging and advanced technologies that affect teaching and learning, as well as areas of support and management, in the field of distance education. Topics include emerging synchronous and asynchronous technology functions, mobile technologies, and social media tools for development and delivery, as well as technologies used in providing learner, faculty, and managerial support to distance education. Technologies are explored critically in both a theoretical and applied contexts. Analysis covers trends and critical issues associated with the adoption of such technologies.
DETC 630 was substituted for DEPM 650
DEPM 622 - The Business of Distance Education & E-Learning
(Formerly OMDE 622.) An examination of the highly competitive global business environment for distance education and training. Topics include the supply and demand of education services in emerging and existing markets, the competitive positioning of organizations, and increasing reliance on collaborations. Emphasis is on the skills distance education managers need in planning and developing programs, products, and services that are targeted to specific markets and cost-effective.
DEPM 625 - Distance Education, Globalization and Development
(Formerly OMDE 625.) A study of distance education from an international perspective, highlighting developing countries. Processes are explored through concrete case studies in the areas of higher education and internationalization; teacher education, school networks, and mobile learning; alternative routes to schooling; nonformal education, community radio, telecenters, and radio browsing; and vocational education and training. Topics also cover national and international policies on distance education, including the role of the state; international organizations (such as the World Bank or UNESCO) and their policies (e.g. the Millennium Development Goals); telecommunication infrastructure; transnational corporations and the commercialization of education; and the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).