FOUR TITLES ADDED TO KNOWLEDGE SERIES

COL's Knowledge Series provides concise, topical, start-up guides to distance education practice and delivery. Four new titles are now freely available for use under the creative commons SA-BY, "some rights reserved" license (use and adaptation, share alike, with attribution).

 

Acquiring Accreditation in Distance Learning

Written and researched by Wendy R. Kilfoil, Director, Institute for Curriculum and Learning Development, University of South Africa

Accreditation certifies the credibility, integrity and achievements of educational institutions. Focused on distance education institutions, this guide explains accreditation options, the accreditation process, and the benefits and challenges of accreditation.

 

Adapting Learning Materials for Distance Learning

Written and researched by Dr. Clayton R. Wright, Distance Education Consultant, Alberta, Canada

While adapting courses for distance delivery can save time and resources that can be directed towards providing quality learning support, it requires the expertise of a course development team. This guide explores why and how to adapt learning materials for distance education, what expertise is required and case studies from around the globe.

 

Designing Learning Objects for Online Learning

Written and researched by Solvig Norman, Instructional Development Coordinator, Open School British Columbia, Canada and David Porter, Executive Director, BCcampus, British Columbia, Canada

Learning objects are content that is re-purposed for different learning situations. Increasingly, educators are saving expense and time while gaining expertise by sharing and re-using existing content in the form of learning objects. This guide explains learning objects, how they are managed, copyright and licensing implications, and how to design and implement learning objects.

 

Knowledge Management Strategies for Distance Education

Written and researched by Neil Butcher, Education
Consultant, South Africa

If information and knowledge are to be of practical value, they must be effectively managed. This is particularly important in distance education, where information plays such a vital role in teaching and learning. Knowledge management is the focus of this guide, which examines how to develop and implement knowledge management strategies, investing in information and communications technologies, and learning objects and repositories.

 

COL's Knowledge Series now contains 25 titles. They can be downloaded at no charge from www.col.org/knowledge . Single print copies of Knowledge Series titles are also available at no charge from COL and are included on COL's resource CD-ROM (www.col.org/cdrom).

www.col.org/knowledge   

 

 

"LEARNING FOR DEVELOPMENT" SPEECHES

The latest collection of speeches by COL's President and Chief Executive Officer, Sir John Daniel, and colleagues is available on COL's website. The booklet, entitled, Learning for Development, includes five presentations made from September 2006 to February 2007, plus Sir John's "Reflections on a Career in Distance Education". All speeches and accompanying visuals are also available individually on COL's website.

www.col.org/speeches

 

 

COUNSELLING FOR CAREGIVERS  

COL's guide for caregivers working with orphans and other vulnerable children and youth is now available online. Counselling for Caregivers is a set of self-instructional learning materials that provides caregivers with the necessary skills, knowledge and understanding to effectively support the healthy development of children and youth in their care. While it is written in the cultural context of Africa, the module can be used by caregivers anywhere in the world. Counselling for Caregivers can be downloaded at no cost from the COL website.

www.col.org/CounsellingForCaregivers