I have been teaching at a B&M AACSB school part time, I have been approached to teach at a DL RA school Part time. Do you think that it would be looked down upon if I took the position at the second school by the AACSB B&M school? I guess the question goes back to stigma, but not only DL/BM but also accreditation. I was thinking of going to the dean to ask, but thought I would get a flavor here before I did.
Han, I believe only you can assess the political environment regarding any stigma attached to teaching DL. From my perspective the involvement with educational technology and the altruisitc issue of reaching out to students would be a plus rather than a negative. Very often in these discussions I wonder what is really the obligation of an educator and whether the politics of university life interferes with what should be the focus: the student. To your unique circumstance; if your current school intends to launch a DL program you would be in a good position to be the mentor of that progran if you had experience. In any instance bringing the background you have into the DL arena can actually bolster and direct good things for DL. In my opinion the student body dictates the level to which you can teach. Assess your personal standards for rigor against the school standards before accepting any position. Good luck. Kevin
It saddens me to think that teaching D/L would carry a stigma. My heavens, teaching ANYWHERE is a noble calling. I notice, however, that the University of British Columbia law faculty wants LL.M. degrees for its professors and Ph.D. applicants but WON'T accept the D/L LL.M. from the University of London. They DO like the RESIDENT U of L LL.M., though. This smells like academic snobbery to me.
Snobbery or not, I just want to know the reality. It seems like it exitst, and I don't want to not get additional classes in the future if I do go DL. Not sure though. It seems spilt so far.
Han, I have been looking into DL exclusively as a student. Although I will just be starting as a student in a DL school, my thoughts are it would be beneficial and broaden your career as an instructor. A plan on attending Capella and have reviewed the background and credentials of every instructor in the graduate business program. The vast majority has either taught or are currently teaching at b&m schools. As for the AACSB accreditation, the following is an exerpt from "The Eligilibilty Procedures and Accreditation Standards for Business Accreditation" from the AACSB site: "Programs with a preponderance of learning experiences in large lecture courses will raise questions among reviewers about interaction opportunities, as will programs with large student-faculty ratios. Review teams will consider the ratio of degrees awarded per faculty member among comparison schools, and they will raise questions of faculty sufficiency when a school under review is different from the comparison group. Specific pedagogical approaches or delivery systems may warrant exceptions. Programs that are mostly, or entirely, conducted by distance learning also will raise questions about opportunities for students to have appropriate interaction with faculty (and with other students), and the school will have the burden of demonstrating that it provides significant learning interaction opportunities." I mention this because the AACSB covers conditions for DL. In my opinion the experience will broaden your horizons.
'is' and 'ought' Hans How do you 'teach' at a 'distance learning' school? Is it DL or DT? What has it got to do with the AACSB school what you do in your spare time? Suppose you took a class in your spare time teaching elementary literacy to deprived adults in a community hall - would that count against you in some way in an AACSB career path? I would have thought that widening your experience in all forms of teaching would enhance any cv for a teaching career. I can understand your reservations about idealism conflicting with realities (that is why many put up in the past with racist selection policies in their Schools because it was the 'reality' of what 'is' and not what 'ought' that paid their rent and fed their families). However, I believe (naive me) that 'is' will never be what 'ought' unless we face down stupid prejudices, and that includes those against Distance Learning. We have that luxury in our spare time.
Re: 'is' and 'ought' Lots of good questions, here is the answers (to the best I know them). I have not taught DL, but this position is a website based (webct) format. 10-16 week classes. I don't have all the details yet, as I am still getting information. The reason it relates, is that I would like to get on full time with the AACSB school one day, and didn't want to hinder my chances (though it may not, just asking the question before, instead of after the fact). I agree, but just wanted to see what (and if) the there is a battle. I do agree that I think it will help me, but there is a stigma, so I think asking the Dean is the best solution. Thanks for all the input!
Teaching is indeed a noble calling, and from a student's perspective, the teacher's abilities and enthusiam (or lack thereof) are obvious in either the "traditional" classroom setting or via DL. Regardless of the medium, a good teacher is a good teacher, and in a perfect world would be held in high regard by either institution. Mike
