Preparing teachers and supervisors for the expanded potential of ' distance' education

Margaret Forster, ACER

Abstract

This paper addresses the need to upgrade the specialist qualifications of teachers in schools of distance education (SDEs), including course development, instructional design, flexible delivery options and implementation, and communications technologies, and argues for the inclusion of an examination of flexible delivery options in basic training and inservice for all teachers. It considers the role of SDEs in providing training and support for tutors/ supervisors, be they parents supervising an isolated child at home, or teachers supervising children undertaking correspondence/ telematics based courses in a school setting.