Distance Teaching a Graduate Course on Information Systems Analysis and Design

A graduate distance course on Information Systems Analysis and Design was designed and delivered under the guidance of the following four philosophies: (1) an effective education is a learner-centered education; (2) distance students are more likely to experience situated learning and problem-based learning; (3) enforced learning should enable distance learners to achieve higher learning performance and satisfaction; and (4) the driving force behind a distance course is the effective learning of subject topics, not the enforcement of state-of-the-art distance education technologies. The course was well presented and received. Students reported a very satisfactory learning experience. This paper describes in detail the course planning, actual delivery, learning results, and technology use. Different distance course models are also introduced. Experiences, lessons learned, and practical suggestions can help other distance instructors to deliver effective distance education. The author concludes with a discussion of several important distance education issues.