Distance Learning Glossary

There are many terms associated with distance learning - in general, and how it is employed at Garrett College. Here are a few terms you may want to know:

asynchronous - learning mode in which the time of distributing the instruction and the reception of the instruction are different

browser - software that allows one to display pages from the World Wide Web

bulletin board - a place on the Internet which revolves around a common theme, such as Linda Tripp, and to which users are drawn because of their common interest; an assembly of documents or notes about a given topic on the Internet

College of the Air - an organization of courses, sponsored by the Public Broadcast system, which allow students to view their local cable channel for supplementary materials in various "television" or "cable" classes

compressed video - instruction given in a special classroom equipped with special computers, called codecs, which translate two way audio and video signals between two (point-to-point) or more (multipoint) sites. Compression of the data allows for huge amounts of information to travel back and forth between or among sites; Garrett College's MIDLN system uses compressed video technology

computer conferencing - a form of distance learning where faculty and students create and respond to questions, messages, or articles; sometimes a "threaded", or connected discussion takes place

CourseInfo - a course management system for web-based and web-enhanced classes. Produced and sold by Blackboard Co. Students get a log-in and take their classes on Courseinfo. Some Garrett College web classes use Courseinfo

Course Management System - a software program, such as WebCt or Blackboard, that contains the features necessary for a student to take a Web-based or web-enhanced class - email, discussion areas, assignment area, assessments, chat, external links, etc.

CoursePak - a series of web pages arranged by book publishers to complement the selected textbook for various courses. These are value-added components of using various textbooks. When designed correctly, CousePaks will load neatly from within Blackboard or WebCt.

Dial up - a network connection made by placing a call to a telecommunications device that is connected to the Internet or some other service

Eduprise - a partner with Garrett College in the delivery of online courses. Eduprise hosts the courses in Blackboard and WebCT, staffs the helpdesk, assists in strategic planning, and offers other administrative support

G-Net - a telecommunications network in Garrett County which links government, libraries, schools, cities, and the like in a closed, proprietary manner; Garett College is connected via the G-Net; soon to become Fibernet

Home Page - a page on the World Wide Web that contains text, graphics, and links to other sites on the Web

Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML): the language that directs all actions on the World Wide Web and which underpins all Web pages

ISP - Internet service provider, a service needed by users who are going to access the Internet from home or work (unless they are connected directly to the Internet through a local area network (LAN). Examples are AOL, Erol's

listserve - a subscription service on the Internet; users subscribe to a listserv, and the service delivers documents into the user's email account on a regular basis; as in a bulletin board, the documents share some common themes

Maryland Online (MOL) - a partnership among various four year institutions and community colleges that promotes access to classes which are delivered asynchronously (see above), mostly online. See www.marylandonline.org for more details

MIDLN - Maryland Interactive Distance Learning Network; a room equipped by Bell Atlantic which contains monitors, cameras, pc's, and other assorted equipment which comprise an entire videoconferencing site, or two way audio and two way video transmission; Garrett College has one such room at McHenry

modem - a telecommunications device which translates analog signals from the phone lines into digital signals which are understood by the computer, and vice versa; currently most modems are equipped to translate up to 56 thousand bits per second; there are many different types of modems - digital, cable are two examples

MCCT - A consortium of all community colleges in Maryland for the purpose of sharing distance learning courses. Garrett College is a member. See www.mc.cc.md.us/Departments/distlrng/mcct.htm for more details

real-time - any process in which there is virtually no delay between events; user does not have to wait any appreciable time for event A to conclude before beginning event B

synchronous - a learning mode in which the time of the delivery of instruction must be the same as the reception of the instruction

threaded discussion - a form of asynchronous discussion on the Web whereby one user post a message or a document of some type, and other users see it and respond to it in their own time; the thread occurs as users keep the topic "alive"

Uniform Resource Locator (URL): the address of a page on the World Wide Web

Web-based classes - classes which are delivered primarily, or completely, through the World Wide Web; instructional tools in this format include, but are not limited to, conferencing, chat, email, uploading and downloading assignments, whiteboarding, classroom management, security, hyperlinks, video and audio clips, online testing, multimedia

Web-enhanced classes - classes in which the world wide web is used as a component to assist delivery of the course; typically mixed with other delivery methods, such as face-to-face, or video tapes

WebCT - an online course management system that allows instructors and students to share coursework on the Internet. Lessons, email, chat, assignment posting/retrieval, conferencing (discussion boards) are just some of the many features of WebCT.

welcome page - a term used in WebCT to denote a page outside the actual class page.

whiteboard - a device in a web-based class which allows participants to diagram or draw, in real time, and the others who are online can see the design; good for math or science classes

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