Spring Issue 2006

Learning with the Distance Learning Curve

The sunset session on distance learning at the 2006 meeting attracted a number of participants from industrial and academic spheres interested in learning more about enhancing their teaching environments through the use of technology. The presenters provided a smorgasbord of current distance learning offerings as well as insight into some of the pedagogical issues involved in these undertakings. The session was sponsored by the Education Committee.

During his keynote presentation, John Morris (Drexel University) discussed the many ways in which technology can be utilized for learning purposes. He highlighted the fact that e(ffective) distance learning endeavors recognize different teaching and learning styles and different levels of proficiency with electronic communication. He emphasized engagement of both student and teacher as integral to successful on-line education.

Kristine Willett (University of Mississippi) presented her perspective on distance learning in toxicology, drawing from her experiences teaching toxicology on-line to undergraduate and graduate students. She put forth data from a series of surveys given to students during the course of their on-line courses in which their experiences in both traditional and on-line environments were queried. Her results indicated that students value the opportunity to study on-line. However, these students exhibited a certain degree of ambivalence with regard to equating on-line courses with traditional face-to-face courses.

Jane Huggins (Drexel University), organizer of the session, described the series of on-line toxicology courses she has taught to undergraduate and graduate students as portals through which students can advance their understanding of the basic concepts of toxicology. She emphasized various features of WebCT® content management software, the electronic tool with which she teaches. Students in these courses are encouraged to engage in a range of activities utilizing chatroom, assignment, e-mail, and discussion group utilities. Moreover, students have access to a collection of audio/video materials including archived lectures and virtual seminars.

John Duffus (Edinburgh Centre for Toxicology) presented a summary of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemists' (IUPAC) teaching activities internationally, in which on-line learning is utilized to a large extent via educational modules available on the IUPAC Web site. The main thrust of these teaching endeavors is to provide training in toxicology to chemists. Dr. Duffus, who participated in development of these modules, discussed their efficacy in teaching individuals from diverse backgrounds and his interest in the value of glossaries to supplement the on-line teaching of technical disciplines, including toxicology.

Paul Wright (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology) discussed the fully on-line postgraduate programs he has developed for Graduate Diploma or Masters in Applied Science in Toxicology. He described stimulating the engagement of both student and teacher through use of on-line breakout groups and discussions, distance co-supervision of research projects for minor theses, use of learning journals and workplace practical applications, and other distance learning modalities. Moreover, he emphasized the international component of these programs, indicating that students from both developed and developing countries participate in them.

Overall, presenters and audience at this session engaged in a productive teaching/learning session about these new tools in toxicology education. Hopefully, this session and others like it will help individuals engaged in teaching/learning toxicology to more effectively “learn with the distance learning curve.” Many thanks are due IUPAC for providing speaker travel support for this endeavor.