Distance Learning
Related Links

Faculty

What is Distance Learning?

Distance Learning courses are delivered online, or by television, and offers students the flexibility to learn at a time and place that meets their needs. Distance learning courses use state of the art technology and includes a variety of communication tools, such as email, discussion forums, chat rooms, and desktop sharing.

  • Online Courses – Online courses are taught using the ANGEL Learning Management System. Students taking online courses use ANGEL to view online lectures, participate in virtual discussions and chats, and to take exams and practice quizzes.
  • Telecourses - Telecourses can be watched live on Comcast cable, videotaped for later viewing, viewed in the Library, or rented with a partial refund at semester's end when the undamaged tapes are returned. Some television courses include an online component where students communicate and collaborate using the ANGEL Learning Management System.

Is Teaching Distance Learning for you?

Teaching a distance learning course can be professionally rewarding. Faculty who are comfortable with technology, like the flexibility of interacting with students asynchronously, and are able to plan and create their curriculum in advance seem to have the most success in teaching distance learning classes. Since you no longer interact with your students in a face-to-face format, you will need to structure your course differently. Your course will guide and facilitate learning. Students will not only learn the content of your course, but they will learn to be more responsible and proactive learners.

Getting a Distance Learning Course Approved

If you want to teach or develop a distance learning class, you must first make sure that the course outline is up to date and that the course is approved for teaching in a distance learning format. If the course has not been approved for distance learning, you must submit a Distance Learning Addendum to the Curriculum Review Committee through Curricunet and get your course approved for distance learning. The curriculum committee will be reviewing your course to ensure that you have a plan for “effective student contact” since you will not be meeting with your students on campus at all or much less frequently than an on campus class. The approval process generally takes at least a semester. The good news is that you can start developing your distance learning class while you are teaching your face-to-face class.

DL Instructor Responsibilities

Distance Learning instructors must provide not only subject matter expertise for their class; they must also provide structure for students to be successful. Here are some hints on how to do this taken from a variety of resources.

  • Create an Instructor Home page or update the Mission College Distance learning schedule page
  • Provide a course orientation to your students
  • Set clear expectations about the course
  • Create Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for your course
  • Pace the course
  • Be responsive to your students
  • Monitor your course on a routine basis
  • Provide students with opportunities to collaborate and communicate virtually

(The Distance Learning Instructor’s Handbook) (Coming Soon!)

How to Login to ANGEL

Angel login page
  1. Go to: http://wvmccd.angellearning.com/frames.asp
  2. Type your Username and Password in the appropriate fields.
  3. Note: Your username is your Faculty ID number. You can find your ID number on the front of your Faculty ID card. Your password is birth date (mmddyy). For example, if your birth date is March 10, 1984, then your password is 031084.
  4. Click the Log On button.

ANGEL Support

Need help with ANGEL? The ANGEL support web site has answers to common questions for both students and faculty. The URL for this site is the following: http://angelsupport.missioncollege.org/

Distance Learning Resources

Do you have the right computer resources to teach a distance learning course or use ANGEL? Do you have the correct plug-ins to view the presentations and files created by your instructors? What resources will you need to complete a telecourse? Visit the following resource pages for more information: