Distance education involves teaching methods that deliver instruction to students who are not physically present in a traditional classroom setting. It allows students to study remotely and enhance their career prospects. Some advantages are flexibility, self-paced learning, and career advancement opportunities. However, distance learning may lack communication found in traditional classrooms and is not suitable for all learners or learning styles. Evaluation of distance education programs considers measures of activities, efficiency, outcomes, program aims, policies, and organizational structure to assess effectiveness and identify areas for improvement.

1. ÖZGE TOPAL

2. Distance education or distance learning is a
field of education that focuses on teaching
methods and technology with the aim of
delivering teaching, often on an individual basis,
to students who are not physically present in a
traditional educational setting such as a
classroom. It has been described as "a process
to create and provide access to learning when
the source of information and the learners are
separated by time and distance, or both.

3. The advantages of studying by distance
education allow you to:
• change or enhance your career prospects
wherever you are - rural, metropolitan or
overseas
• develop and demonstrate your autonomy
through self-motivation and self-direction of
your degree
• have time to review your study materials
without having to rush off to the next class.

4. Distance education may be problematic;
• Students lack of communication like in
traditional classrooms.
• Not everyone is an ideal candidate for
online learning.
• Some employers don’t accept online
degrees.
• Not all courses required to complete the
degree may be offered online.

5. Evaluation in the sense of "the systematic
investigation of the worth or merit of some
object" has several meanings within education.
Most common purpose is to grade and classify
students, to sort out the successes from the
failures

6. According to Woodley and Kirkwood (1986), six
categories of evaluation information can be collected
about distance education activities:
1. Measures of activity. These measures are counts of
the numbers of events, people, and objects.
Administrative records often provide data for activity
questions. Activity questions are ones such as:
How many courses were produced?
How many students were served?
How many potential students were turned away?

7. 2. Measures of efficiency. Measures of efficiency are
closely related to measures of activity, and often
administrative records can be the source of
efficiency information. Efficiency questions often
asked are ones such as: How many students
successfully completed the course?
What was the average student’s workload?
How many students enrolled in additional courses?
How much did the course cost?
How much tuition was generated?

8. 3. Measures of outcomes. Measures of adequate
learning are usually considered the most important
measures of outcomes of distance education activities.
Often, interviews with learners are used to supplement
course grades in order to find students’ perceptions
about a distance education activity.Mail surveys are
also efficient ways to collect outcome information from
distant learners. Other outcome measures include
documenting the borrowing and use of courses and
course materials by other institutions as an indicator of
effectiveness, and the enrollment by students in
additional, similar courses as indicators of a
preliminary course’s success.

9. 4. Measures of program aims. Some distance teaching
programs specify their aims in terms of what and
whom they intend to teach, and evaluation information
is collected to establish the extent to which these aims
weremet.One common aim of distance education
programs is to reach learners who otherwise would not
be students. Surveys of learners can be used to collect
this type of information.

10. 5. Measures of policy. Evaluation in the policy area
often takes the form of market research. Surveys of
prospective students and employers can be used to
determine the demand for distance education activities.
Policy evaluation can also include monitoring. Students
can be surveyed to determine if tuition is too high, if
appropriate courses are being offered, and if there are
impediments to course success, such as the lack of
access to computers or the library. The purpose of
policy evaluation is to identify procedures that are
needed or that need to be changed, and to develop
new policies.

11. 6. Measures of organizations. Sometimes it is important
to evaluate a distance education institution in terms of
its internal organization and procedures. Evaluators
sometimes are asked to monitor the process of course
development or program delivery to help an
organization be more efficient. This category of
evaluation requires on-site visits, interviews, and
sometimes the use of journals by key organization
leaders.

12. REFERENCES:
http://www.csu.edu.au/distance-education/study-life-
balance/benefits-of-distance-education
http://www.distancelearningnet.com/advantages-and-
disadvantages-of-distance-learning/
http://polo.ceit.metu.edu.tr/m222/mod/page/view.php?id=1031