Getting Started

What is Distance Learning?

Distance Learning courses are delivered online, or by television, and offers you the flexibility to learn at a time and place that meets your needs. Distance learning course 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 offer you the flexibility of learning anywhere, and anytime, you have access to the Internet. These classes 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 even to take exams and practice quizzes! ANGEL can even be accessed on your PDA!
• 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 Distance Learning right for you?

Online courses can work for any student, just as a physical, onsite classroom with face-to-face instruction can work for any student - however, the quality of the "fit" varies with instructors and class environments. Taking an online class requires just as much time and effort as a class on campus - maybe more! To see if online classes are right for you, answer these questions:

• Do you like to work independently?
• Do you need convenience and an adjustable schedule?
• Are you comfortable asking for clarification and continuing to ask when you need more information?
• Are you good at meeting deadlines?
• Are you comfortable working at a computer?
• Do you have experience surfing the World Wide Web? If most of your experience is through AOL (America Online), you may need to investigate other paths to the web such as Internet Explorer before taking a class through Mission College Distance Learning.
• Are you comfortable working primarily with a text-based medium?
• Would you be comfortable phoning or faxing your instructor if you had problems with anything in the course?

Still not sure? Take the survey to see if Distance learning is a good fit for you.

What's my next step?

Not enrolled at Mission College? Click on New Students and follow the Steps to Getting Started.

Already enrolled at Mission College but new to Distance Learning? Click
on Current Students.