DISTANCE EDUCATION: A Perspective from Women’s Studies

Year 2012, Volume: 1 Issue: 2, 1 - 14, 01.07.2012

Natasha Patterson

Abstract

This paper critically explores the links between Women’s Studies and distance education and questions whether this style of learning is compatible with feminist pedagogical goals. A review of the literature was conducted, primarily from a US and Canadian perspective, and the following are highlighted as key concerns to feminist educators: gender, technology, curriculum, and pedagogy. Significantly, the research suggests that distance education continually downplays the importance of a gender analysis despite the fact that women make up the majority of distance education users. The research also reveals that feminist teachers are increasingly using their experiences working in distance education to expand upon how, when, and where we teach Women’s Studies and that techniques employed within distance education could be usefully applied to in-class learning. This paper concludes with suggestions of how we might begin to bridge the gap between feminist pedagogy and distance education.

Keywords

Distance education, feminist pedagogy, Women’s Studies, gender, technology, Canada