The Beading Path to New Skills

How would you like to create beautiful, individual pieces of jewellery for a fraction of what they cost in the shops?

Learning a new craft will increase your confidence, as you see your skills develop. Whether you are doing it for a hobby or as a step towards a rewarding new career, beading and embossing will release your creativity.

A beading course is a great way to learn how to create wonderful, individual items of jewellery. How complex they are depends fully on your tastes and level of ambition.

Beading is usually used to produce jewellery. However, as you learn new techniques you can add decorative beads to cushions or cloth.

Beginners will most likely create small pieces of jewellery. While this is a relatively simple method of beading, you will still be able to create some beautiful items.

One of the most satisfying moments for people new to beading is seeing the reaction of a friend or relative when you give them a hand-made item of jewellery. This will show you it truly is the thought that counts.

An embossing course will show you how to create decorative paper or metal. This technique can also be used to add a wonderful 3D affect to pictures.

Embossing involves putting a combination of heat and pressure on paper or other material, so that a section is raised.

If you are new to embossing, you won't need any expensive or overly-technical equipment. Any resources you do need will be supplied if you take part in most embossing courses.

Embossing has been used since printing was first developed. Today, it is still a very popular method for adding a decorative finish to text and pictures.

If you want to learn a new art, or you plan on selling your creations, a distance-learning embossing course is a great place to start.

Distance learning allows you to develop your skills in your own time. If the pressures of work or family responsibilities have put you off going to college in the past, there is no reason why you shouldn't learn a new art with ICS.

ICS provides over 200 distance learning courses, from creative crafts to psychology. Whatever course you do, you will have the support of a personal tutor, who will be on-hand to answer any questions. For more information, go to ICS online.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tony_Head

Distance Education And E-Learning - Past, Present, And Future

Buzzwords in education have been in existence since the on-set of formal education as we know it today. Many of these terms come and go based on their usage and their context but some terminologies have withstood the test of time. Let us take a look at some of the common terms along with the chronology of how they evolved.

Although often used interchangeably, there is distinction between distance education and distance learning. Distance education takes place using print-based and electronic learning resources. Learners are connected to resources, instructors, and to other learners, and they tend to be separated by time and/or geographic/physical distance. Distance learning on the other hand is the actual system and the process, which connects a group of learners with the distributed learning resources. Learning takes place in various different forms but in general learners, instructors, and the necessary resources are separated by time and space.

Distance learning has over the years transitioned to online distance learning. It tends to utilize synchronous and asynchronous tools, and learning and communication methods. Synchronous learning uses electronically delivered teaching and learning with participants simultaneously and directly connected and communicating. On the other hand asynchronous learning is characterized by a time lag in communication.

A while back, along came e-learning! Electronic learning (e-learning) is defined as the delivery of instructional content using electronic means such as the Internet, intranets, audio and video equipment, web conferencing, virtual classrooms, CD-ROM, and more recently Web 2.0 tools. Simply put, e-learning is another mode of technology-aided teaching and learning. In the last few years, it has come to replace terms such as audio-visual learning, computer-based learning, web-based learning, online learning, and other buzz terms of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s.

E-learning is moving toward total automation of teaching and learning processes using software known as Learning Management Systems (LMS). To facilitate the development of courses that utilize Internet-based technologies, more and more colleges, universities, and businesses have embraced both open source and proprietary LMS tools. A growing trend in e-learning is the use of "hybrid" or "blended" or "multimodal" instructional approaches that replace or supplement partial in-class instruction with technologically enabled teaching and learning, which in many cases utilizes many tools bundled in the LMS.

Along the same lines many students engaged in e-learning may not be geographically distanced from the institution. For example, learners may be traditional learners living on campus or nearby yet taking course partially or fully online. This is often linked to the need for flexibility in personal (family) responsibilities and work schedules. Taking advantage of e-learning adds an extra layer of flexibility. In fact some people see distance learning as not being synonymous with e-learning, argue the point that distance learning is a generic term that presently happens to use the Internet as a vehicle. Thus, the position presented is that while distance education and e-learning do overlap, they are not identical but complementary.

E-learning is growing rapidly and is often associated with the Internet. There are however other modes of learning that are growing at a considerable rate too. Mobile learning (m-learning) for instance, is a rapidly growing innovation that has the advantage of allowing learners to be "on the move while learning. In other words, multi-tasking, for example jogging or listening to recorded lectures while driving to work. Therefore, m-learning is an extension of e-learning, which uses mobile (cell) phones, Personal digital assistants (PDA), and MP3 players (with iPods and podcasting being the mostly widely used). In places where bandwidth is limited m-learning is growing at a rapid rate.

As the technology gets more affordable and readily available, educational options will continue to expand. For those looking for flexibility due to family and work commitments, e-learning and m-learning may be an option to consider. For organizations and institutions looking to train employees without having to trade-off on productivity, time, cost, or hiring a consultant, this is also an option to consider.

Sophia P. is the editor of http://www.about-elearning.com an information and resource guide e-learning. Resources include information on online distance learning, books, software, and tools.

Are You Interested Bible Studies Distance Learning Programs?

Distance learning programs offer convenience as a four year degree, masters or doctorate can be obtained, for the most part in the comfort of your own home. A college degree can afford you the academic foundation you may be looking for. But if you are looking to take your spirituality to the next level, a Bible Studies college degree may be just what fits the bill.

For such studies, there are many colleges to choose from with many offering free courses in theology to Apologetics. The difference between bible studies versus more traditional courses is that, in Bible studies, the ultimate gain is spiritual rather than monetary. Many colleges offer a free trial course where you can evaluate the school before signing your life away.

Much like choosing a traditional educational program the same agenda should hold true. Always check the credentials of the institution which you plan to apply to. There are so many schools, so make sure you are thorough in your checks before making your final selection.

Make sure the school is able to meet your personal needs. Only you know what you are looking for in the program of your choice. Some students like larger institutions for various reasons while others like a smaller college where one on one tutelage can be experienced. Making a mental note of your likes and dislikes will help pinpoint which program best meets your needs.

One of the most controversial issues surrounding distance learning is the lack of face to face interaction. If this is a concern of yours, seek out hybrid or blended programs where the convenience of online education and physical on-site interaction can be obtained.

Know how far you want to go. Some schools offer great undergraduate programs but may be lacking for post graduate degrees.

What about the social atmosphere and clubs and organizations you may miss out on? Personally, distance learning programs are best suited for non-traditional students. The best part of the college experience can not be replaced by online interaction. But for the mother juggling two children and a 9 to 5 it is a lifesaver.

How do you know if distance learning is for you?

• Have you been meaning to go back to school but you can’t find the time? It is easier to fit an online course into your schedule rather than trying to arrange your life around the more traditional learning programs.

• Are you limited in your college choices? Has the high cost of education left you with minimal options? Some students can not afford to pay the high costs associated with out of State tuition. Distance learning offers the same rate for all students who apply while simultaneously offering a wide range of academic programs perhaps not offered in one’s hometown.

• If you like to set your own pace. Many online programs give you the course materials and assignments ahead of time and if you choose, you can complete the necessary requirements ahead of schedule.

• The possibilities are endless with distance learning. Know your options and choose the program best suited for you needs.

Kelly Hunter is an a keen writer for http://www.distance-learning-programs-guide.com about distance learning programs with several years experience.

Distance Learning Degree- Facts And Fallacies

Not long ago, anything but a degree earned through a traditional community college or state funded university was considered sub-par and scoffed at. Despite the fact that distance learning programs have been around for decades, there has always been a stigma attached to them. Only in the 1980s did distance learning become a more acceptable way of taking college coursework, but many times, such completion coursework was not accepted at other universities, nor recognized to meet basic course completed requirements. Today, however, distance learning degree programs are more the norm, and millions of people around the world take advantage of them every year.

Back in the 'old' days, distance learning degree offerings were limited to secretarial, medical support and technical subjects. Today, anyone can obtain not only an Associate or Bachelor's degree through distance learning courses, but their Master's degrees as well. Gone are the days when the online school degree was considered beneath the requirement levels of institutions around the country. These days, more nurses, business professionals and teachers are graduating from distance learning degree programs, thanks to their overwhelming popularity and the growth of the Internet Age.

The benefits of a distance learning degree seem obvious, such as not having to attend classrooms, studying on your own time, and taking as much time as you need with certain subjects and assignments. Distance learning is the only way to go for many people who are too busy with work and family responsibilities to be able to spend several hours a day or night in a classroom. Besides that, many course work requirements don't offer evening or weekend classes, which prevent many men and women in the workforce from attending even if they wanted to.

Some may believe that a distance learning degree isn't worth as much as a degree earned at a traditional brick and mortar college or university, but that's no longer true. As long as the distance or online school that you wish to attend is accredited by a viable educational program, then your degree is just as valuable as one obtained from the Dean of Notre Dame. Keep in mind however, that earning a distance learning degree may be more difficult for independent learners than for those students who attend classrooms every day. It is up to each independent learner to read and understand textbook assignments and study guide procedures to complete their class requirements. While teacher aid is available for most distance learning programs, you must be patient for your questions to be answered by email. If this is not a problem for you, then earning a distance learning degree is a prime opportunity that you should not pass up.

Distance or online colleges are adding to their programs every year, and subjects and coursework for a variety of degrees is available for the finding. Books and testing fees are usually included in your semester costs, and while you may pay a little more for the privilege of earning your college degree on your own time, the price more than makes up for earning power and sense of accomplishment for those who have taken the plunge and gone back to school. Distance learning programs offer students and adults who never would have otherwise had the opportunity to attend the college of their choice to earn the degree they've always wanted.

Find out more about earning your distance learning degree and get tips and more at www.DistanceLearningRevealed.com .

Online Degrees Pros and Cons - What You Need To Know About Accreditation

Accreditation is the most important thing you need to know about distance learning or online degrees. Accreditation separates the “real” schools that are accepted by other schools, employers and professional associations. A diploma from a non-accredited school is probably a waste of your time and effort.

Unfortunately, there are schools advertising for online degrees that are considered “diploma mills”. These are for profit sites that may offer “fast” degrees that will not be recognized by potential employers as being an adequate education for the position you are seeking. There are also online programs that promote free credit for “life experience”. Again, these credits may not be recognized as legitimate.

There are many accrediting agencies. For instance the National League of Nursing accredits nursing schools. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) accredits Teaching or education schools. Law schools are accredited by the American Bar Association. Other professions have their own accrediting bodies.

There are regionally accredited schools. The United States is divided into 6 regions that accredits colleges and universities: the Middle States Association, North Central Association, Northwest Association, New England Association, the Southern Association and the Western Association. Attending one regionally accredited school allows you to transfer credits from on university to another.

The Distance Education and Training Council (DETC), or The Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) may accredit Online or distance learning colleges and university.

Become informed about the type of accreditation that is needed for the type of degree you are seeking. The Council for Higher Education can provide you with a list of recognized accrediting bodies. Then make sure that the school you are considering actually has that accreditation.

This is probably the single most important thing you can do when checking out an online college degree education program. You don’t want to be at the end of your academic career and find out that you have invested time and money into a degree that will not be valued by your employers, other school, or professional organizations.

You can start your search for school at an online website for online schools, but don’t let your search end there. Do your homework, make sure you are going to a college or university that is accredited!

Just click on the following link to get online college degree information. It's fast, it's free, and you're under no obligation. You can get information about many types of online bachelors degree programs from many colleges. They also offer information about programs and schools that offer distance learning online masters degree programs

Distance Learning MBA Programs - Closing the Gap

Thanks to the Internet, distance learning MBA programs have now become a mainstay of furthering an individual's education. Those looking to earn their Master's degree in a time and cost effective manner now have every opportunity to do so. With a curriculum that is every bit as solid as an onsite college, one can gain all the skills they need to push a career to unbelievable heights.

A Master's degree in Business Administration is easily one of the most sought after certifications for those in the business world. Many are daunted by the heavy price tag that can come with such an endeavor; but when considering the salary of those with this degree under their belt, it is easy to see an MBA is well worth the investment.

Deciding to pursue a Master's degree can be time consuming, especially for the busy working adult. That is why distance learning MBA programs make perfect sense. No matter where one is in the world, there is an opportunity to attend a top business college without the hassle of travel or relocation.

Earning this type of degree is often cost effective as well. With none of the added extras that come with attending an onsite campus, students can expect to pay only for the resources they use. Classes are often broken up into small units called modules that are easy to follow and self-explanatory.

At the same time, earning a Master's degree online still offers a good amount of cyber classroom instruction for students. Teachers and lecturers often use webcams, chat rooms, forum boards and even online interactive whiteboards to communicate classroom concepts over long distances. Students can stay in touch with their instructors via email, chat or even phone.

Those who obtain their Master's degree in Business Administration open up a world of opportunity for themselves. It has been found that there are simply more options for the individual with an MBA than those with extensive years of experience alone. Individuals already employed in the business world frequently see a number of doors on their career path swing wide open.

Distance learning MBA programs are also the preferred method of learning for a majority of companies that offer tuition reimbursement programs to employees. Not only is it cost effective; individuals can keep their regular schedules without missing too much in the way of valuable work time. This makes the MBA even more obtainable for even the busiest working adult.

No matter what the field, an MBA can prove quite advantageous. Those working in finance, marketing, non-profit organizations and even personal business can benefit greatly with this knowledge backing them all the way. The MBA can even be useful for those in government jobs as well.

Before doing anything, smart individuals will ask themselves what qualities make them a good candidate for an MBA program. The basic qualities of someone who might be good for an MBA program are that of honest people who enjoy working as a team as well as the many aspects of leadership.

When opting for this type of program, it is also important to check out a number of online MBA programs before applying to any one school. One should ensure that the Master's degree a student earns is fully recognized. Legitimate institutions should accredit an online course. Any offers for financial aid may be rescinded if a program cannot show it is accredited.

The career opportunities that can be achieved with distance learning MBA programs are nearly impossible to pass up. Never before has there been a time when earning a Master's degree could be so advantageous in both time spent and potential income earned.

Andy West is a writer for Grand Canyon University, which offers an accredited distance learning MBA program. Visit Grand Canyon University to learn more about online MBA programs.

Offshore E-Learning Solutions

Education is the root of growth of any economy; especially in developing countries like India still many people are uneducated and as a result remain unaware of the growth and opportunities around them. We find that education is costly and moving ahead for higher education is even costlier, so major portion of masses remain uneducated and lot many learners have to quit their education half way. With fast growth of Internet, technology and multimedia the world has come closer and provided us with numerous benefits over the older technologies and learning techniques, maintaining learner’s interest and providing extensible, rich learning experiences with integration of physically separated.

Learning has become easier; distance is no longer a barrier. Compared to classroom learning, online learning is cheaper, easily available and accessible with rich resources. Those who desire to learn but don’t have enough to spend, need not worry; many institutions are offering online education. Present survey shows that worldwide industry of e-learning is worth 38 billion euros. E-learning i.e. Electronics Learning is computer enhanced learning that helps you enhance quality of your education by providing more resources online and broadens your knowledge base. E-learning is basically focusing and targeting 5 major sectors - consulting, content, technologies, services and support sectors.

Why e-learning is most preferred choice these days for imparting knowledge, training or teaching in schools, universities, companies, industries, and enterprise or business groups?? E-learning market focuses on e-learning assets, e-learning objects, flexible e-learning content creation and platform integration services. E-learning has defined no technological boundary or platform for learning practices so this ultimately provides best knowledge management solutions for spreading knowledge. With technology arbitrating knowledge and learning, education industry is has seen a steep growth. E-learning solutions are web deployable-effective contents that provide flexibility in delivery, reporting and management. Example, 2006 survey figures that nearly 1000 million videos were downloaded everyday by Youtube visitors. Let us discuss types of e-learning:

Virtual classroom is a kind of distributed learning environment inculcating synchronous contents and experiences. Virtual learning model provides extensibility to structure and services of formal e-learning program to earn online distance education degree. Study material, tutorials are provided online, places for posting reviews, comments, ask questions are provided in this virtual paradigm. Virtual classroom is touching all vertical markets as they are easy to use and web deployable. You can deploy Learning Management System (LMS) easy for managing various contemporary units of this training methodology.

Online Learning is another e-learning paradigm that depends on the course structure and course material delivered on the internet (in pdf formats generally) for its learners via computer network technology through digital interface.

Rapid E-learning is used mainly for training/educating non-technical learners that uses captivating Adobe Learning tools or objects to entice learners by creating rich Flash learning content. This training variety targets subject matter experts (SMEs) and students by sharing e-learning content as a stand-alone multimedia portfolio element in a secure environment.

Mobile Learning is another e-learning paradigm based on the availability of portable digital devices and omnipresent network letting you share information and experiences when you are on move.

With flash and multimedia applications penetrating the websphere, dynamic websites have started replacing older static websites. E-learning has also provided productive insight for online learning by imparting knowledge in more simplified and interactive manner quickly and easily. Quality of education has also improved a lot and economy conditions of developing nations are improving. Percentage of online learners are rising day by day as many institutions are offering online learning courses at cheaper rate. E-learning helps you gain higher education from your desired place.

Distance learning has become more agile as different technologies are used with e-learning. Blended learning is gaining visibility as e-learning program offers distance learning and face-to-face learning. For higher education Virtual and Managed learning Environment are provided to manage all aspects of online course through a consistent user interface throughout the network. Many online institutions have started offering academic degree online, providing online support, and online study materials/tutorials, online text books to purchase, online registration, online examination, online forms, online counseling and also at times face-to-face learning.

E-learning provides the flexibility to learn from any place if you have internet access available, there is no time constraint on e-classes, learner can make asynchronous access and no commutation cost is incurred here. Initial development cost is high but it decrease exponentially with increase in number of learners. Major pitfall is that students do not get chance for face-to-face interaction; result is poor in case of collaborative work.

Many technologies are used in e-learning, these technologies are broadly divided into 2 groups: synchronous (exchange of information at the same point of time with other participants, e.g. online chat) and asynchronous (independent of participants at a particular time, e.g. blogs, forums).

E-learning services include CBL (Computer based Learning for learning using computer), CBT (Computer Based Training for training people to use computer applications), WBL (Web Based Training on internet using interactive methods like bulletin boards, videoconferencing).

In short, I would say that Internet is the best repository of online data, funneling its resources to different channels with e-learning extracting most of it and distributing it in more interactive and usable form promoting strong sense of social presence. Online Education, Online degree, virtual universities, traditional universities, are synonymous with e-learning.

Icreon, is an Offshore IT Outsourcing Company, SAP business channel partner that savvy your business needs by providing elite ERP business solutions.

For more information on online web based learning, click here. Rakhi, is SEO content writer at Icreon.com