Associations for distance learning

Associations for distance learning

There are several distance education associations in the United States at national and regional level. The associations at national level are the Council for Distance Education and Training (DETC), the American Association for Distance Learning (USDLA) and the Association of Distance Learning of the Federal Government (FGDLA).

The Board of Education and Distance Education (DETC) is a nonprofit educational association that serves as the center for information exchange in correspondence and distance education. This association is an authority for remote accreditation in the United States. This accreditation is institutional and extends only to the accredited institution and its approved programs.

All distance education correspondence courses and activities that are the property, management and control of the accredited body must be accredited, otherwise no accreditation will be possible. In the case of a change of ownership or business of the institution concerned, it must be re-examined. The facilities accredited by DETC are known for their services to highly qualified and well-educated students, their well-structured programs and their internationally recognized faculties.

The United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) is a nonprofit foundation run by the United States Distance Learning Association. It provides educational programs for live broadcasts for pre-K-12 constituencies, higher education, professional development, teaching and the general public. The offer also includes foreign language courses, teacher training and other general information about digital satellite broadcast technology around the clock, seven days a week.

The Federal Association of distance education (FGDLA) is a non-profit association to promote the development and application of distance education.

Statewide partnerships include the Florida Distance Learning Association (FDLA), the Georgia Distance Learning Association (GDLA), the Michigan Association for Distance Learning (MADL) and others. These also promote the learning and development of distance learning in their respective federal states. Some of the worldwide correspondence schools are the European Distance Learning Network (EDEN) and the Learning Community (COL). EDEN contributes to the development of distance education. This refers specifically to distance education in Europe. The Commonwealth of Learning is an intergovernmental organization founded by the heads of state of the Commonwealth. The aim is to promote the development and exchange of open distance education, resources and learning technologies. This partnership helps developing countries to improve the quality of education.