New Integration Model of ICT Based Distance Education

One of the important agreements of three universities (UINAM, STAIN Palopo, and UMPAR) in South Sulawesi to accelerate human resource enhancement is delivering instruction through distance education. Synchronous interaction (through radio and telephone) and modular system were firstly used to link learners in three sites but encountered many problems. Afterwards, ICT based instruction is facilitated to promote the cooperation. The purposes of the study are to describe the utilization model of information and communication technology and reveal the interaction model implemented in distance education by using ICT. Data were collected through semi-structured interview with faculty members, administrators, and technical assistants and moderate observations through classroom interaction in three sites of postgraduate program. Miles and Huberman qualitative data analysis was used to reduce and display data, draw conclusion and verification. The research findings indicate the utilization model of ICT based instruction consists of using appropriate social media by selecting appropriate tools, learning with, and building interaction to share opinion, disseminating information, and discussing by using ICT and social media. The types of ICT and social media used to deliver instructional materials are Portal, mailing lists, Facebook, Web-blog, BBM, WhatsApp, and YouTube. The interaction model shows that synchronous and asynchronous approaches integrate into the instruction. Asynchronous model is more dominant to link faculty-learner interaction, learner-learner interaction, and lecturer-learner and learning resources interactio