Distance Education Requirements

LA CES-approved providers may offer distance-education courses once they have submitted the required documentation demonstrating compliance with LA CES distance-education requirements.

What is Distance Education?

Distance education is a convenient and effective way for landscape architects to engage in ongoing professional development and earn continuing education credits. It serves as a flexible alternative to traditional, in-person workshops, conferences, and seminars.

Distance education is defined as any method of instruction in which the instructor and learner are separated by place and/or time. This includes situations where:

• The instructor and learner are not in the same location,
• Learners interact asynchronously, or
• Learners access learning resources independently.

Courses may be:

• Real-time (synchronous): Instructor and learners participate at the same time (e.g., live webinars).
• Asynchronous: Instructor and learners engage at different times (e.g., self-paced modules, recorded webinars).

Delivery Methods

• Distance-education courses may use a single delivery method or a combination, such as:
• Live virtual platforms (e.g., Zoom, Teams)
• Recorded webinars
• Self-paced online modules
• Hybrid formats that blend synchronous and asynchronous instruction

Selecting a Delivery Method

As with any continuing education activity, the priority is the quality of the content and the intended learning objectives. The selected delivery method should support the course’s learning objectives and provide the best environment for achieving the desired results.