Educational Mediators in continuous and distance education

It is by now evident that the ever-deeper studies on continuous and distance education (DE) are not matched by a corresponding widespread dissemination of practices linked to these approaches. This is due in part to the need to acquire a new culture that sees DE not so much in contrast with or as an alternative to face-to-face education, but rather as a further opportunity. The question is: how is it possible to promote the dissemination of such a culture? One possible way is to support the potential user in the task of choosing the distance course and when starting to use it. If we take the example of in-service training, this involves the need for key figures who act within an organisation and are able to identify and select the most suitable distance courses advertised and/or available online, and then facilitate their use by the staff concerned. What is thus needed is a kind of educational mediator who can match supply with demand while acting in a rigorously unbiased manner towards both. This paper aims to analyse and define the purposes and roles of the educational mediator (EM), and proposes a programme for training those who are to take on these responsibilities