Distance And Virtual Learning In The
***
Contents
INTRODUCTION
……………………………………………………………….
THE
UNIVERSITY OF THE
OTHER
INSTITUTIONS AND PROGRAMS …………………………………
CONCLUSION
…………………………………………………………………
MEDIAGRAPHY
……………………………………………………………….
The
The thirty or more countries that
comprise the region are composed of a series of islands and
archipelagos and are diverse even among themselves. Some are compact (e.g.,
Many of the countries in the
Precisely because of the geographic and
economic conditions that confront the countries of the
Comparative Statistics For Selected
|
Country |
Area
(sq. mi.) |
Pop.
(000) |
Life
Expect |
Adult
Literacy |
Per
Cap. GDP |
Persons/Telephn |
Persons/
TV Set |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
5,382 |
273 |
72 |
93% |
11,115 |
2.3 |
4.6 |
|
|
166 |
262 |
76 |
99% |
7,538 |
3.0 |
3.8 |
|
Dom.
Rep. |
18,704 |
7,900 |
68 |
83% |
1,600 |
41.6 |
10.9 |
|
|
83,000 |
735 |
65 |
98% |
766 |
22.3 |
23.0 |
|
|
10,714 |
7,500 |
55 |
35% |
400 |
150.0 |
234.4 |
|
|
4,240 |
2,600 |
75 |
85% |
2,171 |
12.3 |
7.9 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3,700,000 |
270,000 |
76 |
97% |
28,600 |
1.5 |
1.3 |
Source:
A sense of “regionalism” seems to
permeate the
Speaking at a recent meeting of the
Organization of American States, the Governor General of
The
The University of the
Over
the years, the University of the
The University’s present distance education
program evolved out of a “Challenge Program” that was started in 1973
by the faculty of the Social Sciences in response to a need in
Non-Campus Countries (NCCs) for upgrading
and training of mid-level government employees. The
Challenge Program allowed those employees to study on their own using
print resources from the University and then “challenge” the exams in
the subjects they were studying. The University
provided no additional support to the students beyond a copy of the
course syllabus and, where necessary, a list of recommended reading.
The University soon learned that most students
could not pass the exams using this form of study. So,
the University established study centers in the NCCs,
where local tutors provided tuition for students.
In the early 1980s, the
The local tutors were bolstered by
teleconferences with campus-based University tutors over the
teleconferencing system. Where possible, the
academic programs built on existing infrastructures, including local
tertiary learning institutions (TLIs). By the 1990s, this process had become the norm for UWI’s distance education program. (From an interview with Mrs. Olivia Edgecombe Howell,
Office of University Services, UWI, February 19, 1999.) The audioconferencing
system was expanded over the years to include more sites with funds from
the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the Caribbean
Development Bank (CDB).
As
early as 1990, the University made a determination to expand its
“outreach and distance education” activities. A
July 1992 Appraisal Report noted several issues that needed resolution
if such expansion were to be successful. They
included:
· Enrollment. The report called for
increased representation of students from non-campus countries. NCC enrollment had declined from 13% of the total
student population in 1960-61 to 5% in 1989-90. Distance
education was seen as one way to increase the enrollment of potential
students from NCCs.
· Management Of
Outreach. The
report observed a “bewildering array of offices, units and faculties
operating with minimal coordination or even knowledge by the University
Centre (which was charged with oversight of outreach and distance
education at that time) which were intended to deliver the University’s
outreach.” And none of those entities were
integrated with the University faculties, which had primary
responsibility for professional continuing education and articulation
or franchising relations with tertiary learning institutions. Consequently, distance education was viewed by the
faculties as peripheral to the main mission of the University.
· Inadequate Information Systems. The report found
“inadequacies in programme planning,
communication, record keeping, gaps in services, and duplication of
efforts,” and, “inadequacies of data on student registration,
especially for non-credit courses.”
· Pedagogy And
Support. Distance
education courses often lacked sufficient back-up material, and
technical problems plagued the UWIDITE conferencing system.
· Training. A great need was found
for “extensive training in all aspects of distance education.” At the same time, the report noted that there were
no agencies devoted to improving pedagogy anywhere in the University.
· Computerization. Although this report
predated the explosive use of computers and the Internet worldwide, it
envisioned the use of computers University-wide for various educational
purposes, including the support of distance education.
· Needs Assessment. The authors of the
report found deficiencies in how the University determined the need for
outreach and distance education, as well as its own needs for change in
order to adapt to a rapidly changing educational environment.
One of the outcomes of the 1992 Appraisal Report
was a recommendation to develop a Distance Education Unit, reporting
directly to the Board for Distance Education and chaired by the Vice
Chancellor or PVC Academic Affairs. That
recommendation was accepted, and since 1996 distance education at UWI
is managed through the Board for Non-Campus Countries and Distance
Education (BNCCDE). That Board is an Office of
the University Centre, located at the Cave Hill campus in
Another issue that surfaced in 1992 was whether
distance education would be free-standing or integrated within the
existing University departmental structure. It
was seen as a fundamental issue to choose between a dual-mode distance
education operation and some form of autonomous distance education
program (what was referred to as a possible “fourth campus” of the
University). The latter would have centralized
all responsibilities for distance education and perhaps have permitted
some greater flexibility than some campus-based faculties might be
willing to tolerate. But the Renwick Report recommended against this option on
the ground that it might preclude opportunities for mutual enrichment
of the on-campus and off-campus programs, and the possibility that the
distance education program might be seen as being of lesser stature
than on-campus programs. Dual-mode was intended
to assure that neither modality was superior.
The dual-mode route was chosen. Consequently, distance education at UWI today
largely consists of courses that the University faculty produces. Distance education work has become an integral part
of the workload of the University departments, part of the normal
duties of the faculty. And just as the academic
programs are “dual-mode,” so are the support areas of the University,
offices such as registrarial, bursarial,
examination, and information services. One
by-product of the decision, however, was a parallel decision to keep
the matriculation requirements the same for both modes, a decision that
has made UWI distance education programs less “open” to non-traditional
adult students than distance education programs at some other
institutions.
Another fundamental issue that was faced
at that time was what role technology would play in the delivery of
distance education. On the one hand, technology
could make rich educational opportunities more widely available. On the other hand, if the access to technologies
became an integral part of the delivery system, it could actually limit
participation by large numbers of potential students, especially in
poor countries. The decision was made that,
given the under-representation of students from NCCs,
and in order to serve those potential students more completely, print
materials would dominate the support materials for distance education
courses. Teleconferencing (as used by UWIDITE)
required regular attendance at University Centres. Print-based materials could be used anywhere,
anytime the student wished.
Now we jump ahead to recent years. The “typical structure” of UWI’s
distance education courses (according to Mrs. Edgecombe Howell,
The 1997-98 academic year
saw a large jump in distance education enrollments at UWI. Mrs.
Edgecombe Howell attributes this mainly to improved marketing of
courses and the notion of distance education in general.
A June 1998 paper on a new
Strategic Plan for distance education reviewed the progress of the
previous five years. Here is what it found in
the key areas that had been identified as concerns in 1992:
· Enrollment. Looking
at figures available at that time, the authors reported that, “Here the
picture has remained bleak.” Non-campus countries (NCCs)
are underrepresented in on-campus enrollments. This
need has not changed much since the 1992 Appraisal Report. The
NCC countries now contain 22% of the population of the UWI contributing
countries, but their nationals acquired only 9% of the undergraduate
degrees awarded by the University in 1993 and only 14% of the
certificates. The Northwest and
· Management Of Outreach. Many changes were made to the
structure and management of distance education at UWI following the 1992
report. BNCCDE now sets the policy for outreach
and distance education and directly supervises three units: Distance
Education Centre (DEC), School of Continuing Studies (SCS), and the
Tertiary Level Institutions Unit (TLIU). DEC is
responsible for the telecommunications system and computer network used
for distance education, embracing three campuses, several other sites
in the campus countries, and sites in all of the NCCs. In 1993-94, UWIDITE was integrated into the DEC and
remains a unit of DEC, linking the University’s three Campuses with
University Centres in
· Inadequate
Information Systems. “Things
are moving very slowly.” An almost accidental
step toward a solution of this need has been the slow but sure
implementation of computer connectivity across the campuses, an
activity stimulated by a loan from the Inter American Development Bank. However, improvements in registration and other
student data are moving very slowly, apparently reflecting an
unwillingness to recognize that dual-mode includes administrative as
well as academic functions.
· Pedagogy And Support. The
University has implemented several measures aimed at improving pedagogy. They include: (a) regularly assessing teaching
staff; (b) making teaching an explicit consideration in the assessment
and promotion system; (c) providing instructional development units at
each campus to help faculty members; (d) the development of training
manuals for faculty members; (e) the development of a Certificate in
Adult Education for tertiary level teachers; (f) a new program for the
production of high quality print materials and a range of other media;
and, (g) peer review of such materials, using staff from other campuses
and institutions. Self-instructional
print-based materials remain the fundamental resource for distance
education courses, but in some cases Web pages play a large role. Greater attention is paid to the role of local
tutors and to providing students with local support systems. What has proven particularly difficult to change,
however, is the weaning of staff away from proprietary course
development toward a team approach.
· Training. “Much
has been achieved by way of actual training of all categories of staff
involved in distance education, and in terms of policy recognition for
the continuation of such training.” The DEC is
the main source for such training and has produced some
self-instructional manuals for administrators and local tutors.
· Computerization. Five
years ago, no one anticipated the appearance of the Internet or the
range of software applications that would be available. The
University has capitalized on loans from the Inter American Development
Bank and the Caribbean Development Bank to equip the campus.
· Needs Assessment. Using
funds from the Caribbean Development Bank loan, DEC will create a new
post for Research and Evaluation in order to conduct needs assessments
on a regular basis in collaboration with the BNCCDE Research Office.
One of the
remaining challenges, not highlighted in 1992, is the provision of
library services. Limited resources are often
spread too thinly among a public library system, the local TLI library,
and the University Centre. This compounds
another challenge, the need to bring the cultural and intellectual
atmosphere of a thriving university to the NCCs
through relevant activities that might enhance the quality of public
discussion throughout the region. An expanded
and comprehensive distance education program was seen as one way to
address these needs.
UWI continues
to respond to known needs on several levels. Working
with TLIs and other local education
providers in the NCCs, the University has
expanded access through courses offered at remote locations. It has also identified several areas where distance
education courses can expand access, including Internet versions of
some Physics courses, strengthening mathematical and statistical
understanding among potential students, and increasing English
proficiency through remedial and preparatory courses. Some
of these efforts to expand access cause the University to continue to
examine its entry requirements and policies, which to this point have
been rather traditional and rigid and not friendly toward “mature
students.” (See the reference above in the
context of the discussion of the nature of a “dual-mode” institution.)
The University
of the
In summation,
the University of the West Indies has moved from the stage of viewing
distance education as an experiment to be tried with individual
isolated courses to its current stage of developing and offering
complete degree programs by distance education (e.g., in disciplines as
varied as teacher education, management, agribusiness, and engineering). All of the courses offered are print-based courses.
In expanding
its distance education, the University of the West Indies has dealt
with issues that are not unusual for institutions that initiate
distance education programs. Those issues
include:
· Finding ways to articulate their distance
education programs with the academic programs of local tertiary
institutions through program articulation, franchising, and divestment.
· Helping faculty see the development and offering
of distance education programs as team work rather than purely
individual efforts.
· Keeping open to the possibility that the
distance education courses might be a small element in an academic
program that allows a cooperating TLI to expand its current academic
offerings or introduce specializations it would not otherwise be able to
offer.
· Accepting the fact that “mixed mode delivery”
will be the norm rather than the exception, not only for distance
education programs but for on-campus courses as well.
Even as it
expands its distance education program, the University of the West
Indies is aware of the fine line it must walk. Of
all the tertiary institutions in the region, UWI is best equipped to
provide educational opportunities to students throughout the region. Yet, it must take care not to step on the toes of
other universities and established tertiary level institutions. Rather, it must consider ways that, in each
country, the various players might cooperate and collaborate, given that
each institution will have its own aims, some of which might conflict
with UWI’s. To
guide the University in this effort, it has chosen the principle of subsidiarity: it will do what only a university
can do, including the pioneering of new programs which others can adapt
or adopt, and will leave to others to do what they can do perfectly
well on their own.
OTHER INSTITUTIONS AND PROGRAMS
While the
University of the West Indies is the major provider of distance
education in the region, other Caribbean institutions also offer some
distance education programs and courses, some in conjunction with the
University of the West Indies.
Sir Arthur
Lewis Community College (http://www.tcol.co.uk/orgs/sarthur/
sarthur.htm), through its Department of Continuing Education
(DOCE), provides lifelong learning opportunities to adults in St. Lucia. During the 1998-99 academic year,
they are offering seven courses leading to secretarial and business
studies diplomas.
Antigua State
College has been the main partner with the UWI in Antigua. It
has franchised several UWI courses.
In the
British Virgin Islands, UWI works closely with a local TLI to provide a
degree in Education using a variety of resources and approaches. The major competition has come from the University
of the U.S. Virgin Islands (www.uvi.edu/pub-relations.htm).
Articulation
arrangements between UWI and the local community college on Cayman,
including provision for dial-up access to UWI’s
computers is providing greater access to higher education to island
residents. However, most advanced tertiary
training is undertaken in the U.S.
In Grenada,
the national TLI, T. A. Marryshow Community
College, and an active off-shore institution, St. Georges University,
work with UWI to offer courses.
On Turks and Caicos, the Community College on Grand Turk has
a UWIDITE facility that is just going into operation. A
main concern is that they might not be able to find sufficient local
tutors.
Throughout
the region, traditional colleges and universities have experimented
with distance education, and continue to do so. Most,
however, are constrained by the lack of facilities, equipment, and
infrastructure, preventing them from taking advantage of the very
technologies that are making distance education a reality in other
parts of the world. This author believes that
is the main reason why many of the tertiary level institutions in the
Caribbean do not yet have Web sites.
Over the past
decade, there have been several region-wide projects sponsored by the
Commonwealth of Learning (COL) that have used distance education
approaches and technologies to improve educational opportunity and
quality in the Caribbean. COL helped the
University of Guyana develop a distance education-delivered program of
pre-university courses. Delivery included
development of learning materials (using a new desk-top publishing
approach) and installation of an audio-teleconferencing network between
Georgetown and seven regional study centers.
In Jamaica,
COL assisted the Ministry of Education in launching the Teacher
Training Project which upgraded 200 primary grade teachers from a
Certificate to a Diploma qualification in the pilot phase alone. Also in Jamaica, under a World Bank project,
distance education is featured prominently in the teacher training and
upgrading component of a project to reform secondary education.
In Haiti, the
Haitian Foundation for Private Education (FONHEP) has developed a pilot
project to test the feasibility of distance education as a vehicle for
delivering high quality instruction to the country’s primary schools. Emphasis is on interactive radio instruction (IRI)
as the primary learning channel, supplemented by printed materials
(e.g., posters, teacher guides, student workbooks). Technical
assistance is being provided by project ABEL (Advancing Basic Literacy
and Education).
Antigua and
Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St.
Vincent and the Grenadines are participating in a distance education
pilot project that is being conducted under the auspices of the COL
Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). The
pilot will demonstrate the practicality of offering print-based courses
by distance to a number of different sites in the region.
As recently as December 1998, Trinidad and Tobago launched a nationally coordinated system of distance learning. It holds promise of advancing educational opportunities to new cohorts of students.
Training
workshops have been held throughout the region to enhance institutional
capacity and distance education. The workshops
have covered: (a) the use of the computer in distance education; (b)
adaptation of distance learning course materials; (c) planning and
management of student support services; and, (d) course design for
interactive audio teleconferencing.
CONCLUSION
The very
geography of the
The
University of the
MEDIAGRAPHY
Howell, Olivia Edgecomb,
Office of University Services, University of the
Murugan, Krishnapillai,
“Distance Education In The Commonwealth
“T&T launches national distance learning
system.” Connections. Vol. 4, No. 1. January 1999.
http//www.oas.org/en/pinfo/legal.htm -- Article by Kenny D. Anthony on membership of
the Organization of Eastern Caribbean Countries (OECS)
http//www.oas.org/en/pinfo/week/030698ae.htm -- Speech by Perlette Louisy, Governor General of
www.col.org/caribe.htm -- Home Page
for
http://www.uwichill.edu.bb/ bnccde
-- Home Page for University of the West Indies Board of Non Campus
Countries and Distance Education
http://www.tcol.co.uk/orgs/sarthur/sarthur.htm
-- Information page for
http://www.uvi.edu/pub-relations.htm -- Home Page for the University of the U.S. Virgin
Islands