Basic Education at a Distance: World Review of Distance Education and Open Learning (World Review of Distance Education and Open Learning, V. 2)

273 Pages·2000·1.71 MB·English

by  Jo Bradley

Basic Education at a Distance
At the beginning of the twenty-first century, about one fifth of humanity is
functionally illiterate. This means that they cannot participate fully in their societies
or protect their basic rights. As most of these people live in the rural areas of the
developing world, the task of helping them to gain access to basic education is
formidable. Does open and distance learning have a role in reducing the growing
numbers of undereducated people in the world?
Open and distance learning has been used in many ways in the recent past to
provide both adult basic education and primary education. What lessons does this
experience offer education policy makers?
Many existing policy documents link distance education with new information
and communication technologies, portraying them as promising universal access
and exponential growth of learning. Is this portrayal justified by experience?
Basic Education at a Distance answers these key questions, and in doing so, assesses
the impact and effect of the experience of basic education at a distance all over the
world and in a wide variety of forms. This is the first major overview of this topic
for twenty years.
Chris Yates is Education Co-ordinator and Jo Bradley is Publications Co-ordinator
at the International Extension College, Cambridge.
World review of distance education and open learning
A Commonwealth of Learning series
Series editor: Hilary Perraton
Higher Education through Open and Distance Learning
World review of distance education and open learning: Volume 1
Edited by Keith Harry
Basic Education at a Distance
World review of distance education and open learning: Volume 2
Edited by Chris Yates and Jo Bradley
Editorial advisory group:
Maureen O’Neil President, International Development
Research Centre, Canada (chair)
Professor Hugh Africa Vice-Chancellor, Vista University, South
Africa
Professor Denise Bradley Vice-Chancellor, University of South
Australia, Australia
Dato’ Professor Gajaraj Dhanarajan President, Commonwealth of Learning
Sir John Daniel Vice-Chancellor, Open University, Britain
Professor (Miss) Armaity Desai Former Chairperson, University Grants
Commission, India
Dr Maris O’Rourke Director, Education, Human
Development Network, World Bank
Hans d’Orville Director, Information Technology for
Development Programme, Bureau for
Policy and Programme Support, UNDP
Dr Hilary Perraton Director, International Research
Foundation for Open Learning, Britain
(secretary)
The world review of distance education and open learning is published on behalf
of the Commonwealth of Learning.
The Commonwealth of Learning is an international organisation established by
Commonwealth governments in 1988. Its purpose is to create and widen
opportunities for learning, through Commonwealth co-operation in distance
education and open learning. It works closely with governments, colleges and
universities with the overall aim of strengthening the capacities of Commonwealth
member countries in developing the human resources required for their economic
and social development.
Basic Education at a
Distance
World review of distance education and
open learning: Volume 2
Edited by Chris Yates
and Jo Bradley
London and New York THE COMMONWEALTH of LEARNING
First published 2000 by
RoutledgeFalmer
11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by RoutledgeFalmer
29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2001.
RoutledgeFalmer is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
Selection and editorial matter © 2000 The Commonwealth of Learning
individual chapters © 2000 the contributors
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or
other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying
and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Basic education at a distance / edited by Chris Yates and Jo Bradley.
p. cm. – (World review of distance education and open learning; v. 2)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Distance education. 2. Open learning. 3. Basic education.
4 Literacy. I. Yates, Chris, 1953– II. Bradley, Jo, 1942– III. Series
LC5800.B38 2000
371.3´5–dc21 00–036782
ISBN 0–415–23773–4 (hbk)
ISBN 0–415–23774–2 (pbk)
ISBN 0-203-18762-8 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-203-18885-3 (Glassbook Format)
Contents v
Contents
List of tables vii
List of contributors viii
Foreword x
Acknowledgements xii
List of acronyms and abbreviations xiii
PART 1
Introduction 1
1 Basic education at a distance: an introduction 3
CHRIS YATES AND THOMAS TILSON
2 The elusiveness of integration: policy discourses on open
and distance learning in the 1990s 27
ELAINE UNTERHALTER, CATHERINE ODORA HOPPERS AND WIM HOPPERS
PART 2
Themes 49
3 Audiences for basic education at a distance 51
LYNETTE ANDERSON AND BARBARA SPRONK
4 Basic education curriculum: contexts and contests 65
RICHARD SIACIWENA AND JENNIFER O’ROURKE
5 Organisational and delivery structures 87
TONY DODDS AND PALITHA EDIRISINGHA
6 Evaluation and quality 110
JUDITH CALDER AND SANTOSH PANDA
vi Contents
7 The use of technologies in basic education 122
KEITH HARRY AND ABDUL KHAN
8 Finance, costs and economics 138
FRANÇOIS ORIVEL
PART 3
Applications 153
9 Literacy and adult education through distance
and open learning 155
USHA REDDI AND ANITA DIGHE
10 Basic education for refugees and nomads 173
JASON PENNELLS AND CHIMAH EZEOMAH
11 The power of open and distance learning in basic education
for health and the environment 192
PAT PRIDMORE AND STEPHANIE NDUBA
12 Open schooling at basic level 205
JANET JENKINS AND ARIEF S. SADIMAN
PART 4
Conclusion 227
13 Outcomes: what have we learned? 229
CHRIS YATES
Index 248
List of tables vii
Tables
1.1 Models of basic education: a typology of practice and
provision 11
5.1 The main features of out-of-school programmes in
developing countries 92
8.1 Average GNP per capita in developed and least developed
countries 141
8.2 Expected number of years of education at age five 142
8.3 Public expenditure on education as a percentage of GNP 143
8.4 Unit cost as a percentage of the GNP per capita 145
8.5 Dependency ratios (% of 6–15 year-olds/16–65 year-olds) 146
10.1 Comparisons between situations of nomads and of refugees 175
13.1 Enrolment in key ODE institutions operating at the basic
level 231
13.2 Costs of basic education at a distance 233
viii Contributors
Contributors
Lynette Anderson is Deputy Director, Institute of Distance and Continuing
Education, University of Guyana.
Jo Bradley is Publications Co-ordinator, International Extension College, UK.
Judith Calder is Head of the Open and Distance Education for Lifelong Learning
Research Group in the Institute of Educational Technology, Open University,
UK.
Anita Dighe is Director, Centre for Extension Education, Indira Gandhi National
Open University, India.
Tony Dodds is Professor and Director of the Centre for External Studies at the
University of Namibia and a long-time former Director of the International
Extension College, UK.
Palitha Edirisingha is Research Fellow, International Research Foundation for
Open Learning, UK.
Chimah Ezeomah is Professor and Dean, Faculty of Education, University of Jos,
Nigeria.
Keith Harry is a distance education information consultant and the former Director
of the International Centre for Distance Learning, UK.
Catherine Odora Hoppers is Chief Research Specialist in the Human Sciences
Research Council, Pretoria, South Africa, and former member of the
International Consultative Forum Steering Committee for Education for All,
Paris.
Wim Hoppers is Regional Education Adviser for the Netherlands Government
Development Assistance, based in Pretoria, South Africa.
Janet Jenkins is an independent international consultant in open and distance
education, UK and formerly a Director of the International Extension College
and Programme Officer at the Commonwealth of Learning.
Contributors ix
Abdul Khan is Vice Chancellor of the Indira Gandhi National Open University,
India.
Stephanie Nduba is Head of Distance and Continuing Education, African Medical
and Research Foundation, Kenya.
Jennifer O’Rourke is a consultant in adult and distance education based in Gabriola
Island, British Columbia, Canada.
François Orivel is Professor, Institut de Recherche sur l’Economie de l’Education,
Université de Bourgogne, France.
Santosh Panda is Professor of Distance Education and Director, Staff Training
and Research at the Institute of Distance Education, Indira Gandhi National
Open University, India.
Jason Pennells is Training Co-ordinator, International Extension College, UK.
Pat Pridmore is Senior Lecturer in international education and health promotion
at the Institute of Education, University of London, UK.
Usha Reddi is Director, Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia, India.
Arief S. Sadiman is Director, Centre for Communication Technology for Education
and Culture and responsible for co-ordinating the Indonesian Distance Learning
Network.
Richard Siaciwena is Professor and Director of Distance Education, University of
Zambia.
Barbara Spronk is Executive Director, International Extension College, UK.
Thomas Tilson is Chief of Party, BESO Project, USAID/Ministry of Education,
Ethiopia. He works for the Academy for Educational Development.
Elaine Unterhalter is Senior Lecturer in education and international development,
Institute of Education, University of London, UK. She is a South African who
researches and writes on educational policy and gender issues.
Chris Yates is Education Co-ordinator, International Extension College, UK.