The course is part of the CDE Distance Education in Developing Countries. The Certificate consists of four courses:
While the two former courses are considered as necessary foundations of the certificate program, the latter two courses address especially the respective issues in developing countries. This course, 'National and International Policies for Distance Education in Developing Countries' will be an exercise in stocktaking, asking the question for which purposes distance education has been used in developing countries and examining the evidence to which extent it has worked.
The last course, 'Educational Technologies for Distance Education in Developing Countries' will especially examine the impact and implications the new developments of information and communication technologies have on distance education. This course will be offered for the first time in Fall 2002.
The overall objective of this course is to equip the learner with a knowledge of open and distance learning in the developing world and enable him/her to use conceptual models to make informed choices between options as a manager, policy maker, practitioner or adviser.
Within the context of this course students will:
Perraton, H. (2000). Open and distance learning in the developing world. London: Routledge. (ISBN 0-41519419-9)
In general, journal articles and papers referenced in this Syllabus will be supplied online.
It is strongly recommended that students purchase the Publications Manual of the American Psychological Association (4th Ed.) and that they pay particular attention to these pages before, during and after the writing of any Assignments.
Quotations: Sections 3.34, 3.35
etc., starting p. 95
Reference Citations in Text: Sections 3.94, 3.95, etc., starting p. 168
Reference List: Section 1.04, etc., starting p. 174
WWW citations: Consult the UMUC library at http://www.umuc.edu/library/guides/apa.html
As noted below, the ability to write to APA standards is a Graduate School requirement.
This course is only offered in the online mode. Students must be prepared to:
The 150 hours workload during the course consists of:
Reading hours per Module:
| Module | Weeks | Reading hours |
| 1 Education and Development |
2
|
10
|
| 2: National Policies |
3
|
10
|
| 3: International Policies |
2
|
8
|
| 4: Organizational Models |
4
|
12
|
| 5: Outcomes |
2
|
10
|
| 6: Project |
2
|
To the final grade of this course two items will contribute:
Grades are assigned according to the following:
A for 90 - 100% - Excellent
B for 80 - 89% - Good, meets Standard
C for 70 - 79% - Below Standard
F for 0 - 69% - Failure
The grade of "B" represents the benchmark for the Graduate School. It indicates that the student has demonstrated competency in the subject matter of the course, i.e., the student has fulfilled all course requirements on time, has a clear grasp of the full range of course materials and concepts, and is able to present and apply these materials and concepts in clear, reasoned, well organized and grammatically correct responses whether written or oral.
Only students who fully meet this standard and, in addition, who demonstrate exceptional comprehension and application of the course subject matter, merit an "A".
Students who do not meet the benchmark standard of competency fall within the "C" range or lower. They, in effect, have not met graduate level standards. Where this failure is substantial, they earn an "F".
The Grade Of "I" (Incomplete): The grade of "I" is exceptional and given only to students whose completed coursework has been qualitatively satisfactory but who have been unable to complete all course requirements because of illness or other extenuating circumstances beyond their control. The grade of "I" may be considered only for students who have completed at least fifty percent (50%) of the total course work requirements and who have received a passing grade on all the coursework which they have completed. The instructor retains the right to make the final decision on granting a student's request for an "I", even though the student may meet the eligibility requirements for this grade.
Effective managers and leaders are also effective communicators. Written communication is an important element of the total communication process. The Graduate School recognizes and expects exemplary writing to be the norm for course work. To this end, all papers, individual and group, must demonstrate graduate level writing ability and comply with the format requirements of the Publications Manual of the American Psychological Association (latest ed.). Careful attention should be given to source citations, proper listing of references, representation of numbers, and the presentation of tables and figures.
Plagiarism is the intentional or unintentional presentation of another person's idea or product as one's own. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to the following: copying verbatim all or part of another's written work; using phrases, charts, figures, illustrations, or mathematical or scientific solutions without citing the source; paraphrasing ideas, conclusions, or research without citing the source; and using all or part of a literary plot, poem, film, musical score, or other artistic product without attributing the work to its creator. Students can avoid unintentional plagiarism by carefully accepted scholarly practices. Notes taken for papers and research projects should accurately record sources of material to be cited, quoted, paraphrased, or summarized, and papers should acknowledge these sources in footnotes.
The penalties for plagiarism include a zero or a grade of F" on the work in question, a grade of F" in the course, suspension with a file letter, suspension with a transcript notation, or expulsion.
Note: Work submitted for this class must be your own, and it must be original to this course. If you have questions regarding this stipulator, please consult instructor.
In accordance with the UMUC policy, any student who has a disability and is in need of classroom accommodations must inform the instructor of this need and, if he or she has not already done so, contact UMUC's office of Veteran and Disabled Student Services at (301) 985-7258.
Each Master's student will work towards the development of a personal portfolio. The portfolio contains required and voluntary documents. Required documents are mandatory assignments and other mandatory contributions to the final grades in each course. Voluntary documents may show any other kind of active participation in the courses of the Master's program. These voluntary contributions allow students to show their proficiency and skills as a professional distance educator. This portfolio is a requirement for successful completion of the final Distance Education Project course.
The first module includes an introduction to the CDE Distance Education in Developing Countries. It will situate this course, National and international policies for distance education in developing countries, within the certificate program. Participants will introduce each other and will be introduced into the setup for this course.
The dominant theme throughout this course is the following: if education is good for development and mass education can be supported through distance education, then distance education has a role to play in fostering development. In this module we examine the underlying concepts and assumptions: what is development? Is it true that investment in education leads to development, especially economic growth? What role could be expected distance education could play in this context?
Such questions link back the course Economics of Distance Education where the Human Capital Theory has been discussed. A more skeptical interpretation, which sees education mainly as a means of Social Reproduction, will provide a contrasting view throughout the course.
(To be specified.)
Open and distance learning has been adopted in much of the south and examples can be found of its use for basic education, nonformal education in such areas as health and agriculture, secondary equivalence education, higher education, and for vocational education especially in teacher training. The documented experience makes it possible to identify a series of reasons for using open and distance learning and to examine the audiences for it in their light. Policies for open and distance learning have been developed in part by individual institutions, in part by national policies, and in part by international pressures. An examination of its use in contrasting areas of education illuminates the role of national policy and links between purpose, audience, and technology.
Jenkins, J., & Szarina, A. (forthcoming). Audiences for distance education.
Latchem, C., Abdulla, S., & Ding, X. (1999). 'Open and distance learning in Asian universities. Performance improvement quarterly, 12(2), 3-18.
Perraton, H. (2000). Open and distance learning in the developing world (Chapter 1 & 9). London: Routledge.
The process of globalization has drawn attention to the influence of international policy on national development. Globalization works in various ways: the role of open and distance learning in response to national policies for workforce education were examined in module 2 while the development of cross-border enrollment and e-learning opportunities are examined in module 4 (and also in the course on technologies). The policies of the World Bank (comparing statements about policy with actual practice in lending), UNESCO, and of bilateral agencies are examined. The European Commission offers a contrast where Europe-wide policies do not transfer across to its development agenda. The work of these agencies is contrasted with that of the two specialist agencies, the Commonwealth of Learning and CIFFAD. These are examined to illuminate what added value, other than technical assistance, they provide within the context of aid policy generally.
Perraton, H. (2000). Open and distance learning in the developing world (Chapter 8). London: Routledge.
King, K., & Buchert, L. (1999). Changing international aid to education: global patterns and national activities. Paris: UNESCO.
CIFFAD International Francophone Consortium of Distance and Open Learning Institutions
World Bank Global Distance EducationNet
In order to compare and analyze distance-teaching institutions of different kinds and working at different levels, organizational models are developed. They are then used to examine and identify the location of the necessary functions for open and distance learning within each of them, their relationship to conventional education, and their relative strengths and weaknesses. Earlier typologies are expanded by looking at the experience and proposals for e-learning with particular reference to cross-border enrollment. The models are also examined in relation to the constraints they impose on, and the opportunities they provide for, choices of technology. In the light of the discussion of the international agencies in module 3, the potential of collaboration, within and across borders, is critically examined.
Cunningham, S., Ryan, Y., Stedman, L., Tapsall, S., Bagdon, K., Flew, T., & Coaldrake, P. (2000). The business of borderless education (extract). Canberra: Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs.
Daniel, J. S., Mugridge, I., Snowden, B. L., & Smith, W. A. S. (1986). Cooperation in distance education and open learning (mimeo) - Paper prepared for Commonwealth Standing Committee on Student Mobility. London: Commonwealth Secretariat.
Perraton, H. (2000). Open and distance learning in the developing world (Chapter 2, 3, 4, 5). London: Routledge.
Moran, L., & Mugridge, I. (1993). Trends in inter-institutional cooperation. In L. Moran & I. Mugridge (Eds.), Collaboration in distance education. London: Routledge.
The final module before the project addresses issues of quality and legitimacy. It examines both the methods of evaluation that can be applied to open and distance learning and the conclusions that can be drawn from this process. While giving due recognition to other traditions of evaluation, it outlines the use made of cost-effectiveness studies in open and distance learning and suggests the conclusions that may be drawn from this, relating the findings back to the discussion in module 1 of national purpose and of audiences.
McAnany, E. G. (1975). Radio schools in nonformal education: an evaluation perspective. In T. A. La Belle (Ed.), Educational alternatives in Latin America. Los Angeles: UCLA Latin America Center Publications, University of California.
Orivel, F. (2000). 'Finance, costs and economics'. In C. Yates. & J. Bradley (Eds.), Basic education at a distance. London: Routledge.
Perraton, H. (2000). Open and distance learning in the developing world (Chapter 6 & 10). London: Routledge.
Students will be required to undertake a project. They will be expected to examine the use of open and distance learning in at least one country and at one level of education, although broader-based and comparative projects will be encouraged. Students will in any case need to draw on comparative experience from various levels of education and from various countries or geographical regions in doing their project. Students will be expected to demonstrate the capacity to analyze the experience of open and distance learning, using a methodology appropriate to their theme, and to produce a draft that could be used as a guide to educational policy.
Two weeks will be set aside to allow students to concentrate on finalizing their project. However, since students themselves may choose their topics, project work may start at an early stage. During module 5 with its focus on evaluation and methodology, students will be asked to prepare an outline of their project and to submit a draft. The project work itself will consist of a document of about 5000 words (maximum 7000, minimum 4000).