The Open University of Catalonia (UOC) was established as public, online university and thus has grown quickly with the global interest in online courses. However, like other dedicated distance-education institutions, UOC has had challenges adapting to MOOCs, and the emergent world of Web 2.0 learning technologies. To meet these challenges, UOC…

There is an urgent need to restructure universities in Africa; current problems include the loss of autonomy, a decaying infrastructure, inadequate salaries, an internal job market void of opportunities, brain drain, intellectual isolation, diminished research, and fossilized curricula. There is an equal need for a stabilized funding source and…

This study builds upon the concept of alignment within the curriculum (due to Biggs) and suggests, in the context of two current examples, an integrated methodology for effectively aligned development activities within universities. Higher Education institutions face important challenges. Firstly, quality enhancement of the curriculum is now an…

This paper describes the development of the CalStateTEACH program at California State University (CSU), Fresno, a system-wide initiative that is grafted onto the program of individual institutions. It was originally an open university program called CalNet. It was redeveloped during the fall of 1998, when teams of CSU teacher educators helped…

An induction program set up by the Institute of Educational Technology at the Open University (England) in 1977 for new members of the technology faculty is described and evaluated. Two principles were followed in the program: (1) documentation should be carefully selected so as not to overload the participants; and activity-based experiences are…

This examination of educational institutions and their acceptance of the design and implementation of technologically based instruction considers instructional technology as a subset of technology. Methods of institutional analysis from other disciplines are presented to stimulate research that uses aspects of educational institutions themselves…

A form used in Britain's Open University for teachers to criticize team-developed courses has been improved to allow for more constructive comments, more two-way communication, and continual course improvement. (MSE)

Describes the planning of the Al-Quds Open University (Jordan) and the problems accompanying the plan's implementation. Discusses the rationale behind choosing of educational media and planning and designing courses. Addresses the need to collaborate with conventional educational institutions to provide higher education for the maximum number of…

Activities undertaken in four program divisions and in governance and administration within the University of Mid-America are reviewed in this progress report. The four divisions are research and evaluation, academic planning, course design and production, and marketing. In each section the program actions taken are enumerated, along with the…

A group of academic staff at the Open University with little computer experience developed a computer program for instruction. Reasons for its inclusion in the course, procedures for its adoption, and initial evaluation are described. The course was one in research methods in education and the social sciences. (MSE)

Since its establishment in 1978, Thailand's Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU) has attracted world-wide attention for its innovative, multimedia approach to distance education and for its varied assortment of degree and non-degree programs. Four articles by Dr. Wichit Srisa-an, the founding rector of STOU, are presented in this volume:…

A new member of the mega-Universities, Bangladesh Open University (BOU) introduced a course team approach for developing effective course materials for distance students. BOU teaching media includes printed course books, study guides, radio and television broadcasts, audiocassettes and occasional face-to-face tutorials. Each course team…

Ten major types of evaluation used at Britain's Open University are outlined, including assessment of access, needs, courses, student progress, tutors and counselors, instructional media, computer assisted instruction, other new technologies, and academic staff. References for further reading are provided. (MSE)

The development of course materials at the Open Learning Institute, British Columbia, Canada, is examined from two perspectives: as an industrial process and as a social process. The public institute provides distance education through paced home-study courses. The course team model used at the Institute is a system approach. Course development…

College curricula and instruction, differentiation, and innovation and change in American and Japanese higher education are discussed in 18 papers presented at the 1984 international seminars of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Higher education in three European countries is also addressed. Titles and authors…