Discusses the results of an interview survey of 21 students enrolled in an Open University (Great Britain) course with a resource-based structure. The study examined use of CD-ROM materials, use of computer-mediated-communication as an information source, use of the Internet, and attitudes toward resource-based learning. (PEN)

Examines recent attempts by the Open University to widen access to higher education in the United Kingdom through provision of distance-taught access materials which may be studied prior to enrollment in the undergraduate program. The materials development approach taken is a discourse model which arises out of a view of learning as a…

When faculty development is viewed as an ongoing need and when we approach faculty development as a long-term, continuous effort, community building becomes a part of the process. Carefully designed faculty development approaches can facilitate and create a culture that supports a thoughtful focus on teaching, while at the same time, nurture a…

In this article we contrast two distance foreign language programs developed at two European institutions of higher education (the Modern Languages Program at the Open University, UK; and the English Program at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Spain) as instances of two pedagogical models used to address the many challenges posed by teaching…

This volume endeavors to provide comprehensive factual information on the Soviet system of education. Chapter 1 offers basic information on the Soviet Republics. Chapter 2 describes the foundations of Soviet Education. Chapter 3 describes preschool through upper secondary education including academic calendars and curriculum. Chapter 4,…

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)

This paper addresses two elements of teacher education in the United Kingdom (UK): open learning partnerships and the use of new technologies to develop a model of preservice education and training. The Open University Postgraduate Certificate in Education (OU PGCE) is a part-time course emphasizing standards in teaching and involving partnerships…

Britain's Open University is described as an open admissions university that does not compromise academic standards, a technological system that delivers a traditional education, and a distance learning institution that approximates on a mass scale the tutorial relationship of older British universities. (MLW)

Maintains that open and distance education represents contemporary education forms that respond to the shift to late-modernity, especially in educational technology and student-teacher relationships. Drawing on the work of Anthony Giddens, uncovers relationships among distance education, late-modernity, and the self. (CFR)

The challenges to teacher educators in sub-Saharan Africa are acute. This paper describes how the Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa (TESSA) consortium is working within institutional and national policy systems to support school-based teacher professional development. The TESSA consortium (13 African institutions and 5 international…

The international literature on learning at a distance is reviewed with attention to student participation, faculty issues, the technology of delivery, necessary support systems, and the organization and process of distance education. Distance education is used in many content areas in economically diverse countries. Individuals who must learn at…

Seventy postsecondary programs that use one or more telecommunications technologies to serve learners are described, and current patterns and trends, and projections about future problems and possibilities, are discussed. The purpose of the guide is to encourage educators to focus attention on the educational problem before considering which, if…

Descriptions of experiences with Open University programs for womens' education in two areas of England illustrate the need for regional support networks to encourage participation in continuing education. Such support services would accommodate the counseling and scheduling needs of reentry women, particularly mothers and homemakers. (MSE)

Correspondence institutions in United Kingdom and South Africa have enrolled Mauritian students in various courses and programs at different levels for more than 50 years. The institutionalization of second-generation distance education (DE) using print and audiovisual media had modest beginnings with the inception of the Mauritius College of the…

It is argued that language learning ought to be interactive. The traditional language classroom provides a favourable interactive situation for language learners. By contrast, the distance education mode is limited in some ways regarding language learning. Necessarily, distance education involves, primarily, self-learning. Face-to-face learning…