This paper presents the challenges involved in designing a full set of online tutorial materials for a beginners' Spanish course for distance language learners utilising an online audiographic conferencing VLE for synchronous oral interaction. Although much has been written about task design and task-based learning and teaching (TBLT) in language…

This article discusses some of the principal policy issues regarding the structure of postsecondary education that are facing Ontario. The discussion is divided into four sections, the first three of which concern particular aspects of the structure of postsecondary education. The first deals with questions pertaining to the appropriate structure…

Shows how management training at Lloyds TSB Independent Financial Advisers has helped to boost enthusiasm among line managers, improve communication between departments and create a new momentum within the organization. Describes how the Open University Business School professional certificate in management was combined with activities to enrich…

Open and distance learning is experiencing rapid growth throughout the world. China in particular is undergoing a massive expansion of its distance EFL programmes. This global phenomenon challenges all those involved in delivering distance learning materials to examine current practice and the assumptions and expectations that underlie it, with…

This article discusses a framework for the development of tasks in a synchronous online environment used for language learning and teaching. It shows how a theoretical approach based on second language acquisition (SLA) principles, sociocultural and constructivist theories, and concepts taken from research on multimodality and new literacies, can…

The question why some learners successfully study through distance mode and others do not is increasingly becoming important as open and distance learning (ODL) has come to occupy a prominent place in providing higher education to large segments of the population in India. With barely 1112 students studying through distance mode in 1962, the…

Bangladesh Open University (BOU) is only University of the country which provides mass education in different dimensions in science, agriculture, humanities, social science, health, etc. It intends to provide opportunities of education to all classes of people and create efficient and skilled manpower by improving the quality of education. BOU was…

This paper makes the case that if e-learning research and development projects are to be successfully adopted in real-world teaching and learning contexts, then they must effectively address accessibility and usability issues; and that these need to be integrated throughout the project. As such, accessibility and usability issues need to be made…

This paper examines the origins, objectives and structures, funding and cost, programs, learners, and teaching and learning of the radio and television universities in China and the British Open University (BOU). It also discusses the nature and role of each of these entities, including growth and development of higher education and the…

Andhra Pradesh Open University (APOU), the first university in India modeled on the British Open University, provides opportunities for higher education through the use of multimedia systems to supplement correspondence education; offers equality of educational opportunities; allows flexibility with regard to eligibility for enrollment;…

After a brief review of the literature and definition of educational technology, this paper describes the process of mathematics instruction at the Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL). It is noted that the unique situation at OUSL and the abstract nature of mathematics make it necessary to modify the system of distance education because it is…

This report begins by briefly reviewing actions that have been taken since the idea of an Open University in Tanzania was first proposed in the late 1970s. The main body of the report begins with a discussion of the role of media technology in an open university with emphasis on delivery and support systems. The current situation in Tanzania is…

In today's usage the distinction between open and distance education is often blurred. Indeed, open education and open learning are not synonymous with distance education and distance learning, a fact that is readily discernible by examining the characteristics of each. Teaching and learning in distance education are based on two elements: a…

This survey of economics graduates at the FernUniversitat found that relatively few students who enroll in the program pass the final exam. Full-time students have better graduation rates than part-time students, although the FernUniversitat considers the latter as its main target group. Full-time students on the average require the same number of…

A case study of the unique City University of New York Bernard Baruch College is presented. The school is unique because for 130 years it charged no tuition to most of its students (and even today is cost-free to many) and because its programs have so closely matched the needs of the city of which it is a part. A description is provided of how the…