JAMAICA CONFERENCE INSPIRES, EDUCATES

COL'S FOURTH PAN-COMMONWEALTH FORUM ON OPEN LEARNING

More than 500 people from 64 countries and various international organisations gathered in beautiful Ocho Rios, Jamaica for COL's Fourth Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning (PCF4) from 30 October to 3 November 2006.

Although many delegates arrived to a heavy rainstorm on the first day of the forum, the Jamaican sun shone every day after that. The Opening Ceremony featured a welcoming address by Conference Co-Chair, COL's President Sir John Daniel. Delegates were also treated to a warm Jamaican welcome from the St. John's Prep Dance Troupe who performed their award-winning dance, "Ketch A Fire".

 

Entertaining, educational keynotes

PCF4's three keynote speakers, from three continents, provided diverse commentaries on the use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) in learning, gender and education, and the use of technology for development.

Mr. Winston Cox, Alternate Executive Director, Inter-American Development Bank, and former Deputy Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, delivered COL's Asa Briggs Lecture. He talked about how ICTs to increase participation and strengthen democracy must begin from strongly held values, such as the Commonwealth values of peace, equality, democracy and good governance. Mr. Cox discussed how the new media such as blogs can increase the transparency that makes for a better world and how other online technologies can make the processes of democracy more accessible.

Professor Penina Mlama, Executive Director of the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) and member of COL's Board of Governors, spoke about the challenges of improving educational access and opportunities for girls in Africa. Declaring that education is a human right, Professor Mlama noted that the world seems at a loss to reduce the huge number of illiterate adults. Since open and distance learning (ODL) programmes cannot claim any level of gender equality to date, ODL must move beyond itself and develop formulae for addressing gender inequalities in education. For the sake of our development and our dignity, she said, we must transform the deeply entrenched gender construction.

Dr. Sugata Mitra, Professor of Educational Technology, School of Education, Communications and Language Sciences at University of Newcastle upon Tyne, and former Senior Vice President for Research and Development at NIIT Limited, India, spoke about his idea of "outdoctrination". Dr. Mitra challenged delegates to use ICTs for development by focusing on the poorest and least accessible areas with the best technology. A little improvement at the bottom of the pyramid will do wonders for development, he said. Dr. Mitra's work with his "hole-in-the-wall" project - placing a computer in a slum near his office in India and monitoring how it is used - has shown the power of non-invasive education.

 

Making Progress

In his closing remarks, Sir John pointed to five key areas of progress since PCF3 in Dunedin, New Zealand in 2004:

1) Better research
 Presentations at PCF4 contained deeper analysis, rather than simply describing a programme or initiative. Sir John emphasised the need for a continuing focus on research to support new educational approaches. Vital developments such as open schooling need more research on their cost-effectiveness and social/educational impacts to be taken seriously by governments and donors.

2) A more professional approach
 Terms such as "results-based management" and "logic models" are being used more commonly and reflect more professional programme management.

3) More participation from developing countries
 PCF4 included far more presentations from developing countries, evidence of flourishing south-south collaboration.

4) Integration of technology
 We have moved beyond the "wow" factor of technology. It is being treated less as a novelty that gives interesting possibilities for the delivery of ODL and more as an integral part of our work.

5) New issues
 Cross-border education and open educational resources (OERs), which were hardly mentioned at PCF3, are now at the centre of debates. The Virtual University for Small States of the Commonwealth (VUSSC) is becoming a reality.

Pointing to innovations such as OERs, Sir John spoke about the need to change educational paradigms at all levels so that OERs reach their potential in transforming the cost structures of ODL. He also pledged COL's support in continuing to focus on copyright issues to cut the costs of education and remove barriers to learning, particularly in developing countries.

He also spoke of scaling up effective COL programmes such as Lifelong Learning for Farmers (Connections, June 2006, page 1), which is improving livelihoods through partnerships in India, and the COL Media Empowerment programme (Connections, June 2006, In Focus section), which is empowering people to develop their own messages to improve health and reduce disease. The challenge for COL is to ensure these programmes replicate themselves, spreading spontaneously from village to village, from nation to nation.

 

Areas of Focus at PCF4

Open Schooling was a very hot topic at PCF4. Alternative methods of schooling are essential to meet the growing demand created by the drive for Universal Primary Education and to meet the needs for marginalised groups such as nomads, street children and AIDS orphans. Significant progress is being made by institutions such as India's National Institute for Open Schooling and in many developing countries.

Teacher education is a related and equally urgent issue that was explored in depth at PCF4. The challenges of expanding learning of good quality at low cost for both pre- and in-service teachers was discussed in several parallel sessions, with many innovative initiatives being shared.

The Forum also looked at emerging trends such as mLearning and how ODL institutions are discovering that communication by cell phones motivates students by making them feel included. Delegates examined both the successes and failures of eLearning. Sir John pointed out the importance of moving beyond the hype of eLearning to focus on learning rather than technology in developing programmes.

"Never have I attended a conference where the level of engagement was so high," said Sir John. He concluded by congratulating delegates for taking full advantage of PCF4 "to develop and extend our community of practice so that, collectively, we make a great contribution to achieving the development goals."

 

Superb organisation, sponsorship

Thanks go to our local hosts, the University of West Indies' Distance Education Centre (UWIDEC) - in co-operation with the Caribbean Association for Distance and Open Learning; the Jamaican Association for Distance and Open Learning; the Trinidad & Tobago Distance Learning Association; and the Office of Continuing Education and Distance Learning at the University of Technology, Jamaica - for ensuring the success of this important event. COL also thanks Professor Stewart Marshall, Director of the UWIDEC and co-chair of the conference, and Katie Laughlin, Special Projects and Planning Assistant at UWIDEC (a COL/Government of Canada Intern), for their superb efforts and good humour in organising the many details of travel, registration, accommodation and much more.

More than 90 delegates received subsidies to support their attendance at PCF4. This enabled participants from a wide range of developing Commonwealth countries to have a voice in discussions about how learning can address challenges in their communities. Thank you to our major sponsoring partner:

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
and to our other sponsors:

• Association of Commonwealth Universities
• Athabasca University
• Cable and Wireless
• Cambridge College
• Caribbean Development Bank
• CARIMAC
• CUPIDE
• FLOS-Caribbean
• Indira Gandhi National Open University
• Ministry of Education, Youth Affairs & Sports, Barbados
• Open University of Hong Kong
• Smart Technologies
• Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation
• UNDP, Barbados
• UNESCO
• UNESCO BREDA
• Universal Basic Education Council
• University of London
• Wawasan Open University College Malaysia
• World Intellectual Property Organization

COL received many notes of appreciation from PCF4 delegates. Some of the comments were:

It was my pleasure to have shared experiences with the many colleagues from around the world. I made the time to listen to some of the exciting new initiatives and to create some linkages that will allow the Caribbean to move towards the achievement of their distance education goals. Thank you again for a wonderful experience.
Wendy Kitson-Piggott, CAREC

I just wish to say thank you for a conference that was intellectually stimulating, not to mention engaging and enlightening.
Shokahle Dlamini, University of Swaziland
 
Often these experiences serve to re-energise us as we strive to do what we believe in our hearts is the best for the people we serve. I am also thrilled that I could hear from others what they are doing, the struggles they have and the methods they use to overcome the obstacles.
Thanks again. See you in London, 2008.
Charles McSweeney, University of Belize

Not only have we enjoyed our stay in Jamaica, but we also learned a lot, enriched our limited knowledge, shared ideas with others from all over the globe and developed friendship with quite a few which we hope will be sustained for long to our mutual benefit. I shall brief our Vice Chancellor and other senior colleagues - academics and professionals - about the Forum so that a greater number can attend PCF5.
Dr. Manzurul Islam, Bangladesh.

 

Keynote presentations and the 236 presented papers are available online: www.col.org/speeches and http://pcf4.dec.uwi.edu/papers.php (password protection has now been removed). A book bringing together the "best of PCF4" will be published in 2007.
www.col.org/pcf4

 PCF4 PHOTOS, CREDIT: HEART training hotel, Runaway Bay

 

TVET IN JAMAICA

On the final day of PCF4, the HEART Trust/National Training Agency Jamaica invited 50 delegates to visit their hospitality training hotel and academy at Runaway Bay. Delegates were welcomed by the Executive Director of HEART Robert Gregory and by Kevin Mullings, Senior Programme Director.

The Human Employment and Resource Training (HEART) Trust was established in 1982. HEART is financed through a compulsory 3% payroll deduction levied on qualified private sector firms, supplemented by assistance from international partners. The Trust finances, develops and monitors employment-training programmes, helps place graduates in jobs and promotes employment projects. It is therefore the main TVET provider in Jamaica. HEART has been the leading trainer and provider of human resources in the hospitality and tourism sector through on-the-job training at HEART academies (like Runaway Bay) and through vocational training centres and the special programmes they provide. Several trainees on placement from HEART assisted at PCF4.

HEART utilises many of the methodologies of ODL (e.g., learning materials) and is moving to develop on-line capability. Described as "the icing on the cake" by one of the delegates, this visit provided an ideal occasion for networking and learning what is being done in Jamaica.

 

COL'S THREE-YEAR PLAN ENDORSED BY EDUCATION MINISTERS

At their 16th triennial conference, Commonwealth Ministers of Education endorsed COL's next Three-year Plan for 2006-2009 and pledged funding for it.

The 16th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers took place in Cape Town, South Africa, in December. Some COL Board members and staff were present to represent COL and report at the various meetings. They played active roles in the Stakeholder and Youth Forums that were held in parallel to the ministerial meetings.

Presentations delivered by COL's President, Sir John Daniel - some co-authored with other COL staff - are available on COL's website.

Through an excellent co-operative working relationship with the host organisation, the Commonwealth Secretariat, the conference schedule and logistics provided COL with good opportunities to present its past work and future plans. COL was well received by senior officials and Ministers. The 16CCEM Communiqué included the following paragraphs:

14. Ministers complimented the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) on its work and achievements over the past three years, 2003-06. They endorsed the Plan, 'Learning for Development, 2006-09', and recognised the need to mobilise the proposed level of funding of C$12 million for the Plan period. Ministers noted with appreciation the United Kingdom's offer to contribute 30% to the total funds provided by other Commonwealth countries for COL in the Plan period as an incentive for increased funding. They also noted the commitment of the Governments of Cyprus, India and New Zealand to increase funding to COL.

15. Ministers acknowledged that Open and Distance Learning (ODL) has improved access, and enhanced quality of education and training in many parts of the developing Commonwealth. The implementation of the Virtual University for Small States of the Commonwealth (VUSSC) is a step in the right direction as it seeks to bridge the digital divide and encourage collaboration.

COL is very appreciative of the financial support that it receives from Commonwealth member countries and is particularly grateful for the several new and increased contributions that it has received recently. The U.K.'s incentive offer continues from past arrangements, and commitments to increase funding from Cyprus and New Zealand had been communicated to COL earlier in the year. India announced at the Ministers' meeting that it would raise its contribution to COL from Rs 24 million to Rs 40 million (about Cdn$1 million), a 66% increase.
www.col.org/speeches
www.thecommonwealth.org/document/ 157817/
    cape_town_communique.htm
www.col.org/3yp0609
www.16ccem.com

PHOTO CREDIT: ANTHEA DAVISON

 

GRAÇA MACHEL URGES GOVERNMENTS TO "TURN THE TIDE"

Former Mozambique Education Minister and children's activist, Ms. Graça Machel touched the hearts of many with the personal story she told 16CCEM delegates in her opening keynote address. She was home in Mozambique for her mother's funeral. While there she discovered that 70% of her childhood school mates were dead and those that she did meet looked much older than she did. The only difference between her and her school mates is the education that she was fortunate enough to have.

The importance of access to education for all cannot therefore be overemphasised, she pleaded passionately, urging educators, Ministers of Education and their Governments to focus follow-up to 16CCEM on definite strategies and implementation plans for eliminating the gaps in education provision and "turn the tide in global education." Her story will stay with many for some time to come.

Ms. Machel also called on governments to place a higher priority on education: "If you compare the education and defence budgets of countries, the resources can be found if we reallocate priorities."

"How can we in 10 years time afford to sit down again and conclude that we have been allowing the ranks of the millions of children to grow illiterate in a world like ours where our generation has accumulated a huge amount of scientific knowledge?" asked Ms. Machel.

In thanking Ms. Machel for her presentation, South African Education Minister, the Honourable Naledi Pandor, concurred that all members of the Commonwealth needed to work together to improve their education systems.

Ms. Machel was Mozambique's Minister of Education and Culture from 1975 to 1989 and Chair of the Commonwealth Foundation from 2001 to 2004. She is the wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela and widow of the late Mozambique president Samora Machel. She currently serves as a Trustee of the Nelson Mandela Foundation. Her speech was given to a joint Ministerial and Stakeholder session at the 16th triennial Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (16CCEM) held in December in Cape Town, South Africa.

caption/photo credit: GRAÇA MACHEL. PHOTO COURTESY OF IISD/EARTH NEGOTIATIONS BULLETIN

 

VUSSC DEVELOPS LONG-TERM STRATEGY

Organisers of the Virtual University for Small States of the Commonwealth (VUSSC) have developed a detailed business plan that provides direction for the next six years. This plan is the result of a meeting of government interlocutors of VUSSC member countries following the fourth Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning held in Jamaica in November 2006.

VUSSC member country interlocutors developed targets in areas such as policy, accreditation, quality assurance, technology and funding. These targets specifically address how member states, participating institutions and VUSSC will contribute to the development and sustainability of this initiative.

The meeting in Jamaica followed a successful collaborative materials development workshop in Mauritius in August 2006. The results of their work, which produced materials in the fields of Tourism and Hospitality and Entrepreneurship both during and since the workshop are available for review and additional contributions at www.WikiEducator.org.

"We made excellent progress with VUSSC in 2006," said Mr. Paul West, COL's Director of Knowledge Management and Information Technology. "Course development is well underway, we received important financial support from the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and the Government of Singapore, and our long-term strategy has been defined." Member countries have been contributing substantially through the provision of skilled staff.

The idea for VUSSC originated at the Commonwealth Ministers of Education Conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada in 2000. Ministers from small states shared their anxiety that their countries did not have the critical mass, either of expertise or of equipment, to engage with online learning in an autonomous fashion. The Ministers thought that by working together, they might be able to create capacity for eLearning that would enable them to harness these new developments for the benefit of their peoples. They asked COL to flesh out a formal proposal.

Twenty-six small states of the Commonwealth, located in Africa, the Caribbean, the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean and the Pacific, are participating in VUSSC.

Three more collaborative materials development workshops (or "boot camps") will be held in 2007 in Singapore (March), in Trinidad & Tobago (June) and in Samoa (November). The goal is to have at least one person from each member state trained in online, collaborative materials development by the end of the year and to have three more courses - in Professional Development for Educators, Life Skills and Disaster Management - under development.

COL continues to actively seek funds to support VUSSC content creation. Development agencies and others that are interested in pursuing this opportunity are encouraged to contact Mr. Paul West, COL's Director of Knowledge Management and Information Technology at pwest

www.col.org/vussc

 

EDUCATION GOOD PRACTICE AWARDS ANNOUNCED

Nine finalists from seven Commonwealth countries were recognised in the first Commonwealth Education Good Practice Awards, announced at the 16th triennial Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers in Pretoria, South Africa in December 2006 (16CCEM). The awards honour programmes, projects, policy strategies or significant interventions which have made a positive difference to the status or condition of primary school children, their teachers or the education system of a country in respect of one or more of the six Action Areas that were identified at 15CCEM three years ago: relevance; measurable impact and effect; sustainability; efficiency and effectiveness; community participation and contribution; and replication.

The first place winner was Generation of Leaders Discovered (GoLD) Peer Education. This programme addresses the behaviours and beliefs that are at the root of the HIV/AIDS pandemic among young people, while also preparing for the leadership crisis that is being precipitated by the disease. GoLD Peer Education is being implemented with GoLD Technical support and training within 150 schools where over 7,500 young people are being developed as adolescent peer educators to positively influence their peers and communities.
www.thecommonwealth.org

Caption: Susannah Farr, Executive Director of Generation of Leaders Discovered (GoLD) Peer Education, and Frans Jordaan, Peer Educator, with their Commonwealth Education Good Practice Award
photo credit: Anthea Davison