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Summary and closing comments by Professor Gajaraj Dhanarajan for the first "Virtual conference":
Distance Education and Challenged Communities:    (1 - 22 October 1998)

22 October 1998

Dear Colleagues,

We started this conference with one question. The question had to do with extending the reach of distance education to individuals and communities far beyond the groups that are currently being served. An ancillary question had to do with the relevance of technologies [both old and new] in this equation.

I took on the job of moderating the conference with some trepidation. I had not done this before and was not sure how participants would react to the screen. It is like giving your first lesson or delivering your very first lecture - loaded with anxieties. At the end of twenty days all I can say is that I am glad I did this. You were marvellous as cyber discussants. There were thirty or so open interventions and a dozen of you sent me private e-mail messages expressing your concerns. Dave Wilson my colleague here at COL tells me that were more than 100 registrations at the site and we had one request for a de-registration.

Pulling the many strings of the discussion together this is what I got out of this conference:

1. Nobody disagreed with my first [and motherhood] comment that the potential for distance education to serve beyond its present catchment is huge and largely being ignored. It would need the passion of educational workers; the support of institutional administrators and the commitment of political leaders. In one way or another all three groups need to improve their performance and commitment to the task. Not doing so is moral negligence on the part of the educational community.

2. Experience in a number of locations indicate that distance education techniques applied sensitively to curriculum even at the basic level, addressing the educational needs of young children in rural and isolated communities can bring the magic of a good classroom, home. The personal reminiscence of a number of you listening to the radio in your youth had the comforting feel that a distant lesson need not be an inhumane experience. Prof. Jegde’s note that we need to take the "distance" from distance education to make the experience relevant to those we serve has a lot to do with the experience that was recounted. The "distance" is not just about space – it is also about context, respect for local knowledge, language and culture; it is about good pedagogy.

3. In delivering knowledge it is good pedagogy that makes the difference not technology [Andrew Higgins]. This message though not as explicitly stated as Andrew also came through during the early days of the discussion. A "great" teacher in a classroom uses a variety of tools. Whereas great artists [actors, musicians, painters] are able to transform words and notes and colours into such enriching emotional experience, through a medium, there aren’t as many gifted teachers who could do that without their immediate presence, to the learner. Perhaps this is where governments and institutions can begin to invest a significant proportion of their resources to turn our great classroom teachers into distance educators.

4. There was however a scepticism about politicians and governments. Both are necessary "evil". But, as a community we have to work with and for them to bring change. As many of you know more has been said about education in the last five years than the previous fifty. So they are changing and so must our community.

5. While literacy, basic education and non-formal education occupied a fair bit of our energies there were also many who spoke of the need to provide continuous enrichment to professionals who often find themselves in isolated situations. This was an area where the new technologies were especially applicable if only we could bring costs of appliances and connectivity down. Once again the role of government regulators in bringing costs down was mentioned in passing.

6. Technology certainly attracted a lot of attention. I did not think it would when we began our conversation. Obviously there are some strong views on appropriateness, costs, strategic positions and directions. The lesson is not to throw away the technology but to "tame" it. Clearly all of us recognise that these new technologies have a different feel to it. Those of us who have experienced its power know what a useful tool it is. Despite the concern about its "alien(ness) {and therefore a need to be sensitive in applying it} we intuitively are converging in recognising the value of these new-fangled things. How come there weren’t many comments on Neil Postman’s 10 principles? Is he passé already? The discussion on technology also brought some attention to markets and competition in the knowledge industry. It seems to me that this is a topic for an interesting future discussion.

Let me thank you for your participation and regular intervention. It has been both an interesting and great learning experience for me. I enjoyed the sense of being connected to so many of you and just like my first lecture thrilled at the questions, points and counter points that came from my first group of students. That lecture was on Darwinism. Some things change and others well ........

If you enjoyed this discussion and wish to participate in the next one, the following information may be of interest to you:

The start date is: 10 November 1998 [Pacific Time]

The Topic is: Library/Information Systems and Student Support The moderators are Dr. Neela Jagannathan of the Indira Gandhi National Open University, India and Ms. Elizabeth Watson of the University of the West Indies. Both are librarians and wonderful communicators.

[Information on all four virtual conferences is available at www.col.org/forum/virtual.htm]

You also have my warm invitation to participate in the Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning at Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam between 1 and 5 March 1999.

Take care and I wish you well.

Raj
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Dato’ Professor Gajaraj Dhanarajan
President & CEO
The Commonwealth of Learning
1285 West Broadway, Suite 600
Vancouver, BC V6H 3X8
Canada

Tel: (604) 775-8200 (Switchboard)
Fax: (604) 775-8210
Email: gdhan@col.org
Website: http://www.col.org

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