Rapid advances in technology have made open and distance learning (ODL) more attractive to South Asian policymakers, but information about results is lacking. What role can ODL play in low-income countries’ skills strategies in a globalised knowledge economy? Can institutions become more accessible to the poor?

Researchers from the International Research Foundation for Open Learning (IRFOL) examined ODL institutions in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka. South Asia is the region with the world’s largest numbers of ODL students and some of the developing world’s longest-established institutions.

ODL has potential to offer opportunities to individuals who are disadvantaged because of their location, gender or economic constraints. However, in South Asia it generally caters to the same clientele as conventional institutions – lower-middle class urban-based men. They are likely to be drawn from the large pool of those unable to obtain places elsewhere.Possibilities of combining employment with education allow them opportunities they might not otherwise have had. Private costs taken on by students are high, limiting the accessibility for poorer students.

For Muslim women ODL helps overcome social constraints that limit their ability to travel to pursue higher education. However, ODL does not challenge gender boundaries or help them enter traditionally male-dominated subjects like science and commerce – most of those enrolled study education or nursing.

ODL public sector institutions are not generally successful at providing appropriate and relevant vocational training. Student completion rates vary considerably and attendance in tutorial sessions and usage of supplementary study material is often poor. However, where ODL has been used by the private sector to deliver tailored, vocational programmes through in-house training, both managers and students have been satisfied. Clearly, private sector providers are better at targeting their programmes to their specific skill needs and ensuring that students complete.

IRFOL researchers also found that:

• Postgraduate programmes provided by ODL institutions have stronger completion rates than diploma and bachelors’ programmes.
• Institutional costs per student are low and costs for the graduate can be less than for poorer-performing conventional institutions.
• While students who complete ODL degrees see benefits, these are usually due to enhanced promotion prospects, rather than greater incomes.
• Employers are often misinformed about programmes and wary of hiring ODL graduates, limiting the employment benefits gained from the qualifications students have acquired.

The number of programmes is increasing but many attract small numbers and have low completion rates. Institutions face a contradictory incentive structure where it is to their advantage, financially and politically, to show large enrolment figures. ODL providers must therefore:

• shift focus from maximising enrolment to improving student completion rates
• design programmes to focus on qualification levels and subjects where ODL produces better results
• collaborate more closely with public and private sector employers
• acknowledge that skill development can no longer be limited by national economic goals or needs, but must cater to a global market
• realise that in the emerging knowledge economy skills become outdated or devalued rapidly
• shift away from rote learning, information transfer and teacher-directed learning so that students know how to take initiative, rather than to be led.

Source(s):
‘Using Distance Education for Skills Development’, International Research Foundation for Open Learning, Department for International Development Educational Papers 62, DFID: London, by Reehana Raza and Terry Allsop, 2006 Full document.
Further details about this research project ‘Skills for Development: The use of distance education' Full document.

Funded by: UK Department of International Development (DFID), Skills for Development Project

id21 Research Highlight: 8 November 2007

Further Information:
Terry Allsop

Contact the contributor: terryallsop2@yahoo.co.uk

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