UKOU overview, Distance Education then and now

1. eSTEeM NUC – OU workshop UKOU overview, Distance Education then and now Keith Williams

2. eSTEeM International Colloquium UKOU-Distance Education then • Expansion of UK University provision • Low participation in higher education ~10% • Large numbers denied access • No routes to HE for vocational qualitication holders • The Open University • Open access • National reach, large scale • Use domestic media • Must Higher Education continue to be campus + classroom based?

3. eSTEeM International Colloquium Distance Education now • Expansion of University provision worldwide • Developed world knowledge economy demands broader participation • Developing world population growth + knowledge economy demands drive demand for rapid expansion • More for the same resource is the message from many funders • Communication Systems explosion • BBC, CNN, DW, Al Jazeera, Reuters, Bloomberg --worldwide commercial providers of information led content • Internet links individuals and organisations worldwide • GOOGLE. Wikipedia- universal access to information • Must Higher Education continue to be campus + classroom based?

4. eSTEeM International Colloquium Stakeholder interests • External • Able and effective graduates • Increased numbers • Acceptable costs • Internal • Able and effective graduates • Realistic numbers • Well resourced and funded Reasonable market expectations --- but is university education different?

5. eSTEeM International Colloquium Quality in Higher Education:Interpretations • Simply the best • Exclusivity • Highly selective entry • Compliance + Consumer Protection • Accreditation • Guarantee of uniform standards • Process improvement • Internal focus, institutional mission • Stakeholder engagement • Added value measures

6. Scaleability in UK Open Univ eSTEeM International Colloquium Design and develop course, set assessments exam and marking schemes x20 Central Faculty Media Design + Production Recruit, develop and performance monitor tutors x75 Teach, support and assess students to standard procedures x20 RegAcad Tutor Team Admin + logistics Distributed students study to same pattern and standards Total 30,000 per faculty Student

7. ESMU UNN Senior Leadership Programme Massification and Quality • Can Quality be maintained in mass systems? • Expansion of existing institutions • Creation of new institutions • Re invention by existing institutions • New concepts and technofixes

8. eSTEeM International Colloquium Scaleability and Quality • Scaleability demands consistency • Team development of materials ensures academic and technical quality • Materials substantially unchanged for many presentations • Large student populations provide statistical base for performance monitoring • Devolution of responsibility • Devolution of teaching responsibility demands performance specs for staff • Marking schemes provide model for student performance • Staff monitoring systems ensure consistency of staff performance • Industrialised teaching--- industrial quality systems? • In practice - but never tested against ISO or other systems

9. eSTEeM International Colloquium E-learning milestones • Programmed Learning - text based 1960s • Computer Based training, authoring languages PLATO etc 1970s • Interactive Video 1980s • Video classroom 80s-90s • Reusable Learning Objects SCORM etc late 90s onwards E-learning always the “next big thing” but in universities mainly a “cottage industry”

10. Scaleability in UK Open Univ eSTEeM International Colloquium Design and develop course, set assessments exam and marking schemes x20 Central Faculty Media Design + Production Recruit, develop and performance monitor tutors x75 Teach, support and assess students to standard procedures x20 RegAcad Tutor Team Admin + logistics Distributed students study to same pattern and standards Total 30,000 per faculty Student

11. eSTEeM International Colloquium E-learning Current Context • Spectrum of e-learning • Specialised high interactivity simulations • Routine multiple choice quizes • Use of community tools , Facebook etc • Credibility gap • High quality commercial applications software vs home grown applications • Communications tools • the dominant use of online tools by the student generation? • Can E-learning bring the best learning experience to the individual’s desk-top ?

12. eSTEeM International Colloquium 1st Fully online OU course Intro to WWW 11,000 studs pa Milestones to convergence ? Systems stable DL : text led Conv: classroom led, some video classroom outreach 1st online conferencing in OU course MIT Open course-ware launched OU selects Moodle VLE Openlearn 1st standalone PC use in OU course Facebook WWW raises profile of text resources Distribution of course materials PDFs, quizes etc via VLEs reduces barriers of entry to distance learning for conventional univs i-tunes U You Tube OU Google Apps 2000 2005 2010 1985 1990 1995

13. eSTEeM International Colloquium Distinctions between “conventional” and Distance Education disappear All universities offer a “blended” experience Variations in the “blend” according to institutional mission. Use of e-learning increases capacity of conventional campus base Threatens scaleability of large DE institutions ? The Future is Blended?

14. eSTEeM International Colloquium Convergence in mode of operation Invest Cost Improve efficiency Increased service demand Costs for entry reduce Student Number

15. eSTEeM International Colloquium Convergence: Methods and ToolsF2F • Teachers emphasise role as learning managers and facilitators • Plan programmes, support and manage learners • Teaching increasingly resource based • Web resources for information and learning materials • Changing role of text book publishers, resource service packages • Lectures have increased focus on student activity • Lecture as means of information transfer superceded • Participation in group activities • Employers increasingly demand group work skills of graduates • VLE for distributing information • VLE as focus for class activity • Extensive informal student-student comms • Always happened but now increased scope for real time online communication with wider participation

16. eSTEeM International Colloquium • Changing Communication patterns between students and tutors • Demand for increased communications • Expectations of 24x7 support • Web Resources replace text material • Information and learning resources not limited by book ownership or library access • Student –student communication increases • Asynchronous communication expands participation • VLE used for materials distribution • More effective delivery but demands rapid updating • VLE formal focus of student communities • Extensive informal student-student communication • Student forums and chat rooms extend informal communication Convergence: Methods and ToolsDistance Education

17. eSTEeM International Colloquium Convergence in Themes • From teacher centred to student centred learning. • From what students know to what students can do