The Open University: Promoting Quality Education International Meeting on the University Community and Education for All “Creating and Sustaining Improvements” UNESCO Paris, November 4 th , 2004
Jan 20, 2016
The Open University: Promoting Quality
EducationInternational Meeting on the University Community and Education for All
“Creating and Sustaining Improvements”
UNESCOParis, November 4th, 2004
Plan of the Talk1 Overview of the UK Open University: 2004
2 The Challenge of the Dakar Agreement for Africa
3 The DEEP project: combining - teacher training expertise- use of Information and Communications
Technologies (ICT)in two African countries
Overview of the UK Open University
The UKOU – a “mega-university”
250,000 students and clients
160,000 students working online in their studies
Largest Business School in Europe
Fifth in UK Teaching Quality ratings
28,000 students outside UK
Partnerships in 16 countries
Study with the UKOU
Open entry – no entry qualifications are required for undergraduate study
Study for BA, BSc, MA, MSc, PhD, or study individual courses of interest
Course sizes: 100 hours to 600 hours of study
All registered undergraduate students have access to a tutor
Full range of media used in creation of course materials and services
Present eLearning Capacity
Email, computer-conferencing (student-tutor, student-student)Digital resources from OU Library onlineWebsites (personal, course-based)eBooks, simulations, A/V materialsSpecialist learning systems: computer-enhanced audio conferencing (Lyceum)Computer-based assessment; online assignment handling
Academic Organisation
6 Faculties ( Arts, Social Sciences, Maths & Computing, science Technology, Education and Language Studies)2 Schools (Health & Social Welfare, OU Business School)Institute of Educational TechnologyKnowledge Media Institute1200 full-time academic staffResearch and teaching across the OU
Quality Assurance at the UKOU
Internal quality assurance: four dimensions- academic quality - pedagogic quality- media product quality - quality of serviceExternal quality assurance- Institutional audit: QAA- Accreditation: Middlestates Accreditation - Professional Body accreditation (AACSB,
EQUIS, nursing, social work)
UKOU Mission
The Open University is open to people, places method and ideas
It promotes educational opportunity and social justice by providing high-quality university education to all who wish to realise their ambitions and fulfil their potential
Education for All
A contribution from the UK Open University that draws upon:
- the UKOU’s excellence in teacher-education
- our experience in using ICT to enhance teaching and learning
“The challenge to educate our children is a challenge for us all”
Dakar agreement: universal primary education by 2015
Sub-Saharan Africa 42 million children without primary schooling
Number of primary age children in the region: 1996: 82,000,0002015: 139,000,000.
Required growth in number of teachers: 5.6% pa.
Actual growth in number of teachers:3.4% pa.
“Educating all our children means educating their teachers too”
Dakar agreement : Universal Primary Education by 2015
“What struck me so forcefully was how small the planet had become during my decades in prison..[ICT] had shrunk the world and had in the process become great weapon for eradicating poverty and promoting democracy.”
Nelson Mandela: “Long Walk to Freedom”
Researching the potential of new technologies to enhance teaching and learning in literacy, numeracy and science in elementary schools in Egypt and South Africa.
DEEP- The Digital Education Enhancement Project
1 Teacher education essential to
achieving meaningful primary education.
2 School based programmes of teacher education the only feasible, logistical way of responding to enormous numbers involved.
3 Potential of ICT needs vigorously exploiting.
4 Established assumptions about teacher education need challenging.
5 Balance of pre-service and in-service training needs radical reassessment.
Five interrelated arguments:
1 What is the impact of ICT-enhanced teaching on student achievement and motivation?
2 What is the impact of ICT use on the pedagogic knowledge and practice of teachers and the communities in which they live and work?
3 How can teacher education and training be developed to ensure teacher capacity to exploit the potential for ICT?
DEEP Research Questions
Department For International Development, UKFort Hare Institute of Government, SAProgramme Planning & Monitoring Unit, EgyptOpen University, UK
DEEP- The Digital Education Enhancement Project
DEEP participantsEgypt: 12 project schools
25 teachers
Eastern Cape: 12 project schools
25 teachers
Total number of students involved: 2000
DEEP: ICT ToolkitShared laptop with CD-ROM, internet access microphone and speakers
Combined printer/scanner/photocopier
Individual hand-held computer with digital camera and docking station
Email account
Project-based digital video camera
Personal mobile phone
Teachers take ‘10 steps’ through the DEEP project.The steps have ‘Educator Activities’ that teachers work through in pairs.The steps have ‘Classroom tasks’ for educators to adapt and try out with learners.The focus is always upon the ‘subject’ - ICT is integrated as ‘one of a range of strategies’.
Educator Activities & Classroom Tasks.
DEEP: the 10 steps1 Understanding the purposes of DEEP
2 Explaining the research instruments
3 Introduction to the professional activities
4 Introducing ICT
5 Planning to teach with ICT
DEEP: the 10 steps
6 Teaching and Learning with ICT
7 Learning review and presentation
8 Teacher evaluation
9 Learner evaluation
10 Affirmation
1 What is the impact of ICT-enhanced teaching on student achievement and motivation?
2 What is the impact of ICT use on the pedagogic knowledge and practice of teachers and the communities in which they live and work?
3 How can teacher education and training be developed to ensure teacher capacity to exploit the potential for ICT?
DEEP Research Questions
DEEP: the Key Findings (1)
1 Teachers gained confidence in using ICT
2 ICT use enhanced teachers’ professional knowledge and capability by extending subject knowledge
3 ICT enabled efficient planning and preparation
4 ICT use extended the range of teachers’ pedagogic practices
DEEP: the Key Findings (2)
5 ICT permitted new forms of teacher-to-teacher co-operation
6 No correlation with prior experience of ICT
7 Successful outcomes were achieved by both men and women
8 ICT use extended from school to community
9 Students developed confidence in ICT use
DEEP: the key findings (3)
10 Teachers reported enhanced learning , literacy and scientific literacy
11 Teachers reported frequent use of hand-held, in class and out of school
12 Need for mother-tongue interfaces and software
13 Teachers highly motivated to succeed in use of ICT for their learning and for students’ learning
14 Cost analyses for ICT use need reappraisal
“No-one can ever believe that rural school educators and learners can use computer technology the way that we do. We are so confident - and we are proud of ourselves.”
Mandla Mngqibisa, DEEP Participant
THE DEEP PROJECT
For further information on DEEP:[email protected]
For the full report on DEEP: http://www.open.ac.uk/deep/FinalReport-screen.pdf
© images: Digital Education Enhancement Project