UWIDEC APC P. 14a
2003/2004
THE
UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES
MEETING OF THE ACADEMIC PROGRAMME COMMITTEE
OF THE DISTANCE
EDUCATION CENTRE, APRIL 02, 2004
UWIDEC, Cave Hill Activities (November 01, 2003 to March 31,
2004)
Besides carrying out the routine tasks relating to
course maintenance & delivery (i.e., updating the materials, incorporating
new assignments, etc.) student support services (student registration, queries,
etc.) research (course evaluation, tutor evaluation, etc.), during the report
period, UWIDEC Cave Hill:
- Negotiated
with COL for funds to organize a two-day planning meeting on quality
assurance issues as they pertain to distance education in the Region. The
planning meeting assumes importance in the context of the GATS/WTO, which,
when fully implemented, will have profound implications for higher
education in the Caribbean. (The planning meeting, tentatively scheduled
for April 29 & 30 2004, will involve representatives of UWIDEC, UWI QA
Unit, CARICOM, OECS, CXC, etc., and other national/regional QA and
accreditation agencies that deal with higher education. The agenda items
include (a) sharing of past experiences, if any (b) identifying the unique
needs of small island developing states (SIDS) (c) deliberating on the
issue of the need for a Regional Accreditation body and (d) chalking out a
plan of action. COL is also suggested to undertake similar exercises in
other SIDS in order to contribute towards the realisation of one of the UN
Millennium Goals.)
- Produced
a JITL CD for MS33B (Business Strategy and Policy). The CD will form part
of the course package after pilot testing. However, a policy must be in
place to sustain the efforts as issues pertaining to learner access,
faculty inputs, contracts and IPR, network costs, CD production time,
instructional design, courseware and service quality, online provisions,
etc., are involved. (Some of these issues were outlined during the last
APC meeting (Paper 5a).
- Implemented
the activities relating to the JITL project. (This includes getting the
approval of OAS (a) to utilise the funds saved from the project for
additional hardware/software and training relating to the production of
JITL CDs (b) to extend the project period from December 2003 to March
2004).
- Prepared
an Execution Plan for the implementation of a new project with OAS. (This
OAS-funded project of about US$ 120, 000, begins in April 2004. It aims at
building the capacity of UWIDEC to produce multimedia CD for distance
learning purposes. It is expected that multimedia CDs and JITL CDs will
complement each other and that they will be incorporated into online
provisions, as they become available. It is also envisaged that the CDs
will be used in face-to-face situations).
- Met
with Ms. Paloma Adams, Project Coordinator in charge of the Caribbean,
OAS, Washington to discuss project evaluation and audit of the JITL
project.
- Participated
in the OAS-sponsored workshop on writing grant proposals.
- Participated
in the Regional workshop on WTO matters for academics in the Caribbean.
- Mounted
a workshop on the various aspects of web design.
Besides the issues identified in Paper 5a (APC, October
2003) and those listed in Paper 14c (APC, March 2004), it is time UWIDEC had a
research policy. One of the weakest points in distance education practices
across the world is the contribution of research, or rather lack of it, to
system development, and this is no different at UWI. A holistic approach to DE
research is essential, given that research in distance education is primarily
developmental or systemic in nature. In the absence of a sound research
framework, most of our suggestions for improvement may sound anecdotal. The
present set up of research must, therefore, evolve into R&D to inform our
decisions about instructional design/package, provisions for and implementation
of technology-enhanced learning, etc. Furthermore, a framework for continuing
professional development is conspicuous in its absence in our operations. A
robust research policy must, however, address this issue as well.
Prepared by Dr Krishna Murugan
March 30, 2004