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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 290 864 CE 049 499 TITLE Distance Education in Asia and the Pacific. Volume /I. Proceedings of the Regional Seminar on Distance Education (Bangkok, Thailand, November 26-December 3, 1986). INSTITUTION Asian Development Bank, Manila (Philippines). PUB DATE 87 NOTE 736p.; For volume I, see CE 049 498. AVAILABLE FROMAsian Development Bank, P.O. Box 789, 1099 Manila, Philippines ($20.00 plus postage per set; more than 10 sets--$15.00). PUB TYPE Collected Works - Conference Proceedings (021) -- Reports - Research/Technical (143) EDRS PRICE MF04 Pius Postage. PC Not Available from EDRS. DESCRIPTORS Adult Education; Case Studies; Computer Assisted Instruction; Continuing Education; Cost Effectiveness; *Developing Nations; *Distance Education; Dropouts; Educational Needs; Educational Technology; Financial Support; Foreign Countries; International Cooperation; International Educational Exchange; *Nonformal Education; Outcomes of Education; Postsecondary Education; Program Administration; *Program Development;. Program Effectiveness; *Program Improvement; Telecommunications IDENTIFIERS *Asia; Australia; Bangladesh; Bhutan; Burma; Fiji; Hong Kong; India; Indonesia; Japan; Malaysia; New Zealand; *Pacific Islands; Pakistan; Papua New Guinea; Philippines; South Korea; Sri Lanka; Thailand ABSTRACT The paper presented in this three-part conference report tra,s the growth and development of distance education in the Asian and Pacific region. Part 1 provides a general review. Part 2 contains the following case studies: "Distance Education in India" (S. P. Mullick); "Distance Education in Indonesia" (Professor Setijadi); "Distance Education in Pakistan" (Shaukat All Siddiqui); "Distance Education in the Republic of Korea" (Kwon Soonchan and Chandong Kim); and "Distance Education in Thailand" (Iam Chaya-Ngam). The following country papers are included in part 3: "Distance Education in Australia" (Vernon White); "Distance Education in Bangladesh" (K. M. Sirajul Islam); "Distance Education in Bhutan" (Zangley Dukpa); "Distance Education in Burma" (Kyaw Sein); "Distance Education in Fiji" (Hari Ram); "Distance Education in Hong Kong" (Michelangelo Pagliari and John Anthony Frost); "Distance Education in Japan" (Yoshiya Abe); "Distance Education in Malaysia" (G. Dhanarajan); "Distance Education in New Zealand" (Douglas Gunn and Peter McMechan); "Distance Education in Papua New Guinea" (John Paul and Howard Van Trease); "Distance Education in the Philippines" (Remigio komulo); and "Distance Education in Sri Lanka" (D.A. Kotelawele). (MN) Distance Education in Asia and the Pacific -14- Volume II :*JP &) tJ U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS, Office of Educational Research and Improvement MATERIAL IN MICROFICHE ONLY; EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC HAS BEEN GRANTED BY This document has been reproduced as 1.9received from the person or organization originating it. 0 Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction Quality leA Points of view or opinions stated in this dccu- ment do not necessarily represent official TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES OEM posrhon or policy. INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)." (.7%\. PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGIONAL SEMINAR ON DISTANCE EDUCATION 26 November3 December 1986 Bangkok, Thailand \.) ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK Manila BESTCOPNVIULAnt$ , Distance Education.Proceedings of the Regional Seminar on Distance Education, 26 November3 December 1986, Bangkok, Thailand, organized by the Asian Development Bank, Manila Icollaboration with Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University,Thailandandincooperationwith UNESCO Regional Office, Bangkok. Published by the Asian Development Bank, P. 0. Box 789, Manila, Philippines Printed in Manila, Philippines, 1987 Design: Lena Acharya Artists: Jaime Miranda and Nestor Diasanta The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the countries or agencies from which they came. Additional copies of this publication are available upon request from the Information Office, Asian Development Bank, P. 0. Box 789, Manila, Philippines. FOREWORD The countries of Asia and the Pacific are engaged in exploring appropriate ways of tackling the urgent problem of educating their large and growing populations in relatively little time and with limited resour- ces. The pressures on traditional educational institutions are growing, with the result that education is expensive and often inaccessible. Planners in these dynamic countries are therefore attempting to evolve policies which permit, firstly, equitable access to education; secondly, enrichment of the content of formal education to include more applied and employment-related courses; and thirdly, through continuing education, an upgrading of skills and improvement of the quality of life and human resources. To encourage this amplification to take place, educationists have turned their attention to distance education methods. This is a novel concept which attempts to loosen the confines of traditional teaching requirements and allow larger sections of populations the benefit of education. One of the strategies of distance education is the increased use of communications technology to deliver learning materials to students. Educationists now acknowledge the liberating possibilities of the non- print media which have the potential to surmount physical obstacles as well as break the constraints of traditional classroom teaching. Such methods are altering time-honored concepts in the field of education. Resistance to conceptual change in education is not inapposite. It introduces a healthy note of caution when even traditional educationists and planners in both industrialized and developing countries find them- selves-persuaded to support new methods of providing education to far greater numbers than has been possible through conventional methods. Most forcefully persuasive is the undesirable prospect of allowing large populations to remain unskilled and inadequately prepared to participate in important economic programs. The resource papers presented at the Seminar held in Bangkok from 26 November to 3 December 1986 provide exhaustive information on every aspect of distance education in the Region. They are together, a valuable source of information for those wishing to address the problems of providing large-scale educational opportunities. The summary of the proceedings highlights the many advantages of distance education methods currently followed in the Region, while examining several prob- lems which still have to be solved. My thanks go to all participants and observers for their valuable contribution to the discussion of the Seminar. Their views and experience iv enriched the proceedings. I also extend my thanks to all resource persons, namely, Dr. Ram Reddy, Prof. Takashi Sakamoto, Dr. Mohammad Selim, Prof. Ralph Smith, Mr. Mohan Sundara Rajan and Dr. James Taylor. My special thanks go to Their Excellencies, Dr. Subin Pinkayan, Minister of University Affairs, Tband and Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, Deputy Minister of Finance, Thailand, who kindly agreed to address the opening and closing sessions of the Seminar; the staff of Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University and particularly the Rector, Prof. Dr. Wichit Srisa-an who was also a resource person; his colleagues, namely, Dr. Pratya Vesarach, Dr. lam Chaya-Ngam; and Dr. Tong-In Wangso- torn; and also to Dr. Makaminan Makagiansar, Assistant Director General of UNESCO's Regional Office, Bangkok, for extending their cooperation in making the Seminar possible. I should also like to thank Dr. Motilal Sharma who doubled as resource person and organizer, Mr. N. R. Collier and Mr. G.H.P.B. van der Linden who closely supervised the organization of the Seminal, Mrs. Cristina Gamboa and Mr. Manuel Perlas for assistance in coping with the numerous administrative matters, Mrs. Lena Acharya, who was the Rapporteur for the Seminar, and the secretarial support staff for their unflagging help before, during and after the Seminar. S. V. S. JUNEJA Director Infrastructure Department 5 PREFACE Large increases in population coupled with a growing awareness of the benefits of education are leading governments to explore the possibil- ity of using alternative means to provide education on a large scale, particularly as conventional educational methods are becoming increas- ingly expensive. One such alternative that countries in the Regionare considering is distance education. In the view of the Bank, this was an opportune time to bring together officials of the Bank's developing member countries who are, or are likely to be, involved in distance education operations, along with representatives of institutions which have had substantial experience in this field. Such a gathering, itwas hoped, would encourage an exchange of ideas and help develop appro- priate policies and project strategies. The eight-day Seminar on Distance Education was conducted in Bangkok from 26 November to 3 December 1986 at the Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU). STOU has been designated by UNESCO as a lead institution in Asia and the Pacific and has excellent staff, facilities and experience in hosting such international seminars. The STOU worked in close cooperation with the Bank and UNESCO, Bangkok, in the organization and management of the Seminar. The Seminar was attended by 40 participants from 14 developing member countries (Bhutan, Burma, Fiji, Hong Kong, I.:dia, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua Nev 1 Guinea, Philippines, Sri