Rethinking Distance Education: Towards an Innovative Future for Universities? [r-libre/3048]

Papi, Cathia (2023). Rethinking Distance Education: Towards an Innovative Future for Universities?. In Erdal, Fuat (Ed.), 36th Asian Association of Open Universities Conference Proceedings Book (p. 820). Eskişehir : Anadolu Üniversitesi. ISBN 978-975-06-4494-8

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Item Type:	Papers in Conference Proceedings
Refereed:	Yes
Status:	Unpublished
Abstract:	In the field of education, the term openness encompasses a number of meanings (Bozkurt et al., 2023); therefore, the theme of this conference on open universities is rather broad. In order to narrow down the topic, remaining within the framework of this short communication, we have chosen to focus on openness in distance learning universities. Although it has existed for hundreds of years (Daniel, 2021), distance learning has continued to evolve with technological developments, enabling knowledge transmission and distance communication. Thus, for decades, correspondence courses based on paper manuals and epistolary communications have gradually been enhanced by various technologies that were considered new when they were first released (disc, cassette, CD-ROM, etc.). Then, with the advent of the Internet, paper gradually gave way to a digital wave, with online courses and multiplication of the means of communication, leading to consideration of the existence of different eras of distance education (Anderson and Dron, 2010). Although it began over twenty years ago, the transition to digital remains an occasional challenge for institutions that have anchored their production scheme to the printed course model (Papi, 2016). While universities that traditionally offered face�to-face courses have developed their distance education offering, using digital technology since the 2000s, and the pandemic has recently reinforced this development, to what extent are distance learning universities still relevant? We propose to reflect on this question by exploring the evolution of distance education in general (Glikman, 2021) as well as by taking a specific look at the case of Université TÉLUQ. The latter is indeed interesting in the sense that this university is fifty years old and that it is the only French-language distance learning university in North America. We see that, despite ever-increasing online course offerings in other universities (Bates et al., 2017), student enrolment has not diminished. Thus, in the short term, distance learning universities appear to be just as significantly relevant, as evidenced by the support provided to all schools and universities by Université TÉLUQ during the pandemic. The University created the J’enseigne à distance (I teach at a distance) training programme as well as welcoming new registrants throughout the year, which is made possible by its flexible enrolment model. In the medium term, the future of distance learning universities also seems assured as they are accustomed to welcoming people from diverse backgrounds and likely require less adaptation than campus universities to meet different needs. The long-term outlook is, however, less certain. As the future depends greatly on developments in both distance learning.
Official URL:	https://cdn.anadolu.edu.tr/files/anadolu-cms/JEwr4...
Depositor:	Papi, Cathia
Owner / Manager:	Cathia Papi
Deposited:	28 Sep 2023 19:40
Last Modified:	29 Dec 2023 14:48

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