lifelong learning and distance higher education - Asia Pacific Region

Cultural and ethical issues in international distance educationThe development of online courses aimed at international audiences has led to concernsabout cultural imperialism and the possible dominance of American programming (e.g.Boshier, et al., 1998). Mason (1998) came to the following conclusions following fivecase studies of international distance education programmes:• a preponderance of English as the language for international distance programmes;• cultural issues were not being explicitly addressed in these programmes;• there was considerable diversity in the approaches to international distanceeducation;• going international forced a very careful consideration of the educational process inall the case-studies;• there was a focus on business, IT and educational technology topics, reflecting thedemands of the lifelong learning market.Bates (2000; 2005) has criticised the ethics of some of the for-profit distance educationprogrammes being developed by more economically advanced countries. Bates (2000)has also described some of the cultural issues in teaching at a distance that arise fromdiffering approaches to teaching and learning in different countries, especially thediffering relationships between teachers and students. He also noted the need for localcultural adaptation of courses and recommended joint and equal partnerships betweeninstitutions in different countries to ensure cultural relevance.Possibly for these reasons, the fear of American domination of the international distanceeducation market is so far unfounded. In major studies of international educationproviders for the Australian government, Cunningham et al. (2000) and Ryan andStedman (2002) found little evidence that there would be “a tidal wave of new providersemerging … in the short term”. However, they did warn that“the implications of commercialisation are profound. The new providers arenot bound by norms or ideals of traditional higher education such as collegialgovernance, linked research and teaching, or academic autonomy and control”(Cunningham et al, 2000, p. 153).Similarly, Murphy, Zhang and Perris (2003), reporting on online learning in Asia,commented: “Arguably, any simple ‘imperialist’ strategy has failed, for a variety ofreasons”, pointing out that “many Asian countries are already supporting others in theregion and offering cross-border studies at a quality and cost that cannot be met bytheir Western counterparts.” Thus, while caution is needed, experience is growing ondeveloping successful international distance education programmes that respect andre-inforce different cultures. The whole of Volume 22, No. 1 of Distance Education isdevoted to articles on cultural issues in international distance education.There is clear evidence that when well designed, distance education can be as effective asface-to-face teaching, across a wide variety of subjects and target groups. As a result ofconstructivist theory, some very strong claims have been made for the benefits of onlinelearning. However, to date, there is very little research to either deny or support thoseclaims. Perhaps more importantly though, the development of online learning is seenas meeting the needs particularly of knowledge-based economies. In contrast, secondgeneration distance education, based on the mass media of print and broadcasting, maygive greater economies of scale while still meeting the needs of industrial or agriculturaleconomies and thus may be more appropriate for less economically advanced countries.141