Education, Careers & Professional News
Former National Training Board executive launches distance learning venture
A new Bermudian company has teamed up with an American school to offer a cheap way for employers here and throughout the Caribbean to train their workforce without sending them off-island.
Michael Stowe, president and CEO of Alliance Workforce Solutions (AWS), has signed a deal to represent Penn Foster Career School, a Pennsylvania-based distance learning provider, in Bermuda and the Caribbean.
Mr. Stowe will be aiming to convince employers of the benefits of training staff on the job in their home country, with one of 2,000 technical or vocational courses offered by Penn Foster, rather than sending them abroad to study.
He said yesterday that sending a technical student overseas usually costs $20,000 for course fees alone, with additional living expenses ratcheting the price up to about $35,000 for a yearlong programme.
But companies, governments and other organisations could cut their training costs to as little as $5,500 per worker during the current economic crisis by choosing distance learning, according to Mr. Stowe.
“Our real strategy here is to make training affordable and accessible with flexible scheduling and to keep down the cost of education and training,” he said. “The global economic crisis has caused Caribbean leaders to reduce or eliminate the practice of sending students overseas.
“They have realised that technical training can be very expensive. These programmes allow students to continue to work while they gain their qualification.”
Al De Seta, president and chief operating officer of Penn Foster, said distance learning was an efficient and cost effective solution to training.
“The courses permit Bermudians to pursue enhanced skills, qualifications and job-retraining options without disrupting family, career, employment and financial responsibilities,” he said.
Mr. Stowe, former executive officer of the National Training Board (NTB), set up Reid Street-based AWS at the end of last year and is currently a one-man band but expects to take on staff once the business develops.
He will represent Penn Foster in 20 countries throughout the Caribbean, covering an area of about one million square miles and developing custom-made training courses for employers specific to their needs.
He will also aim to recruit more home study students for Penn Foster, which already offers some courses through the NTB and was previously represented in Bermuda by the late Neville Tatem.
The school has about 500 students in Bermuda and 5,000 studying in the Caribbean. Mr. Stowe said he expected the number here to reach 2,000 and had already had positive feedback from industry leaders.
Penn Foster has 200,000 students worldwide and provides training to major corporations including General Electric, British Petroleum, Ford and Nestle. Mr. De Seta said: “We are deeply committed to serving the Caribbean region. Penn Foster for many years has had representation in Bermuda and is very excited about growing our presence by joining with AWS.”
More Chamber welcomes FSU president as keynote speaker
The Rockford Chamber of Commerce is honored to announce that David Eisler, President of Ferris State University, will be the keynote speaker for its upcoming annual meeting, scheduled for Friday, Jan. 9.
The chamber annual meeting of the membership will be at the Wolverine World Wide, Inc. conference center. The event will begin at 5:30 p.m. with a social hour followed by the Rockford High School Jazz Ensemble, dinner, election of board members, Antor Travel/Funjet vacation grand drawing and the business of distinction awards.
The Rockford Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors will announce the winners for the Rockford Chamber of Commerce 2008 Business of Distinction Awards at the meeting.
For more information please contact the chamber office at (616) 866-2000 or visit the Web site www.rockfordmichamber.com.
Eisler will bring vast experience to meeting
David L. Eisler has served as president of Ferris State University since July 2003. On campus Eisler has worked with faculty, staff and students to develop and articulate a vision that focuses Ferris State University as a Learning-Centered University. Under his leadership the University has embarked on an ambitious program of technology integration, classroom renovation, wireless networking, and cooperative programs with community colleges. These efforts have resulted in record enrollments for Ferris State University in Big Rapids and 25 locations throughout Michigan.
Within Michigan Eisler works actively on issues of higher education and economic development. He served on the Cherry Commission on Higher Education and Economic Growth. Governor Jennifer Granholm has appointed him to the Council of Labor and Economic Growth and the Midwestern Higher Education Compact, and he currently serves on the executive committee of both organizations. An advocate for the arts, he also serves on the Board of ArtServe Michigan.
Eisler has spoken widely and published papers on the integration of technology in higher education. As an academic leader, Eisler believes strongly in the value of excellence in undergraduate education. He is committed to ensuring the integrity of the college experience based upon an education that develops mature communication and quantitative skills, including a know-ledge core that has both breadth and depth, which creates a pattern of intellectual rigor and provides the foundation for lifelong learning.
Throughout his career, Eisler has been heavily involved in community service and he believes strongly that service is an important component of the educational experience. With the American Association of State College and Universities and the New York Times, he helped create the American Democracy Project. He currently serves on the Board of the ConnectMichigan Alliance, which brings together the efforts of the Michigan Nonprofit Association, Michigan Community Service Commission, Volunteer Centers of Michigan, and the Michigan Campus Compact.
Eisler earned both bachelor and doctoral degrees in Clarinet Performance at the University of Michigan and his master’s degree from Yale University. He and his wife Patsy, a native of South Haven, Mich., have two daughters, Heather, a Ph.D. student in Molecular Biology at the University of Notre Dame, and Lindsay, a medical resident in otorhinolaryngology.
More : rockfordindependent.com
Bright spots in local education
Let’s face it, public education often gets a black eye in realm of public opinion.
There’s not a week that goes by without the latest report on dropout problems, low test scores or funding disparities hitting the papers. Although a lot of the information coming out about public education highlights the system’s warts and flaws, there are a lot of good things happening that often get drowned out by the doom and gloom put out by various think-tanks and policy advocates.
The Eagle has selected these bright spots in local education to showcase what our schools are doing right:
n Magnet schools — The city’s two magnet schools, Montana Elementary and Carver Middle, provide a strong academic and disciplinary program for students. The two schools are so popular that a proposal to demagnetize Montana and Carver and create mini-magnet schools at all Dothan’s elementary and middle schools met with fierce resistance from parents. The Dothan City Schools instead is creating two new magnet schools at Heard Elementary School and Beverlye Middle School, doubling magnet school enrollment opportunities in the city.
n The Alabama Reading Initiative — ARI has been credited with strong gains in Alabama students ability to read. ARI provides improved teacher training, focuses on using individual student data to help each student and stresses student engagement. Allyson Morgan, director of secondary curriculum, said the city schools’ reading scores have improved every year they’ve been a part of the program, and several high poverty schools now have 85 percent of their students scoring at or above passing on the Alabama Math and Reading Test.
n Grandview Elementary School — A high poverty, mostly minority school, Grandview defies the assumption of failure schools with similar demographics get tagged with. The school has steadily increased its Alabama Reading and Math Test scores in recent years and is currently implementing an after school arts enrichment program.
Principal Todd Weeks chalks up the school’s success to old-fashioned elbow grease.
“We’re like Nick Saban; we’re going to outwork our opposition,” he said.
n Dual enrollment — About 141 local high school students are getting a head start on college thanks to Wallace Community College’s dual enrollment program. Dual enrollment allows students to earn college credits while they are still enrolled in high school. Participation in the dual enrollment program helps students make a smoother transition from high school to college, and those who participate are more likely to attend college with high grade point averages, Sally Buchanan, a Wallace spokesperson, said. Most scholarship and financial aid opportunities require a high school diploma or a GED but students can use PACT Prepaid Affordable College Tuition money and other personal college savings plans to pay for dual enrollment classes.
n Wiregrass Foundation — The Wiregrass Foundation has stepped up to the plate to provide the chronically underfunded Dothan City Schools with money for innovative, potentially game-changing new programs. The foundation funded a scholarship program that allows almost all graduating seniors in Houston County to attend Wallace College, has put up $500,000 per year for three years for an arts infusion program at two high-poverty elementary schools and is contributing funds for a high school and middle school reform effort.
“We’re a health legacy foundation, and we think the best way to drive health statistics in this community is an abundance of good jobs and good paying jobs, and the best way to provide this is to have very good public schools,” Vince Edge, Wiregrass Foundation director, said.
n ACCESS program — The ACCESS program allows schools to conduct classes at a distance by means of teleconferencing. The program helps rural schools by making available specialized courses such as foreign languages or career courses that these schools might otherwise not have the resources to offer. The program also helps schools offer more high demand classes more often by allowing them to pool their teaching resources. About 28 students in Dothan are currently taking ACCESS courses.
More : dothaneagle.com
Missouri S&T to offer two new online degree programs
Missouri University of Science and Technology will offer new distance education programs in environmental engineering and business administration (MBA) in 2009.
The graduate degree program in environmental engineering requires 30 credit hours of approved coursework and focuses on the challenges of sustainability, carbon emissions and limited water supply. Protecting human health and minimizing human impact on the local, regional and global environment is the foundation of the degree.
The graduate degree program in business administration is offered in three parts: an 18-credit-hour management core; a six-credit-hour internship, practicum or research project; and a 12-credit-hour specialization or elective area. The internship, practicum or research project follows completion of the core classes. Students can choose from marketing, enterprise resource planning, human computer interaction, supply chain management, project management and information technology management for specialization or electives.
Courses are taught via streaming video, WebEx and interactive communication. WebEx and similar systems permit professors and students to interact with each other at any time, so students will have direct real-time access to professors and other students. Courses are archived for later access and review.
“Students know that our programs reflect the commitment to academic quality Missouri S&T is known for,” says Henry Wiebe, vice provost of global learning. “We provide that education in an environment that is convenient and accessible. It’s education that fits.”
More : news.mst.edu
Comment for Missouri S&T to offer two new online degree programs
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degree programs
Hi,
My name is manjunath, i am from bangalore.
I have compleated, I have 4-5 years work experiences in various fields. No without the graduations I am not able to move to higher position. Now I am interested in complicating graduation. Is they any way I could get the certificate in year. If yes pleas let me know.
Regard’s
Manjunath
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Educational website provides customized online learning for students
In a traditional classroom, children have to learn at the same speed.
With traditional learning, children in remote areas and children from disadvantaged groups usually do not enjoy equal opportunity or equal access to resources.
A free Educational Multimedia Platform developed by the NIOERAR has greatly helped children learn in the way that suits them best and teachers keep the attention and interest of their students.
Jimmy Jimbo?Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, has said that, whereas in a traditional classroom, all children are forced to learn at the same speed, the Internet gives children the opportunity to arrange their own learning.
The result of a survey of learning concentration in Taiwan showed that most teachers view that multimedia teaching materials have been the most effective way of keeping students’ attention. The National Institute of Educational Resources and Research (NIOERAR) website provides over 3,000 multimedia online learning units for users of elementary and junior high schools, of which around 2,000 can be downloaded free of charge.
With these resources, it is possible to create a personal learning network customized to the needs of each individual child. These materials make learning more fun, and they also help teachers to keep children’s interest.
NIOERAR has placed particular emphasis on the development of video content for users of elementary and junior high schools. NIOERAR aims to make the variety of learning materials as many as possible to solve the problem of imbalance in the availability of resources between urban and rural areas.
These lively, interesting videos have been made available on an online content sharing platform. The videos are ideally suitable for distance learning by elementary and junior high school students in remote areas, and also for use by teachers in the classroom. To use these materials, go to the Free Educational Video Downloads or Educational MoD System sections of the NIOERAR website (http://www.nioerar.edu.tw).
Li Ka-Shing, the wealthiest ethnic Chinese person in the world, who experienced severe poverty as a child, has said that the key to his success lay in “using knowledge to change one’s fate.” NIOERAR’s Educational Multimedia Platform makes knowledge available free of charge to help children realize their ambitions and dreams.
More : etaiwannews.com
IHRDC Announces the Launch of Petroleum Online a Major New e-Learning Series
International Human Resources Development Corporation (IHRDC), a world leader in training for the Oil and Gas industry, announces the global launch of Petroleum Online, a new 14 module e-Learning series that provides an in-depth introduction to the international oil and gas industry.
Petroleum Online is a timely new series of e-Learning modules that allows users to gain a comprehensive overview of all sectors of the international oil and gas industry. It is easily accessible on the Web and designed to make learning both challenging and enjoyable. The learning format is all inclusive: engaging video and audio introduce key concepts, illustrative graphics enhance the text, challenging assessments and a business game help internalize learning. In addition to English, Petroleum Online is also available in Spanish and Portuguese.
Dr. David A. T. Donohue, President of IHRDC and Senior Editor of the new series stated, “This series is ideal for anyone associated with the energy sector who wishes to expand his or her understanding of the oil and gas industry. Petroleum Online will appeal to individuals, from entry-level personnel to senior executives, who are seeking a more expansive perspective of this dynamic industry.”
Modules are accessed over the Web either individually (costing $125 per module) or through corporate licenses that provide discounts based on the size of the order. It can be accessed at www.petroleumonline.com
As part of the launch of Petroleum Online, IHRDC has mailed a special “Test Drive” to key human resource managers in energy companies worldwide, offering them a complementary Test Drive of the first module of the series - Oil & Gas Industry Overview. For more information on the Petroleum Online Test Drive opportunity visit www.petroleumonline.com/testdrive
The development of Petroleum Online is sponsored by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, Accenture and Kuwait Petroleum Corporation.
About IHRDC
Headquartered in Boston, USA, with offices in Amsterdam, Cairo, Jakarta, Lagos and Caracas, International Human Resources Development Corporation (IHRDC) is a privately owned company that has been providing innovative and highly regarded management, technical and operations training programs and competency-based e-Learning Solutions to the oil and gas industry for more than 38 years. The company’s e-Learning program, the International Petroleum Industry Multimedia System (IPIMS), is licensed by over 65 companies worldwide and has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2003 Corporate Award for Excellence in Distance Learning Programming from the U.S. Distance Learning Association in Washington, DC.
More : prweb.com
Online electrical engineering diplomas for competitive workers
A new ‘online’ Advanced Diploma of Electrical Engineering from IDC Technologies is now being offered to answer the demand for more advanced training and distance learning courses from currently-employed engineers in competitive times.
The new online diploma was developed due to a recent surge in interest from people working in industry, including engineers and technicians, who are determined to work hard to keep their jobs, said IDC.
“Tough times are here for a while, and many people holding down jobs in industry now look to update and strengthen their CVs in an effort to secure their positions and add value for employers,” said IDC Technologies technical director, Steve Mackay.
“We have now increased our capacity to present more online ‘distance learning’ courses for engineers and technicians.”
IDC Technologies officially-launched the new distance learning Advanced Diploma of Electrical Engineering yesterday.
The new course was designed for IDC Technologies’ eLearning catalog.
The course is designed to be completed over 18-months, on a part-time basis, and it involves weekly live, interactive webcasts with a senior instructor plus weekly coursework and simulations.
“What sets this course apart is the practical, industry-led nature of the content,” said Mackay.
“We avoid weighty theory because our students, who already have industry experience, want knowledge and skills with immediate relevance to their work.”
According to Mackay, the course is “hard-hitting” and “relevant” for those already working in the electrical engineering industry, and will expand their knowledge of industry placing them above their counterparts in the sector.
IDC Technologies developed the course partly due to evidence from the Asian financial crisis ten years ago that more professionals than usual would enrol in education courses to keep their jobs.
The same trend is already evident today as the world economy hits hard times, coupled with the trend of less skilled workers joining the workforce, said Mackay.
“There is a great shortage of electrical engineering specialists around the world now due to retirement, restructuring and rapid growth in new industries and technologies,” he said.
“If you are thinking of a serious boost for your professional career, this might be just the course you are after.”
IDC Technologies is an endorsed Provider of The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) which was formed by the Institution of Electrical Engineers and the Institution of Incorporated Engineers.
More : pacetoday.com.au
Comment for Online electrical engineering diplomas for competitive workers
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chemistry
i am looking for a diploma in chemistry
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electrical diploma
i have more ditaled for elecrtical diploma courses
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admission for online electrical engg.diploma.
i did my iti in electrical. i want to do the online diploma in electrical. so please tell me how to apply for this course.
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Electrical Diplom
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UM Intercampus Faculty Council seeks input on potential cuts
Members of the UM System Intercampus Faculty Council are making a last-minute appeal to faculty members for suggestions of ways to cope with potential budget cuts of up to 25 percent.
UM System President Gary Forsee will attend Tuesday’s IFC meeting to hear those ideas, according to an e-mail from Steve Graham, UM System interim vice president for academic affairs.
Presidents and chancellors of Missouri’s public colleges and universities received a memo Tuesday from the state Department of Higher Education, warning them of potential budget cuts of 15 to 25 percent in fiscal year 2010.
“To develop viable plans to meet these scenarios, we must rethink the way we do our work,” Graham wrote in his e-mail to IFC members. “As such, your time with President Forsee at next week’s meeting will be that much more important.”
In his e-mail, Graham asks IFC members to contact their colleagues and “come prepared to provide ideas that are focused and specific to your role as faculty members.”
“For example, any ideas you have on how to address new approaches for offering courses via distance education, adjusting teaching loads, centers of excellence, reducing hours or time to graduation, program consolidation, etc., are encouraged.
“Given the urgency of the matter, it will be important for us to stay focused on issues and solutions in areas where you can bring your special insights and perspectives to bear to our mutual benefit,” Graham wrote.
Tom Phillips, MU Faculty Council chair and professor of biological sciences, forwarded Graham’s e-mail to other Faculty Council members on Saturday and asked for their input.
More : columbiamissourian.com
Online Education Distance Learning Scholarship Goes to Student at Dakota State University Online
Shawna Sweeney, of Waukon, Iowa, has been selected one of GetEducated.com’s Excellence in Online Education and Distance Learning scholarship winners.
Sweeney, a working mother of two young boys, is enrolled with Dakota State University’s Online Master of Science in Information Systems Management.
“When I decided to continue my education the main item I had to consider was cost,” says Sweeney.
GetEducated.com’s online college rankings reveal Sweeney chose wisely. Dakota State’s distance learning Masters in Information Systems has been ranked a Best Buy by GetEducated.com’s research team several years running.
Dakota State University offers several online degrees, including Associate degrees in General Studies, Programming, Business, and Health Information. Bachelors in Health Information Administration. Computer Information Systems, and the Management of Information Systems are also available.
At the graduate level, where Sweeney is enrolled, online students can choose to earn Masters in Information Assurance, Information Systems or Educational Technology. Dakota is unusual in that it also offers a Doctor of Science in Information Systems online.
Sweeney’s dream job after earning her Masters online is “to teach online for a community college or university in either a Health Information Technology or Information Systems program.”
The working mother credits online education with allowing her to advance in her life and in her career. “As a working mother of two small children online learning is the only option for me. If I could not obtain a degree online I would not have gotten my bachelors degree or be working toward my masters.”
Sweeney is currently employed in her area of study, as a health systems analyst Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center.
Sweeney sees higher education as crucial in terms of modeling for her sons. “I want to instill in my children the importance and power of a great education. I want to show them that that if you work hard in life you can go anywhere and do anything you want.”
More : marketwatch.com
Why Government Should Meddle in Broadband
With the change in administration it’s time to stop pussyfooting around the issue of broadband access in the U.S. It quite honestly sucks. Yes, some people have access to FiOS, but others have access to speeds that rank even lower than the lame 768 kbps classification of broadband adopted this year (!) by the FCC. Uneven coverage and a lack of competition mean that we in the U.S. pay more for our broadband than many other countries and that about 1 percent of the population can’t get access at all. This has got to change, and the private market isn’t going to do it because it simply isn’t profitable to string fiber, coax or even copper everywhere people have settled.
With consumer groups and industry players calling for a broadband bailout, I’m inclined to agree, even if it does mean Google gets more broadband subscribers for free. The government needs to get involved, and it needs to throw some money at the problem — albeit in a highly organized way. I’ll argue later about what should be done, but first here’s a few reasons why it’s important. Broadband is like electricity and running water — every town, if not every person, needs access to it. Not to watch cats on treadmills or download porn, but because it gives people cheaper access to the world.
Educational Access
Today the New York Times ran an article about the rising costs of a college education and offered up the idea of distance learning as being one solution to rising costs. I don’t think distance learning can substitute for the entire college experience, but having participated in several distance learning classes, it can be used in conjunction with meetings online or weekly in-person meetings to create a rich learning and discussion environment. Broadband makes that possible today, and faster speeds will only add to the interactivity of those online environments — making a college education more accessible. The kids who most benefit from this are not living in FiOS areas; they are in poorer areas where ISPs try to avoid or delay launching high speed services. I know, I live in one of those areas. The government needs to step up to improve this access divide.
More : gigaom.com
College May Become Unaffordable for Most in U.S.
The rising cost of college — even before the recession — threatens to put higher education out of reach for most Americans, according to the annual report from the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education.
Over all, the report found, published college tuition and fees increased 439 percent from 1982 to 2007, adjusted for inflation, while median family income rose 147 percent. Student borrowing has more than doubled in the last decade, and students from lower-income families, on average, get smaller grants from the colleges they attend than students from more affluent families.
“If we go on this way for another 25 years, we won’t have an affordable system of higher education,” said Patrick M. Callan, president of the center, a nonpartisan organization that promotes access to higher education.
“When we come out of the recession,” Mr. Callan added, “we’re really going to be in jeopardy, because the educational gap between our work force and the rest of the world will make it very hard to be competitive. Already, we’re one of the few countries where 25- to 34-year-olds are less educated than older workers.”
Although college enrollment has continued to rise in recent years, Mr. Callan said, it is not clear how long that can continue.
“The middle class has been financing it through debt,” he said. “The scenario has been that families that have a history of sending kids to college will do whatever if takes, even if that means a huge amount of debt.”
But low-income students, he said, will be less able to afford college. Already, he said, the strains are clear.
The report, “Measuring Up 2008,” is one of the few to compare net college costs — that is, a year’s tuition, fees, room and board, minus financial aid — against median family income. Those findings are stark. Last year, the net cost at a four-year public university amounted to 28 percent of the median family income, while a four-year private university cost 76 percent of the median family income.
More : nytimes.com
China Distance Education Holdings Limited Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2008 Results
China Distance Education Holdings Limited (NYSE Arca: DL) ("CDEL", or the “Company"), a leading provider of online education in China focusing on professional education, reported today its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended September 30, 2008. Such unaudited financial results are our estimates, and our audited full fiscal year results could differ materially from the estimates provided below. These results may, for example, become subject to adjustments based upon, among other things, completion of our full year reporting processes. For additional information regarding the various risks and uncertainties inherent in estimates of this type, see the section entitled “Safe Harbor Statement” below in this press release.
More : marketwatch.com
Dowling College Now Offers Distance Graduate Studies Program
Dowling College’s graduate business program will now be conducted as a fully online distance program by a faculty of highly qualified experienced business professionals. The program serves as a valuable resource for today’s business community in the development of its management talent and leadership. The curriculum of each program has been designed to meet the specific needs of working professionals.
The Distance MBA in Management and Leadership is defined by 30 credits of advanced coursework, finalized with a 6-credit capstone experience. The MBA offers students a professional point of view in the science of management and leadership. Emphasis is placed on creating a sense of responsibility as the student reflects on the complexity that leaders face in today’s global market. The eleven courses that are offered within the Distance MBA Program satisfy all requirements of the degree.
The Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs at Dowling College provide an educational foundation for responsible business leadership. Students develop a professional point of view in the science of management. The Master of Business Administration programs at Dowling College are accredited by the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE). The Master of Business Administration in Management and Leadership degree program has been approved by and duly registered with the New York State Education Department.
More : newsli.com
Distance learning program provides options for students
Thirty-five students could obtain bachelor’s degrees from Ohio University without ever setting foot on its campus — and that number could increase as partnerships with community colleges continue to be added.
Students can take online courses through OU’s distance learning program after completing their associate or technical degree, said Charles Bird, vice provost for University Outreach.
The program operates solely through distance learning and costs about the same per credit hour as an upper division regional OU campus for an in-state student — $153, Bird said. Upper division regional campuses are OU Chillicothe, OU Zanesville and OU Lancaster.
The amount of time each student is enrolled at OU depends on the length of the program he or she completed at community colleges. In most cases, students complete three years with the community college and one year with OU.
Right now, OU is offering a Bachelor of Technical and Applied Studies and a Criminal Justice degree. Bird said next fall there could be a Registered Nurse to Bachelor’s in Nursing program.
The plans are conducive to Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Eric D. Fingerhut’s Strategic Plan for Higher Education 2008-2017. According to a press release from the University System of Ohio’s Web site, the plan was presented to Gov. Ted Strickland and the Ohio General Assembly and details strategies to meet the governor’s goal of enrolling 230,000 more students while keeping college graduates in Ohio and attracting more students to the state.
Because fewer students are attending college after high school, there is an increased demand for adult learners, Bird said.
“All over the country, colleges are looking for new sources of revenue. Given the demographics in Ohio, these programs will be increasingly important,” he said.
Programs began last spring with partnerships between OU and Washington State Community College in Marietta and Columbus State Community College in Columbus. The most recent college to join the program was Owens Community College — which has locations in Toledo and Findlay — Oct. 22, Bird said. Currently, seven schools have partnerships with OU and 35 students from a variety of the schools are enrolled in distance learning classes.
Michael Chaney, chief communications officer at the Ohio Board of Regents, said the goal behind these programs is to provide people with as many affordable educational options as possible.
“Ohio is competing not just with other states, but with every region in the world. … In order to do that, we need to increase the education of our population,” Chaney said.
The program’s flexibility could be attractive to nontraditional students, who often have more obligations like full-time jobs and families than students who live on campus, said Paul Unger, executive vice president and provost at Owens Community College.
Unger said he thinks OU is taking a leadership role in working toward the Strategic Plan of Ohio.
“We have seen a positive response not only from students, but from faculty as well,” Unger said. “I think time will tell, but as students see different ways of obtaining education, I think it will have a positive impact.”
More : thepost.ohiou.edu
No higher degree without having basic ones says SC
NEW DELHI: In the age of the open university system of distance education where one can get a higher degree without having basic ones, this
ruling from the Supreme Court has come as a dampner.
To the question — whether a candidate, who has got a post-graduate degree from an open university without completing his graduation, be eligible to be admitted to the LLB course requiring graduation as an educational qualification — the apex court’s answer was an emphatic ‘no’.
Upholding Guru Nanak Dev University’s contention and setting aside a Punjab and Haryana High Court verdict, a Bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and R V Raveendran said once the minimum eligibility criterion was a regular graduation degree, the stipulation could not be side-stepped by a post-graduation degree from an open university.
Appealing against the HC order directing it to admit Sanjay Kumar Katwal to the LLB course on the basis of his post-graduation degree through the distance education from Annamalai University, GNDU said it recognised the regular and correspondence course degrees conferred by Annamalai University but not the ones obtained through the open university system. Counntering GNDU’s stand, Katwal argued before the Bench that the distance education system included correspondence courses and therefore post-graduation through correspondence was equivalent to the regular MA degree.
More : timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Dubai International Academic City Seeks to Capitalise on e-Learning Boom
Dubai International Academic City (DIAC), the region’s leading destination of higher education and a member of TECOM Investments, today announced its capabilities to capitalise on the prolific growth of online education that the region is currently witnessing.
DIAC offers a range of online education programmes through some of the world’s most prestigious universities such as The University of Exeter, UK; University of Phoenix, US; Manchester Business School, US, and JSS Mahavidyapeetha, India and Universitas 21 Global, Singapore.
Dr Ayoub Kazim, Executive Director, Dubai International Academic City and Dubai Knowledge Village, said: “The earlier perception that online and distance learning programmes do not find favour with the academic community at large is being quickly outmoded with the concept taking a steady foothold in the educational system over the past 20 years. Widely recognized by the educational community and international bodies worldwide, distance learning is in many ways a welcome phenomenon as it holds enormous promise for enriching education.”
The global growth of e-learning is significant across the board and according to figures in a recent US study titled Online Nation: Five Years of Growth in Online Learning by the Sloan Consortium, online enrolments achieved a 9.7 per cent growth rate compared to 1.5 per cent growth of the overall higher education student population.
More : eyeofdubai.com
Comment for Dubai International Academic City Seeks to Capitalise on e-Learning Boom
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MAT EXAMINATION CENTER DUBAI
I would like to know the details of any institution or centers in Dubai that prepares and conduct MAT examination (for India MBA program)
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Chicago Public Schools Receive Major Corporate Donation for Science Education
Mayor Richard M. Daley and Chicago Public Schools (CPS), announced today that Baxter International Inc. will donate $5 million over five years to support CPS district science initiatives – the first program ever to fund biotech education in CPS history. This significant contribution has the potential to impact more than 450 CPS teachers through professional development and 75,000 students – all at the junior high and high school level – who by the year 2012 will benefit from the new innovative schools, enhanced teacher skill set, materials, and direct interaction with Baxter scientists and engineers.
“This contribution has the potential to have a major impact on hundreds of our teachers and thousands of our students, and on behalf of all our residents I want to thank Baxter International for its strong and consistent support of education in Chicago,” said Mayor Richard M. Daley at Lindblom Math and Science Academy, 6130 S. Wolcott St., a recipient of grant funds.
The donation from Baxter will go toward three science initiatives as part of SCIENCE@WORK: Expanding Minds with Real-World Science: 1) The development of a Biotechnology Center of Excellence at Lindblom Math & Science Academy; 2) The launch of two new Renaissance 2010 schools through The Renaissance Schools Fund, and; 3) Support for Illinois Institute of Technology’s (IIT) Instructional Development System program to enrich teacher professional development at participating schools and provide broader student access to science and biotechnology. It is anticipated that through the cascading effect of the programs the partners provide, SCIENCE@WORK will impact 96 teachers annually – 30 teachers via Lindblom Math & Science Academy teacher training and 66 teachers via IIT’s teacher training system. In turn, the enhanced teacher training will impact 15,000 students per year. Over five years, the program could reach up to 90 percent of the nearly 500 biology teachers in CPS and 67 percent of the 112,000 high school students in CPS currently.
“Baxter is bringing science directly to our students in an exciting way, while also setting a remarkable example for other corporate partners to follow,” said Rufus Williams, president of the Chicago Board of Education. “Thank you, Baxter, for this amazing investment in Chicago Public Schools.”
More : marketwatch.com
Tri-state colleges growing online
The world of online education flows from around the country into many local post-secondary institutions.
While some distance-education programs have offered a wide variety of online classes and programs for quite some time, others have only started to dabble in the practice.
The following is a history of how local post-secondary institutions began their foray into online education.
University of Wisconsin-Platteville
The southwest Wisconsin university got it all started in 1999 with a single online master’s degree program.
The first online program at UW-P was the Masters of Science and Project Management.
“At that point, the market was starting to show that online education was going to be a formidable force in education,” said Les Hollingsworth, UW-P’s corporate marketing director for the distance learning center.
The Internet allowed the university to extend its reach nationwide and offer programs that would be difficult to provide on campus.
“It was a great way to offer graduate education that the campus simply couldn’t fulfill based on the population density in this area,” Hollingsworth said. “The online allowed us to reach out to a much, much larger geographic area to fulfill that need.”
Today, UW-P offers five online programs and has about 2,200 students from around the country enrolled in the Web-based programs.
Northeast Iowa Community College
NICC started to offer a small selection of online courses in 2000. Those first students and instructors who agreed to go online were the matriculating equivalent of guinea pigs for online education at the college.
“It was kind of sink or swim,” said NICC’s Jill Ferrie, director of distance learning.
From that first semester to 2006, more professors agreed to offer their classes online as well as on the campus.
With the growth of student demand came the growth of the college’s Web-based programs.
“Our mission is community focused, student-driven,” Ferrie said. “The student’s demand for online has grown.”
More : thonline.com
Accredited Silver State High School offers online education
Coming and going is more irregular than a traditional high school, but the students attending Silver State High School still have to get the work done.
“It’s not a gimme,” said SSHS Principal Steve Knight, the brainchild for the blueprint of SSHS.
There is less teenage angst common in traditional schools, and discipline problems, while rare, can be resolved quickly by simply sending the student home, according to some of the teachers and students of the free, charter school located in north Carson City.
In the five years the school has been open, Knight said only four parent complaints have been made.
“There’s not a whole lot of angry kids walking around here,” said senior Dane Hexberg, who said he often was bored and unchallenged when he attended a traditional high school. “There’s more freedom.”
The typical student at SSHS is outgoing and wants to get their work done, said Hexburg.
Billing itself as “Nevada’s First Statewide Virtual High School,” the atmosphere is likened to a college approach, where students are largely in charge of how many hours they spend at the school – located at U.S. 395 and College Parkway – or working online. The only requirement is one day a week for four hours.
Online education
The school is an online distance education high school where students may be separated by time and location, but technology can bridge that gap. Most class work can be done online. It ranges from straightforward material to interactive, real-time experiences, such as a streaming Web cam lecture.
According to the school’s Web site, students can also phone or “contact their teachers using instant messaging during the day and into the early evening whenever they need help.”
“That’s why they love it. We are so high-tech,” said Vice Principal Alan Staggs.
The school is open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. to accommodate different schedules. In July 2006, SSHS was accredited by the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools, the same accrediting body of any other area traditional high school.
This means a diploma is acknowledged as equal to one from any other accredited school, Knight said.
“I think it is wonderful,” said Joy Hexberg, Dane’s mother who has sent all three of her sons to SSHS. “It is an alternative for students to be responsible for themselves.”
Hexberg’s oldest son started attending SSHS because the family was big into BMX racing and needed to travel often. She said it turned into a real blessing in disguise for her boys.
More : news.rgj.com
A new kind of distance learning
The North Platte Telegraph
A group of students, teachers and administrators from Mid-Plains Community College recently experienced a new type of distance learning as they traveled to North Lindsey College in Lincolnshire, England.
In April, a similar group of students enrolled in the automotive programs at North Lindsey College came to North Platte to work with the students and staff at MPCC and learn about American-style auto mechanics.
These trips are part of a Global Education Partnership Agreement between the two colleges that was officially signed in November of last year when administrators from North Lindsey College visited North Platte.
According to the agreement, the purpose of the partnership is to develop academic cooperation and exchange between to two colleges in order to promote relationships among students, faculty, administration and board members.
This was the first group from MPCC to travel to England as part of this partnership. The group returned to North Platte on Oct. 9 after spending eight days over in the United Kingdom.
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“It was a great cultural experience,” said Rachael Tuggle, who is second year automotive student at MPCC.
Tuggle was the only female student to participate in the trip. She said she really loved the experience, and she would love to have the chance to do it again.
“I learned a lot actually,” Tuggle said.
While the students spent a lot of time in class, they also got to do a little sightseeing. Tuggle said they toured an old castle as well as the historical city of York. She noted they saw several churches and abbeys.
“It was amazing,” Tuggle said. “The architecture was awesome.”
Dustin Howard, who is a second year auto body student at MPCC, had never been out of the United States before going on this trip. As a result, he said he experienced a little bit of culture shock.
“There’s just a really big difference in the way people live,” Howard said.
He noted the people in England are much more environmentally friendly. He said this is evident not only in their efforts to produce more fuel-efficient vehicles, but also in the materials they use to build their vehicles.]
More : nptelegraph.com
Comment for A new kind of distance learning
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Masters in Distance Education
I am from Mauritius and I have applied for the scholarship for Masters in Distance Education (MADE) but till now I have not received any information whether my application has been accepted or rejected. I would be very grateful if I can obtained an information about whether I still have a chance to obtain the scholarship. Thanking you in anticipation.
Mr Sookeeah Shakeel
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