Greetings WAOEs,

With many interesting hyperlinks, an interesting piece to think over the
issues of DL and VU!

The details about "African Virtual University" can be read at
<http://www.avu.org> Please point your browser to
<http://www.avu.org/uf/communique.htm> read about the Communique at Vice
Chancellors Conference, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya and other
issues!

> FIRST-RATE ED FOR THIRD WORLD
> Issue: Distance Learning
> Malaysia, India, Kenya and other developing countries are looking
> towards virtual universities to train workers for the high-tech jobs of the
> new millennium. Because virtual universities are cheaper than setting up
> traditional institutions, international development agencies like the World
> Bank are eager to jump on the global classroom bandwagon. "We'll see an
> explosion of virtual universities in Third World countries. It will be a
> way to leapfrog ahead," predicted Shola Aboderin, chief academic officer of
> the African Virtual University, an online institution created and managed
> by the World Bank. Many countries are drawn to distance learning by the
> fact that their existing educational systems cannot accommodate the vast
> numbers of students looking for a college education. In Nigeria, for
> example, only one-fourth of qualified students can get into college,
> because there are not enough universities in sub-Saharan Africa.
> Resource-strapped nations like India and Malaysia are attracted to the
> relatively low cost of online education, both for the students and
> the universities. "A very good Internet infrastructure costs a lot of
> money up front, but when you amortize it per student over the years, it
> makes sense," Aboderin said. She admits that virtual education is not
> "the magic bullet," but argues that its potential is too important to
> ignore.
> [SOURCE: Wired, AUTHOR: Lakshmi Chaudhry]
> <http://www.wired.com/news/print/1,1294,21434,00.html>

Kind Regards
Arun K. Tripathi