Running head: INSTITUTIONAL COMPARISONS

Institutional Comparisons

Renuka Kumar

University of Maryland University College

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The last four decades have seen a rise in distance education universities worldwide. This author will review two distance education institutions: the Open University of the United Kingdom (OU UK) and the China Open University (COU). This paper will give an overview of the history, mission and population served, the values and organization of these universities as well as the models of teaching and learning and the technologies used in these universities. Comparisons will show that, while the two universities are very similar in form, they do have different practices primarily related to their political and cultural environments. Discussion Mission and Population Served The Open University's mission is to be open to people, places, methods and ideas. (The OU's mission, 2013). The philosophy of OU UK was based on the open education movement and the goal was to provide education to everyone regardless of their circumstance or where they live (The OU's mission, 2013). In contrast the COUs mission is to improve the general and cultural standards of the whole nation, educate more people at lowers costs, and develop the Chinese economy and is aimed at nation building (Peters, 2010, p. 70). While both universities provide higher education to professionals and working adults there is one main difference. The OU UK was established to provide education for those who usually were under-represented in traditional universities, while Chinas open universities were developed to expand educational opportunities for urban people and the specific privileged groups in local and rural areas. As such, the COU venture exacerbates social inequalities (Runfang, 2008 (as cited in Evans, 2009, p. 449)).

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The typical age of a learner at the OU UK is between 3550 years old, while students at COU are younger, mostly in their twenties and thirties. This is because the COU attracts high school graduates who take distance education courses as an alternative to traditional universities (Hurd & Xiao, 2006). The female population is larger at COU than at OU UK (Peters, 2010). It is noteworthy that the OU UK web site makes a specific mention to serving students with disabilities. The OU UK has 12,500 students with disabilities - more than any other UK or European university (The OUs mission, 2013). The COU website makes a specific mention regarding education of ethnic minorities. They also serve many farmers and military personnel (Education for Ethnic Minorities, 2009). History Both the OU UK and COU were affected by their governments ideologies. In the UK it was the desire to build a fair democracy, while in China it was communism and anti-capitalist sentiment. The OU UK was established in 1969 to provide education to those who were underrepresented in traditional education. The COU, on the other hand, founded in 1979 was developed by the need for nation building. Therefore, the COU was structured around serving the needs of the country rather than the needs of the individual (Runfang, 2008 (as cited in Evans, 2009)). OU was founded by the then government of Prime Minister Wilson and was started with a strong political push (Bates, 2011). The COU was started as a branch of and still is operated under the direct leadership of the Ministry of Education of China. Inherent and Espoused Values Both the universities are committed to serving underserved populations. However, the politics and culture of the countries affect the inherent values of the institutions.

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In China, the higher education systems are a part of the political, social, and economic systems of the country. As part of the education system the COU is characterized by its submission to the government for the good of society at the sacrifice of individualism (Runfang, 1997). The focus of COU is not the individual student as much as the good of the society. In Britain, on the other hand the OU UK is influenced by the ideas of equality for all, democracy, and continuing education (Runfang, 1997). It is open to all in the society who want to improve themselves. The emphasis is more on the individual. Organization and System of Operation Both the OU UK and the COU are single mode distance teaching universities and one of the largest distance education institutions in the world. Costs in both universities are 39%-47% lower than other universities costs (Peters, 2010). The present Chinese system consists of the China Open University in Beijing, 44 provincial universities and over 1,000 local open universities (Peters 2010). 50% of the COUs funding originates from the government sector. Full-time academic staff accounts for 47.9% of total staff numbers at COU (Wei-Yuan Zhang & Namin Shin, 2002). The COU offers a wide selection of undergraduate courses (Haughey, 2010). At the OU UK the course design, production and distribution are located at the OUs headquarters in Milton Keynes. More than 1000 members of academic and research staff and over 2500 administrative, operational and support staff are located at this facility. The OU UK has more than 250,000 students enrolled (About the OU, 2013). The Open University has the autonomy to make its own decisions (Runfang, 1997).

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OU UK has an open admission policy (Haughey, 2010). A students previous academic record is not a prerequisite for admission to most undergraduate courses. At the COU, however, students have to pass the national entrance examinations set by the State Education Commission (Open University of China, 2009). Models of Teaching and Learning Courses taught in both universities offer flexibility and autonomy to their students as many of the students have work and family commitments. Both institutions use printed material, radio, television and networked computers for distribution of learning material. The COU is similar to the OU UK in its use of local tutorial face-to-face group meetings (Peters, 2010). The OU UK creates integrated, explicitly designed materials on sound pedagogic principles (Bates, 2011). The first OU UK courses were based on instructional systems design. It had a highly complex course development process involving a large number of internal staff (Haughey, 2010). The OU UK offers their students learner support systems such as tutoring, advising and counseling. This is a key factor in OU UKs success (Salmon, 2011). The OU UK does research as well as teaching. Their good reputation for academic quality of materials is primarily because the OU has top quality research professors (Bates, 2011). At the COU all the curricula are devised through consultation with eminent specialists and professors (Open University of China, 2009). The Chinese Ministry of Education gives professors grants to post their courses online and make their materials available to other instructors (Aujla, 2009). Similar to the OU UK, COU students receive personalized support services (A New Kind of University, 2009).

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Technologies While all DE institutions used print, radio and TV, only the OU UK and the COU made substantial use of these resources. The partnership with the BBC in the early days of OU UK gave it credibility as well as publicity and was critical in the success of OU UK (Haughey, 2010). At COU television and radio are still the main technologies used for delivering education (Peters, 2010). At COU courses are also offered using printed material, audiovisual material and networked computers. The COU continues to research next generation distance education cloud platforms (Technology Support, 2009). The OU UK is using interactive collaborative online tools such as chat rooms and Facebook (Aujla, 2009). They are also researching the use of virtual world in teaching and learning and have two main islands in Second Life (Virtual Worlds, n.d.). Conclusion Both the OU UK and the COU have many similarities. They share a similar mission in serving professionals and working adults and offering them flexibility in their search for education. Both universities are single mode teaching universities that use print, radio, television and networked computers to distribute educational material. Both universities are research centers and stress the importance of tutoring in their teaching models. The difference between these two institutions lies in their ideologies and is a reflection of each countrys political and cultural environment. While in the OU UK the focus is on the individual, at the COU the emphasis is on nation building.

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7 References

A New Kind of University. (2009). The China Open University. Retrieved March 12, 2013, from http://en.crtvu.edu.cn/about/general-information About the OU. (2013). The Open University. Retrieved March 14, 2013, from http://www.open.ac.uk/about/main/the-ou-explained/facts-and-figures Aujla, S. A. (2009). Around the world, varied approached to open online learning. Chronicle of Higher Education, 56 (8). Bates, A. W. (2011, November). The second wave of distance education and history of the Open University United Kingdom [Online video]. Retrieved from http://vimeo.com/32292234 Education for Ethnic Minorities. (2009). The Open University of China. Retrieved March 12, 2013, from http://en.crtvu.edu.cn/about/general-information/2012-09-24-07-56-50 Evans, Terry D. (2009) China's radio & TV universities and the British Open University: a comparative study. [Review of the book China's radio & TV universities and the British Open University: a comparative study, by Wei Runfang] Distance Education. Nov2009, . 30 (3), pp. 447-450. Haughey, M. (2010). Teaching and learning in distance education before the digital age. In M. F. Cleveland-Innes & D. R. Garrison, An introduction to distance education: Understanding teaching and learning in a new era. New York and London: Routledge. Hurd, S., & Xiao, J. (2006). Open and distance language learning at the Shantou Radio and TV University, China, and the Open University, United Kingdom: a crosscultural perspective. Open Learning. 21 (3).

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Open University of China. (2009). Researching Virtual Initiatives in Education. Retrieved March 12, 2013, from http://www.virtualcampuses.eu/index.php/Open_University_of_China Peters, O. (2010). The greatest achievement of industrialized education: Open universities. In O. Peters, Distance education in transition: Developments and issues (5th edition) (pp. 5781). Oldenburg, Germany: BIS-Verlag der Carl von Ossietzky Universitt Oldenburg. Retrieved from: http://www.box.com/s/ktx7ipccetotqrr11mct Runfang, W. (1997). China's Radio & TV Universities and the British Open University: a comparative perspective. ZIFF Papiere 104. Salmon, G. (2011). A model for collaborative online learning. E-Moderating: The key to teaching and learning online (3rd ed., pp. 26-60). New York: Routledge. Technology Support. (2009). The Open University of China. Retrieved March 12, 2013, from http://en.crtvu.edu.cn/about/general-information/2012-09-24-07-57-54 The OU's mission. (2013). The Open University. Retrieved March 12, 2013, from http://www.open.ac.uk/about/main/the-ou-explained/the-ous-mission Wei-Yuan Zhang & Namin Shin (2002). Imported or Indigenous? A comparative study of three open and distance education models in mainland China, India and Hong Kong. Open Learning: The Journal of Open, Distance and e-Learning 17(2). Virtual Worlds. (n.d.). The Open University. Retrieved March 12, 2013, from http://www.open.ac.uk/virtualworlds/p3_1.shtml