| Subject: DISTANCE EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIPS! |
Author:
de-student
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Date Posted: 04:51:55 12/29/99 Wed
In reply to:
edutok
's message, "NATSCHOL DEAD!!" on 22:50:23 12/17/99 Fri
The acting director is another voice in the wilderness seeking public funding for distance education students. It appears from his statement that many students are working students, particularly teacher wanting qualifications upgrading. I think qualifications upgrading or professional development should be pursued by all teachers, whether they will eventually move on up the promotional ladder or not. It think it should help teachers to stimulate their thinking, create an interest in developing or practicing new techniques of teaching and provide them with content knowledge to improve their teaching overall.
On the question of sponsorship, since many teachers are within the national education system, I think there are procedures in place which should be revised that should have a philosophy of professional development as a must for every teacher. If professional development is recognized as a must for all teachers, other mechanisms to enable continuous development should be considered such as funding for those who want to upgrade qualifications and knowledge in specific areas such as time management, financial management, learning psychology of individuals, etc...
I think, the availability of subsidy for distance education would encourage more students to enroll at our tertiary colleges and universities only if there are appropriate educational and training courses available. Institutions of higher education should now look at linking with each other and also with course providers domestically and globally to make courses available and to provide them for distance education students in PNG.
Providing distance education students with government subsidy would do away with the bulk of the cost that individuals in the revised scholarships have to pay for living and accommodation cost on campus. At least it would provide an alternative for getting an education without having to worry about the cost of board and lodging which is presently the greatest cost to the individual in this new "user-pays" scholarship.
Distance education scholarship should be another category of sponsorship within the new scholarship scheme for all kinds of distance education students, not only working students.
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'Govt must subsidise distance education'
PORT MORESBY: The Government should refocus its attention on tertiary
education and seriously look at subsidising fees for employed distance
education students, according to Institute of Distance and Continuing
Education acting director Paraka Pena.
Mr Pena said the Government has continuously turned a blind eye to distance
education students who are making huge sacrifices to develop themselves.
For instance, he said teachers already in the workforce do it on their own
accord so the Government should look at it seriously and alternative means of
sponsorship should be arranged.
He said, "Distance education is the way to go if the Government really wants
value for money...It should therefore subsidise or help pay for students
(especially teachers) who are coming long distances for studies to upgrade their
skills".
He added that the Government is also not recognising the sacrifices students
are making in order to develop themselves and the sacrifices made by individual
families in terms of money for fees and others.
"The teachers try to upgrade their skills through distance education, the
students (whom they teach) benefit as a result and the Government benefits....
but the teachers and their families sacrifice a lot and do not benefit," he added.
According to Mr Pena, the Government should help subsidise cost for this
category of students because these are people who are in employment and are
already contributing to the economy and at the same time trying to help
themselves.
Sponsoring distance education students does not need resources because it is
investment in people who are contributing to the economy.
He added that the provincial governments must realise that it is the only way
forward in developing human resources and university centres.
It depends on where provincial governments' priorities are.
He said some centres are struggling because their value is overlooked and
underestimated. This shows the priorities provinces have towards education.
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