Quality

UNESCO Chairs Conference
“The Role of Educational Information
Technologies in Formation and Sustainable
Development of the Information Society”
St Petersburg, 6-11 June 2010
From Local to Global - The Role of ICTs in
Building Knowledge Societies:
A UNESCO Perspective
Mariana Patru, Programme Specialist, UNESCO
Evgueni Khvilon, Senior Programme Specialist (1979-2002), UNESCO
Outline
• Global trends and challenges
• Changing landscape of and new demands on higher
education
• UNESCO’s priorities in higher education, with a
focus on the role of UNESCO Chairs
• International good practice and quality resources
• Importance of strengthening international cooperation
2
UNESCO: Its Five
Functions
 Laboratory of ideas
 Standard-setter
 Clearing house
 Capacity builder
 Catalyst for international
co-operation
ICT and ODL Resources for
Policy Makers and Teachers
4
ODL: A Viable Alternative to
Conventional Education

Many countries are looking at ODL as a
major strategy for expanding access,
raising quality and ensuring costeffectiveness
 For governments - the main potential is
to increase the capacity and costeffectiveness of education and training
systems, to reach target groups with
limited access to conventional education
and training, to support and enhance the
quality and relevance of existing
•.
educational structures
5
ODL: A Viable Alternative
(cont’d)

For the student/learner - ODL means increased access and
flexibility as well as the combination of work and education. It
may also mean a more learner-centred approach, enrichment,
higher quality and new ways of interaction

For employers - ODL offers high quality and usually costeffective professional development in the workplace; allows
upgrading of skills, increased productivity and development of a
new learning culture (in addition, it means sharing of costs, of
training time, and increased portability of training)
Global Higher Education
Landscape:
The New Globalization
 Maturing era for mass higher education systems

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




in most developed nations
Growing international adoption and
convergence of higher education practices/
models
Growing international and supranational market
for undergraduate students
Growing international market for
faculty/research talent
Eroding institutional autonomy - growing
accountability
Changing pedagogy - growing technological
adoption
Declining government subsidization
Global knowledge sharing and communications
Towards digital literacy and
knowledge societies
UNESCO World Report, 2005:
 Offers an intellectual, strategic
and ethical vision on KS
 Education and access to
knowledge
 Quality education for all – one
of the 4 key principles for the
building of equitable, inclusive
and participatory KS
 Knowledge sharing as a
development imperative
 Innovative approaches to
e-learning
8
9
“Trends in Global Higher Education:
Tracking an Academic Revolution”
 New technologies will
continue to affect all aspects of
higher education

Communication of knowledge through e-mail,
blogs, wikis, and pod casts
 Next stage of the ICT revolution: transform our
approach to teaching and learning through
distance-education programs and within walls of
traditional universities
10
Key Trends in the
Next Five Years
Within the next twelve months
 Mobile computing
 Open content
Two to three years
 Electronic books
 Simple augmented reality
Four to five years
 Gesture-based computing
 Visual data analysis
Из выступления Главы российской
делегации А.В. Яковенко


Высшее образование имеет стратегическое
значение для выполнения целей развития
тысячелетия и Образования для всех.
Обеспечение эффективной ориентации
высшего образования на цели устойчивого
развития.
Использование ИКТ, дистанционное обучение, развитие трансграничных
услуг, создание и распространение в сети Интернет открытых многоязычных
современных электронных образовательных ресурсов приобретают особое
значение для повышения гибкости образовательных программ,
существенного расширения мобильности как российских, так и иностранных
студентов.
12
Из выступления Главы российской
делегации А.В.Яковенко (продолж.)
Россия выступает за последовательное продвижение к сопоставимости
квалификаций и взаимному признанию результатов профессионального
обучения.




В вопросе качества образования мы должны в полной мере использовать
мандат ЮНЕСКО Всемирная конференция – повод подумать над
необходимостью разработки и принятия на межгосударственном уровне
индикаторов качества высшего образования, которые призваны
закрепить приоритеты его дальнейшего развития.
..создание в Росси ‘инновационного пояса’ – технопарков и малых
предприятий при вузах, позволяющих быстро разрабатывать и внедрять
востребованные наукоемкие технологии, которые содействуют
экономическому и социальному развитию.
Принято решение об увеличении за счет российского бюджета в 1,5 раза
приема иностранных граждан в российские вузы.
13
21st Century: The Emergence of
New Learning Environments
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“One laptop per child”: harnessing the
power of ICTs for inclusion
and development
An MIT Media Lab project
• ultra-low-cost, fullfeatured computer
• designed to dramatically
enhance children’s primary
and secondary education
worldwide
• full-scale production to
start in mid-2007
15
Powering ICT Devices
in Remote Areas
Solar Laptop
Pedal Power for OLPC
16
The ICT Revolution
A revolution which has triggered:

a redefinition of the roles for academics (such as coaches and
mentors rather than content experts)
 a new business model for universities faced with competitive forces
(e.g. partnerships with other content providers - publishers and
media companies - in the textbook market)
 the convergence of various communication devices at an affordable
cost (m-learning)
 openness, sharing, participation and collaboration at an
unprecedented scale (open source, open content, open educational
resources)
17
2009 World Conference on Higher
Education: What Role for ICTs?
 A few key messages in this regard:
Member States should support the fuller integration of ICTs and
promote ODL to meet increasing demands for quality higher
education in a lifelong learning perspective
o the application of ICTs to teaching and learning has great potential
to increase access, quality and success
o the accelerated velocity of technology change has created pressing
challenges that higher education, governments and industry must
address together
o increasing attention to teacher training: empowering teachers
(“digital immigrants”) to harness the potential of ICTs
o in spite of the progress made, ICTs are still unfairly distributed
worldwide - need for more international solidarity to close the digital
and knowledge divides
o
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ICTs for Higher Education:
Key Trends and New Dynamics

The integration of ICTs in higher education is
inevitable. The very high demand for higher education
has stimulated significant growth in both private and
public provision

Open universities are expanding and multiplying and
many conventional institutions are adopting dualmode or blended program delivery systems, creating a
new dynamic in flexible and lifelong learning
19
ICTs for Higher Education (cont’d)


In the absence of policies and
programmes defining the generative
and developmental roles of higher
education institutions, many ICT
activities are simply ad-hoc projects
with limited potential to be selfsustaining and self-generative

ICTs can add value to the role of
institutions in economic growth and
social development if appropriate
perspectives and roadmaps are
integrated in mainstream policies
Institutional and sector-wide higher education ICT policy and planning
should identify the specific role of ICTs in enhancing research
20
Higher Education at a Time of
Transformation. New Dynamics
for Social Responsibility

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The technological revolution has led to a
dramatic transformation in distance
education as a mode of delivery
Growth and changes in cross-border
programmes and provider mobility
In cross-border education,
recognition/registration is critical to
ensuring quality assurance, the
legitimacy of the institution of the
qualifications provided
21
Higher Education, Research and
Innovation: Changing Dynamics
 Throughout the current decade, the world
has witnessed the advance of the
Knowledge Society and its principal
engine, the Knowledge Economy
 Due to new technologies, all countries have
been obliged to review/reorganize their
capacities for accessing and benefiting
from high-level knowledge
 The systems of knowledge production
(universities; public laboratories; research
centres; industry and the private sector)
have emerged as the main motors of
development in a globalized world
22
The ODL Triangle:
Access, Cost and Quality

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Globalization is pressuring developing countries to expand
access and improve quality as international league tables
compare age participation rates and institutional quality
Yet the three fundamental vectors that define education access, cost and quality - pull in different directions, creating
an iron triangle of forces to constrain traditional methods of
higher education
Fortunately technology-mediated distance learning does
allow access to be extended, quality improved and costs cut
all at the same time
In a new manifestation of internationalisation, the open
universities have more in common with each other than with
traditional universities in their home countries
23
Action for the Next Ten Years:
An Institutional View:
The Open University, UK




The emerging technological changes
require a fundamental shift in the way
institutions conduct their affairs
Vast digital assets created, combined
with extraordinary computer power,
make it possible to ask and research
questions not capable of being
researched before
Students can and do study e-learning offerings from universities all over the
world as more and more universities are adding e-learning options
Digital age requires new abilities: from instruction to discovery; from
individual to collaborative learning; from broadcast to interactive
learning; from teacher-centric to student-centric learning
24
Maastricht Message
From the M-2009 World Conference
(ICDE and EADTU)


Innovative, flexible ways of learning, and
creating and sharing knowledge are required if
every one of the world’s people is to have the
opportunity to maximize his or her potential
and to contribute to the development of their
communities
Governments, NGOs, not-for-profit interests and the corporate sector
must individually and collectively mobilize their imagination and
resources to create flexible, accessible, and quality learning at scale
25
Maastricht Message (cont’d)

Over the last four decades open,
flexible and distance learning has
developed so that it now offers the
first real means of delivering
quality learning at scale

In some countries open and
distance education now serves
more than one third of the
student population and this is
growing rapidly

The open and distance university
movement is removing barriers of
geography, time and cost while
maintaining quality of education

All of this contributes to the
growth of local and national
communities and economies. In
the current global economic
crisis ODL provides cost
efficient and flexible solutions
26
Will ICTs Make the Traditional
University Obsolete?

The conventional system alone cannot meet the
challenges. We must ask the question: will presentday universities become the dinosaurs of tomorrow?
 Will there be profound changes in learning content?
What is the role of students and staff and how will
we ensure quality and sustainability on the
Internet?
 The future offers exciting opportunities:
innovations, such as open educational resources,
mobile devices, social software and virtual mobility
will radically change the landscape of global
learning and expand the global learning community
27
Collaboration with the Private
Sector: UNESCO/Microsoft
Education Leaders Forum 2009
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A one-day Forum, entitled Higher Education: Re-Visioning for
Recovery. The Path to Sustainable Development
Discussed how governments and universities should take full
advantage of e-technology’s potential to address the current
knowledge and skills challenges
The announcement of a Joint UNESCO/Microsoft Task Force
on ICTs and Higher Education
Microsoft's $50 million commitment to support the mission of
the new task force and to enable the implementation of critical
UNESCO and Microsoft educational resources
28
What is Quality in E-learning?

Quality = Fitness of Purpose

Quality in e-learning refers to
learning:
providing the right content at the
right time
enable learners to acquire
knowledge and skills
enable learners apply their learning
to improve their performance
o
o
o
29
E-xcellence: A European wide
Standard for Quality Assurance for
E-learning in Higher Education



The manual provides a set of
benchmarks, quality criteria,
performance indicators and notes
for guidance
A reference tool for the
assessment or review of e-learning
programmes and the systems
supporting them
Six sections (strategic
management, curriculum design,
course design, course delivery,
staff support and student support)
30
Assessing E-learning Quality
in Europe

Presents a model for quality
assessment of e-learning

What constitutes quality in e-learning
and how such quality may be
assessed?

In many organizations, quality in elearning appears to be a non-issue
31
Ten Quality Aspects

Material/content
 Structure/virtual environment
 Communication, cooperation and interactivity
 Student assessment
 Flexibility and adaptability
 Support (faculty and students)
 Staff qualifications and experience
 Vision and institutional leadership
 Resource allocation
 The holistic and process aspect
Need for 21st Century Skills
33
A 21st Century Model of
Learning Powered
by Technology
Goals and recommendations
in 5 essential areas:
 Learning
 Assessment
 Teaching
 Infrastructure
 Productivity
What 21st Century Learning
Should Look Like
OECD: Education for the
Future - Promoting Changes
in Policies
A tough new world and a challenging
future, characterized by:

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high unemployment
growing inequalities
stronger competition
fewer jobs
enhanced interdependence
economic growth driven by innovation
36
The Virtual University

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E-learning and the virtual university two issues associated with cross-border
education
Explores ICT-related policy, planning
and management implications of new
(UNITAR, Malaysia) or reorganized
HEIs (USQOnline Australia, Kenyatta
University Kenya)
VUs must develop policies and
planning, management and financial
procedures that are appropriate to their
organization, resources and operation
37
Sharing Learning Resources
over the Internet: Open
Educational Resources



Open Educational Resources (OER)
= digitized materials offered freely and
openly for educators, students, selflearners to use and reuse for teaching,
learning and research
Expand access to learning; an efficient
way to promote lifelong learning; and
bridge the gap between non-formal,
informal and formal learning
Quality can be improved and content
development reduced by sharing and
reusing
38
39
UNESCO ICT Competency
Standards for Teachers

To improve teachers’ practice through ICTs

Developed in partnership with Intel, Cisco, Microsoft,
International Society for Technology in Education, and Virginia
Tech

Three booklets: policy framework; competency standards
modules; implementation guidelines (translated into all 6
UNESCO official languages)
Curriculum Framework
Important: Ensuring ODL
Quality Throughout Education!
quality of distance education:
37,4/74,9 = 0,5
42
UNITWIN / UNESCO Chairs
Programme
I. Definition and Background
 UNITWIN is the abbreviation for the University Twinning and
Networking.
 The UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs Programme, established in
1992, is conceived as a way to advance research, training and
programme development in higher education by building
university networks and encouraging inter-university
cooperation through transfer of knowledge across borders.
Disciplinary and Geographic
Breakdown
II. UNITWIN in figures (as of 21.04.2010)
659 UNESCO Chairs
65 UNITWIN Networks
770 Higher Education institutions
127 Member States
Communication&
Culture Information
5%
13%
Education
19%
(5%in ICTs)
Social and Human
Sciences 28%
Natural
Sciences
35% (20% in
Engineering)
49%
17%
14%
12%
8%
Europe&North Latin America&the Asia&the Pacific
America
Caribbean
Africa
Arab States
New Strategic Orientations of
the UNITWIN Programme
(2007)
 Creation of a new generation of UNESCO Chairs /UNITWIN
Networks, to be acting as “think-tanks” and as “bridge-builders”,
between research outcomes and decision-making, as well as
between academia and local communities
 Realignment with UNESCO’s priorities
 Creation of regional or sub-regional poles of excellence and
innovation
 Stimulation of triangular North-South-South cooperation
Reinforcing the knowledge,
research and innovation
triangle
Poles of excellence and innovation
 A pole of excellence is a combination, in a given geographic
space, of universities, institutes of higher learning, training
centres, foundations and public or private research units
involved in a synergy around innovating common projects.
 This partnership, built around a specific theme or field, must
seek out for a critical mass to enable a certain quality and
international transparency.
Scaling Up International Best
Practice in and with ICTs


UNESCO King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa
Prize for the Use of ICTs (set up in 2005;
donation made by the Kingdom of Bahrain)
US$50,000 divided equally to 2 prizewinners;
rewards innovative and creative use of ICTs to
enhance teaching, learning and overall educational
performance
Prizewinners:
2006 KERIS (Korea); Kemi-Tornio Polytechnic (Finland)
2007: Claroline Consortium (Belgium); Curriki (USA)
2008: Shanghai TV University (China); Dr Hoda Baraka (Egypt)
2009: Prof. Alexei Semenov (Russia); The Jordan Education Initiative
(Jordan)
47
Готовность к информационному
обществу
Мировые рейтинги 2009
Исследовательское подразделение
британского журнала «Экономист» –
«Экономист Интеллидженс Юнит»
(Economist Intelligence Unit)
• 650 аналитиков по
всему миру
• С 2000 г. – анализ
готовности к
информационному
обществу (ereadiness)
• Более 100 критериев,
количественных и
качественных.
Место России в мировом
рейтинге
Год
Обследовано
стран
Место России
2001
60
42
2002
60
45
2005
68
52
2006
68
52
2007
69
57
2008
70
59
2009
70
59
The World Bank: Rise of New
Economic Powerhouses
(January 2010)
51
Чтобы сохранить свое
место в рейтинге, надо
бежать изо всех сил
Из выступления главы государства Дмитрия Медведева
31 августа 2009 на совещании по модернизации и
технологическому развитию экономики касательно
вопроса приоритетных ИТ-проектов:
«Оптимистичные картины спрячьте подальше –
реальных подвижек нет… По части интеграции ИТ в
экономику страны принята «Стратегия развития
информационного общества», однако ее реализация
находится на неудовлетворительном уровне».
«В международном рейтинге готовности к
информационному обществу Россия по ряду
показателей занимает места в шестом-седьмом
десятке, продолжая скатываться вниз. И это при
том, что государственные расходы на
информатизацию в настоящий момент
абсолютно
сопоставимы
с
расходами
развитых европейских стран.»
Д.А. Медведев
«Еще один приоритет - развитие культурнопознавательных и образовательных сервисов на
базе интернет-ресурсов нового поколения. При
этом особое внимание президент призвал
уделить системе дистанционного общего и
профессионального обучения, которая поможет
получить образование людям с ограниченными
возможностями и невысоким уровнем доходов.
Также, президент отмечает роль переноса
знаний из развитых стран.»
Д.А. Медведев
Россия, вперёд! Статья
Дмитрия Медведева
10 сентября 2009
«Иностранным компаниям и научным
организациям будут предоставляться
самые благоприятные условия для
строительства в России
исследовательских и конструкторских
центров
. Мы пригласим на работу лучших
учёных и инженеров из разных стран
мира.
И, главное, мы будем объяснять нашей
молодёжи, что важнейшим
конкурентным преимуществом
знания, которых нет у
года являются
других, интеллектуальное
превосходство, умение создавать
вещи, нужные людям».
Более низкие показатели,
чем у России
2009 г.
2008 г.
Страна
60
63
Эквадор
61
62
Нигерия
62
61
Украина
63
60
Шри-Ланка
64
65
Вьетнам
65
68
Индонезия
66
64
Пакистан
67
67
Алжир
68
70
Иран
69
66
Казахстан
70
69
Азербайджан
Towards u-learning?
58
Thank You!
Спасибо за внимание!
m.patru@unesco.org
eakhvilon@gmail.com
59