The table below provides information on distance education in America and in Turkey. Although the history of distance education covered in the textbook explains that there are various ways that distance education is defined and viewed, I wanted to look strictly at distance education and the use of technology (i.e., radio, phone, television, etc). Generally speaking, distance education is defined as instruction of students where both parties are separated during the entire course of study.
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QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER | AMERICA | TURKEY |
YEAR OF DEVELOPMENT | 1950's | 1982 |
DIFFERENCES IN DISTANCE EDUCATION | Distance and availability of technology seem to be the main components for distance education in the United States. | Cultural influence is detrimental to distance education and their way of teaching. In most cases, there has to be some awareness of cultural differences. Some cultural differences taken into account may include religion, political affiliation and economic issues. |
WHAT DROVE EXPANSION | When the United Kingdom founded the "Open University" many other countries began the race since the program was considered prestigious. The United States government was not as involved at this stage but academics pushed to drive expansion. | In 1982, the Higher Education Acts (there were several passed) gave authority to the government to regulate all education and to expand distance education, in an attempt to increase literacy for all citizens of Turkey. |
ENROLLMENT | According to the National Center for Education Statistics, there are 21,147,055 students enrolled at Title IV institutions who are enrolled in distance education. | In 1999-2000 academic year, there were a total of 505,955 students who participated in distance education. Although this information is old, this is the last reported number shared in a journal. |
AVAILABLE TO PRIMARY SCHOOLS | YES | YES. Education is offered through a program that is titled "Open High School" that was started in 1993. |
AVAILABLE TO SECONDARY SCHOOLS | YES | YES |
FIRST SCHOOL TO USE DISTANCE EDUCATION | Western Reserve University | Anadolu University |
ACCREDITATION | There are some distance education programs that are accredited but there are also many that are not. | There is no specific mention of an accreditation agency that monitors the distance education program but distance education is heavily monitored by the government. |