I did both my Masters degrees through the online distance education program
of Charles Sturt University here in Australia (http://www.csu.edu.au) and
only stepped foot on the actual campus when I went to receive my awards.
During the first degree (98-99) I had both real and remote access to the Uni
library - I could order texts I needed online and they would be sent to me -
but there were also reciprocal agreements with the libraries of the tertiary
institutions close to me. So if I wanted to borrow something I could do so
by using my CSU card. Subject outlines, assignments, core and key readings
and suggestions for further readings were supplied at the beginning of each
unit in a print booklet.
During my second degree (2002) we still had the print booklet, but so much
of what was done was through online discussion groups, MOOs, email, online
links. I did not have to buy a text book and neither did I have to request
one through the library. That is one of the beauties of the CSU programs -
they are continually evolving to make the best use of what is online so we
were reading and discussing the very latest developments. It also allows
students in rural, remote and international locations to access the courses
and there were often times when we were working with students from all over
the globe. Any uni of the 21st century worth its mandate should have an ICT
technical department that can solve access issues for distance students.
However, I understand there is a great deal of difference between a distance
education arm of an established university and someone set up in an office
somewhere. I often get spam email offering me a degree virtually overnight,
which, apart from anything else, devalues the degrees that those who have
done the hard yards hold. All of these offers come from the US ... possibly
because, in Australia, tertiary education at university level is
'controlled' by the Federal Government, not the states. They would have
certain criteria that would have to be met, although I don't know what they
are or whether bricks & mortar is one of them. It certainly solves the
issue of
>>"They are trying to open a branch campus here in
>> >NJ, but our Dept of Higher Ed has been fighting it. -- Apparently NJ
>> >has stricter rules about what can be considered a college - for one,
>> >they have to have a library, which U of P does not.'
Maybe this is a bigger issue than LM_NET can solve but we can do something
by making noises about the quality and legality of these fly-by-night
degrees and our administrators should be taking the time to check the
credentials of the university that job candidates are offering as the source
of their degrees.
I can remember my mum coming back from a trip to the US in 1965 (in New
Zealand, that would have been the equivalent of going to Mars today) and
saying that you had to have a BA to wash dishes there. (Uni degrees in NZ
at the time were considered almost elitist and only for the very clever).
Less than 40 years on, you all seem to need at least one Masters because
there are so many with BA level qualifications. With all these easy
overnight degrees, will it soon be that you need a PhD to be considered
'real'?
And who will be around to empty the garbage bins and fix the roads and build
the schools? We were all told we had to go to Uni to "be able to get a good
job"- "good job" presumably equating to "big bucks" There is a certain irony
that those in these 'low-entry level' positions are making cartloads more
than us because of the supply & demand factor!
Barbara
Barbara Braxton
Teacher-Librarian
Palmerston District Primary School
PALMERSTON ACT 2913
AUSTRALIA
T. 61 2 6205 6162
F. 61 2 6205 7242
E. barbara@austarmetro.com.au
W. http://www.palmdps.act.edu.au
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