Print

Mail

wiki links

Higher education finds `e-learning' an attractive tool

Web-based instruction models are being applied by increasing numbers of universities and colleges, with 124 credit-granting "e-learning" courses being offered at the university and college level in the current school year, according to an education official.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Education's computer center said yesterday that the ministry is subsidizing post-secondary education institutions to offer distance-learning programs, including courses with credits and training with proficiency certificates.

While the credits are recognized by the Ministry of Education, so far it is not possible for attendants at local cyber universities to obtain degrees because the course subjects are limited to computer technology, job skills and language training.

The spokesman also said that university degrees from cyber universities are still not recognized by the education authorities in Taiwan.

The Department of Higher Education has stipulated that of the credits required to obtain a degree, at least two-thirds must come from attending classes at a real school.

Some local universities have tried to offer their students a combination of regular instruction in school and "e-learning" in virtual classrooms.

National Sun Yat-sen University in Kaohsiung, for example, started such a program five years ago.

More than 2,000 students have obtained credits by taking the Web-based courses.

A spokesman of the cyber educational program said that in addition to the courses open to students, the university is also sponsoring Web-based instruction for the general public.

In the past seven years, more than 20,000 non-students have attended the university's "e-learning" courses.

In the current school year, the university's graduate schools of financial management, mass communications, business administration and information management, as well as the computer center, are offering "e-learning" courses.

Nearly 90 percent of the attendants are people already working or looking for work who hope to increase their skills and enhance their career development, according to the spokesman.

He said that by attending the "e-learning" courses and passing the proficiency tests, attendants in the program will be granted certificates. Some of the certificates are jointly issued by the university and international corporations, such as Cisco.

Statistics released by the Institute for Information Industry (III) indicate that "e-learning" is a fast-growing sector of Taiwan's education market, with the nation's "e-learning" market expected to exceed NT$3 billion by 2004.

While increasing numbers of international corporations are conducting co-location training programs, local educational establishments are seeking to cooperate with the business sector to explore the lucrative business opportunities.

The III forecasts that Taiwan's business enterprises will spend NT$130 million in offering Web-based learning programs to their employees this year.

The amount accounts for 30 percent of the costs of personnel development for corporations in Taiwan.
This story has been viewed 3988 times.