Subject: Re: [IFETS-DISCUSS] infrastructure and social equity
From: Mark Nichols (M.Nichols@UCOL.AC.NZ)
Date: Mon 23 Jun 2003 - 05:33:35 MEST
Date: Mon, 23 Jun 2003 15:33:35 +1200 From: Mark Nichols <M.Nichols@UCOL.AC.NZ> Subject: Re: [IFETS-DISCUSS] infrastructure and social equity
Hi Mary,
It's always good to get a challenge - "it's all very well to agree, but
it's doubt that gets you an education" as the saying goes! I appreciate
your questions because they help me to focus on my own assumptions.
I think that the synchronous nature of one way radio is a very real
disadvantage; likewise the use of television, which the OU (once known
as "the school of the air") is no longer known for. The advantage of the
other media you list is that they can be asynchronous. It's not really
an issue of "reaching for a switch" as it is being there for the right
moment to actually flick it!
You mention that "In the NZ situation, cassettes were considered a more
practical delivery mechanism than real-time broadcasting, but that
choice probably has as much to do with cost structures & population base
as with pedagogy." Hmmmmm. Given the cost-effective rates for community
radio that can reach large population areas (even good old Palmy has
community radio) I suspect that pedagogy may well have been a
consideration. As a student I know which I would prefer.
You also mention enhancing 'general knowledge'; that certainly is a
valid point. I listen to the radio early in the morning however it is a
haphasard way of trying to learn anything focussed about my professional
interests and development - which is the perspective of radio use I am
taking. Yes, it is an agent of social change and public information, but
is it effective in a formal education sense when other media are widely
available (note my caveat)?
Is there anyone out there who has tried radio/is using radio/has
investigated the use of radio in the NZ context (or a context simlar to
that of NZ's)? If so, please speak up!
Warm regards,
Mark.
Mark Nichols
eLearning Consultant
UCOL, Universal College of Learning
Private Bag 11022, Palmerston North
New Zealand. +64 6 952 7327
http://www.ucol.ac.nz
"The problem with taking the easy way out is that the enemy already has
it mined."
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