Vol 1.1DEOSNEWS ----------------------------------------------------------------
DEOSNEWS Vol. 1 No. 13. This document has about 305 lines.
Copyright 1991 DEOS - The Distance Education Online Symposium
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The American Journal of Distance Education and
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EDITORIAL

It is conference time. Hence, the next issue of DEOSNEWS will not be posted
untill the last week of August. In the meantime, I look forward to taking
part in these three conferences:

IFIP WG 3.1 Working Conference "Impacts of Informatics on the Organization
of Education", University of California, Santa Barbara, August 5-9.

Designing for Learner Access: Challenges and Practices for Distance
Education. Seventh Annual Conference on Distance Teaching and Learning.
Madison, Wisconsin, August 14-16. For more information, call the conference
directors Patricia Takemoto (+608-262-9970) or Lin Compton (+608-263-2082).

Scandinavian Conference on Distance Teaching, Education, and computer-
mediated communication (Nordisk konferanse om fjernundervisning, opplaering
og dataformidlet kommunikasjon). Several of the presentations will be in
English. Oslo, Norway, August 19-21. For more information, e-mail
NEK@usit.uio.no

Another interesting upcoming conference is the 40th Annual Adult Education
Conference in Montreal, Canada, October 15-18. For more information,
contact AAACE, 1112 16th St., NW, Washington, D.C., 20036. Telephone: +202-
463-6333.

INTERVIEW

Speaking Personally with Reidar Roll

For half a century distance education's international organization was
administered by volunteers. In 1988 a Permanent Secretariat was estab-
lished with offices in Oslo, Norway. Reidar Roll was appointed its first
Secretary General. He is interviewed for The American Journal of Distance
Education by Michael Grahame Moore, Editor.

MGM: What is the International Council for Distance Education?

RR: The International Council for Distance Education (ICDE) is the only
worldwide nongovernmental organization specializing in all types of
distance education systems, from primary to tertiary, as well as nonformal
education and professional training. It has acquired renown within the
scientific and professional community, and its competency is recognized by
international organizations like United Nations agencies.

MGM: What is the connection with the United Nations?

RR: ICDE is affiliated with UNESCO as a specialist nongovernmental
organization representing distance education worldwide and is regarded as
UNESCO's technical arm of operation in this field. As you are aware,
distance education figures prominently among strategies proposed by The
World Declaration on Education for All to assist developing countries to
escape from educational crisis. The past years have seen growing interest
among educational authorities in developing countries in evolving some form
of distance education to help alleviate problems their educational systems
are facing. This means that all agencies involved in multilateral and
bilateral activities are interested in cooperation with a solid interna-
tional organization such as ICDE, since our members represent a variety of
experience within distance education.
But it is also important to mention that ICDE is cooperating with
UNDP, UNICEF, The World Bank, and several bilateral agencies such as USAID,
CIDA, NORAD, etc. This cooperation will increase in the years to come.

MGM: When was ICDE formed?

RR: ICDE was formed in 1938 under the name of International Council for
Correspondence Education (ICCE). The name was changed to International
Council for Distance Education (ICDE) at the Vancouver Conference in 1982.
The change of name to the International Council for Distance Education
was more than semantic. The new title recognized that the Council had
moved a long way from representing mainly government secondary-level
correspondence schools and proprietary colleges, as it did in 1938, and was
recognizing the wave of state supported open colleges and universities that
had begun to emerge in the 1970s using a multimedia approach.

MGM: Who are members of ICDE?

RR: The Council has a large membership of distance teaching institutions,
government ministries, intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations,
networks, and associations, be they national or of a regional or sub-
regional character, in all corners of the world. The ICDE membership also
consists of distinguished practitioners and academics, as well as national
and international policy makers, both politicians and senior servants.
Many ministries of education in different countries are formal members of
ICDE.
Our members provide a most valuable reservoir of research capacity for
the ICDE and a worldwide pool of specialists that can be called upon for
advisory services and can be shared for the development of high-quality
distance teaching systems and programs. The international dimension of the
ICDE facilitates the transfer of know-how in a South-South, North-North,
and a North-South manner.

MGM: What is the job of the Secretary General?

RR: My function as the Secretary General is to manage the ICDE Permanent
Secretariat, in accordance with the ICDE Executive Committee and the ICDE
Constitution. This includes activities such as membership recruitment and
maintenance, liaising with Council members and outside agencies in accord-
ance with Council policy and in consultation with the Executive Committee,
initiating distance education projects in developed and developing coun-
tries and, of course, promoting knowledge about distance education and its
development to politicians and decision makers. The Permanent Secretariat
is located in Oslo and receives financial support from the Norwegian
government.

MGM: What are the objectives of ICDE?

RR: The aims of the ICDE, as stated in its constitution, are:
1. to promote knowledge of, and improvement in, distance education
throughout the world;
2. to act as the coordinating body for international distance education.

In order to implement the policy laid down by the Executive Committee
of ICDE, which is composed of elected representatives from all the regions
of the world, the ICDE shall:
a) disseminate information on current developments in distance education;
b) hold world conferences and other conferences, seminars, and training/-
professional development sessions in the area of distance education;
c) promote research and scholarship in distance education;
d) assist in the development and strengthening of regional and national
distance education associations;
e) support the coordination of the regional and international development
activities of associations and institutions involved in distance
education;
f) undertake projects, consultancies and programs; and
g) seek funds and sponsorship from donor bodies and other organizations
to assist developing countries.

MGM: In what ways does ICDE promote knowledge and improvement of distance
education throughout the world; can you give an example of this work?

RR: ICDE promotes knowledge and improvement of distance education in many
ways. First, we can mention the ICDE World Conferences which function as
an international meeting point for professionals from all over the world
and where information is shared in formal and nonformal ways through
presentations and discussions. The World Conferences and ICDE's regional
workshops are important communication channels for members, researchers,
and politicians. As a network organization, ICDE also distributes its own
Bulletin to its members and libraries.
Second, ICDE as an international expert organization is represented in
international, regional, and national seminars which are organized by UN
agencies, governments, etc., where ICDE has the opportunity to promote
distance education systems.
Third, ICDE as a project organization is involved in planning and
implementing projects with the aim of improving educational systems,
especially in developing countries.

MGM: I want to talk about research. Prior to the 1990 World Conference in
Venezuela, ICDE and our American Center for the Study of Distance Education
sponsored a three-day workshop on international research. In what other
ways does ICDE promote research?

RR: ICDE will, with financial support from private and public institu-
tions, encourage its members to carry out research activities in the field
of distance education. ICDE will, in the near future, revive its Research
Fund where members can apply for support for international research
projects.
For the moment ICDE is involved in projects and activities such as:
- Planning and coordination of the development of distance education
activities at regional, subregional, and national levels in Africa,
connected to priorities of United Nations agencies.
- Planning and coordination of projects in China in cooperation with the
Chinese government and United Nations agencies.
- Joint projects with Japanese institutions involving the development of
futuristic scenarios of education and computer-based surveys of
educational resources in Asia.
- Evaluation studies have been undertaken and published in cooperation
between ICDE and UNESCO of the major distance teaching systems of
Asia.
- In cooperation with United Nations agencies, ICDE is undertaking
worldwide and regional surveys of distance education resources.
- ICDE is undertaking the coordination of global educational programs in
priority areas, like the environment, in cooperation with intergovern-
mental agencies and national authorities.

MGM: The last issue of The American Journal of Distance Education referred
to the possibility of forming an American Council for Distance Education.
What is ICDE's position regarding national and regional councils?

RR: The establishment of an American Council for Distance Education (ACDE)
is very important for the United States and for ICDE since your country
represents a variety of experiences and experts which are needed in the
international community. From an international point of view, it is easier
to work together with a coordinated distance education organization in the
United States and, through an ACDE, organize international activities. But
an ACDE is, of course, also very important for coordinating internal
activities in the United States.
ICDE does already harmonize with and/or participates in regional
associations, such as the Asian Association of Open Universities (AAOU),
Australian and South Pacific External Studies Association (ASPESA), African
Association of Distance Education (AADE), Distance Learning Association of
Southern Africa (DLA), Canadian Association for Distance Education (CADE),
Latin American Network for Development in Distance Education (REDLAED), and
European Distance Education Network (EDEN).
As an example of a regional ICDE activity currently undertaken by the
General Secretariat in Oslo, ICDE assisted the European members to develop
a representative, open, and democratic regional nongovernmental network for
collaboration in distance education among distance teaching institutions,
policy makers, and academics. The European Distance Education Network
(EDEN) was established this year and its secretariat is based in Cambridge,
England. EDEN is an important part of the ICDE umbrella.
Similar activity was undertaken by ICDE in Latin America, when the
Latin American Network for Development in Distance Education (REDLAED) was
established in May 1989. The Network functions within the framework of
ICDE, and undertakes development activities, exchange of information,
research, training, and joint projects. Members of the network are the
major distance education institutions and networks in Latin America. A
Centre of Excellence in Distance Education was established in 1990 and
based at the Universidad Nacional Abierta (UNA) in Caracas, Venezuela.
This ICDE Centre for Latin America is funded by the Venezuelan government.

MGM: I have heard it said that ICDE represents only low technology,
especially correspondence instruction, and that different international
organizations are needed to deal with such technology as satellite and
computer-mediated instruction. What is your reply to this suggestion?

RR: This is very incorrect. It is important to emphasize that ICDE has
the most advanced high-technology distance education institutions in the
world as members. These organizations are very active within ICDE in
promoting and developing new ways of integrating advanced technology in
distance education. Besides, we must be aware of the paradigm changes
which are happening in the educational society today. The integration and
utilization of technology in education require an innovative and creative
combination of conventional and modern education, such as distance
education. A synthesis using the best of both systems will, under pro-
fessional planning and management, generate an "alternative educational
approach" including utilization of multimedia. The integration will set
new patterns for organized learning systems, especially regarding lifelong
learning. This is a consequence of technological developments and of the
fact that no nation, however rich, can afford to solve the learning needs
of its citizens without the use of cost-effective distance learning systems
of high quality aimed at large target groups. Regional and international
"joint ventures" will increase, and the need for coordination of interna-
tional cooperation, e.g., to utilize resources better and to avoid unnec-
essary competition and wasting of resources, will increase. Too many
international organizations with different interests in distance education
can be an obstacle to this development. ICDE welcomes every institution
that can play an active role within the organization to promote quality-
based high- or low-technology distance education.

MGM: Who decides where a world conference will be held and what are the
criteria for being chosen?

RR: The Executive Committee decides where a World Conference will be held.
One tries to make World Conferences circulate between the different world
regions. The country or institution chosen to host the World Conference
must organize the Conference in accordance with the ICDE conference
directives.

MGM: In summary, why should any reader of The American Journal of Distance
Education consider becoming a member of ICDE?

RR: Among the benefits you get through a membership in the ICDE are
participation in workshops, conferences, receiving publications from
various parts of the world, and the development of an invaluable network of
scholars and practitioners. It seems that in the future international
connections will be even more important that in the past, and the ICDE is a
means for distance education institutions and their members to obtain
access to colleagues in other countries.

MGM: How can one find out more, and how can one join?

RR: For additional information, please write to:
ICDE
Gjerdrums vei 12
0486 Oslo 4
NORWAY
Phone: +47-2-950630
Fax: +47-2-950719

ICDE welcomes professional individuals and organizations as members in the
world community of distance education.

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