DEOSNEWS Vol. 2  No. 16.  ISSN 1062-9416.
Copyright 1992 DEOS - The Distance Education Online Symposium
   
Editor: Morten Flate Paulsen, MFP101@PSUVM.PSU.EDU
   
DEOS was established with a grant from the Annenberg/CPB Project.
   
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                                 EDITORIAL
   
This issue of DEOSNEWS presents an interview with Dr. Teresa Miaja de la
Pena who is the Director of Open Systems at the Mexican Ministry of
Education. The interview was conducted by Patricia Gonzalez Flores, Center
for Academic Computing at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, and
it was published in Vol. 6 No. 2 of the American Journal of Distance Educa-
tion.
   
   
                                 INTERVIEW
   
            Speaking Personally--with Teresa Miaja de la Pena.
   
The history of Mexican education is one of great challenges and achieve-
ments. During the first decades of this century, population increased at a
rate of more than 3% a year. This demographic explosion meant increasing
pressure for all social services, including education. The number of
schools had to multiply in order to keep up with population growth. As a
result of many efforts, today all the demand for elementary education can
be satisfied. The illiteracy rate has dropped to 5% nationwide. Still, the
challenge continues as the country struggles to reduce the drop-out rate
and to raise the average educational level of the population to at least
ten years of schooling.
   
Dr. Teresa Miaja de la Pena is the Director of Open Systems at the Ministry
of Education. For more than six years, she has been an important promoter
of distance education in Mexico. She coordinates the Mexican Inter-institu-
tional and Interdisciplinary Commission for Distance and Open Education.
   
Patricia Gonzalez: How long have you been involved in distance education--
or would you rather that I refer to it as open education--in Mexico?
   
Teresa Miaja: I personally have been involved in distance education in
Mexico since 1985, when I took the position of Director of Open Systems for
the Ministry of Education. I do talk about both open and distance education
in Mexico because we have both kinds of educational systems working in the
country. Some institutions have adopted the model of distance education:
the Universidad Pedagogica Nacional (National Pedagogic University), the
Tecnologico de Monterrey (Higher Education Technology Institute of Mon-
terrey), and the ILCE, Instituto Latinoamericano de Comunicacion Educativa
(Latin American Institute for Educational Communication), for example. Yet
open education is, I would say, the most common system in this country.
   
PG: Your academic background is mainly in Spanish Literature. How did you
become involved in distance education?
   
TM: Well, it became part of my job. Several years ago, when I was working
at the Instituto Tecnologico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (Higher
Education Technological Institute of Monterrey), I became familiar with
this type of educational program. CEMPAE, Centro para el Estudio de Medios
y Procedimientos Avanzados para la Educacion (Center for the Study of
Advanced Media and Procedures for Education) had initiated its first
distance education programs in the 1970s. I knew about their experiences,
and I became acquainted with the textbooks and the television programs that
they were preparing for distance education. As a matter of fact, CEMPAE was
the first center that produced distance education programs in Mexico on the
model of the British Open University. They were trying to provide basic
elementary and secondary education, as well as what would be equivalent to
a senior high school preparatory program. It is important to mention that
CAMPAE was not the first distance program in Mexico; the first program was
Capacitacion para el Magisterio (Teacher Training) in the 1940s. This
program was presented nationwide and was designed to give working elemen-
tary school teachers adequate on-site training. TeleSecundarias (TV Junior
High Schools) was a similar early program for secondary education. CEMPAE,
established in the 1970s on the British Open University model, was followed
by many similar institutions, including Colegio de Bachilleres (Preparatory
College), UNAM (National Autonomous University of Mexico), and Universidad
Pedagogica Nacional, among others.
   
PG: You are now the Director of Open Systems for the Ministry of Education.
Could you describe your activities?
   
TM: I am the head of the Direccion de Sistemas Abiertos (Open Systems
Direction), an office that depends on the Ministry of Education in Mexico.
It has two responsibilities. One is to maintain and operate the Preparator-
ia Abierta--which would correspond more or less to senior high school--in
the whole country; the other responsibility, which is a very substantial
one, is to coordinate the works of the institutions that offer distance
education in the country. We don't supervise the programs because the
universities are autonomous and each institution has its own legal disposi-
tions, but we do coordinate common work in research and publications.
   
PG: Since 1986 you have been promoting national cooperation among distance
education institutions. The Comision Interinstitucional e Interdisciplinar-
ia de Educacion Abierta y a Distancia (Inter-institutional and Interdisci-
plinary Commission for Open and Distance Education) is a result of those
efforts. What are the aims of this Commission?
   
TM: In 1985 we reviewed and diagnosed what was happening in distance
education in Mexico, because there had been no analysis of development
during the previous ten years. When I started working at my present
position, the first thing we thought important to do was to find out who
was working with distance education in Mexico: who were the institutions,
what kind of service were they giving, what kind of research was being
done. About a year later, we had a first national meeting and published a
report with the results of our research. Over sixty people attended that
meeting. It was a very good and interesting reunion. It was the first forum
for discussion in many, many years and, it was like an initial turn of the
screw at that time.
   
PG: That was in 1986. And after that?
   
TM: A year or a year and a half after that we had another meeting in
Monterrey. This second reunion was very profitable. From then on we have
worked very well and very closely with all the institutions. We had a third
meeting last year in Oaxtepec. In that meeting we decided that we had to
get organized in a different way, especially because we had been in
Venezuela at the ICDE (International Council for Distance Education)
Conference, and we had noticed that many of the Mexican institutions were
represented. So, in Venezuela we decided to plan the next reunion on a
different basis, one that meant more cooperation, more exchange of what we
were working on.
   
PG: What are the present activities of this Commission?
   
TM: After the third meeting, we organized the Comision Interinstitucional e
Interdiscipilinaria de Educacion Abierta y a Distancia, and we started
meeting once a month. Next Monday will be our first anniversary. We are
working on specific things. One is to meet each month in order to exchange
experiences. In each meeting, one institution presents a paper related to
its own project or experiences or research. So there's been a forum for
research and discussion. We have published a newsletter, we started another
research project--this time through a questionnaire--and we organized four
workshops. If we try to evaluate what was done in a year, I think it has
been a lot of work and a very positive experience. The good thing about all
this is that there are no negative attitudes among the members of the
Commission. The people that come to the Commission are very glad to
cooperate, to participate. The response has been excellent from all
institutions. Communication among most Mexican distance education institu-
tions is at this moment very positive.
   
PG: So, until 1985, there had not been a comprehensive analysis of all
distance education institutions in Mexico. Therefore, both the 1986 and
1991 research projects represent very important efforts to gather informa-
tion with a national perspective. I would like you to discuss with us the
results of this research. How many institutions offer distance education in
Mexico?
   
TM: We have identified forty-two institutions and, curiously, there are
some new ones that come out after each meeting. These new providers either
want to start a program through distance education or they have a small
program which needs support.
   
PG: Are these programs private or public?
   
TM: Private and public; federal and state funded; all sorts. They range
from pre-school programs, e.g., a program sponsored by the Consejo Nacional
de Fomento Educativo (Nacional Council for the Promotion of Education), to
graduate school programs in veterinary medicine at the National University.
   
PG: Distance education institutions have been classified by Keegan as
autonomous and mixed institutions. What is the dominating model in Mexico?
   
TM: They are mostly mixed institutions since they also offer face-to-face
instruction. There are some very strong autonomous programs, like the
Preparatoria Abierta (Open Senior High School) and the INEA, Instituto
Nacional para la Educacion de Adultos (National Institute for Adult Educa-
tion), which offers literacy and elementary education for adults. They both
serve the whole country and are dedicated only to distance education.
TeleSecundaria (TV Junior High School) is also an autonomous model. The
rest of the programs are part of institutions that offer other educational
programs. This situation is somewhat dangerous; some of the programs are
really only partially open, since they have to keep some of the character-
istics of traditional programs at their institutions.
   
PG: How many students are enrolled in the country in distance and open
education?
   
TM: If we consider the literacy and elementary education programs for
adults offered by INEA, about four million students are enrolled. This
number includes literacy, elementary, secondary, undergraduate, and
graduate students.
   
PG: And if we do not include literacy and elementary education?
   
TM: Close to two million students are served at the other levels. There are
really few institutions that handle large numbers. As we have seen, the
INEA is one of them. The Universidad Pedagogica Nacional, with its teacher
training programs, is another. Our program, Preparatoria Abierta, is
another; we have one hundred and fifty thousand active students. The
remaining institutions have very small numbers of students being served.
   
PG: What are the specific traits of students enrolled in distance education
in Mexico? What have you discovered about them?
   
TM: They are mainly working adults. They choose this type of education
because it is easier for them to continue with their studies.
   
PG: What are the common problems faced by Mexican distance education
institutions?
   
TM: I would say financial and administrative problems. Distance education
institutions have not achieved yet enough credibility to be considered
valid educational options, so obtaining resources is difficult. Neverthe-
less, distance education is a very promising type of education for  Mexico,
a country with many remote areas that are difficult to reach. The flexibil-
ity of distance education would help some of the isolated population. The
case of the National University provides an example of administrative
difficulties. Their open system cannot cover the whole country for organiz-
ational reasons.
   
PG: Could you describe some of the administrative problems?
   
TM: The problems result from the fact that distance programs are usually
closely related to traditional education systems. Administration depends
directly on this traditional system, so it is bound by the conditions,
schedules, requirements, and procedures which are typical of face-to-face
education, but very limiting for distance education. In this sense, the
publication of the results of our questionnaire will be very useful, since
it will show this situation very clearly. It will provide evidence of how
this specific characteristic of Mexican distance education has been
inhibiting its development, instead of letting it grow and become the more
flexible option which it can become.
     There are also technical problems. In distance education, the need for
excellent communications media implies very strong technological support.
Technology and the precise organization which it requires--including the
organization of human resources--are not always available or affordable. Of
course, we know that even developed countries face similar problems.
   
PG: For a long time, distance education endeavors were isolated efforts of
individuals and institutions. Is there a national policy?
   
TM: Yes, there is a national policy. For the first time in the history of
distance education in the country, it has become a very important chapter
in the Programa de Modernizacion Educativa (national educational program
for 1989-1994). It is now a priority to show that we can provide a good,
alternative way to teach and to serve those populations that can't be
educated in another way.
   
PG: What are the principal issues in this policy?
   
TM: One important issue is that of target populations. One goal is to give
additional opportunities to those who have dropped out of the educational
system. The emphasis is on providing elementary and secondary education for
those adults who did not have the chance to complete it through traditional
instruction. Another goal is to provide training for work. This is an area
of major concern, so special support is given to technological education. A
final important goal is the training of the teachers. There is a very
strong interest in the government in offering education to teachers who are
already working, but who need to receive new tools for teaching.
   
PG: How does the government support distance education?
   
TM: Well, as I have told you, the programs exist and for the first time
distance education is considered as a full chapter in the national educa-
tion program for this period. But also, as I said before, distance educa-
tion has not yet been valued as highly as traditional education.
   
PG: Does Mexico have a higher education institution similar to the British
Open University?
   
TM: In higher education, several universities are offering programs, but
most of them coexist with face-to-face education. The most important one is
the Open System of the National University. It is a well designed program
which has achieved very good results within the National University. Its
limitations are that it is only offered at the central campus in Mexico
City and that it was designed with a very close relation to the traditional
system. Therefore, it is impossible to enroll in it if you don't live in
the city; you would have to come every week to tutoring sessions. In
Mexico, we don't always adequately value this open system because we are to
used to thinking of the National University as a macro institution with its
almost three hundred thousand students. We tend to expect the open system
to keep this same proportion. Although the open system serves only a small
part of the student population, the overall numbers are still large
compared to other universities in other countries. Other higher education
institutions include: the Escuela Superior de Comercio y Administracion
(Higher School of Trade and Management) of the Instituto Politecnico
Nacional (National Polytechnical Institute) with its degree in Interna-
tional Trade; the Universidad Pedagogica with its teacher-training degree;
and several state universities, such as the Universidad de Guadalajara,
Universidad del Valle de Atemajac, Tecnologico de Monterrey, and Universi-
dad Veracruzana. As you can see, there are many higher education institu-
tions. Only the Universidad Pedagogica, however, provides national educa-
tional service. Not all degrees are offered by distance education in all
the Mexican states. For example, it is impossible for someone in the
southeast to obtain a Master's degree because that degree is not offered in
the state.
   
PG: What about consortia of distance education institutions?
   
TM: The only cooperative organization among distance education institutions
at present is the Commission. A good expansion of its role would be to
start promoting associations between institutions. Curiously, the Commis-
sion has already had some effect in this area. For example, currently some
joint projects are being developed. The Universidad de Guadalajara and the
Universidad del Valle de Atemajac are collaborating in their region and
organizing a Sub-commission. So the tendency is towards more cooperation
among institutions.
   
PG: Technological development in telecommunications has produced a great
impact in distance education, because of the new options for teacher-stu-
dent, tutor-learner, or learner- learner interaction that they offer. What
effects has technology had in Mexican distance education?
   
TM: This institution is not the best one to answer that question. Tecno-
lgico de Monterrey is the institution that is leading the way in techno-
logical advances in education. They have developed a program through
satellite broadcasts. They are doing a very good job, but the system gives
services only to the campuses that are part of their institution; they are
not open to other institutions. One program, Educom, from the Ministry of
Education, was designed to apply technology to teacher training, but it no
longer exists.
   
PG: Are many institutions using telecommunications technology?
   
TM: Institutions using telecommunications technology are primarily those
that have gotten in touch with Canadian or American programs. Most of these
institutions are private ones, except the National University and the
Instituto Politecnico, which are very strong federally funded institutions.
   
PG: How can telecommunications technology benefit Mexican distance educa-
tion institutions?
   
TM: This technology can have an enormous benefit if you consider that it
would be the answer to many of the educational problems. TeleSecundaria, at
its beginning, was designed as a distance education program. It was copied
by many Latin American countries. I do believe in its possibilities. Since
it covers only junior high school, I have suggested many times that it be
expanded to cover senior high school also.
   
PG: How would you describe the assets of Mexican distance education
institutions?
   
TM: All the programs are very good and very serious. Each one of them
answers very specific needs. It is especially amazing to see the faith in
distance education that all the educators participating in it have. People
are really convinced and even use their personal resources to offer the
services. I don't think that you could find as many "missionaries" in
another educational sector. Students are also very committed to this kind
of education. When they enroll they have their doubts about it, but
afterwards they become convinced, and they tend to seek the distance format
to continue their studies.
   
PG: What is your opinion about the future possibilities of distance
education?
   
TM: I think they are excellent. I think that all the efforts of the past
thirty years have shown the capacity of distance education, have demon-
strated that it can provide educational services for a very large popula-
tion in the country. All we need is more credibility, because there is both
a will from the institutions to develop and grow and a population demanding
this educational service all over the country.
   
--------------------- End of DEOSNEWS Vol. 2  No. 16 ----------------------
   

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