- 期刊
What Then after Knowing Differences: Accommodating East/West Cultural Differences and Similarities in Distance Education
遠距教育於文化差異下之應用與發展
摘要
亞洲社會在教育發展上長期受到西方社會的影響，但在文化差異的情況下，造成亞洲教育發展及政策的矛盾與挑戰，需要教育研究者深入的分析與探討以協助發展出適合亞洲社會、文化的教育政策。遠距教育由西方社會發展至今已一百多年，遠距教育所提供的豐富教育資源、彈性學習模式與可有效降低成本及學費的優勢，對於許多亞洲開發中國家而言，發展遠距教育是增加教育機會及提升競爭力的重要方向。然而，在教育制度、教學設計、教學法、學習式態、評量方式、媒體選擇、應用等差異的情況下，由西方社會所主導的遠距教育模式應用在亞洲社會上，存在著許多的矛盾。本文深入探討東西方在教育上的基本差異，並分析遠距教育應用於亞洲社會的挑戰，研究結果提供亞洲社會推展遠距教育應注意及思考的發展方向。
並列摘要
Differences in teaching and learning styles, governments, customs, and traditions have long divided Asia from the Western world. Teacher-centered education in the East continues to be the rule, with learner-centered education only emerging with the advent of learner-controlled and learner-selected electronic learning on the Web. The availability of communication and information technologies in the West outstrips access in the East. What do educators interested in finding bridges among cultures do to advance computing in education when these differences are omnipresent? Who bends, and where are there opportunities for blending? How can progress be made through mutual respect for cultural differences? While many complex issues dividing East and West defy simple answers for resolving conflicting educational change methods, there are issues that are critical to consider. Factors such accessibility, cost-effectiveness, primary teaching and learning style differences, and measures of quality all need careful attention. Information technology holds much promise for educational leaders with serious interest in improving educational access in Asia. But, the challenges of East/West differences in teaching traditions are difficult to bridge.