开放教育特质论

On Specialities of Open Education

人类的教育活动滥觞于史前原始人最初的生存需要。沧海桑田,在经历了数十万年之后,公元前2000年前后,世界四大文明古国中的中国与印度相继出现名为“学”、“序”、“神庙学校”、“宫廷学校”的教育实体。漫漫历史长河推动着教育的发展。

The author holds the view that open education in its full meaning must have the following construc- live essences and specialities:1. Upholding the ideology of natural education2. No restriction on admission to school3. No time and space limitation in learning4. Learner-centered5. Application of multi-media6. Drawing support and aids from communities in societyAfter a detailed discussion on the specialities of open education, the author makes a thorough analysis on the differences between open education and traditional education.Firstly, so far as the concept of education is concerned, in traditional education, it only refers to the formal education performed in classroom teaching on the campus for the regular students of the right age group. It has obtained a much broader sense in open education from this narrow definition, with all sorts of educational modes such as continuous education, lifelong education, recurrent education, autonomous education, individual education, formal and non-formal education included. Such a concept is a ubiquitous one.Secondly, the traditional education lays emphasis on passing on knowledge, therefore, understanding, memorization and rote learning are favored. Open education , on the other hand, pays more attention to cultivating the learner's ability to think and solve problems independently in his autonomous learning than just cram him with knowledge.Thirdly, traditional education places great stress on classroom teaching and teaching methodology. Therefore it neglects learnign strategies and activities after class whereas open education, on the contrary, aims at efficeient learning.Finally the author differentiates and analyzes some wrong ideas about open and distant education, examinations for self-taught learners as well as correspondence education.