中国远程高等教育:何时进入主流

Distance Higher Education in China: When to Enter the Mainstream?

与美国、英国、澳大利亚等国远程高等教育融入主流教育的潮流相比,我国远程高等教育在院校模式、招生对象、人才培养定位等方面保持着太多的"特定性",与"主流、正规"院校教育的区别较大。那么,我国远程教育能否成为未来教育之主流?中国远程高等教育何时进入主流?本文通过文献评述,从技术变革、文化变迁以及Web2.0的应用(技术与文化的互动)三个方面,阐述了技术-文化与远程教育发展的关系。笔者以为,尽管科技本身对学校教育的影响甚微,但传播文化对教育的影响力量是强大的。远程教育所秉承的"终身学习、开放学习"理念与并喻文化、后喻文化是相互呼应的,作为技术与文化互动的产物,Web2.0可能成为远程教育的"现代"标志,为解决远程教育中质量与效益的矛盾带来新希望,也会给中国远程高等教育进入主流带来新希望。

In contrast with countries such as America, Britain and Australia whose distance education has entered the mainstream of higher education, China has much particularity in terms of scale, target student and education orientation in distance higher education and thus differs sharply from 'mainstream', 'formal' higher education. Can China's distance higher education enter the mainstream in the future? When can this goal be realized? Based on literature review, this paper attempts to expound on the relationship between technologies, culture and distance education development from the perspectives of technological innovation, cultural change and the application of Web2.0. It is argued in the paper that media culture exerts profound influence on education although the impact of technology per se on school education is relatively insignificant. Lifelong learning and open learning, which are advocated in distance education, are commensurate with co-figurative and post-figurative cultures. As a product of technology and cultural interaction, Web2.0 may become the symbol of modern distance education, enhance teaching quality and improve cost-effectiveness, thus facilitating the integration of distance education into the mainstream in China.