John Daniel (17 page PDF) takes as his starting point V.S. Prasid's 2018 analysis (142 page PDF) of current practice in open and distance learning (ODL) (the karma) and the aspirations of ODL (the dharma), and the disconnect between them. It's a good analysis. Daniel draws two observations from this discussion: "this disconnect is not unique to India, although the size of its ODL sector gives more examples of it. Second, it is ironic that some OUs are struggling just as the wider higher education system begins to adopt their missions."
He then visits his previously referenced iron triangle, considers the interplay between independence and interaction, and examines what current ODL institution heads think, all this leading to several definitions of 'open': open as to people (ODL institutions should be leading in things like MOOCs, not lagging, he says); open as to place (now world-wide, but with rising concerns about neo-colonialism), open as to methods (an in particular, autonomous governance and management), and open as to ideas (specifically about teaching effectively, "a vibrant area of research and development in ODL").
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