Distance Education and its Potential for the Red Sea Nation, Eritrea: A Discourse

All over the world, distance mode of education is gaining a momentum and becoming more popular than conventional education. It is a system in which schools, universities and other educational agencies offer instruction wholly or partly by mail. Eritrea, a newly independent country in Africa has been facing many challenges particularly in its education sector. It does not have sufficient educational institutions at tertiary level, thus, distance learning which is more cost effective, could be an alternative method of higher education for this country. The distance education programme could promote higher education by providing access to large number of urban people and disadvantaged groups in rural and remote areas including working people, fighters, women and other adults. An attempt has been made in this paper to discuss various issues related to the establishment and development of distance education. It also provides the distance education programmes that so far undertaken in Eritrea and highlights the potential for the distance education in the country.

[1]  John S. Daniel,et al.  The mega-universities and knowledge media : technology strategies for higher education , 1996 .

[2]  P. Gilkes.  Historical Dictionary of Eritrea , 1999 .

[3]  Zane L. Berge,et al.  Review of research in distance education, 1990 to 1999 , 2001 .

[4]  Greville Rumble,et al.  Vocational Education at a Distance : International Perspectives , 1992 .

[5]  C. McClellan.  Historical Dictionary of Eritrea , 1998, African Studies Review.

[6]  David A. Keast,et al.  Toward an Effective Model for Implementing Distance Education Programs. , 1997 .

[7]  R. Rena.  Financing of Education in Eritrea - A Case Study of Zoba Maekel , 2005 .

[8]  John R. Verduin,et al.  Distance Education: The Foundations of Effective Practice , 1991 .

[9]  Michael Simonson,et al.  Research on Distance Education , 1997 .

[10]  A. Taye.  A historical survey of state education in Eritrea , 1991 .

[11]  Ravinder Rena,et al.  Challenges in Introducing Distance Education Programme in Eritrea: Some Observations and Implications , 2007 .

[12]  S. Kvale.  Interviews : an introduction to qualitative research interviewing , 1996 .

[13]  M. Moore,et al.  Distance education: a system view , 1996 .

[14]  R. Rena.  Eritrean Education - Retrospect and Prospect , 2005 .

[15]  Fred I. Greenstein,et al.  Strategies of inquiry , 1975 .

[16]  William Saint,et al.  Tertiary distance education and technology in Sub-Saharan Africa , 2000 .

[17]  Börje Holmberg,et al.  The evolution of the character and practice of distance education , 1995 .

[18]  Ted A. Baumgartner,et al.  Conducting and Reading Research in Health and Human Performance , 1994 .

[19]  R. Rena.  Gender Disparity in Education - An Eritrean Perspective , 2005 .

[20]  D. Keegan.  On Defining Distance Education , 1980, Distance Education: International Perspectives.

[21]  Mike Moore,et al.  Recent contributions to the theory of distance education , 1990 .

[22]  N. Denzin,et al.  Handbook of Qualitative Research , 1994 .