Anadolu University has been providing higher education opportunities through distance education since 1982 (with the establishment of Distance Education System) to those who could not otherwise continue their education. There have been over 950 graduates and specific projects that Distance Education System has an inevitable role to overcome educational problems in Turkey and also, with associate degree, bachelor’s degree and degree completion programs provides equal educational opportunities for many people thus helping raise the educational levels of Turkish citizens
Anadolu University Distance Education System has a flexible and dynamic as well as strong organization to meet new needs promptly via a contemporary distance education model. Anadolu University Distance Education System, becoming an attraction center via international collaborations, has the technical backgrounds and high-quality level and productive human power, as well as a gradually updated distance education model in Turkish Higher Education System. In this context, Anadolu University Distance Education System is one of the mega universities in the world.
Besides providing new capacities for the demands in Turkish Higher Education, Anadolu University Distance Education System distributes the associate degree, bachelor’s degree and degree completion programs for the personal in the national education, health, theology, horticulture, police, the Turkish Air Force, Army, Navy and Gendarme via its distance education model. Moreover, Anadolu University provides many people with large contributions by training human resource for prestige and international organizations thus helping raise the educational levels of Turkish citizens.
Anadolu University Distance Education System has 35 bachelors and associate degree programs with the enrolled Turkish students, who live in Turkey and also Turkish Republic of North Cyprus and 6 Western Europe Countries and provides these students with educational services via a coeval distance education system. Today, 40% of the students, who attend their education, in Turkey is the students of Anadolu University and Open Education Faculty…
The majority of them are the students who cannot find a change to attend traditional higher education. In this aspect, Open Education Faculty is proud of itself to provide educational opportunities to students with physical, hearing and visually impaired disabilities and people in prisons without making discriminations.
The 5. and 12. articles 2457 Law, which reorganized Turkish Higher Education, provided a continues and open education rights in the November 6th of November. After this Law, the 41 decree announced in the 20th of July gave this opportunity to Anadolu University which had the scientific and academic experiences, qualified human resources and technical/technological infrastructure in the global standards. Therefore, Open Education Faculty established from existing Communication Sciences Faculty was charged with distance education services in Turkey.
In the year 1981, while the demand of higher education in Turkey was 420.000 the students, who could attend the university, was 54.000. Namely, the approximately 13% of the existing demand could be met in that time. On the other hand, developments in educational technology area support to carry education to the beyond traditional before. Based on these thoughts, Anadolu University Distance Education System was established in 1982–1983, approximately 15 thousand students and there were expected to enroll in the Departments of Economics and Business Management. However, the number of enrolling students was beyond the expectations totaling 29,500.
The demand for higher education opportunities provided by the Open Education Faculty via distance education increased between the years 1982 and 1993. The reason for this increased interest was the high quality education we provided. Between these years, Open Education Faculty, in addition to the bachelor’s degree in Economics and Business, offered a degree completion program for 200 thousand teachers in accordance with the protocol signed with the Ministry of Education. Protocols were also signed with Ministry of Health to offer associate degree programs in midwifery, nursing and health technicians, and with Ministry of Agriculture to offer associate degree programs in veterinary sciences and agriculture. The Open Education Faculty also extended its services to Turkish citizens living in Western Europe and The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
In 1993, with the Regulation number 496, the Open Education Faculty was restructured based on the new educational needs of Turkey. The Economics and Business Administration departments became faculties offering four-year bachelor’s degree programs. Open Education Faculty, on the other hand, was furnished with the right to offer associate degree programs, certificate programs, and degree completion programs in addition to bachelor’s degree programs via distance education.
The 17 associate degree programs, such as Social Sciences, Home Economics, Bureau Administration, Public Relationships, etc., was developed and distributed in between 1993-1997. Besides, in the year 1996, Anadolu University started to design and manage the exams of Open Education Faculty that OSYM did these exams before. Developing technological conditions and especially differentiated educational needs made Open Education Faculty force to carry its traditional operations and use immensely new communication technologies that a new are was begun.
Open Education Faculty was very important for Turkish Higher Education and Anadolu University that the management structure of Open Education Faculty was reorganized and passed through the traditional goals in 1998. In this arrangement, all academic and administrative units of Anadolu University were provided contributions to Distance Education System. On the other hand, the communications and collaborations among all faculties in this system became more active and effective. The new programs in Distance Education System in Turkey were defined and provided lifelong learning opportunities. Therefore, novel information and communication technologies were used more effectively to design and deliver educational programs.
At the beginning of 1998, the academic programs of the Economic Faculty, Business Administration Faculty and Open Education Faculty providing services via distance education system were reorganized and revised the contents of the courses. Textbooks constitute the core material of distance education. Textbooks were designed with advanced educational technologies in such a way that students can learn by themselves, and were in accord with the Internet and TV programs. CD-ROMs were produced. The barriers and limitations of the transition quotas to Distance Education System was moved away. To establish a way of communication between our students in distance learning programs and the university, notifying students about the happenings on the campus, enabling students to get to know their university and program better, a program called ‘News from our university’ has been being broadcasted since 1998. It is a 10-minute program broadcasted every other week throughout the academic year.
In the year 1998, a two year associate degree in Theology Program was established in the responsibility of Ankara University Theology Faculty. The Internet address, reached at http://www.aof.anadolu.edu.tr, started to serve for students.
In the year 1999, the Internet-based trial examinations were delivered to help students effectively prepare their examinations. Videoconference is the component of distance education of Anadolu University. Anadolu University by collaborating with other universities delivers videoconferences via terrestrial lines and satellite in the year 1999. Since 1999, to help students prepare for the upcoming exams, exam-preparation programs are broadcasted. Taped programs for one week and live programs for one week are broadcasted on TRT 4 before the midterms and final exams. In the live programs students can call an 800 number (which is free) to ask questions. Thus Anadolu University is the first institution to offer an interactive education system via TV in Turkey
Open Education Faculty Early Childhood and English Language Teaching Programs were founded in the year by collaborating with the Ministry of Turkish Education.
Information Management associate degree program is the first Internet-based distance education program in 2001-2002 in Turkey. Information Management Program aims to train computer literate students who are furnished with the skills to solve information management problems. The aim of the program is to equip students with necessary skills to manage and offer solutions to information related problems. The core tool of education in this program is the online courses. These online courses are supplemented with textbooks, licensed software, virtual company practices, and videos of applications on CD ROMs, online tutorials, assignments, communication-access services, support service, and examinations. In the same year, the Second University as a second education opportunity was provided students, who adjust new conditions, develop herself/himself in the different areas, who enrolled an university program or graduated from a undergraduate program. Besides, to support the traditional higher education system, the transitions application was started by Turkish Higher Education board and Anadolu University.
The delivering of the TV programs on the Internet, which began in the 2003-2004 academic year, is known as e-television in the open education e-learning portal. The purpose of this service is to provide students with the opportunity to watch the TV programs at their convenience by enabling students to save these TV programs on their personal computers. There are 1196 TV programs for the 163 courses on the Internet.
Open Education Faculty has currently undertaken are the associate degree programs in the Turkish Gendarme and Police Programs in 2003-2004. Also, the special projects the Open Education Faculty has currently undertaken in two-year training for the Turkish Air Force, Army, Navy and Gendarme in 2004-2005 school-year. Open Education Faculty, on the other hand, was furnished with the right to offer degree completion programs in addition to bachelor’s degree programs via distance education.
During the academic year 2005-2006, Program in Retailing and Store Management was initiated, graduates of which would be considered prior by institutions member to the “Association of United Brands” when employing new staff. In the 2006-2007 academic year, the Program for Vocational Training of the high school graduates working at the Ministry of Justice was initiated. The preparations on another program; the Program in Primary School Education continue, for giving start in the academic year 2007-2008. Distance Education System consists of Economic Faculty, Business Administration Faculty and Open Education Faculty.
