This study is sponsored by The Commonwealth of Learning .  
The principle investigators are Terry Anderson, Dominique Abrioux and Griff Richards, Athabasca University - Canada's Open University

Study Description:

 
During the past six months provincial governments of British Columbia and Quebec have announced the merger of their single mode distance education institutions into larger, dual mode institutions. This largely administrative/political decision will likely have considerable effect on the administration, development, independence and security of these two institutions. Given that these institutions are two of the only three such single mode institutions in Canada , this merger will likely result in considerable change to the structure of postsecondary distance education in Canada .

 
There are likely many lessons that can be learned and important issues that emerge from these consolidations for both distance and campus based systems. These lessons likely extend beyond Canada to other countries with developing or mature distance education programs.

 
Greville Rumble described in 1992 the vulnerability of single mode distance delivery institutions in an era in which dual mode institutions can offer both forms of education. The recent deployment of Web-based learning systems on campus based institutions designed to create models of “blended learning” further reduces the technical differences between campus and distance delivery. Finally, the accessibility (via libraries, private databases, and the public Internet) of vast quantities of educational content creates access for students that were at one time only available through single mode institutions. Thus, there is evidence that characteristics of the two systems are becoming increasingly similar.

 
There are still significant differences, however, between the two modes related to various components of “industrial” development and delivery, the provision of student support services, flexibility of pre-requisites, start and stop dates, as well as pacing between some distance education systems and dual mode institutions. Finally, there is still considerable evidence that the cost per student is lower in single compared to the dual mode institutions.

Research Questions:

• What were the formally stated (and informally held) reasons for the decision by the provincial governments of British Columbia and Quebec to merge their single mode distance education universities with campus based institutions?
• What are the planned (and likely unplanned) costs in personal, programming, and administration, that have resulted from this decision?
• What larger context lessons can be drawn from these two cases, especially those relevant to other Commonwealth nations?
• Are these amalgamations evidence of the vulnerability of single mode institutions as described by Rumble in 1992?
• Others?

Methodology:

The study will use a comparative case study methodology using the two cases. The study will commence with a literature review focusing on comparisons between two modes of distance education development and delivery. Each case will be described thoroughly with focus paid on the recent past and reasons for the current change in administration systems. The two cases will be compared and contrasted and conclusions extracted from these summaries. Original data will be collected from interviews selected on the basis of our evolving theoretical interest finding answers to the research questions. These interviews will focus on key administrative personal in both dual and single mode institutions. The sample will contain representatives from financial, administrative, student support, academic, and student unions. The interviews will be recorded and transcribed. Major themes will be extracted from the interviews using general grounded theory analysis techniques.