Minister of Education and Research Øystein Djupedals opening speech at Standing Conference of Presidents of Open and Distance Teaching Universities. Lillehammer, 11.06.06.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On behalf of the Royal Ministry of Education and Research, and as the Patron of this conference, it is a pleasure for me to welcome you to Norway, to the University College of Lillehammer and to the Opening Ceremony of the ICDE Standing Conference of Presidents of Open and Distance Teaching Institutions.

It has been ten years since ICDE arranged the SCOP Conference in Norway, that too in Lillehammer. In 1988, the ICDE World Conference was arranged in Oslo. At this world conference, almost 20 years ago, the then Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland invited ICDE to establish its permanent secretariat in Oslo.

She said, and I quote, ” This will be one of the contributions of this country to international development and collaboration in the increasingly important field of distance education.”

This vision is no less clear today. Our combined efforts and joint commitment to cooperation in education equip us well to address the global challenges of tomorrow. International non-governmental organisations such as ICDE are essential partners when we try to overcome barriers and build bridges between different cultures, languages and nations.

The permanent secretariat of ICDE was established in Oslo in 1988, and it is financially supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research. As we know, ICDE is formally recognized by the United Nations as the Global Membership Organization of flexible, distance and e-learning. For many years it has been an official and active partner of UNESCO in its education agenda, especially in promoting the use of ICT in education. We are proud to have you here, as an opportunity for Norwegian institutions to meet the global membership of ICDE and access the world of distance education.

I am obviously pleased to see that Lillehammer has again been chosen as the host city for SCOP. The University College is an active and central institution at the national level in the areas of distance education and lifelong learning, and highly competent in this field. The centre for lifelong learning and the competence in learning through media available at the college, are both important assets in its distance education activities. As a Norwegian, and as representative of the Norwegian government I feel it as my duty also to mention that the city of Lillehammer became world famous in 1994 when Norway and the city of Lillehammer hosted the Olympic Winter Games – highly successfully, I may add!

In my presentation I will focus on the following issues:

• The Royal Ministry of Education and Research – areas of responsibilities
• An overview of the structure of the higher education sector in Norway
• Distance education in Norway
• The international dimension - The Bologna Process and the Quality Reform
• The need for quality
• Concluding remarks

The Royal Ministry of Education and Research – areas of responsibilities

The Norwegian parliament – the Storting – and the Government define the goals and set the budgetary framework for education in Norway. It is my job – with the assistance of my able staff in the Ministry of Education and Research – to implement those decisions and national educational policy in general. As you will see, we have adopted a ‘cradle-to-grave’ approach, with all aspects of education, from day-care through primary, secondary and higher education to adult education under one roof, so to speak.

The responsibilities of the Ministry of Education and Research are:

• Day-care facilities for school children and resource centres for special education
• Primary and lower secondary education
• Upper secondary education and training
• Higher education
• The State Educational Loan Fund; loans and grants for students
• Lifelong learning in all areas of education and training through various providers
• Research; coordination of the Government’s research policies, basic allocations to the Research Council of Norway and research institutions. Funding for research in higher education institutions is included in their general framework allocations.
• International programmes and organizations.

An overview of the structure of the higher education sector in Norway

Public higher education institutions in Norway include six universities, five specialised national colleges, two national institutes of the arts and 25 university colleges. Those institutions carry out research and offer courses leading to academic degrees.

There are 26 private higher education institutions in Norway with recognised study programmes, but the majority of Norwegian students – , around 90% – attend public universities and colleges.

Out of a population of 4.5 million, more than 900 000 are currently undergoing some kind of education. In addition to this, approximately 1 million people annually participate in adult education courses. More than 200 000 people study at universities and colleges, and in addition approximately 15 000 Norwegians pursue full degree course abroad, with support from the State Educational Loan Fund. All institutions of higher education – public as well as private – are subject to the authority of the Ministry of Education and Research.

Distance Education in Norway

The use of distance teaching methods to increase access to education, has a long history in Norway. The first correspondence school in Norway – NKS – was established as early as in 1914. The independent distance education institutions were for many decades the dominant players in this field, and some of them – like the NKS and the NKI - are still very active to day.

Unlike many other countries Norway does not have one public Open University that offers distance education. This is not because we do not consider distance education important, but because we want the regular higher education institutions to offer such programmes and to integrate the distance education activity in their regular education activities.

Distance education emerged in traditional universities and colleges around 1990. Throughout the first part of the1990ies the activity was characterized by enthusiastic academics with a strong belief in the importance of making higher education accessible for other groups than the traditional students.

Today, most higher education institutions in Norway offer distance education, and the activity is increasing – in fact we have almost 18 000 distance learners in higher education. This may not seem much to some of you – after all, the population of Norway is less than that of most of your major cities – but remember that it is almost 10% of our students population. The volume of off-campus activity is still marginal compared to the on-campus teaching, but it is now more firmly grounded in institutional strategies and expressed in central policy documents and plans.

To stimulate and coordinate the activities within the field of lifelong and flexible ICT-supported learning in higher education, the Government established the Norwegian Agency for Flexible Learning in Higher Education (SOFF) in 1990. In 2004 the agency was merged with the Norwegian University Network for Lifelong Learning into a new organization, Norway Opening Universities – NOU. The headquarters of NOU is at the University of Tromsø, the northern­most university in the world – another Norwegian achievement!

The main tasks of Norway Opening Universities are:

• Stimulating the development of lifelong and flexible learning in Norwegian higher education.
• Generating and sharing knowledge.
• Being a policy advisor for the Ministry in this field.

One of the most important missions of NOU, like its predecessor SOFF, is project funding for ICT-supported flexible learning and distance education courses. The criteria for support are decided by The Ministry of Education in consultation with the NOU. In addition to this broad project funding NOU also supports projects in specific areas initiated by the Ministry. One example is support for development of continuing education for school teachers in the use of ICT as a learning tool.

Another important task for Norway Opening Universities is to establish networks and arenas in the field of distance education. More or less informal networks have already been established, consisting of key persons from Norwegian institutions of higher education, the employers’ organisations, unions and student organizations. The main function of those arenas is to stimulate communication and mutual understanding between institutions in higher education, and to link them with organisations and people in society and in the workplace in search of high-quality relevant and accessible education.

This Government considers decentralized ICT-supported teaching and distance education very important in widening access to higher education, and making lifelong learning available to all. Norway Opening Universities is a crucial partner in our work to stimulate the use of ICT in teaching and learning, to coordinate the efforts of the various stakeholders for optimal use of resources and to disseminate information and knowledge on how to do it.

The international dimension – The Bologna Process and The Quality Reform

For many reasons the international dimension is becoming increasingly important in higher education. Greater mobility, the amazing language skills of students and teachers, the transnational nature of study programmes and the international focus of institutions have led to new structures and activities, such as the establishment of campuses and virtual universities in foreign countries. Cooperation and Competition have become key words in the globalization of education, and so have the concepts of quality and quality assurance.

Internationalisation and quality assurance are very prominent on the political agenda of the Ministry for Education and Research and of the higher education institutions in Norway. And this leads us to the Bologna Process and the Norwegian Quality Reform.

Following the Bologna Declaration in 1999, more than 40 European countries have joined and currently take part in the Bologna Process. It aims to revitalize European higher education by creating a competitive European Higher Educational Area by 2010 in which national educational systems converge and are compatible while respecting principles of national diversity.

Several major challenges to European higher education are addressed. Three examples are:

• The growth and diversification of higher education
• Maintaining the competitiveness and attractiveness of European higher education; that is the ability of European higher education to attract students and faculty from outside Europe, as well as its ability to make its own students and faculty to remain here
• The promotion of the European mobility of students, faculty and staff, as well as the educated workforce in general, that is the issue of intra-European employability.

In addition, life-long learning and access to education as a common good are central topics.

A series of high-level meetings in Bologna, Prague, Berlin and, in 2005, in Bergen, Norway, mark the milestones of the process, supplemented by working seminars all over the European continent.

The Norwegian implementation of the Bologna Process, the so-called Quality Reform for Higher Education, took effect by the fall of 2003. The main purpose was to improve quality and it addressed many of the same issues as the European framework – a Bachelor-Master degree structure, the ECTS accreditation system and national and institutional quality assurance. And the Norwegian reform strongly emphasizes the need for quality and relevance in educational content as well as methodology. The Quality Reform in Higher Education covers public and private higher education and contains the following main elements:

• Change in governance at the institutional level
• Increased institutional autonomy
• A new funding formula for institutions
• A new degree structure
• New forms of student guidance, evaluation and assessment
• New financial support to students
• Internationalisation,
• and the Establishment of NOKUT, the Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education.

Another important aspect of the Quality Reform is NOKUT:

NOKUT is an independent government agency, and its main purpose is to oversee the quality of Norwegian higher education. It carries out evaluations, accreditations and approval of institutional quality systems, institutions and course programmes.

NOKUT is also responsible for recognition of higher education qualifications from abroad, checking the quality of foreign education and disseminating information about the latest developments in recognition and quality assurance.

Distance education and the use of ICT in education, are also part of the quality reform. According to Report to the Storting on The Quality Reform of Higher Education passed in the year 2000, institutions of higher education need:

• New technology to create relevant, updated and flexible educational offerings.
• Strategies for ICT-supported flexible education and distance education.
• Well-designed technological infrastructure and support staff with special competence in educational ICT.
• Mechanisms for engaging faculty and rewarding efforts related to development of flexible educational offerings.

In many higher education institutions in Norway, the focus on new forms of student guidance, evaluation and assessment has led to an increased interest in and use of ICT in education, both for on-campus and for distance education purposes. The use of ICT is expected to improve the quality of student guidance at a distance and communication between students and teachers, and open up for new and more flexible forms of evaluation and assessment. We in the Ministry considers the increased focus and use of ICT in higher education very positive and important.

The need for quality – Guidelines for Quality Provision in Cross-border Higher Education

The world struggles with a huge shortage of education. Countries all over the world, but particularly the developing countries, need to bring education within reach of countless millions eager to learn. Many look to the tools of distance education as a way to fill the vast gap. I myself am one of those who believe that we can do a lot with the new technologies and methodologies of modern distance learning, and I hope to see more collaboration North-South on this basis.

But we need to keep in mind that distance education must not be a second-class alternative. With mass dissemination of education over the Internet, for instance, quality assurance becomes more and more a crucial aspect. There may be subjects we would not want teach at a distance – how about airline pilots or brain surgery? – but whatever the content, quality should always be judged on the same basis as for the on-campus teaching alternatives.

Quality in education is high on the political agenda in Norway, and we have made several initiatives on the international scene. Addressing quality issues as they apply to ICT-based education and distance education is an essential part of our strategies. As we deal with the theme for this conference, Borderless University Teaching – Cooperation and Competition we must keep in mind that competition must take place in a way that supports co-operation and contributes to the wider mandate of education.

Therefore, as my speech draws to a close, let me draw your attention to one of our initiatives, the Guidelines for Quality Provision in Cross-border Higher Education. The Guidelines were developed by UNESCO and OECD in 2005.

I shall not describe the guidelines in detail, just draw your attention to their purpose and target groups.

Cross-border higher education challenges systems of quality assurance, accreditation and recognition of qualifications. The Guidelines provide an international framework to protect students and other stakeholders from low-quality provision and disreputable providers and they guide all the key stakeholders in sharing the responsibility for quality.

Furthermore, the Guidelines aim to support and encourage international cooperation and enhance the understanding of the importance of quality provision in cross-border higher education. The guidelines address higher education where the teacher, student, programme, institution/provider or course materials cross national jurisdictional borders. This may include higher education by public and private, non-profit and for-profit providers, and a wide range of modalities, from face-to-face to distance learning, using a range of technologies, and including e-learning. The challenges of such a new set of paradigms to quality assurance are not to be underestimated.

The guidelines are not legally binding, but recommend actions to six sets of stakeholders:

• Governments
• Higher education institutions and providers including academic staff,
• Student bodies,
• Quality assurance and accreditation bodies
• Academic recognition bodies and
• Professional bodies.

Member countries of the OECD and UNESCO are expected to implement the guidelines as appropriate in their national context.

Concluding remarks

Cross-border higher education through the mobility of students, academic staff, programmes, institutions and professionals has grown considerably over the last decades, and new delivery modes and cross-border providers have appeared. This opens up new opportunities for cooperation between institutions and countries, but it also poses new questions and challenges in relation to a more competitive higher education area, and increases the need for a stronger emphasis on quality and quality assurance.

The program of this conference include speeches on very important aspects of the topic of “Borderless University teaching – Cooperation and competition”.

Professor Dr. David Sewart from UK will deliver a keynote speech tomorrow on “Borderless Education - consequences for cooperation and competition between institutions and nations”. The other keynote speech tomorrow will examine Digital Information Technology as a platform for collaboration. That speech will be given by the Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information Sector in UNESCO, Dr. Abdul Waheed Khan. These are just two of a number of interesting and important contributions that you may enjoy at this conference.

The delegates represent more than 20 different countries. I hope you may all return home with new knowledge and better understanding of the important topics to be raised. Hopefully the new knowledge will be relevant in the context of your daily responsibilities, whether it is on a institutional, national or an international level. I also hope those of you who come from abroad will bring with you back home some good memories from Lillehammer and from Norway.

In other words: I wish you all a very good and fruitful conference here in Lillehammer. Thank you for your attention!