Flexible learning

MINISTERS from six countries attended the Eighth Pan-Commonwealth Forum (PCF8) at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre last month.
They were Minister for Education, Prof Jane Naana OpokuAygemang from Ghana; Minister of State for Education, Prof Anthony Anwukah from Nigeria; Minister of Education and Skills Development, Dr Unity Dow from Botswana; Designated Minister, Macsuzy Mondon from Seychelles; Minister of Education and Training, Phineas Magagula from Swaziland; and Minister of Education, Nick Kuman, from Papua New Guinea. There were more than 400 participants from 56 countries.
Themed “Open, Online and Flexible Learning: The Key to Sustainable Development”, PCF8 was co-hosted by Open University Malaysia (OUM) and the Commonwealth of Learning (COL).
Minister of Higher Education Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh said Malaysia has benefited from COL’s initiatives, especially in areas such as capacity building, materials development and policy support for sharing open educational resources and promoting open and distance learning.
According to COL president Prof Asha Kanwar, COL’s mission is to help Commonwealth member states and institutions use technologies for expanding access to quality education and training.
OUM president/vice chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Mansor Fadzil said that as the first open and distance learning institution in Malaysia, OUM is successfully sharing its achievements and experiences with other open universities around the world.