Sanaa University launches distance learning programme
11/20/2014
For the first time in its history, Sanaa University in late October opened its doors for Yemenis in rural areas and busy professionals to register in a distance learning programme that will enable them to obtain a university degree.
The university has begun the pilot phase by opening the door for admission into four faculties: commerce, sharia and law, media and literature.
In 2007, it had opened the door for distance learning for Yemenis abroad, including students and children of Yemeni expatriates in Saudi Arabia.
"Sanaa University is the only university to get a permit from the Ministry of Higher Education to offer the distance learning service both domestically and abroad," university President Abdul Hakim al-Sharjabi told reporters after the door was opened for acceptance of registration into the distance learning programme.
The new programme "provides an opportunity for employees and residents of rural areas to obtain a university degree, and takes into account the circumstances of women who wish to finish their education", al-Sharjabi said.
Government employee Mahfouz Abdul Karim, 30, was among the hopefuls who went to register at the Distance Learning Centre.
He told Al-Shorfa he hopes to complete the process because he is unable to enrol at a public university due to his job and obligations to his family.
The programme suits his circumstances and busy schedule, he added.
Mother-of-two Manal Ali, a housewife, said she registered for the programme because it would enable her to reconcile her household responsibilities with school duties that do not require her to attend classes at university on a daily basis.
Centre deputy director Ali al-Ammar told Al-Shorfa that registration for the distance learning programme "came in consideration of the circumstances of the rural population and employees, and also the social circumstances that may prevent women from pursuing higher education".
"The distance learning programme is a new window into alleviating the demand for and tremendous pressure on Sanaa University, which enrolls 100,000 students per year," he said.
Many obstacles face those who wish to pursue higher education, he said, including the rising rate of poverty in Yemen, in addition to the country's overall difficult conditions, which have forced many to focus first on securing their livelihood and precluded them from finishing their education.
The centre seeks to help all segments of society, he added.
Al-Ammar spoke to the requirements and the mechanism of the distance learning programme.
Secondary school graduates must have a grade average no lower than 10% of that required by the university for enrolment in a standard education programme, with the exception of the Faculty of Commerce, in which enrolment requires a grade average no lower than 15% of that required by the university for a standard programme.
In addition, he said, the student must attend at least 30% of the lectures, while the remaining 70% are offered online and via virtual classrooms and "video conferencing".
Meanwhile, exams will be conducted per the standard education system, meaning the student must travel to the university to take semester exams like any student enrolled in the standard education programme, as their curriculum is the same and has been developed by the professors who will grade the exams, he said.
The centre, he said, has four large halls outfitted with the latest computers and devices, and it conforms to academic standards and the requirements of academic accreditation.
It was on this basis that the centre was granted a permit to offer this type of education, al-Ammar said.
He said the centre is currently preparing to launch a training workshop for centre-affiliated professors in the four faculties, though many of them already have experience with this kind of education at universities abroad.
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES
"Sanaa University offered the distance learning programme after reviewing the experiences of a number of universities in Arab and world countries in this field," said Abdul Rahim al-Shaweri, a professor at the centre.
"Sanaa University has a technical, technological and academic infrastructure that is well-respected by academic institutions," he added.
Technological advancements and Internet services provided via both landlines and smartphones helped officials overcome many barriers for the benefit of the students, he told Al-Shorfa, whether they are residents of rural areas, housewives or busy professionals, and gave them access to lectures via multiple electronic means.
By Faisal Darem