Wednesday, July 12, 2000

Panel Recommends That Japan Recognize Degrees Earned Online By BETH McMURTRIE An advisory group to Japan's Ministry of Education has recommended that it recognize Internet-based degrees and coursework from institutions overseas. Recognition in Japan is similar to accreditation in the United States. If the ministry agrees with the advice of the University Council, which has been pushing Japanese universities to become more competitive internationally, it could open up new markets to virtual universities and institutions offering Web-based courses. The Ministry of Education, which exercises strict controls over all levels of education in Japan, currently does not allow university students to take courses for credit through the Internet. It does, however, allow students to take almost half of their undergraduate course credits through other forms of distance education, such as television. It also recognizes academic work earned abroad. The council's recommendation, issued last month, would effectively broaden the ministry's definition of distance education to include Internet-based courses -- and, for the first time, acknowledge virtual universities. A ministry official, Yasuyuki Shimotsuma, said last month that once the University Council's final report is issued this fall, the ministry will act on it, as the two groups work in tandem. The recommendations are part of a larger report on globalization and Japanese universities. The report encourages universities to embrace the Internet as a way to make education more accessible to working adults and more effective for full-time students. It also encourages them to recruit more foreign students, and to work with foreign universities to develop Internet technologies. Some observers say the demand for Internet courses could be limited. Many Japanese students have difficulty with the English language. And Internet use in general lags far behind the United States, so that students may not be comfortable with taking a course entirely online. "There's an assumption that every Japanese has a computer at home, and that's not the case," said Lynne A. McNamara, director of program development in Asia for the University of Maryland University College. "And Internet access is extremely expensive compared to the United States." Internet-service providers charge about $25 a month; the real cost is using the telephone line, she said. Monthly bills can easily run $100 month. U.M.U.C., a major provider of online courses, is just beginning to market its programs in Japan, primarily to working adults. Employees in multinational companies are more likely to be comfortable with earning a degree through the Internet than college students are, Ms. McNamara said. "Recognition by the Ministry of Education may not be that significant for corporations," she said, since their main interest is in advancing employees' skills. Even if recognition does provide a boost for virtual universities, Ms. McNamara estimates that only 10 percent to 15 percent of the work force has a high enough proficiency in English to enroll in universities like U.M.U.C. But John N. Hawkins, chairman of the division of social sciences and comparative education at the University of California at Los Angeles, thinks the demand for Internet education shouldn't be underestimated. Many Japanese people want to get an international education but would rather not leave the country, he noted. The Internet may prove to be the solution to that dilemma. Marjorie Peace Lenn, executive director of the Center for Quality Assurance in International Education, a higher-education organization based in Washington, D.C., said that Japan has remained hesitant to embrace new technologies in higher education. Japanese people are also not accustomed to seeking advanced degrees or certificates once they've embarked on a career, she said. "It is a very difficult country to penetrate because of traditional attitudes of what higher education should be, because of traditional attitudes of what is a student, and because of a tradition of centralized control" in higher education, Ms. Lenn said. But as Japan digs its way out of a decade-long recession, observers say workers may be more eager to turn to Internet-based courses to improve their skills without having to quit their jobs. Ms. Lenn said it is clear the Ministry of Education is aware of the benefits of the Internet-based programs: She has been asked to meet with ministry officials this summer to discuss how to adopt quality-control standards for virtual education. Easy-to-print version E-mail this article

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