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International Journal on Recent and Innovation Trends in Computing and Communication Volume: 1 Issue: 4 195 206
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Role of Mass Media in Higher Education & its Economic Viability Part: 2 Mass Media and Higher Education
Dr S Tiwari,
GE, eYuG (Free-lance Academician), stiwari.eyug@rediffmail.com
Abstract: In the first part, an attempt has been made to examine the ground realities of higher education in Indian context. It has also been stressed as to how the higher education has been visualized and implemented during the last five decades since independence. Its growth, role and constrains have also been highlighted. It has been noticed in the process of presenting the panorama of different aspects of higher education in India that it has been facing a problem of massification. The system of higher education needs a drastic reconstruction, almost a revolution to democratise higher education. With this background, it has been observed that in the process of development of higher education the great potential of communication technologies and mass media could be used to find the remedies of its shortcomings. The mass media can be harnessed in open and distance education, which is today the most viable means of offering cost effective and quality education to the masses. Hence, role of mass media has been analysed in this chapter to find out the answers to our concerns of higher education for all. It has been attempted to analyse the role of mass media in relation to higher education and making it accessible to aspirants of higher education. Mass Media, comprises the institutions and techniques by which specialized groups employ technological devices like Press, Radio, Television, Computer, films, Internet etc. to disseminate knowledge: to large heterogeneous as well as widely dispersed audience. With the evolution and development of information technology and electronic media, the social scientists and engineers teamed together in the studies of the total communication process, its feasibility, cost effectiveness and speed. Here this broader view of Mass Media can be taken in the context of its application in the field of imparting higher education to all. Mass Media has been universally characterized by four attributes these are: (1) Broad appeal (2) Speed (3) Availability (4) Low cost. The term 'mass' refers to a large body of people in a compact group. The mass consists of an audience unseen and unknown. The term 'media -has distinct meaning -That is communication as the 'transmission of messages' a receiver and a channel or a medium through which the message is transmitted. Thus "Mass Media [4] is delivering information and ideas, to a sizeable and diversified audience and is directed to a large, heterogeneous and anonymous audience." Keywords- Mass Media, Relevance of Mass Media, Information Explosion, NPE 1986, Information Highways, Programmed learning, Micro-teaching, Economic Viability. ________________________________________________________*****_________________________________________________________
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Relevance And Role of Mass Media in Higher Education The rapid developments that have taken place in recent years in the field of information technology, have paved the way for revolutionary changes in higher education, in terms of both methodologies and concept. The new technologies have basically provided access to a vast volume of information, helped in handling this information more competently and have consequently assisted in improving both quality and productivity. The two general factors [4] - "information explosion and "population explosion" are bringing about changes in the developed and the developing countries in more or less degree. Both of them have posed critical problems for higher education- more things to be learnt and more individuals to learn. It is not possible to solve them by conventional means. Especially in developing countries like India, it has to be mastered and utilised by educationists, if they are to keep pace with each other and catch with developed nations. While more than 30% of the population in the age group 18-23 in advanced countries are in the higher education system, in India this percentage is only about 6. Realizing the danger of this disastrous situation, India has embarked upon a great adventure of utilizing mass media for spreading education at all levels. The national policy on education 1986 has great emphasis of the use of educational technology for improving the quality as well as quantity of education for the first time in the history of Indian Education. The NPE, 1986 has suggested that
in order to avoid structural dualism, modern education technology must reach out to the most distant areas and the most deprived sections of beneficiaries simultaneously with areas of comparative affluence and ready availability. Education Technology means the use of all kinds of modern media methods and materials for maximising the learning experiences with a view to meeting the problems arising out of "Knowledge Explosion" as well as "Population Explosion". Experts as one of the potential means of imparting education effectively and efficiently suggest educational Technology. Effective in the sense that the learning with use of the E. T. becomes easy, durable and interesting. Efficient in the sense that it is economical and cost effective. In the context of the unprecedented explosion of knowledge, higher education has to become dynamic as never before constantly entering uncharted areas. The higher education has reached a stage, where consolidation is felt to be of more importance than explosion. It needs to be flexible, varied, equitable and efficient. Hence, the quality of improvement has to be accelerated and relevance to be geared to the needs of the people with various infrastructural facilities, research and evaluation. Media support has been realised to be of immense significance in order to equalise educational opportunity, to make the deficiencies, to remove disparities and to improve the quality of higher education in its different aspects and dimensions. The development in communication technologies has had tremendous impact on higher education, which is fast becoming an international enterprise constantly entering
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uncharted areas. Conventionally, the transfer of information has been through the media of letters, books, telephone, radio, video, television and computers. These have now been integrated at the electronic frontier to give information highways (rather superhighways) that facilitate rapid transfer of information on a global scale. Basically this involves the linking of (millions of) computers through telephone lines via a device called modem. Technologically, it requires a harmonious intermeshing of optic fibers, telecommunication cables and satellites. Today, this linkage allows the transfer of not only data but also sound and visuals. Education technology has immense potentialities for augmenting education facilities and improving the qualities of education, particularly at the higher stage. It includes the Internet, various modern and traditional media radio, television, video recorder, audio recorder, films, printing materials and graphics etc. With a view to make higher education available to various learner groups of vast diversities and entering to the requirements of different curricular courses, media support is essential. These media need to be used in seminars, symposia conferences, meetings, workshops, demonstration and so on, besides classroom teaching. In the various modern methods like programmed learning, team teaching or micro-teaching, computer media are indispensable or are largely required for ensuring effectiveness and efficiency in learning. The age-old teaching methods like lecture or "chalk and talk" are not adequate to do justice to the intellectual, psychological and emotional needs of the learners of higher education at present. The various dynamic methods of teaching with the help of media appropriate to learning objectives and experiences need be adopted both informal and non-informal settings of education. Self instructional materials with the support of teaching machines, computers, TV and radio can makes higher education very effective as well as interesting. An environment of ability, dynamics, interest and attractiveness should replace the atmosphere of dullness, lifelessness inertia and unattractiveness. This can be done only with the use of different media. Mass Media can be used in planning and organising and instructions for removing inequalities and regional imbalances. The open learning system through the open universities can play a significant role in facilitating learning by media supported summer courses, contact programmes, correspondence and distance education programmes. Satellite communication system has made the learning process more cost effective, more enlightening and more interesting. The University Grants Commission (UGC) has taken the initiative to utilise the time slot available for higher education to telecast programmes in higher education titled countrywide classroom, through which higher education is spread to remote and backward areas of the country. The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) is already making use of mass media. It has plan to launch a variety of mass turning programmes in various fields to meet the educational expectations of a large country like India. The Role of Technology in Education Technology is a force of significance in most aspects of modern civilization, and it is no less significant in the field of education. With new media and instructional technology, invidiualisation is not only economically feasible at the present time, but is actually required if universities are to accomplish their mission on an efficient basis. It is not necessary to have sophisticated technology in order to individualise learning; many audio-visual resources currently in use are quite well suited to this application. It is also important to recognize that the term technology refers as much to a process as of hardware and media alternatives; thus it is necessary to examine how the process of technology may alter the man-machine relationship in the years to come. Educational Technology or Instructional Technology is based on the belief that technology, properly supported and widely employed, could help meet some of the nations most pressing educational needs. The stress must not, however, be on technology, but on learning. The heart of education is the student learning, and the value of any technology used in education must therefore be measured by its capacity to improve learning. Functions of the Media Technological media enable the adaptability of the educational process to the individual students differences in pace, temperament, background, and style of learning. These media can perform many of the following functions involved in the educational process: They can store information until it is needed or wanted. They can distribute it over distances to reach the student wherever he happens to be, instead of bringing him to the teacher. They can present the information to the student through various senses and in many modes. They can give the student the opportunity to reach the material and respond in many ways. Educational technology, with its concomitant system emphasis, is concerned with the relation, performance and interaction of the various units of the formal and informal education systems. Educational or instructional media are simply the forms or means of conveyance of messages to the audience within the educational domain. While the term media generally arouses images of some type of device or educational product, it is important to note that recent definitions do not require a concrete object, but may include such things as field trips and laboratory exercises. Educational technology is usually conceived of as addressing itself to the twin goals of improving educational effectiveness (meaning success in achieving objectives) and efficiency (meaning optimum relationship between output and input). Following the definition of technology in general as the systematic application of knowledge and techniques to practical processes, educational technology places stress on education methods and modes of organisation rather than on technical devices. The mechanical apparatus of education is merely a means to an end, and has no virtue in its own right. Educational technology has also been described as a systematic approach to instruction, where the objectives are defined, the logical blocks in the argument worked out, and students tested for their ability to absorb the blocks at different rates in different sequences etc. According to this definition, a good textbook is an example of educational technology, especially if it happens to verge on a programmed text. Instructional technology has been defined in the following two ways. In its more familiar sense, it means that media born of the communication revolutions which can be used for instructional purposes, alongside the teacher, textbook,
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and blackboard. The components that make up educational technology include television, films, overhead projectors, computers, and the other items of hardware and software. In nearly every case, the media have centered education independently, and still operate more in isolation than in combination. Purpose of Educational Technology The second and less familiar education of instructional technology transcends any particular medium or device, in this sense, instructional technology is more than the sum of its parts. It is a systematic way of designing, carrying out, and evaluating the total process of learning and teaching in terms of specific objectives, based on research in human learning and communication, and employing a combination of human and non-human resources to bring about more effective instruction. This comprehensive approach may be considered to hold the key to the contribution, technology can make to the advancement of education. Instructional technology, by either of the two definitions, includes a wide array of instruments, devices and techniques, each with its particular problems, potential, and proponents. It is important to note that neither definition equates technology with machines. Many observers believe, for example, that fascination with the gadgetry of instructional television to the exclusion of the idea behind it has often led to stereo-type and impoverished uses of that medium. Many people see instructional technology primarily as a way of recording, storing, transmitting, distributing, and displaying material. But equally important is its capacity for response and feedback and for reinforcement of learning. Programmed learning, for example, provides immediate, constant and infinitely patient feedback. Another quite different example is the use of videotapes in teacher education (microteaching), which gives teachers a new way to see themselves, to analyze small units of their own teaching, and to improve their methods as a result. The basic purpose of educational or instructional technology is to arrange the various educational media in concord with the other resources of education to achieve or contribute to a higher quality and/or quantity of output from the educational systems. The five major areas where progress in educational technology has been, and is being made, are: Making the teaching-learning process more visible. Increasing labour-specialisation in faculty. Improving concepts of measurement and evaluation of aspects of the education system. Objectifying goals and clarifying intentions of instruction. Shifting the factors of production toward less labour and more instructional materials and equipment. The major components of Mass Media and their role in Higher Education In a general sense, educational media include texts, work-books, programmed books and other print materials: tapes, records and other audio materials; filmstrips, motion pictures and other photographic materials; games, apparatus and a number of other manipulative materials; charts, signs, maps and other graphic materials; dioramas, bulletin boards, felt boards and other displays; as well as other resources which serve as the carriers of messages. The individual learner in his classroom accesses many of these media based messages, others are obtained in a college resource center, and still others may be obtained from remote locations. This list does not exhaust the possible means and methods that may be needed for designing the complex requirements for optimally stimulating academic learning. While most of these media had their origins outside education, and their goal was entertainment rather than education, their potential for improving the effectiveness of the learning process has been recognised now. Aims of media The multi-media system of instruction has now replaced the pathological syndrome of single medium fixation, so characteristic of the early 1950s. There has also been conceptual thinking about the media. They are carriers of information; empty channels and raw tapes, films, and paper. The basic complex problem is to select the most appropriate modes of communication for learning strategies and put these into combinations. The selection of media involves the matching of the characteristics of the media to the demands of the instructional situation the characteristics of the instructor, the content, the student and the environment. An attempt is made here to summarise the purposes for which the new media are being employed. New media can be used as aids to the presentation process. This has traditionally been the usual point of entry for new devices and techniques into the process of teaching and learning. As a matter of common observation, the use of audio-visual materials seems to add clarity and precision to the way the content of a particular lecture or teaching session is presented. The mere discipline of seeking out, or preparing for ones self, materials that are suitable for ones course probably adds a great deal to its educational effectiveness. There are other closely related results of audio-visual procedure associated with clarity. One of these is accuracy. A carefully drawn diagram using colour (and possibly, in the case of overhead projector transparencies, several overlays) is preferable to a hastily drawn and sometimes inaccurate blackboard sketch. It is not only the efficient presentation of the material to the student that is involved here; the lecturer also derives considerable convenience from having high-quality materials at his fingertips. He saves time in the class, and undoubtedly saves preparation time in the end. Media can be used as aids to demonstration. In addition to some evidence that interest is aroused and that learning is enhanced by new methods of presentation, there is a whole series of teaching objectives, which can be better achieved by the new media. Media are used as aids to solution of logistic problems. The arguments for using media as aids to presentation depend upon the hypothesis that they improve teaching and learning within the existing framework. One of the major characteristics of the newer technology is that it transcends many of the traditional patterns of the teacher in the classroom. As long as the process of educational communication depends upon the range of the human voice and eye, and upon the organizational constraints which brought a limited number of students together in a room with a teacher, a great many limits were placed on flexibility. Once educational materials are available in a recorded form, it is possible not only to permit repetition and frequent access within an institution; high-quality learning materials can be deployed throughout an educational system, to give students opportunities which previously did not exist. Therefore the
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concept of access leads to many new ways in which universities might organise learning situations. New devices and techniques can be used as aids to the assessment process. There is no obviously convenient or generally accepted system for classifying learning resources; usually they are classified on the basis primarily of information sources. The various components of mass media and their role are as followsa. Audio-visual Materials and Equipment A variety of materials to aid instruction has been available to the colleges and schools for some years, employing the use of such equipment as tape recorders, record players, slide and filmstrip projectors, overhead projectors, motion picture projectors and radios. Whether these employ sight or sound, or both together, they are grouped as audio-visual materials. They are also frequently referred to as conventional aids, though this term is somewhat misleading. Another important development in the increasing emphasis on the use of audio-visual resources for independent study. This has led to the concept of the learning resource center. Usually a learning resource center has learning booths or Carrels, in which individual students can use slides, filmstrips, film loops, tape recorders and books. There is a fundamental question whether audio-visual materials are a means of instruction or merely aids or adjuncts to instruction. Basically, they are amplifiers, which extend the range of the human voice, the eye, and ear; alternatively, they bring distant sights and sounds into the classroom. As such, they are or can be a means of instruction just as a textbook is. But whereas books are taken for granted, audio-visual materials are often introduced or not, largely at the whim of the teacher. In higher education, resistance to the use of audio-visual materials is usually attributed to the following reasons: Faculty and administrative inertia. Unavailability of films, equipment, or operators when needed. Lack of equipped classrooms or other viewing areas. Problems of obtaining the right material when needed. Lack of budget to provide decentralization of certain materials and equipment. Unavailability of appropriate materials. Limited time of instructs for locating or designating appropriate materials. Lack of information about sources. Lack of technical assistance for preparation of materials. b. Language Laboratories The purpose of the language laboratory is to develop listening and speaking skills in foreign languages. The system employs individual study carrels (booths) and the use of audio tape equipment and headphones in combination with other materials. For reasons of convenience, these facilities are housed in one place, as opposed to being portable or mobile. The maintenance of the complicated electronic components is a highly skilled job, requiring an appropriately skilled staff. c. The Computer The computer has three main uses in education: it is a research tool; it is a management tool; and it is a teachinglearning machine. While the role of the computer in higher education for the purposes of research and management is well established, the proposition that a computer could also become a potent new vehicle for teaching and learning is more recent, but it is being taken up with considerable enthusiasm. d. Radio While it is good to visualize a radio-listener in the privacy of his home, the ideal is never valid on realistic grounds. Radio clubs/forums have been found very useful in adult education and literacy programmes. Why cant they be useful in continuing education and distance education programmes as well? These clubs are necessary because learners participation and collective effort are essential at very stage of the programme to make broadcasting realistic. Learners who tune in to radio to get a programme as a follow-up measure to the knowledge already acquired may be encouraged to listen in groups, at radio clubs and in self-help groups which can, over a period of time, become academic-social centers for congregation of learners. Their listening may be followed by discussion of content under the guidance of the group leader. Of course, the radio programme should have some link with reference material with the listeners so that they have something to refer to when they listen to the radio. The effectiveness of a radio broadcast is increased when the programme writers take into account vocabulary of the target group, and if the organizers encourage learners to participate in a post-broadcast discussion session, particularly if the broadcasts themselves are so designed as to draw the listeners to a participatory programme in the form of filling in checklists and other academic exercises. There are ways in which an ingenious scriptwriter for radio and TV can encourage the learners into sustained academic action. One can ask the listener to write the name of an object being described or the name of a historical personage whose works are being described. One can leave space in a sentence and ask for a word to be filled in. Importance of Radio in Education Radio is an effective medium. It is also comparatively inexpensive. It has occupied a significant place in communication. It is also playing an important role in education. It not only informs, but also inspires. It not only inculcates values and virtues but also creates attitudes, interests and appreciation. It can cover a very wide area at the same time. There is already a well-developed infrastructure and a background of long experience to its advantage. Educational broadcasting has, therefore, immense possibilities particularly in a developing country like India where constraints of finance, efficient teachers suitable equipment and appliances adversely affect educational planning and administration, radio is to play a significant part in expansion as well as qualitative improvement of education. India is still having some inaccessible areas where expansion of education has faced difficulties. To a large number of socially disadvantaged children, education is not meaningful and interesting. There has been a growing awareness about the inadequacy of the traditional or formal system of education not only for expansion but also for improving the standards of education. The need for alternatives in the shape of non-formal education, distance learning and correspondence courses is gradually felt imperative. Throughout the world, educational radio programme has become popular and in certain countries it has worked wonders. These countries also represent both developed and developing world and the radio programmes have been found effective both in formal and non-formal systems of education.
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Advantages of Radio It is cost-effective. It is suitable for both classroom and home listening. Even remote areas can be easily reached. It is easy to use. Programmes can be recorded for future also. The software design of other media can be emulated with suitable modifications. Disadvantages of Radio Individualised instruction is not possible. Minority needs are thus ignored. For the purpose of specialized teaching, radio is only an audio medium, with no visual mode. e. Television The television can serve to bring academic material to the student in a more direct and personal way then printed units can, and it can give a sense of association to the members of a widely scattered institution. In years to come, television (recorded video-cassettes as a support facility) can lead an entire course; but the appropriateness and cost factor of the available technology has to be kept in view. Indeed, in any distance education programme where the target audience is around 100 or so, the use of this technology would be an avoidable luxury, but where larger numbers are involved (country-wide classroom is an example) the technology can be put to proper use, within the constraints of cost and availability of resources. For effective utilization, the radio/TV lessons should be reinforced by suitable printed reading material, supplied before and after the presentation of the programme. A TV programme, particularly for teaching a language, can be effectively designed for spelling recognition, vocabulary acquisition, speed-reading, oral comprehension, and for improving knowledge in the use of the language. Advantages of Television Communication with large audiences is possible. Communication with audiences scattered in different areas is possible. The vision-sound modes have a special appeal. Flexibility in editing is possible. Use of video-tape-recorder (VTR) makes it ideal for individualized instruction, cost permitting. With accompanying/pre-dispatched instructional materials, it can be very useful as a follow-up process. Software production could emulate other available media such as movies/and dramas. With accompanying checklists, it can be used for testing purposes. Disadvantages of Television TV is expensive. Technology is not readily available. It neglects a minority audience. Individualized reading is difficult to accomplish, if VTR facility is not readily available. Even when VTR is available, it may prove to be expensive. While software production is relatively easier, the software package may be expensive. The time schedule is generally inflexible. It is more suitable for demonstration than for immediate follow-up by the viewers. The message, unlike the printed medium, is transitory. f. The newspaper The creation of mass markets, which only large and costly units could serve efficiently, has led inevitably to a contraction of ownership in many cities and towns and thus to the development of newspaper chains. The high point in the number of newspapers published in the United States came in 1909, when there were 2600 daily publications. The localism of newspapers and their efforts to attract and hold readers in a competitive market have made the newspaper in many respects a more direct descendant of the early magazine of the nineteenth century than is the contemporary magazine. In its growing consumer orientation and emphasis on news you can use, todays local newspaper is very similar. Readers of all ages can usually find something to interest them in the papers coverage of local events and activities, in its local and syndicated features, comics, and games, and in its local retail ads and listing of local entertainment. Newspapers, then, have survived the formidable competition of broadcasting and, to a much lesser extent, of magazines, by adjusting their functions and by retaining independence from government and from direct advertising influence. Because many newspapers are local monopolies, advertisers tend to need newspapers more than newspapers need particular advertisers, although their mutual need is obviously great. How intensely readers feel they need newspapers is not really known, although the decline in daily circulation the mid-1970s suggests that the sense of need was diminishing. In the modern context, newspapers cannot compete with radio or TV in being first and fast with news. They can, however, serve independently and as supplementary to these media by giving more balanced account of news along with backgrounds, better interpretative, investigated and thorough reporting and coverage, wider variety of reading material and shades of opinions in their columns. Modern newspapers illuminate the mind through their cartoons, illustrations, graphics, features and human-interest writings. They highlight or underline particular events by their headlines, leads, cut lines and column boxes. Their searching interviews, columnist writings and editorials furnish better comprehension of complicated events and affairs. Reader columns in newspapers tie in readers and provide noticeable columns of public grievances. There are also engagement columns, notices, fitting advertisements, etc. for those who need them. Notwithstanding occasional bias and slants in reporting and writing, their concentrated urban approach and obsession with political and sensational news, professionally competent and disciplined dailies, Thus occupy a prestigious position in the galaxy of media with their roles varying from the 4th Estate to the 5th Estate, from an informer to a critic, from a narrator to a commentator, from an investigator to an analyst, from a mentor to a teaser, from a peace preacher to violence or racialism baiter. In developing countries the press has a special role to play as a social monitor, a constructive critic, the stimulator of debates on public issues and a medium of feedback while balancing the wheel of the Governmental structure. A great social vitaliser and the right arm of liberty, it is also a big enemy of tyrants and an exposure of public corruption. The media is also an
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interpreter of public events and a professional forum for investigative and interpretative journalism. g. The magazine The word magazine is derived from the French word magazin, meaning storehouse, and early magazines were miscellanies of information and amusement. The modern magazine succeeded as a mass medium chiefly because of its original role as an adjunct of the marketing system. Like the newspaper, it was able, over the years, to appeal to an expanding range of tastes and interests. But, unlike other media, most magazines were designed for homogeneous audiences or special-interest groups. And, in contrast to the newspaper, their circulation was nationwide. Thus, although many magazines were directed to specialized audiences, magazines in general developed as a mass medium in the sense that they appealed to large numbers in a national market that cut across social, economic, and educational class lines. Magazines fast are becoming the strongest of the mass media. While individual magazines may find their growth limited by greater competition for advertisements, magazines as a group are more prosperous in readers and in revenues than at any time in their recent history. Not since the so-called golden age of magazines in the late 1980s, this mass medium has been so strong. h. Books Books are a medium of mass communication that deeply affects the lives of all of us. They convey much of the heritage of the past, help us understand ourselves and the world we live in, and enable us to plan for the future. Books are significant tool of our education process. And they provide entertainment for people of every age. Teachers and pupils find in textbooks the vast knowledge of history, philosophy, the sciences, literature, and the social sciences accumulated through the ages. People in every walk of life read to keep abreast of a fast-changing world, to find inspiration, relaxation, and pleasure, and to gain knowledge. Books explain and interpret nearly every aspect of life. Whether they are paperbacks or hardcover volumes printed on high quality paper, books have characteristic performance. The newspaper reporter and the radio-television commentator address a large but ephemeral audience. Videotapes, audiotapes, records, motion pictures, and filmed products such as microform and microfiche may deteriorate through the years. Magazines, especially those printed on high-quality paper and bound into volumes, may have extremely long lives. If cared for properly however, books, such as the superb copies of the Bible produced by Gutenberg in the fifteenth century, last virtually forever. For the mass communicator, books perform several important functions. They not only serve as wellsprings of knowledge but, through translation and reprinting, and through conversion into movies, television productions, and live performances; they may convey vital ideas to millions of people throughout the world. And in the publishing trade itself the mass communicator may find a rewarding outlet in writing, editing, and promoting the distribution of books. i. CCTV Most of the students in the Indian universities are now interested in getting degrees by selective study and cramming. It is, therefore, felt essential to provide media facilities for giving motivation and creating interaction in knowing more and acquiring skills better. Closed circuit television (CCTV) has great potential in playing significant role in education. CCTV system can be more promising than the other media because of its special advantages that include its control of content and quality along with its cost factor, which has been found to be minimum for different groups of clientele. The Indian Universities should plan for setting up and utilizing this facility in an effective manner. The characteristics of this system include all features of film with the additional advantage of its immediate replay of events as in demonstration lessons. In the system of CCTV, the educational programmes can be shaped according to the needs and capabilities of students. Its approach is also in consistency with the method of individual learning and in this approach each individual student can have the opportunity to suit his free time within the programmes at his own place without any psychological barriers. This system provides facility for pre-playing immediately an event such as in lesson demonstration, interviewing models, etc. These events enable students to train themselves in the skills through observation and discussion. General academic courses may be taught using this medium, motivating and activating the learners. The system may significantly contribute to remedial teaching by preparing specific programmes after diagnosing the deficiencies of the students. The UGC has recently taken steps for installing CCTV facility in various universities, so that educational programmes can be taken to the study centers and classroom situations. j. Educational films Educational films are a very powerful medium of education as well as entertainment. Films have much in common with television as they make use of both light and sound. However, films lack the immediacy of live telecast as a result of which they leave out something of the original reality. On account of this, films are to some extent more abstract than TV. But abstract does not mean difficulty or dullness and it makes films more real and more lively. Educational films are produced primarily for realizing some instructional objectives. They possess so much of versatile, combination of motion, words, colour and music. An educational film is in a sense brings the World into classroom. It not merely gives knowledge but also develops insights, skills and understandings, which will be necessary for enabling students to assume suitable roles in the society. Such films can be of great use and importance to the learners of higher education. Even feature films and documentaries if selectively and imaginatively used can promote learning experience to a great extent. Computers are likely to be used considerably for improving efficiency and effectiveness of higher education. k. Multimedia The term multimedia is often associated with the information superhighway or with interactive TV that can produce videos (information on demand) or with hypermedia. In fact, there is a lot of confusion about the definition of multimedia. However multimedia can be considered as text, graphics, images, video and audio in computer. One of the key features of multimedia is interactivity. It may convey enriched interactive information to its users. Some people visualise multimedia as a combination of computer application where newer hardware and software architectures are needed. About the above definitions no body is sure, whether multimedia is a computer itself or a computer software product. In practical sense, it is the combination of both. The fact remains that it has the best potential to be one of the most powerful form of
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communicating ideas, searching for information and experiencing new concept of common media ever developed. The basic advantage of multimedia over the conventional form of media, which uses sound, graphics and text for example TV, audio etc. is the interactive feature of multimedia. For example, a multimedia version of news bulletin would be the situation where you can request the broadcaster the type of news you are interested in, when you want to hear it, and with the press of a button or click of the mouse you can hear the news. l. Teletext Teletext is the general term used for transmission of pages of information as digitized signals through the television medium. It makes the television function like a computer terminal for retrieval of textual information and graphics from remote database. With the help of a suitable device, the user can select any information from the text being transmitted and can see this on the TV screen in place of normal television programmes. Telecast can be used widely for dissemination of textual and graphic information. The only limitation is that there is no possibility of two-way communication. m. Videotext Videotext is one of the latest technologies, which seems to offer tremendous potential for distance education. Unlike teletext, it is a two-way interactive communication, wherein the user can transmit their requests to a remote database in order to obtain specific information. On the other hand, teletext is a oneway system flowing from a source to a user who can read the desk information on a television screen. The video makes the home television to function like computer terminal and retrieve text information and graphics from a database. n. Videodisc Videodisc is yet another medium, which is helping to increase capacity of the television set. The videodisc resembles a long-playing record. It has two audio tracks, offering alternative narration in two different languages. It uses a beam of laser light to reproduce audio and visual information stored on the disc. The videodisc has the capacity to store 54000 separate visual images on each side. It would be a mistake to think of videodisc systems as merely a more advanced form of videocassettes. The major educational advantage of the technology is in term of learner control. Each frame of the disc is labeled and can be accessed at random. The control of speed and search facility is more refined. The disc is not affected by constant use, because it is laser based, and therefore has a unique potential for distance education. The video disc linked to the computer and the learners can interact with the materials at their own pace and choice. However, the biggest limitation is lack of equipment in student homes. Furthermore, the cost of production is also very high. o. Tele Conferencing Teleconferencing is an appropriate and flexible means for distance education, which facilitates two-way communication among user at different locations with the experts (Central location). The users also get immediate feedback from the experts and fellow users at other locations as well. Thus it is providing to be an effective learning technique. There are three types of teleconferencing: namely audio teleconferencing, Video teleconferencing and computer teleconferencing. Teleconferencing has a certain inherent limitations. It is a very costly technique of instruction. It requires sophisticated technology and expert human power. Internet / Electronic Mail The Internet is network that uses one computer language TCP/IP protocol to connect computer networks in educational institutions, commercial ventures, government units, and military groups etc all over the world. Access may be through individual PCs networked connected by modem to host computer. It provides many services: sending and receiving electronic mail (e-mail) support for special interest scholarly lists and news groups, remote login to a computer (Telnet) and file transfer to and from remote locations of file achieves (FTP). Bitnet is one of the Internet links, thousands of the research centers and universities throughout the world and is federally funded network designed specifically for scholarly research and communications. The Internet depends on computer, microwave links, telephone lines and fiber applicable for transmission and exchange of data. It is also dependent to a large degree on voluntary participation of thousand of institution listnery owners site managers and individual scholars willing to maintain the information and databases. It can be of immense use to distance learners in following areasA student may take credit-bearing courses without ever entering in a classroom. The course may be taken and followed by a test via Internet. They may ask questions, request advice, and share information. Library facility is also available on Internet. Many libraries now make their cards catalogue available on Internet so that a distance learner on Internet search through catalogues. The libraries on Internet also make available the copies of the special connections on demand. Mass Media in Distance Education New methods and techniques [1] in education are having an increasing effect on the traditional approach to teaching and learning. Among the new approaches that have gained great acceptance, is distance education. It is a distinct approach to impart education to learners who are removed in space and/or time from the teacher. The independence of place and time of delivery of education, coupled with advances in communication technology and mass media have opened up exciting possibilities. In distance education, an institution takes upon the responsibility of development, implementation and evaluation of an objective based instructional system, an institution takes into cognizance the needs of a distance learner, his psychology, styles and constraints in which he lives and grows. It then, develops multi-media course packages. The role of the teacher is not the dissemination of information but the management of teaching-learning process. In conventional teaching, media is used primarily to assist the teacher to improve learning whereas in distance education, it is used as core educational input. The whole system is standardized as far as possible and then supplemented by personalised student services. Educational Technology Educational technology is the science of techniques in education to enhance the effectiveness of the teaching-learning process. Principles and practice of educational technology have direct relevance to the tasks of a distance educator in increasing the knowledge and skills of distance learners. Educational p.
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technology is thus used as a scientific way of designing, developing, implementing, evaluating and perfecting techniques in distance education. In this context, educational technology is a problem solving approach to distance education. Technology developments Technology developments are an extension of mans power over nature. Technology is providing a man with powers, which can possibly be attributed to superman. In this context, a teacher of today has enormous capabilities to transmit knowledge and skills to students with the help of educational technology materials, most of which are in the form of audiovisual materials. Audio-Visual material Audio-visual material displays information in the form of pictorial representation (still or moving images), written symbols (words and figures) and/or recorded sound (speech, music, natural noises). This information and content can be displayed through a variety of media like charts, maps, slides, tape-slides, audio-tapes, video tapes and film, etc. These are called software. Some materials themselves present information like posters, charts and maps. Some others require presentation devices. A slide requires a slide projector to present visual information and audio tape requires a tape player to present auditory stimuli. These are called hardware. A few examples of hardware and Media used in distance education at study centers and in personal contact programme or otherwise are given below: Media Slide Overhead transparency Audiotape Tape-slide Video tape Film Hardware Slide projector Overhead projector Tape player Tape player and slide projector Video tape player Film projector where the human eye cannot go; we can picture what cannot be safely observed in reality, we can emphasize (using diagrams, editing or selective photography) and eliminate confusing detail; and of course, we can picture the invisible (using diagrams; animated or still) as also scenes of things, people and events that are extinct. Audio Visual educational functions Recorded sound is also helpful in presenting reality, e.g., original speech of a leader. Not only this, we can amplify it, lower it down, edit out confusing noise or extraneous detail and repeat it as and when, where and as often we like it. The sounds, we may be interested in, may be natural (e.g., bird song; physiological, e.g., heart beats; the mechanical, e.g., the moving train; musical, e.g., a concert; conversational, e.g., foreign language sounds; dramatic, e.g., a poetry recitation; educational e.g., a lecture; or environmental, e.g., a noise from a village fair). In view of the above mentioned qualities, audio-visual materials performs many useful educational functions: Audio-visual material helps in extending the range of vicarious experiences. These experiences are substitutionary in nature. The student imagines his participation in the events being shown to him. Hence, audio-visual material may be developed by adopting approaches of either behaviourism, humanism, or those of cybernetics, cognitive theorists and gestaltists, as discussed earlier. In a nutshell, they can be developed to perform a number of educational functions, some of which are mentioned below: Engage the students motivation: The student should involve himself in learning. He may be motivated by: identifying objectives, understanding why he should learn, creating interest in the subject by way of introduction, etc. Recall earlier learning: Student may read a review before he begins new learning. Sometimes further learning is impossible without mastery of some pre-requisites. It may be necessary to test him and give remedial education or any prerequisites in which he lacks. Provide new learning material: Many sub-functions can be identified under this heading. For instance, the audiovisual material should present a meaningful message, explain things from his point of view, give illuminating examples (and non-examples), emphasize the vital issues, control interference between competing ideas, draw the distance learners attention to important discriminations and generalizations, show the distant learner what to look for without telling him what to see, provide a varied repetition of the main ideas, encourage transfer of learning to new situations, adjust the intensity of learning so that the individual student is neither bored nor overwhelmed, but is always challenged, persuade the distant learner towards aspiring to mastery and so on. Activate the distant learners response: If the learning is to mean anything to the distant learner, and if he is to make it his own, he must be led to respond to it, to be an active producer and user rather than a passive recipient of knowledge; so the audio-visual material must provide him the appropriate activity. Provide feedback: Feedback can be provided very speedily and flexibly by human interactions. This means that the audio-visual material may specify the role of tutor after its presentation. But the audio-visual material may itself propose a few queries in its presentation; make the student think of the
Source: Rastogi Satish [1] The audio-visual material can be used as a store disseminator of ideas, concepts, theories, methods, and techniques in any branch of knowledge. It stores information in the form of pictorial representation or recorded sound or both. The pictures realistic or symbolic, still or moving photographs, artists impressions, drawings, diagrams, graphs, charts, maps all are representations of reality. But sometimes, reality is too big for the classroom, e.g., the solar system; or too small, e.g., the heart beats of water fly; or too slow; e.g. the sequence of bud opening into a flower; or too fast, e.g., the wing movements of a humming bird, too inaccessible, e.g., defusing a bomb; or too cluttered up with confusing distraction, e.g., classroom interactions among pupils and between pupils and teacher; or it may be invisible, e.g., the pattern of sound waves from an underwater echo location device; or even extinct, e.g., dinosaurs. In all such cases, pictures may be able to overcome the disadvantages of the real thing. With pictures, we can control reality. We can make it smaller or bigger; we can speed it up (with time-lapse photography); we can take cameras and the artists imagination
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answers and then receive the correct answers to check his ideas mentally. The audio-visual material may be interlinked with a workbook on which the distant learner is made to respond to various queries while he/she is seeing the presentation. Encourage appropriate practice: The audio-visual material may enable a distant learner to make his response not just once but many times. In learning pronunciations, spellings, rules of grammar and technical vocabulary, practice is necessary. But constant repetition and drilling, suitable in a few instances, is of no help in the development of concepts and principles of problem solving. The student must be led to discover for himself the concepts, principles and strategies. And after he has grasped them, practice may help him use them more confidently and transfer them to a variety of new situations. Moreover, there is no reason why the distant learner should practice all at once. Spaced our practice is likely to be helpful for which, series of audio-visual material may be developed and used. Audio Visual Aids A few audio-visual aids are described below: Blackboard: The blackboard is a vehicle for visual material. It is used in different educational situations. The main purpose is to display symbols, visual and verbal, usually for a short period of time. It provides an opportunity as no other aid can, for creativity and initiative. The blackboard may also be used for display of other material. They are the mainstay in a study center. Every tutor requires them. A tutor should know techniques of using the blackboard effectively. Charts: Charts are combination of such pictorial, graphic, numerical or verbal materials, which, together, are most likely to present clear visual summaries of important processes or relationships. Therefore, they can be helpful in the tutorial situation in providing indirect purposeful experiences, which can be supplemented, by providing on the spot study and explanation for gainful learning, wherever possible. The term chart can be applied to several different types, and any classification system for charts must be arbitrary. They may be classified according to use, function or similarity of construction. Specific charts can be designed for special purposes such as Show relationships by means of pictures, symbols, facts, figures or statistics. Present materials symbolically; Summarize information; Show continuity in process; Present abstract ideas in visual form; Show the development of structures; Create problems and stimulate thinking; Encourage use of other instructional materials; Motivate students desire to continue related research; and Attract and concentrate attention. Overhead transparencies: These have considerable advantage as they can be used in full light. It can be used for all those purposes for which the blackboard is used. However, they have certain distinct uses as follows: Diagrams and drawings can be prepared before hand and shown when the need arises. Moreover, it is possible to draw a part of the diagram and complete the rest of it, while one is explaining. Since a drawing in a transparency can be superimposed on another drawing or on another transparency, it is possible to show processes, experiments and many sequential phenomena through multiple overhead transparencies. Otherwise also, it is very useful in teaching those topics, which can be broken down into overlays and require to be combined as the tutorial session proceeds. They help in focusing attention either on the tutor or on the illustration by switching on or off. Transparencies enable the tutor to always face the learners. They affect economy of time and energy as prepared material can be stored easily and retrieved for use when the need arises. Commercial transparencies are not available. Each distance education institute should search for such material for use in its study center. Radio and audio tapes: Learners have a great capacity for listening. The advantage of distance education in development of radio programmes is that the listener is well prepared to listen. The second advantage is the medium itself. It is a personal medium. It is able to create a rapport with the listener. And once the rapport is created, we can rest assured that the learner will absorb whatever he listens to. It has warmth and compassion of a human voice, therefore the listener feels very close to it. Unlike television, it is able to stimulate the imagination of the listener and create sound pictures. It is very simple to use. What a tutor needs is a radio or cassette player and software. He inserts the cassette and plays it. In radio broadcast, we can use the radio at the appointed time only. But in the use of audio-tapes we have the freedom to organise the playback according to our convenience and the wish of the learners. We do not have to abide by the radio broadcast schedule, or bear with poor transmission conditions. Tutors in study centers should be provided with two-in-ones. They may therefore record the radio programme and use it as and when required. Television (TV): As a tool of distance education, TV is a very powerful medium. It can reach the distant learners inside their homes. Since it combines sound and vision, the TV engages both the ears and the eyes. Definitely, it has more appeal and impact. Over the last few decades, television has been used in support of distance education, so much so that all the 16 regional centers and 229 study centers of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) have been provided with sets. As an intimate medium, the TV has greater personal appeal and motivating power than film. It has an unmatched demonstrative potential and can present events and learning episodes in many interesting and dramatized formats which grip the attention of viewers, sustain their interests and trigger their imagination leading to better retention and joyful learning. Since it is an audio-visual combination, television is rightly called the queen of teaching aids. The TV provides a powerful audio-visual medium for attractive and effective distance education. It can also be used for two-way or even multichannel communication among different groups though it is not easy to employ such technology in all places. In distance teaching, effective distribution and universal access to learning materials for all students is essential. A lesson received through the eye and ear has a double chance of retention by the learner. The television screen may become the electronic blackboard of the future. Video: The video is highly sophisticated and complex device. However, thanks to modern technological progress, it has slipped out of the technicians domain. A video tapemachine is a piece of equipment, which records sounds and
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pictures simultaneously onto a magnetic tape. In its end product, it is like film because it captures the visual image. In its operation, it is like an audio tape-recorder with the exception that it can record and play back both sound and pictures at the same time and instantly. It is extremely simple to operate a VTR/VCR; play back, record and duplicate video programmes. The video today is compact, reliable, flexible, portable and economical. Like the transistor revolution of the sixties, the world is currently witnessing what may be called a videoboom. Obviously, the video has several advantages: Unlike film which has to be processed in a lab before it can be screened, video programmes can be played back simultaneously as they are being shot. That means we can record as well as playback, relay and broadcast video programmes instantly. Video programmes can be used, stored and used again and again for broadcast as well as for non-broadcast (playback on video) purposes. Video programmes can be easily duplicated, dubbed and circulated/mailed to interested parties and a variety of television outlets. Because of its improved quality and ease of operation, video has almost replaced film for duplication and dissemination of programme. Video programmes can be easily erased to record new programmes on the same tape several times. It is also easy to make off-transmission recordings of desired TV programmes which can be used for playback any other time or day to suit the teaching/training schedule. All the 229 study centers of IGNOU have been provided with VCRs. They have also been supplied with copies of all the video tapes developed by IGNOU. Computers: The computer is the most versatile equipment to generate, store, analyze and retrieve information. In instruction, it is widely used in computer-assisted instruction5 (CAI). The basic principles and some possibilities of CAI are discussed below: In its simplest form, the computer can present information to a learner and can put a question to the learner to identify his understanding. The learner types out the response on the terminal. The computer analyses the answer and provides the feedback to the learner along with a corrective message, if required. The computer can perform this work when it is specially programmed to do so. The CAI programmes are to be written by specialists and stored in the computer. The instruction continues if the response was right. The learner can indicate to the computer the unit he wants to study or his desire to quit. The interaction between the computer and the learner can be made more sophisticated. The learner could pose questions to the computer or ask for information, say, regarding some process or definition. The computer can also be used to generate practice problems to learners in which the computer generates problems and poses it to the learner. The learner is allowed to solve the problem and the computer provides all the information desired by the learner for their solution. If the learner is not able to solve the problems correctly, it provides hints and helps him to solve them. Thus, the computer continues to generate problems and provide exercises to the learner till the learner has mastered the problems. Simulations and gaining on computer are very useful features and provide great insight into the problem solving and creative abilities. Open universities and distance education institutes can make a beginning with educational programmes in few selected study centers. Computers are, however, being used for storage and retrieval of information about student and tutor records, for varying purposes in IGNOU and other open universities and distance education institutes. Tape Recorder: The audio-cassette draws the attention of the distant student towards active participation rather than passive and unthinking listening. Presentations may be in forms of talks, symposia, panel discussions, interactive classrooms and group discussions. Cassettes can be presented for study along with written and/or visual material. Individual tutors may make their cassettes to provide remedial material for students having special difficulties. Cassettes provide unique opportunities for encouraging distant students to be mentally alert, to listen to the human voice and other sounds in communication, to play and replay parts as required to make their learning more effective and enjoyable. While many western countries and other advanced countries use this medium with advantage, in India, only certain language courses are known to make use of them. However, university institutes do not make use of this media. Radio-Vision/Audio-vision: Current literature related to Open University shows clearly that there is a place for audio material in a variety of courses if it is used along with visuals like slides, filmstrips and other projected or even graphic materials. Radio presentation may be recorded and used again and again. Reply and discussion in groups are possible with radio-vision because one can stop the movement of the filmstrip as well as the tape at any moment. Researches conducted with TV and audio-vision has revealed that there is no significant difference between the impacts made by these two media. Radio-vision can be used as an alternative to TV, if the latter is not available. Slides: These are used not only while lecturing or teaching but also during guided learning. . Slides are unique in attracting attention and creating interest. These can be used while supplying an effective material for changing the attitudes. These are also useful in teaching discrimination skills by exaggerating the differences, for displaying the internal working parts of a system, for reviewing specific points or structures, for restructuring content, for presenting special effects, for reinforcing instructors presentation/textural material and for providing visual cues. Programmed Instruction There is a widespread interest in the use of this medium. Correspondence teaching and programmed instruction have some principles in common. Proper selection, sequencing, structuring and presentation are important in both. A programme presents the matter in a sequence, in small steps and expects the learner to respond at each step, thus giving immediate feedback. A teaching machine can be supplied to a learning group and can be useful in controlled presentation, but it is not essential to make a frame-by-frame programme effective. Even approximations to such programming like a short paragraph following a number of response items and running matter with a large number of blanks, have been found to be quite effective.
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Telephone teaching: Telephones offer two-way interactive communication across distance, i.e., people can talk to each other discuss and ask questions. One-to-one telephone tutoring is sometimes resorted to. But this may be a luxury, or a supplementary exercise. For this, tutors and students will have to be present at home or at a study center during fixed hours. The scope for one-to-one telephone tutoring differs from country to country. Other techniques useful for small group teaching and learning are: Loud speaking telephone and tele-conferencing, Audio teleconferencing, Video Conferencing, Six-center teleconference network, Broadcast (radio) with multi-channel telephone hook-up with listening groups/learning centers within a limited radius/distance. Cyclops: This is a useful and interesting medium for small groups of students. It is based on the conventional TV set, standard audio-cassettes, micro-computer technology and telephones. It was developed in 1976 by a research team in Britain. A light pen should be used to draw or write on the TV glass during Cyclops trials. It has three provisions and as such it has been accepted as a powerful technology in distance education. They are: (i) writing and drawing facility, (ii) interactiveness of the system, and (iii) ease of preparation of teaching material. Graphics can be produced and stored in cassettes for replay. This finds application in subjects like economics, geography and statistics to provide graphical information, or in biology, technology, etc., to present complex diagrams. It can also be used as a selfinstructional system by synchronizing a voice-track with a Cyclops graphics track on a stereo audio-tape. This tape could be sent to students/groups to be used as per their convenience. Mass media in Conventional Education and Emerging technologies The technologies [2], which are currently used all over the country and in most of the formal institutions, are the lectures or face-to-face instructions, and printed material. The lecture system has been in vogue for centuries and still the most dominant. It is very effective where it is done by a good teacher. This technology has served the purpose of education for a long time, but it has its limitations. It lays emphasis on the four characteristics: (a) teaching has to be done by the teacher; (b) it has to be done in the classroom; (c) age group; and (d) teaching has to be face-to-face. There are large sections of the people who are unable to satisfy these conditions; as a result they will not have access to education. No wonder the spread of education has been limited and there has been criticism, particularly in India, that our educational institutions are elitist. At the same time a democratic society cannot resist pressure for access to education. With limited resources the society can provide only marginal expansion. Hence the search for alternative systems. It is here that new technologies have tremendous potential and offer new opportunities. Print form Books and printed material [4] are the second important technology used in educational institutions. The books are a source of great inspiration and need no emphasis. Both in formal educational institutions and distance education organisations, printed material is a very powerful instructional medium and is likely to remain the core medium of higher education for some time to come in spite of the emergence of electronic media. Printed material has certain advantages over the technologies. These are relatively cheaper to produce and the skill required to be used, it is possessed by the majority of adult students. Further, it provides flexibility to the students and is portable and can be used again and again. Communication Technologies: Media What are the communication technologies, which are today available in this world? Let me first make a brief reference to the existence of these technologies, which are being used in some country or the other. I would like to add that what is new to one country may be old to another. A few advanced technologies are available only in advanced societies but others are available in developing countries also. The most important of these technologies has been used extensively during the last few decades in different parts of the world for an educational purpose is the radio. It is particularly useful to people living in remote and far-flung areas. A well-prepared radio can be effective means of instruction. There are also radio conferences and tutorials. A good radio network can be of great assistance in promoting education. The second important technology is the television. Because of the visual impression the television creates great impact. It can be very effectively used for technology and science subjects where demonstrations are required. With the availability of satellite its potential is greatly enhanced. However, in developing countries like India, television is not within the reach of the majority of the people. It is costly and very few students can afford to own a T.V. set. Another limitation of the T.V. is that the broadcasting time may not suit many students. These deficiencies can be overcome. The T.V. sets are made available to the educational institutions and community sets are provided to villages. Lessons can be repeated so that those who have missed can watch it at a different time. Computer The technology, which is available and is gaining importance all over the world, is the computer. Computer aided instruction or learning is becoming increasingly popular. Popularly called CAI, it is likely to become very popular in the years to come. Audio Video Next, there are the audio and video cassettes. The materials used on the radio and the television can be supplied in the form of audio and video cassettes to the learners. If the learners cannot afford them, audio and video cassettes can be stored in the college libraries. In fact, in the years to come each library should have a good stock of audio and video cassettes. In view of the limitations of the television, increasing use is being made of video cassettes. It has been found to be very useful: (i) as a method of self-study especially for weaker students; (ii) as a means for teaching training; (iii) as a means of bringing industrial progress to the classroom, and; (iv) it is helpful for continuing education system of the country, we have inadequately equipped laboratories and 30-40 percent of the faculty positions are vacant. In such a situation, video instructions can significantly raise the quality of on-campus engineering education in India. This is applicable not only to engineering colleges but also to colleges all over the country,
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which do not have properly equipped laboratories and qualified teachers. The video can greatly enrich classroom instructions. Gulati and Dutta (1985) list some of the important findings of the responses of students to the video programme. Hundred percent students in one group felt that they were competent to conduct the tests on their own after seeing certain video programmes. Sixty per cent students in another groups felt that the test procedure as explained in the video programme was better than the explanations given in the laboratory. Seventyfive per cent of students in group three felt that they would have found conducting the tests more interesting had they seen the programme earlier. Many felt that video programmes conveyed much more in the same amount of time than what is conveyed in the laboratory on account of the total preparation of content matter necessary for production of video programme. New developments in the electronic media such as video discs and video texts are increasing the capacity of the television set. Video disc is a system similar to the long playing record except that it carries both audio and video through a conventional television set. The video disc particularly the optical disc has enormous storage capacity. Optical discs can store 1,00,000 tracks and 54,000 on each side. The entire Encyclopaedia Britannica could be stored on a single disc with room to spare. Video text allows home television sets to function like a computer terminal and retrieve information and graphics from a remote data base. A video text system would be very useful in disseminating general information about courses and programmes available through distance education. In several countries telephones are used, particularly in distance education to provide interaction between the tutors and students. These, however, can be used only in countries where they work very well. There are countries, which are using audio and video conferencing, for instance, in Canada tele-conferencing, is being used in several educational programmes, including professional development courses in medicine, law, teacher education, health science, business and management. Constraints of Mass Media There are many constraints that limit the opportunities for electronic media utilization. Among these are the type of institution, geographical issues, equipment, resources, course, time frame, course workload, communication pattern, and the financial health of the program provider. The program must comply with the rules; regulations and policies of the institution, and these may vary considerably from a private to a public institution and from secondary education to universities. A programme confined to a certain geographical area such as a campus, a community, a state or a nation. With regard to on-line programmes, these restrictions are more often due to policies and legislation than to technical limitations. Lack of computer resources, such as hardware, software, and communication networks is, however an important limitation for many on-line programs. The institution's timetables could pose several restrictions on an on-line course. It is not always convenient for an on-line course to follow a university semester or term plan. Similarly, requirements of a weekly course load could constrain a program. Some institutions may also require some sort of synchronous communications that further constrains a programme. Conclusion In this chapter it is attempted to analyse different mass media and their role in higher education. The revolution in information technology has equipped the media with tremendous power. In the present digital age, multimedia access which is a powerful mechanism to accelerate the development in higher education through distance learning. We have the media like Internet, which is equivalent of a telephone, fax and radio, TV all rolled into one service. It has been observed that if mass media could be appropriately used to the suiting and to the learning needs created by the forces of change like population explosion, knowledge explosion, electronic distance education and technological explosion. The media may be utilised in a package by ensuring the maximum effectiveness. Technology and economic constraints are important points for consideration in developing countries like India. But the social hurricane forcing changes in higher education is unavoidable. The entire system of higher education has no option but to make adequate planning, imaginative production and appropriate utilization of the mass media to get rich dividends and make higher education cost effective, democrative, relevant and meaningful. It has been tried to find out, how different mass media are in the process of changing the society and they are capable to get our higher education into cyber space.
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References: 1. Rastogi Satish: Educational Technology for Distance Education, Rawat Publication N Delhi, 1998, P 18,20,21,30-39,86-89. 2. Mukhopadhyay M: Educational Technology challenging issues, Sterling Publisher N Delhi, 1990, P 69-72, 88,89,9092,95,96,98,99,212-215. 3. Hakemulder J R, Fay, F A D Jonge & P P Singh: Mass Media, Anmol Publication, 1998, P 2,7,8,17-19,4345,149,189,190,191. 4. Mohanty Jaggan Nath: Educational Technology, Deep and Deep Publication, N Delhi, 1992, P 36,38,39,123,124,129131,160-162,167. 5. N Balasubramanian and Kadhiravan S: Trands in the Development of Computer Mediated Instruction, staff and Educational Development Internation, Vol-3, N0-2, Sept 1999, P-187.
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