Future E- Learning Prospects and Challenges: Higher

Education in Pakistan

Saud Altaf
(University Institute of Information Technology) University of Arid
Agriculture Rawalpindi Pakistan, saud@uaar.edu.pk

Ch. Muhammad Azam

(Department of Statistics and Mathematics) University of Arid Agriculture
Rawalpindi Pakistan, azam@uaar.edu.pk

ABSTRACT

E-learning is becoming a leading delivery method in workplace-learning settings across

organizations of various sectors and of varying sizes. Universities all over the world are
improving their methods of education and in view of continuing education and ultimate
learning as a necessary factor in teaching-learning environment and using Information
and Communication Technology (ICT) as a medium of knowledge distribution. Usual
learning has been restructuring in the form of virtual learning or web-based knowledge.
However in Pakistan, where education is the most neglected area, distance and
technology-based education is the slightest priority of educational universities and policy
makers, and the enormous scope of this emerging educational domain is not much
realized. Pakistan is facing significant challenges to meet new strains in education with
its ever increasing population growth, remote and scattered populated areas, non-
availability of resources (infrastructure, expert teachers etc.) and limited funding.
Regardless of these difficulties, universities and institutions are not expanding sufficient
to accommodate the increasing number of students who will be looking for access to
secondary and tertiary level education. Introducing web-based learning can be one of
the anticipated solutions, but consecutively, it has its own inherited prospects and
challenges that have already started surfacing in the few distance or e-learning
universities/institutions working in Pakistan
This paper presents the current common challenges and future prospects for e-learning
and possible insinuations for policy and practice by assimilate significant research
findings. An effort is made to open out the motivations why online distance education
universities remained unsuccessful especially in developing countries, as well as rate of
technology, deprived assessments and the lack of suitable commerce approaches. The
discussion ends with the most vital issue of suggest solutions in higher education
universities of Pakistan.

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KEYWORDS
E-learning, Challenges, Prospects.

INTRODUCTION

Challenges are natural components of any system, method, practice, etc. especially
when they are newly introduced; meanwhile without challenges there are fewer
opportunities for improvement. E-learning is extensively used in generally of the
developed countries to endorse distance education and ultimate learning. It can be
distinct as an original approach for delivering electronically interceded, elegant, learner-
centered, and interactive learning atmospheres to everyone, anyplace, anytime by
exploiting the internet and digital expertise in concern with instructional plan ethics.
Applications and processes of e-learning comprise web-based learning, computer-
based learning, virtual classrooms, and digital teamwork, where contents are delivered
via the internet, audio, video tape, and conferencing through video; satellite and etc
(Hedge 2004:128-145). The rapid and concentrated use of Information and
Communication Technology in education in the developed countries facilitated to the
establishment of more than 90% information and communication technology based
universities called ‘virtual universities'. In addition, many world-leading conventional
universities are now also offering some of their academic courses through various ICTs
for their distant learners and established themselves as the ‘dual mode universities'.
The significant launching of more than seven hundred courses from thirty seven
academic disciplines as ‘Open coursewares' by Massachusetts Institute of Technology
offers a marvellous resource for different faculties, students and self-learners all over
the world (Hedge 2004:128-145). On the contrary, the structure of ICTs in the
developing or the least developed countries is very feeble and thus, concentrated use of
e-learning in Distance Education is still a vision for their high education universities
(Toor 2005: 67-76). In recent times, ICTs are quickly rising in some of the developing
countries, and that's why, it offers a chance to consider the use of ICTs in the
endorsement of Distance Education. It offers students significant benefits as well as
increase access to learning, life-long learning chances, and expediency of time.
Pakistan is one of the most countries in the world which population is increasing very
quickly. Though the literacy rate is officially said to be 48%, but according to private
survey the rate is only 42% by the end of year 2006. More importantly, the opportunity
for higher education is tremendously partial in Pakistan, and therefore, even students,
who can afford to finance their studies, it is very difficult to get admission into the
universities due to limited capacity. Dropouts in education from primary to the university
level are very high in Pakistan mainly due to economic and other social reasons. This
situation is well reflecting in very high enrolment of students at Allama Iqbal Open
University (AIOU). Recently, ICTs are quickly expanding in Pakistan due to the
deregulation of laws and policies by the Government of Pakistan. Therefore,
introduction of more e-learning or ICTs may increase Distance Education in Pakistan.
In Pakistan, distance learning was first commenced by AIOU in 1974 which is the first
national distance learning university. However, AIOU is still using typically conventional

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one way method for delivering lectures and less far behind to apply modern interactive
ICTs in delivering its courses. However by the end of year 2001 it was becoming
obvious to the government of Pakistan that the targeted development was not being
achieved, the major problems identified for this deficiency were:

• Common features that do not allow certain people to go to other cities of

Pakistan.
• Elevated cost of higher education especially IT education.
• Severe lack of high superiority faculty.
• Shortage of seats for the students in the higher education Universities.
• Higher education Universities located in the undeveloped areas.

The Virtual University started recording its lectures in January 2002 and broadcasted its
first lecture on 23 March 2002. It was an immense accomplishment for the group
working under the supervision of Dr. Naveed Malik, the Rector of the Virtual University.
However, not enough lead-time for the research and delivery of lectures was a serious
constraint, and must be addressed in the recording of next semester’s lectures (Peter T,
2000). One very important aspect of this project is the training and learning curve
emerging for instructors ready to act as e-moderators for distance learning courses.
Some instructors were new to the concept and took a while getting used to TV
recordings and initializing web discussions. Other quality issues will also have to be
ironed out. Hopefully as capacity develops in instructional design and the broadcast
mode of lecture delivery, the course offerings would improve (Toor 2005: 67-76).
The need of the day was to produce a large number of educated forces within the
shortest possible time. This paper thus focuses the current status and future prospects
and Challenges for introducing e-learning in Distance Education in Pakistan and ICT
infrastructure of this country.

BACKGROUND

In prospective of e-learning in Pakistan is a significant matter for several pressing

reasons. First reason, those who join work force without completing their studies due to
family commitments are unable to work for studies and also to find a place in the
traditional institutions of higher learning, even if some of them have strong desire to
higher studies. Secondly, the vast majority of the people live in middle class. They are
unable to attend the urban based universities and remain deprived of higher education
despite their superior merit. Thirdly, the opportunity for higher education i.e., the places
are extremely limited in Pakistan. Therefore, even those who can afford to finance their
studies find it difficult to get admitted to any university. Fourthly, the tradition of child
labour, childhood and early marriage in the country deprives the female population from
higher education. Besides, there are some other usual factors like bodily disabilities,
inaccessibility of localities, higher tuition fees in most private universities, and so on.
These are the reasons for why millions of people are deprived from higher education in
Pakistan despite their keen interest and eligibilities (Peter T, 2000). E-learning and

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distance education can open up the opportunities for higher education for such a vast
under-privileged population. Pakistan is generously endowed with individual resources
that need to be well equipped with literacy and skills to contribute to economic
development, which is badly needed for this country. E-learning and distance education
is expected to do a lot in this field if provided with adequate facilities and quality.
There was a severe shortage of quality IT faculty in Pakistan, and the same can be said
for many other developing countries. Academic world has lost a large number of
qualified individuals to the software industry and this loss has not been replenished.
What little faculty is left in universities of higher learning is spread out in various
universities without forming a critical mass at any single point (Peter T, 2000 - Toor
2005: 67-76). Similarly, the output of qualified graduates from the various Computer
Science programmes from all Pakistani IT related universities are estimated at about
4000-5000 annually approximately. Out of these, no more than 500 or so are classified
as having international level proficiencies. This number needs to be drastically
increased if Pakistan is to get on the IT road map. There is an immense shortage of
skilled IT manpower worldwide, which is projected to increase exponentially in the
coming years. Pakistan should make all efforts to benefit from this. VU aims to provide
quality education to a very large number of students.

COMMON CHALLENGES OF E-LEARNING IN PAKISTAN

In spite of the importance of e-Learning to the developing countries as an important tool

for the human development in the continent, e-Learning is facing an increased
challenge in developing countries including Pakistan. Those challenges can be
summarized as follows:

• Today's best technology is not up to the level of new users' expectations. If

keyboard literacy remains fundamental criterion for accessing e-learning, only a
small part of humanity will be able to profit from it.

• In anticipation of skill becomes more reliable, the democratisation of e-learning

will be complicated.

• The fast development of the technology is an additional source of apprehension

for both e-learning teachers and student (Spodick 1996).

• Copyright is a lawful word relating rights given to creators for their literary and
artistic works. Copyright is one of the very significant challenges for the
e-Learning. How many authors, trainers and trainees know about copyright laws
and the legalities of using materials owned by others and protecting the materials
that they create? Authors and trainers make greater use of the Web; they face
greater risks involving copyright law. Some trainers think no one will care if they
use a copy of a cartoon on an overhead or include a clip from a favorite movie in
their opening video. Often, no one will care if they use the materials in-house, on

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 a small scale. But with the growth of the Web-based training, copyright violation
is becoming a bigger issue. Any e-Learning professional, should know something
about. The concern is not just that trainer/author is stealing, but also that he is
being stolen from. Any content that’s put online can be easily copied and reused,
greatly depreciating the value of all the hard work that has been invested in the
first place.

• The marketplace has in the past five years been very sensitive to the cost of
equipment and access to networks.

• E-learning depends on hardware and software infrastructures or platforms that

require constant attention.

• As the common situation of scientific and financial flux, setting up the

implementation of new systems and skills is a precarious exercise.

• E-Learning desires particular specifications of the method of designing its content

and also the way of receiving the content. The quality of e-Learning relies heavily
on the preparation and the talent of the instructor. Instructors who deal with
e-Learning should have extraordinary skills. They should be able to deal with
remote learners and read their needs through their typing mode and hastily
words. In addition, they should be capable of using all the new technological
means of instructing, like using the web cams, the e-mail, the chatting facilities,
the slides, sketches, and video & audio files. This means that they should have
good typing skills, able to setup and deal with multiple programs at the same
time, and deal with many learners simultaneously. Also they better have the
orchestration sprit so they can manage and encourage the learners to
communicate with each other through the discussion forum.

On the other hand, the e-Learning learners should possess the following
Characteristics:

o Being able to learn independently and view learning positively.

o Being able to make the best use of their time, have self-disciplined, and
enjoying working alone most of the time.
o Being able to clearly express them in writing.
o Having the need for knowledge, but incapable of attending traditional
training or education.
o Being revel in solving problems.

The above mentioned characteristics are very vital to the learner. Learners don’t
face their instructors on daily basis; they may communicate with each other
through the discussion forums through internet, or via the e-mail, virtual
classroom or by using video conferencing.

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 • The employee situation, on the other hand, is especially critical. Very few
universities can boast of adequate numbers of faculty, and even fewer would
claim quality in Pakistan. Hence, the quality of education being imparted at the
Bachelor’s level and higher is generally dubious.

FUTURE PROSPECTS OF E-LEARNING IN PAKISTAN

Enormous steps have been made over the past few years in enhancing the capacity for
e-learning and finding ways to broaden its exposure. The move to e-learning has been
supported on the demand side by elevated access levels to computers and the internet
in Pakistan. The e-learning has numerous compensations in promoting distance
learning in Pakistan. Some of the vital points are listed bellow:

• The courses offered are containing broad diversity of courses based on IT and
non-IT related courses, which is an additional advantage to attract the large
number of learners from all the background.
• Mostly home Internet connections have not much bandwidth speed. Higher
Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan has started a program to provide high
bandwidth to the Government and public and private universities and research
institutes.
• Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan has setup a digital library
containing more than 40000 reserach papers which can be accessed by the
research students and teachers nationwide.
• The apprentice need not pay any extra amount for any up gradation on the
courses once being a member. This saves apprentices times and expenses.
• Elevated quality Internet communications and networking will facilitate to convey
high quality courses. CD-ROM training now offers movie-quality lectures by
famous professors and professionals that include a variety of quizzes and
assignments.
• People can learn the courses of their own choice at the pace suitable for them.
• Computers with high bandwidth internet will help to decrease the expenses as
there won't be any staffing, training, and up gradation of faculties.
• Due to socio-economic circumstances, great figure of intelligent students still
avoids college education; e-learning may involve these students in studies.
• E-learning provides the courses round the clock which further invite experts,
students and even individuals learner.
• While the Virtual University is doing and would be able to provide large-scale
educational facilities for the students nation-wide. Additional, by eradicating the
need for qualified faculty at each VU campus will be able to provide better
facilities nationwide.
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 • Private sector institutes like CASE, LUMS etc. are generally better equipped than
their public-sector counterparts as far as equipment used for the teaching of
Computer Science is concerned. Local Area Networks are slowly replacing
stand-alone computer systems. A recent scheme that has allowed the
collaboration of private parties with public-sector colleges has been especially
beneficial in establishing modest computer laboratories in many
colleges/institutes of the Punjab. Other provinces also should be following the
same path and it is projected that accessibility of computing resources will
become extensive for the majority of higher secondary school students in the
very near future (Peter T, 2000).
• VU aims to provide quality education to a very large number of students.
Considering only the Bachelor’s level, it is estimated approximately that annually
over more than 30,000 students would want to chase a profession in Information
Technology after qualifying their Intermediate examinations (12 years of study) in
Pakistan. This is in addition to a substantial number of engineers who want to
re-train and enter the IT job market in the pursuit of more lucrative careers
(Toor 2005: 67-76). The existing colleges and universities can only cater for a
small fraction of these.

CONCLUSION

The growth of the Internet is bringing numerous changes to distance learning education,
and forcing providers and instructors to consider several difficult issues. The Internet
may be on its way to replacing almost all other mediums of communication used by
distance education programs worldwide. With the intention of endure, the Higher
Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan and universities will gradually more rely on
different forms of electronic delivery and communication inside a marketplace that
requires learning to be supple. E-learning is now widely used in most of the developed
countries to promote distance education and life-long learning in an effective way. In
Pakistan, the recent developments and awareness of the Government on Information
and Communication Technology have created an opportunity to implement the e-
learning for deliver distance learning education for educating collection of its instinctive
or less learned peoples especially in urban areas. In view of the modern extension of
ICTs in the Pakistan, Government and Virtual University could introduce some modern
ICTs like e-mail, web-based learning, CD-ROM, secure Video Conferencing for
delivering the course-materials through e-learning for its advanced students. Though,
before going to initiate an advanced ICT in Virtual University and other public sector or
private sector universities like LUMS, CASE etc, it is suggested to perform enough
research on student access, cost, funding and other related parameters essential for it.

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REFERENCES

Toor S K, 2005 “Hybrid Model for e-Learning at Virtual University of Pakistan” The
Electronic Journal of e-Learning Volume 3 Issue 1, pp 67-76.
www.ejel.org/volume-3/v3-i1/v3-i1-art7-toor.pdf

Peter T. Knight, Naveed A. Malik, and Asim Iftikhar, December 2000 “Pakistan VITU-
SIIT Feasibility Study Main Report”,
www.knight-moore.com/projects/SIIT-VITUreport1.html

Hedge, N. and Hayward, L. 2004 “Redefining roles: University e-learning contributing to

life-long learning in a networked world.” E-Leaning, 1: 128-145.
http://www.wwwords.co.uk/rss/abstract.asp?j=elea&aid=1775

www.aiou.edu.pk

www.vu.edu.pk

https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/print/pk.html

Spodick, E. F. 1996, January “Problems and Challenges of Distance Education”

http://sqzm14.ust.hk/distance/distance-6.html

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