Distance Education in Small States: The Case of the Turks and Caicos Islands

As we venture into the twenty-first century, it is becoming increasingly clear that our ability to cope with the rapid changes and challenges brought on by the new information age at both the micro and the macro levels will become the primary measuring stick for success. These changes were dominant during the twentieth century and will continue to dominate our lives in the new millennium. Education is one sector that has been impacted by these developments. The acquisition of knowledge has become a central theme of development both for the individual as well as for society at large. In response to this, many countries have placed a high priority on attaining higher and higher levels of knowledge through widespread education and training as one means of empowering their people in order to cope effectively with these changes. There is therefore the need for greater access to educational provisions by introducing more self-directed and more flexible approaches to learning, so that a broader cross-section of the population can benefit. The call is for distance education to address these issues. This paper attempts to address the role of distance education as one of the major means of providing the opportunity to equip the population of the Turks and Caicos Islands to deal more effectively with these new challenges. Some of the main issues that can impact upon the successful delivery of such a programme are addressed. The paper addresses certain pertinent questions: What is distance education? What benefits can accrue to the Turks and Caicos Islands? A primary concern has to do with the scattered nature of the islands and how effectively distance education will help in unifying these islands. There is also the question of management and funding of the process. Unashamedly, the paper may offer more questions than answers.