RIYADH, 2 April 2007 -- The Arab Open University (AOU), which is closely associated to the UK Open University, has helped many Saudis, including housewives, pursue higher education from home, a senior AOU official told Arab News.
The official said the AOU was increasing in popularity among women due to the distance-learning program that it offers. According to official reports, only 20 percent of students there are new school graduates while the rest are housewives, employees and businessmen.
He was speaking in the context of the AOU's first graduation ceremony held recently in Kuwait, when 526 students from various Arab and Gulf countries, including the Kingdom, received their degrees. About 49 percent of the graduates were women, with 40 percent being over the age of 24.
The AOU has campuses in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Jordan, Bahrain and Egypt. Prince Talal, chairman of the AOU board of trustees, presented the students with their diplomas. Prince Talal was assisted by Dr. Moudi Al-Humoud, rector of the AOU, and Brenda Gourley, vice chancellor of the UK Open University. Attending the event was also Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.
The students received a variety of degrees and diplomas from the faculties of Language Studies, Education, Business Studies and Computer Studies. Of the 218 honors students, 177 were from Kuwait, 25 were from Lebanon, 11 from Jordan, three from Saudi Arabia and two from Bahrain.
The spokesman said the AOU currently has around 22,000 students enrolled in six countries. Branches were established first in Kuwait, Jordan and Lebanon, with Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Egypt following in sequence.
Prince Talal said, "The future of the Arab Open University is bright and promising, a fact that is evident in the institution's success since it opened four years ago. Honoring the graduating students from the branches of the AOU exemplifies the university's mission and the concept of Arab national unity."
AOU charges a modest tuition fee. Besides its own resources, the university also receives donations from various benefactors and proprietors of private institutions. This has made it possible to provide education for more than 570 scholarship students.
According to the spokesman, the university's unique teaching methods provide an "Integrated Learning Environment" (ILE), which combines traditional teaching and learning techniques (25 percent face-to-face tutorials support) with other high tech delivery methods, such as course websites, e-TMA (Tutor Marked Assignments), e-Testing and e-Tutoring; as well as an integrated Computer Mediated Communication program which offers video, voice and text-based communication together with written learning material tailor-made to promote self-learning.
He added that since the university is closely affiliated with the UK Open University, it enables students to graduate with an AOU degree and that of the UKOU, an internationally recognized UK degree. The AOU is subject to accreditation and validation by the Open University Validation Services (OUVS) and is the first university in the Arab world to obtain such a status from a worldwide organization. The AOU is also an AGFUND (Arab Gulf Program for United Nations Development Organizations) initiative.
By Javid Hassan
© Arab News 2007
