CHAPTER TWO
International Experience

In this chapter, we focus on lessons from international experiences in broadcasting for adults and youth. We begin with an overview of non-formal distance education provision in order to reflect on common trends in the content and technology used in adult education and youth development programmes. We then discuss trends in educational broadcasting that have been gleaned from secondary research into international examples of broadcasting initiatives (which have been compiled into a country-by-country reference in appendix two). This description focuses specifically on what is taught and different models of educational broadcasting initiatives evident from the descriptions collated. This is followed by a brief historical overview of educational broadcasting, with specific focus on Interactive Radio Instruction and radiophonic schools, as this has been a prominent broadcast technique for this target audience.

Non-Formal Distance Education Initiatives

Given the focus of this report, it is useful to begin by locating broadcasting initiatives within a broader context of educational provision for these target audiences. This section does not attempt to give a comprehensive overview of international trends in adult and youth educational provision, which is beyond the scope of this report. Nevertheless it seeks to provide a snapshot of what is taught using distance education methods, to whom, and using what technologies. Our primary source in this regard has been a study conducted by the National Extension College (NEC) and the Commonwealth of Learning (COL).(Dodds, T., 1996) This study was a comprehensive survey conducted during 1995 on The Use of Distance Learning in Non-Formal Education. We first examine some of the difficulties experienced in conducting such a survey, as these are illustrative of international trends in educational provision for this sector.

The first problem experienced in conducting the NEC/COL survey was one of definition and categorisation, as neither distance education nor non-formal education are precise phrases. Some of the dilemmas implicit in this difficulty include:

‘To what extent can distance education programmes incorporate and even become dependent on face-to-face tuition and still remain distance education? How far can non-formal education reflect on even equivalence of what goes on in formal schools and colleges, even to the extent of having a fixed curriculum and common examinations and still remain non-formal [or outside conventional schooling and higher education]? At what point does an open broadcast development information programme with no organised or structured discussion or study by its audience become an organised (even non-formal educational) activity?’(Dodds, T., 1996, p.2)

A more detailed and current description of distance education and resource-based learning has been included in appendix three.

It is interesting to note that these dilemmas - faced by SABC Education when considering its role in this area - are internationally experienced rather than being specific to the South African context. To overcome these difficulties, Dodds opted for an inclusive definition by referring to non-formal education as ‘all learning programmes about life for adults (and even young adults which take place outside of the school, college or university system’(Dodds, T., 1996, p.2). While not identical, this definition is sufficiently similar to descriptions given in the previous chapter for the NEC/COL survey results to be of relevance to SABC planning processes.

The second difficulty in conducting the NEC/COL survey was the paucity of information readily available about programmes. This limited the extent of the survey as information from many programmes was not captured, making it extensive but in no way complete(Dodds, T., 1996, p.3). Notwithstanding this, the report findings give some indication of what is being taught, to whom, and with which technologies. Findings with regard to technology use, need to be viewed in the context of 1995 when many technologies, particularly information and communication technologies, were not yet widely available or used. Baring this in mind, the survey findings can be used to contextualize international experiences when planning potential broadcasting initiatives in this area.

What is Taught?

As has been illustrated in the previous chapter, definitions of adult education in South Africa vary, thus presenting difficulties. International experience also reflects this. At a workshop in 1981 on Basic Adult Education in Southern Africa the following International Extension College (IEC) definition was adopted:

‘Basic education is what is done by literacy campaigns, agricultural extension colleges, community development and adult education in attempt to teach adults useful things. ’(International Extention College, 1983)

Singling out literacy, agriculture, and community development as specific content focuses for adult basic education was typical for this time. The COL/NEC survey into non-formal adult education at a distance, conducted more than a decade after this workshop, found that this definition could accommodate the content and subject focuses of the programmes surveyed and that a significant focus on literacy and agriculture remained. It was however, somewhat limiting in the 1990s, as there was a much greater variety in subject focuses. The following table, compiled from data collected during the COL/NEC survey, demonstrates this diversity (Dodds, T., 1996, p.42-47). It illustrates the focus of various initiatives surveyed, using broad categories of social, economic and educational equivalency to group subject areas.

*The persentage totals do not sum to 100% as many of the programmers fell into more than one category

It is apparent that while there is a wide range of subject areas for adult education and youth development, there is continued focus on health, agriculture, community education and literacy and numeracy.

What Technologies and Teaching and Learning Strategies are Used?

The 1981 workshop on adult basic education found that all countries in attendance from Southern Africa were using print and radio to support adult education provision. In addition, it was found that ‘all use a mixture of media with an element of face-to-face tuition’(International Extention College, 1983). The non-formal distance education programmes surveyed in 1996, followed this trend with print, radio and face-to-face tuition most commonly being used. Again the programmes surveyed reported using a range of technologies. Once again, when reflecting on these trends and this table, the limited range of technologies available in 1995 should be considered.

The extent of technology use is reflected in the following table:(Dodds, T., 1996, p.48-53)

*The persentage totals do not sum to 100% as many of the programmers fell into more than one category

This gives a clear indication of the use of broadcasting technologies for these programmes. Of the 70 programmes, 33 (or 45%) used either radio or television with significantly more extensive use of radio than television. Seventeen programmes (23%) used these broadcast technologies together with cassettes, while 22 (30%) used cassettes in isolation.

What Conclusions Can Be Drawn?

The conclusions drawn from the 1981 workshop and the 1995 survey are strikingly similar. The Southern African workshop concluded that:
- 'All countries are involved in Adult Education provision in some way;ork is scattered and uncoordinated;
- Coverage is limited;
- Efforts are limited by staffing and financial resources; and
- Most adult education provision seems to favour those with some previous education'.(International Extention College, 1983, p49-50)

For comparison, the following summary of the conclusions drawn from the international survey, capture its findings:

• There a numerous non-formal distance education initiatives that vary widely in quality, purpose, size and effectiveness;

• Such initiatives are, in general, poorly documented;

• They are rarely taken seriously by government departments, or education ministries in particular. As such they are generally poorly resourced except for pilot projects. Their impact tends therefore to be small scale.

• Content gaps relating to practical income related or vocational training, science and technology and environmental issues are evident.

• The breadth and depth of experience reflected in the survey is impressive.

• Finally, there is a need for more detailed carefully researched and analytical research into this area.(Dodds, T., 1996, p.56-57)

The overview of the South African context in chapter one, indicates that many of these conclusions are equally applicable to this country. Thus, it is important to note that these are international trends and are therefore neither peculiar to South Africa nor to the current period.

TRENDS IN EDUCATIONAL BROADCASTING

A detailed description of the historical development of educational broadcasting, in which, four phases of educational broadcasting’s development were described has been provided in a companion SAIDE report to SABC Education (see chapter Three of SAIDE, 1999). These phases remain valid when considering the use of broadcasting for adult education or youth development. In addition, the trends articulated in the companion SAIDE report are also applicable, although they are not repeated here.

In this section we focus on trends in educational broadcasting that are specific to youth and adult target audiences. It should be born in mind that these trends have been drawn from past experiences, as well as the current practice of broadcasters around the world. General trends in school-based broadcasting and the use of technologies other than radio and television are described in companion SAIDE reports to SABC Education (see chapter Two of SAIDE, 1998). The conclusions are summarized here as they are of relevance to educational broadcasting for adult education and youth development. The following opportunities resulting from trends in school services of international broadcasters were articulated for the school-based service:

• Find ways of attracting larger audiences;

• Use the general audience appeal of programmes as part of a marketing strategy;

• Focus on programmes that interest audiences;

• Avoid making the educational intention too overt;

• Exploit new formats that interest viewers;

• Move away from overtly pedagogical programming to allow for more active learning and learner centred approaches;

• Use broadcasts as a means of gaining interest for people to choose to buy or use follow up support materials;

• Reversion general audience programming for the niche audiences and transmit this during non-peak times;

• Exploit the educational benefits of asynchronous use; and

• Encourage recording of broadcasts and offer a video and audiocassette service to niche markets.

The following general trends regarding technology use are also worth considering:

• A range of technologies is used to support programmes broadcast;

• Increasingly, broadcasters are expanding their production focus to include non-broadcast educational resources like cassettes, CD-ROMs and online materials and services; and

• SABC Education should prepare itself to harness developments in, and convergence of, digital technologies. This refers specifically to developing a well-managed information base and making broadcasting and other technology resources available for broadened use.

With sound basis in general opportunities regarding educational broadcasting, we can now turn to the specifics of broadcasting initiatives for adult education and youth development.

What is Taught?

Different educational broadcasters focus on different areas for their adult education and youth development programmes. To illustrate, we consider the categorization of adult education programmes used by several broadcasters around the world.

In Japan, NHK programmes for adults are referred to as programmes for lifelong education, and include:

• General culture courses which feature lectures from well-known authorities.

• Courses on hobbies.

• Welfare-oriented programmes for the elderly, which for example teach sign language for the hearing impaired in addition to basic knowledge about social welfare and nursing care techniques. Other programmes show senior citizens enjoying life by keeping busy in various activities.

• Language courses. ‘Learning foreign languages is regarded by many Japanese as a sure way to improve international understanding. In response, NHK broadcasts ten language courses, with the main emphasis on English. There are also Japanese language courses for foreign residents in Japan.(Fukishuma, Y. , 1993, p.126)

In addition ‘programmes for young mothers and children at home, including cartoons and children's cooking lessons, are broadcast every evening’(Fukishuma, Y. , 1993, p.126). The Netherlands has a similar categorization for its broadcasting for this target audience. Teleac-NOT divides the topics of its adult education courses into five areas:

• Business or Business-oriented Courses;

• Languages;

• Hobbies and Leisure;

• Culture and Science; and

• Man and Society.(Van der Eng, H. ,1993, pp.142-143)

Similarly, Utbildningsradio (UR) the Swedish educational broadcaster produces programmes dealing with many subject areas categorizing these as follows:

• Languages;

• Nature and the environment;

• Culture and society;

• Economics;

• Technology; and telecommunications.(Horneij, R, 1993, p.116)

While, for these three countries, broadcasting interventions for adult education and youth development are generally fairly tightly defined, or at least categorized, by subject area, in Britain a different approach has been adopted. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) adopts a more flexible definition for its ‘Adult and Continuing Education’ programmes. No prescribed categorization is used. The role of the broadcast, rather than its content focus, is the point of departure. BBC broadcasting for this sector varies, including programmes that:

• Form part of a course intended to help people acquire a knowledge or skill, for example learning a foreign language;

• Encourage social action or change by helping people improve the quality of their lives or their environment through health education, child accident prevention or being more environmentally aware;

• Simply provide vocational education and on-the-job training;

• Simply help people acquire or deepen an interest in, for example, gardening, cooking, literature or what ever. (Wright, B., 1993, p.57)

When these approaches of educational broadcasters to adult education and youth development are compared to the types of subject focuses evident in the NEC/COL survey mentioned above, it is clear that NEC/COL broad categories of social, economic, and educational equivalency remain useful. Distinction however lies in the detail. Most of the above-mentioned broadcasters focus on content that would be directed to learners with some prior educational background. There is a greater focus on leisure, hobbies, language learning business, economics, and tertiary-level courses and less emphasis on literacy, agriculture, and health. This reflects in large part the significantly differing circumstances in European and Southern African countries.

When one considers all the international examples that appear in appendix two this apparent distinction is less stark, however. A possible explanation for this is that appendix two contains a significant number of examples from developing countries. The following table summarizes the focuses of educational broadcasting examples collected through this research process.

*The persentage totals do not sum to 100% as many of the programmers fell into more than one category

Health and family education (including early childhood development) is the most common content focus. This is followed by literacy, numeracy and post literacy programmes and then by a focus on agriculture. As such, the examples collected continue to reflect the trends identified in the NEC/COL survey. Nevertheless, it is worth noting the fairly wide variety of subjects and content areas used for educational broadcasting initiatives for this target audience.

How is it Taught?

As with areas of focus, educational broadcasting initiatives vary greatly in their educational approach and methodology. Both the broadcast programmes and the educational broadcasters perform different functions according to broadly different scenarios. Some of these scenarios are described below, to illustrate different models of broadcast intervention.

Structured and Accredited Courses
In some countries, educational broadcasting is an integral part of curriculum delivery for a structured and accredited course. An examples of such an initiative is the Chinese Radio and Television Universities, where radio and television broadcasts of lectures are a key component of higher education correspondence courses. Another example is the telecourses transmitted by TV Ontario in Canada. Sri Lanka uses broadcasts for curriculum delivery in a similar manner. In these cases, clear relationships are established between the broadcaster and one or more education provider(s). The following are examples of types of relationship:

• The educational broadcaster is a department of an educational provider. This is the case for China, where the Radio and Television Universities (RTVUs) are universities that offer courses using radio and television and print. Mauritius College of the Air is another such example.

• The public broadcaster works very closely with an education providers to produce a broadcasting component of a course. In such cases, the broadcaster offers broadcast specific skills regarding the nature of the broadcast and the education provider is responsible for all other aspects of the course, such as registration, administration, assessment, accreditation and print support. The close relationship between the BBC and the Open University, through which broadcasting facilities have been established on the campus, is a clear example of this kind of relationship. NHK in Japan also seems to offer such services to its universities.

• The broadcaster simply transmits courses that have been designed by an education provider. All course administration is the responsibility of the education provider while the broadcaster is simply a distribution mechanism for broadcasting components. This is the case for many telecourses that originate at education providers and are sold to broadcasters (sometimes from foreign countries). TV Ontario for example buys tele-courses from universities in the United States of America. People enrolling in the course do so through the universities, not through the broadcaster.

Structured Courses that are not Necessarily Accredited or Connected to an Education Provider
Many educational broadcasters offer courses for adult education or youth development that may or may not be formally accredited. Teleschools or radiophonic schools fall into this category, as do Interactive Radio Instruction initiatives (see below). The broadcaster plays a proactive role in designing a course of which broadcasting is an integral part. Broadcast programmes are usually supplemented by printed materials, and are intended for use in mediated environments like schools, community centres, or study groups. Countries where radio has been used for this purpose include Nepal, Honduras, and Ecuador, with many other radiophonic examples in various parts of Latin America. Brazil and Portugal have television equivalents of radiophonic schools.(Brazil telecurso and Portugese teleschool) Worker and cooperative education programmes like those in Sweden, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, and Zambia also fall into this category, even though, in these cases, the ‘schools’ are likely to be less formally constituted. Many literacy initiatives operate on similar lines. Courses focusing on hobbies, like those produced in many European countries, are another example of this kind of initiative. A detailed and structured course on a hobby such as painting, music, or gardening, is designed and broadcast by the broadcaster. This is supplemented with printed support and may involve the option of study groups, but it is not accredited nor is it attached to an education provider. These types of intervention have been included in descriptions in examples from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Ireland. Language courses for adults also fall into this category, and are produced in Japan, Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands, Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom.

Audio or Video Resource Distribution for Educational Institutions
Some broadcasters playing a role in distributing audio and video materials for the further and higher education sectors. This scenario differs from the first in that there is no identified education provider who will be making use of the materials, and the resources are not necessarily programme series focusing on a specific course or courses. The Learning Zone in the United Kingdom is the most obvious example of this type of initiative. Curriculum material for the further education and training (FET) sector is broadcast at off-peak times (usually late at night) and intended for recording. For example, Short Cuts, a programme series within The Learning Zone, consists of short inserts on topics of relevance to the FET sector, which have been selected from BBC archive material.

Forums for Specialized Information Needs
Some broadcasters structure forums for the specialized information needs of what is often a fairly small niche audience. While there is no structured course or curriculum, a regular series for exploring issues relating to a specific content focus is produced. Programmes on agriculture and health frequently adopt such an approach. The programmes are intended to be of general interest, but to contain useful information or tips relating to specific problems or techniques. Health programmes have been conducted in Bolivia, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Kenya, Nepal, the United Kingdom and Zambia. A focus on agriculture is equally common, with examples from Bolivia, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Russia, and Zambia. Elderly people have also been identified as having specialized information needs, and, in Japan and Germany, programmes explicitly focusing on old age have been created.

Broadcasts at Motivators for More Structured and Thorough Educational Engagement
In some cases, broadcast are used as a way of getting audiences interested in a specific topic. They are used to encourage people to want to find out more, to enrol in a more structured programme or course, and/or to buy or use more detailed support material. Scandinavian language courses have adopted this approach. In both Finland and Sweden, a Russian language course was popularized through a television broadcast. In the Finnish example, Kaputska consisted of a soap opera that aimed to portray Russian as fun and trendy. This was supplemented by printed and CD-ROM course materials. Denmark used a television series to introduce some basic Russian and produced printed and audio materials that could be used independently from the broadcast. These are content-specific examples where broadcast programmes are used to encourage enrolment or further enquiry into a specific course. At times, the motivational potential of broadcasts is used to encourage general lifelong learning. For such interventions, there is no link to a specific course, but rather counselling and information services are offered as follow-up support. A clear example of this kind of broadcasting role is seen in the BBC’s Second Chance campaign, which aimed to encourage adults to enrol in courses and to continue studying.

Targeted and Short-lived Campaigns
While Second Chance was a motivational intervention it was also a targeted and short-lived campaign. It was designed to have high impact over a restricted time period and aimed to result in social action. The aim was to get more adults enrolled in courses generally. Similar campaigns involving broadcasters have been run to encourage social action with regard to issues like HIV/AIDS, voter education, health risks (like smoking or obesity) and voter education. While the broadcasting component may be short (sometimes a single episode or two to three-minute snippets between programmes), the entire campaign extends well beyond the broadcast. It demands careful and thorough planning to involve all role players and networks necessary for its success. The BBC’s Computers Don’t Byte initiative adopted this type of approach. It combined a campaign and a motivational initiative, as programmes broadcast encouraged viewers to go to their local libraries for computer training courses.

Overview of Radio Broadcasting Initiatives

Given the apparent predominant use of radio in programmes for this spectrum, it is worth investigating the historical development of Interactive Radio Instruction (IRI) as a subset of the development of educational broadcasting in general. The perceived predominance of this approach to educational broadcasting is, at least in part, a result of the dearth of information published about these projects as they have, in the main been USAID funded or World bank initiatives. IRI and radiophonic schools are characteristic of periods of early optimism in educational broadcasting (see chapter Three of SAIDE, 1999), as they were designed for direct teaching using overtly pedagogical broadcasts. Its development does not reflect changes in educational radio as a whole, but nevertheless provides some important lessons about changing conceptions of this initial (somewhat limited) use of broadcasts.

Interactive Radio Instruction (IRI)
The Learning Technologies for Basic Education project (Learntech) adopted the phrase ‘Interactive Radio Instruction’ to describe the methodology used in educational radio initiatives in a number of countries. Initially, IRI projects focused on schooling but subsequently the methodology was used for adult education and youth development (see Appendix Two Of this report). The first IRI project was a Radio Mathematics programme, introduced in Nicaragua in 1974. Since this early start, LearnTech adapted its interpretation of the term ‘interactive’. Tracking the changing use of ‘interactive’ reveals a clear understanding of the philosophy underpinning IRI methodology as well as an indication of the historical development of IRI.

In the first LearnTech IRI project, interactivity ‘was characterised as a ‘conversation’ between the radio teacher and the students. The radio teacher posed questions to which the students responded, in chorus, at a rapid pace’(Moulton, J., 1994, p.7). This was thought to lend itself well to learning basic mathematics, on the basis that many questions in mathematics have only one correct answer, and frequent drill-and-practice was thought to be important to the learning process.

The ‘conversational style’ of IRI methodology, did not however, seem to lend itself well to teaching inquiry and problem solving. When initiating projects in subject areas other than mathematics, LearnTech extended its definition of interactivity, basing its new definition strongly on research being conducted on Computer-Aided Instruction at the time.(Moulton, J., 1994, p.14)

The new use of ‘interactive’ was based on an assumption that ‘recitation’ was the core characteristic of interactive instruction. Recitation is described in a LearnTech publication as:

A repeated chain of events in which

• a teacher provides a structure, formulating the topic or issue;

• the teacher solicits a response or asks a questions of students;

• a student responds to the question; and

• the teacher reacts to the students’ answer.(Moulton, J., 1994, p.13)

This understanding of interactive instruction clearly falls within a teacher-centred paradigm of education (The use of  'interactive instruction' rather than 'interactive learning', is another indication of a teacher centred notion.), a conception confirmed by the following description of ‘a good teacher’, from the same LearnTech publication:

‘A good teacher will formulate questions according to a logic, sequence and style based on an understanding of the structure of the knowledge to be acquired. A good teacher will also anticipate students’ responses and the thinking behind those responses and move the dialogue forward in those terms towards the instructional goal.’(Moulton, J., 1994, pp.13-14)

With this conception of a good teacher’s role, LearnTech adopted recitation as the form of instruction used in most of its IRI broadcasts.

In contrast, the IRI broadcasts for training teachers in Nepal did not use the conversational style at all, but consisted of short lectures followed by a few questions. The broadcasts supported print materials, which were an integral part of the teacher training programme(Moulton, J., 1994, pp.13-14). Teacher education programmes in Sri Lanka and Indonesia extended use of other technologies by choosing to use audiocassettes, print, and contact sessions rather than IRI broadcasts.

The following table summarizes the distinctions between the characteristics of early prototypes of IRI and its current conceptualisation:(Adapted from Bosch, A, 1997)

Radiophonic Schools
Radio has also been used in radiophonic schools directed at adults and out-of-school youth. These are particularly prevalent in Latin America (Dodds, T., 1996, p.32). Dodds summarizes the general patterns evident in these radio phonic schools as follows:

Content: literacy, numeracy; primary school/basic education equivalency curricula for adults covering social, community, faintly, economic (e.g. agriculture, business etc.) and religious concerns of everyday life
Audience: adults, young adults and out-of-school children in remote or economically deprived communities
Distance education methods used: radio lessons at various levels and in various subjects; printed ‘theme’ posters; self-study textbooks, newspapers/ newsletters, study groups in homesteads or local community halls, facilitators/monitors trained as group leaders by the central institution
Governance: projects/institutions established and supported by the Roman Catholic Church, liasing closely with local and national agencies both governmental and NGO
History and impact: Grew into a regional movement in the 1960s and 1970s modelled on an initial experiment in Colombia, Accion Culturel Popular (ACPO) set up by Fr. Salcedo, based at Radio Sutatenza. Spread rapidly in the 1970s and 1980s. A regional association, the Latin American Association for Radiophonic Schools (ALER), was established in the mid 1970s and still exists. The movement appears to be flourishing.(Dodds, T., 1996, p.32)

IRI and radiophonic methodologies have been used in a number of countries for adult education and youth development. IRI adopted an overtly pedagogical approach characteristic of educational broadcasting phases of early optimism. It initially adopted a conversational style, or aural-oral methodology, between radio teacher and a chorus of students. Radiophonic schools adopted a similar pattern. Although their broadcast component has been less rigorously defined and documented, these programmes continued to form an integral part of curriculum delivery. As the methodology developed, IRI broadcasts allowed for more varied responses, eliciting responses from individual students in processes mediated by the classroom teacher. The role of the classroom teacher was increased, and more emphasis was placed on activities which took place after the broadcast and outside the classroom. It extended its focus from schools to a variety of learning contexts. Finally, additional support technologies like print and contact sessions were increasingly used, with audiocassettes eventually replacing the IRI broadcasts in some countries. This final tendency, towards extensive use of support technologies, follows trends in educational broadcasting as a whole.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

There have been many educational interventions targeting adults and youth in the last few decades in a wide range of countries around the world. The focuses of these interventions have been as varied as the nature of the interventions. While agriculture, health, community education, and literacy remain priorities in developing countries there is currently a far wider range of subject areas and content focuses, each of which caters for different needs and contexts. The nature of interventions has also developed, particularly with regard to role broadcasting. The initial strong use of print, radio and face-to-face tuition, particularly through IRI and radiophonic schooling, is now being extended to using a range of technologies including television. Broadcast technologies have been, and are being, used creatively to fulfil a variety of functions in the education process. For example, broadcasts may:

• Form an integral component of curriculum delivery for a structured and accredited course;

• Form an important component of a structured course that is not formally accredited;

• Be used as means of distributing audio and video resources for a general education sector;

• Be used as a forum for specialized information needs;

• Motivate a target audience to pursue more thorough or structured educational engagement; or

• Be used for a targeted, short-lived campaign that aims to result in social action or behavioural change.

This brief international overview contains useful lessons for planning interventions in South Africa. Perhaps most importantly, this chapter illustrates the extent to which the South African context outlined in the previous chapter is, in many ways, not entirely unique. Problems regarding establishing a clear understanding of target audience, fragmentation of the systems in place, and the wide range of possible content focuses, are also experienced in other parts of the world. Notwithstanding these difficulties, educational broadcasters have played an important role in supporting initiatives in this area and have developed various approaches to broadcasting which contribute significantly to educational processes.