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While choosing two distinct learning institution, one from a developed country and one from a developing country, this paper will compare and contrast the institutions on various dimensions of second wave distance education and address how distance education practices influence both institutions in terms of mission and population served, history/reason for existence, values espoused/inherent to the institution, organization/systems of operation, model of teaching and learning, and technologies.   While choosing two distinct learning institution, one from a developed country and one from a developing country, this paper will compare and contrast the institutions on various dimensions of second wave distance education and address how distance education practices influence both institutions in terms of mission and population served, history/reason for existence, values espoused/inherent to the institution, organization/systems of operation, model of teaching and learning, and technologies.   The evaluation of the tutor support in a distance learning institution

Open educational resources (OERs) have the potential to reduce costs, improve quality, and increase access to educational opportunities. OER development and deployment is one path that could contribute to achieving education for all. The article, "Developing and Deploying OERs in Sub-Saharan Africa: Building on the Present" by Clayton Wright builds on existing information and communication technology (ICT) implementation plans in Africa and on the experiences of organizations and initiatives such as: * the African Virtual University (AVU), * OER Africa, the South African Institute of Distance Education (SAIDE), * Teacher Education in Sub Saharan Africa (TESSA) Project The author of the article present, a one view of the benefits, challenges, and steps to realize the potential of OERs in sub-Saharan Africa if they could be taken. * The article further focuses on the factors necessary for creating and sustaining a vision for OER development and deployment; * developing and distributing resources with an open license; * improving technology infrastructure and reducing the cost of Internet access; * establishing communities of educational collaborators; sustaining involvement in the OER initiative; * producing resources in interoperable and open formats; * establishing and maintaining the quality of OERs; providing local context to address national and regional needs and conditions; * informing the public about OERs; and taking the initiative to build on the knowledge, skills, and experiences of others. Wright, C. (Apr 2012). Developing and Deploying OERs in Sub-Saharan Africa: Building on the Present. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, (v13) n2. pp. 181-220. Retrieved from: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ983279.pdf

"Community of Inquiry Framework The CoI framework is comprised of three interdependent and dynamic structural elements: social presence, cognitive presence, and teaching presence. As shown in Figure 1, the framework assumes that learning occurs within the community through the interaction of these three core elements. The underlying foundational perspective of the framework is a collaborative constructivist view of teaching and learning (Garrison & Anderson, 2003). Collaborative constructivism is in essence the recognition of the interplay between individual meaning and socially redeeming knowledge; hence, a community of inquiry is a personal and public search for meaning and understanding (Cleveland-Innes, Garrison, & Kinsel, 2007). A recent study conducted by Shea and Bidjerano (2009) concluded that the epistemic engagement approach, which foregrounds the role of learners as collaborative knowledge builders, is more fully articulated and extended through a community of inquiry."