Distance Education in India Top Universities List

Distance Education in India :Distance education has made is date with history far back in 1928 when a teacher in Boston USA initiated and idea of learning through weekly mailed lessons. However, the University of London made history to start external learning program in 1958.

Australia with its huge land mass and widespread scattered population realized it the concept of distance education. University of queen’s land established Department of correspondence courses.

International conference for correspondence education held its first meeting in 1938 with aim to deliver quality education at doorstep at low cost to large masses.

With the spread of Radio and Television, universities utilized the opportunity telecast Radio and TV lessons from subject experts. Success and popularize of this model encouraged universities and governments more on this. Canada established its first “Open University” in 1970. Today every university has its own schools of distance education.

In India distance education council recognizing courses and maintain standard of the courses of the institutes across the country. Distance education has many advantages in spreading education to large masses and for those who failed to attend or discontinued regular traditional class system of education.

Maintaining quality educational standards on par with regular traditional education is always a big challenge to the DEC distance education council.

In India, first Open University was, established in the state of Andhra Pradesh. In 1985, Govt of India has established IGNOU Indira Gandhi Open University by act of parliament, with New Delhi as its head quarters. IGNOU has opened Regional centers and study centres across the country to reach out and cover majority of p. Every state in India has its own regional open university. With nearly 4 million enrollments, IGNOU was, recognized as one of the largest distance education Intuitions in the world.

Some of the popular universities in India in Distance Educations  which offers distance mode of education, are

• IGNOU
• Ambedkar Open University. 
• Symbiosis University etc
• annamalai university distance education
• anna university distance education
• bharathiar university distance education
• periyar university distance education

With technological advancement, character and functioning model of distance education, has changed by taking advantage and utilizing the new technologies. New technologies like,

Web Conferencing, Video Conferencing, Educational Television, Instructional Television, Direct Broadcast satellite Technology, Internet Radio, Live streaming, Telephone, Webinar, E mail, Voice mail and Audio Recordings. Has given a new dimension to distance education ie e – Learning.

In India, private universities lead by Symbiosis and other universities are, extensively into distance e learning mode of education which gaining immense popularity among the younger generation in India. In contrast, state universities are still following traditional method of printed material and contact classes mode.

With availability and convenience of distance education and distance e learning, has made higher education accessible to the people, in the country.