Adapting distance education for Indonesians: Problems with learner heteronomy and a strong oral tradition

This paper discusses the difficulties being experienced by the Indonesian Open University identified in a joint UNESCO/ICDE analysis. It proposes that a fundamental cause of distance education failure in Indonesia has been the adoption of western models without adaptation to suit the acculturised behaviours of Indonesian teachers and learners. Western distance education assumes that learners will become autonomous and can cope with a teacher relationship mediated through text. The paper describes the heteronomous nature of Indonesian social and learning behaviour, and the strong oral tradition of Indonesian education. Various suggestions are advanced for adapting western models to suit local conditions.