International Fellowship with the Centre for Distance Education

I’m absolutely delighted to be back working with the Centre for Distance at the University of London as an International Fellow (https://london.ac.uk/centre-for-distance-education). I have many fond memories from my time with the CDE while at Kings College London, the University of London (UoL) and then nearby University of Surrey. From its inception the CDE has had a strong (and successful) mission to build and propagate expert knowledge in distance and online education through community and collaboration. The Centre has drawn on the UoL’s deep roots as a global provider of education at a distance. UoL’s rich history began in 1858, and it was the decision in 1865 to make London examinations available remotely that freed higher education from the constraint of location. Until the establishment of the Council for National Academic Awards in 1964 and the Open University five years later, the University of London offered the only pathway, anywhere in the world, to obtaining a degree without attending a university. Since the CDE’s launch in 2005 and the onboarding of those first eight fellows, the network has now expanded globally and now comprises 42 fellows committed to knowledge-sharing and the development of high-quality teaching and research in open and distance learning. There are obvious linkages with the University of New England where I now work. As Australia’s oldest and most experienced provider of distance education the fellowship with the CDE and linkages to UNE will provide new opportunities for shared endeavour in advancing knowledge and practice in digital education.