The present booklet focuses on how to manage a distance learning system so that it maximises the efficient use of resources while meeting its goals. Clearly a key component in its successful use, the management of distance education involves planning, organizing, leading and controlling. The author discusses the choice of the institutional framework and the funding system, then describes the three major sub-systems involved, what he calls: “the material sub-system” – the production of materials; “the service sub-system” – the support to students, and “the administrative sub-system” with the management of tutors. He then turns to the questions of controlling and assessing the outcomes. Drawing examples from both developed and developing countries, this booklet should be of great interest to all educational planners who want to know more about distance learning, the factors to be taken into account when setting up a system delivering such a form of education, and how to run it efficiently.
