In the case of Fiji, a nation amongst 11 other nations at the regional University of the South Pacific, distance education is a strategic tool for development. A Bachelor of Education (Bed) offered through various stages through the distance mode from 1971 has contributed to the provision of secondary school teacher qualifications in Fiji and other South Pacific countries. However, the focus of this paper will be on Fiji. With vast spans of ocean and fragile agrarian-economies, obtaining a tertiary education as a means of improving life and economic situations is a significant step for many people. Obtaining units by distance would possibly lead to an on-campus scholarship and thus to a Bachelor degree and various viable opportunities in their careers. The BEd caters for the various levels of entry requirements for teachers in the South Pacific region whilst at the same time providing opportunity and access amidst the various socio-economic and political factors of …Fiji and the region. Studying by extension also gives the people of Fiji a second opportunity to education which crosses the borders of the stringent national selection criteria for scholarships which include ethnicity. A research finding from distance education students and administrators through interviews indicated that benefits directly related to classroom practice include changes in personal attitude, a greater awareness of their roles as teachers and the multi-cultural context in which teachers teach in Fiji. Personal benefits include access to promotion, financial benefits associated with obtaining qualification, having access to affordable education whilst studying in the context which teachers are already working in. Thus with 25 years of distance offering, the BED programme by distance is improving qualifications of secondary school teachers and providing access to tertiary education for people of the South Pacific who otherwise would not have the opportunity.
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