Page 6 of 6
Figure 5 The OUC Complex adaptive system
“The establishment of the OUC is by no means a simple name change. Rather, it is a strategic transition geared to meet the needs of national development and technical development”, the OUC President Yang Zhijian commented at a round table meeting on the OUC cultural construction on August 1, 2012. “Historically, the RTVU hasn't been open enough to fit in completely with the actual needs of economic and social development, despite the assumed open nature of open universities.”[10] The realization of the RTVU’s strategic transition will bring about reform based on historical accumulation and practical considerations. “Reform in any guise, whether it is the reform of the RTVU operating mechanism, internal management systems or the reform of the learner formation, will naturally create a series of knock on effects, such as conceptual and mechanism conflicts, benefit gambling, not to mention the cultural conflicts that may arise as a result of the relationship between open universities and society”[11]. It is thus clear that the construction of the OUC system cannot be accomplished in a single stroke and that, “a slight move in one part may affect the situation as a whole”.
Therefore, to reduce resistance and improve the educational return and social benefit, the construction of the OUC operating system should study and design itself upon self-organization theory. Features such as openness, cooperation, competitiveness, imbalance, variability and integrity should be grasped and used to establish a complex adaptive system in which the subject fits in with the environment. Under the overall leadership of the national education authorities, the OUC headquarters, branches, local colleges, study centres,and enterprise and industry colleges will join forces to explore and reform management systems and operation mechanisms, intensify the system’s capacity for coordination and support services, and formulate and upgrade the OUC’s school management capacity. As a new type of higher education institution, the OUC plays a key role in serving the construction of a learning society and enabling lifelong learning for all members of society, thereby realizing the strategic transition of the RTVUs.
Bibliography
[1]General Office of the State Council. Notice of the General Office of the State Council on Reform Pilot Schemes of the National Educational System（Guo Ban Fa〔2010〕No. 48）[z].Beijing，2010-10-24.
[2][4]Baidupedia: Self-organization theory [DB/OL].Baidu, 2013—02-01.http://baike.baidu.com/view/4719481.htm
[3][Germany] Max Weber, Social Economics (Volume Ⅰ) [M]. Beijing: Commercial Press：242—248.
[5]CHEN Yizhuang. Core Problems in the Study of Complexity Theory [N].Beijing：Study Times，2006-11-20(007).
[6][7]Open University of China. Strategic Plan for the Open University of China [M].Beijing: China Central Radio and TV University Press, 2012.
[8]YANG Zhijian. The Construction of the Open University of China: Reform and Innovation [J].Distance Education in China: Comprehensive Edition，2013,4：6-8.
[9][11]YAN Bing. Speech at the Special Workshop on the Pilot Construction of Local Colleges and Study Centres of the OUC Operating System [z].Xi’an，2012-12-14.
[10] WU Jing,Xinhua News Agency. Four Explorations to Realize Strategic Transition: Expert Insights on the Construction of the OUC [N/OL].Central Government Portal, 2012-08-01.http://www.gov.cn/jrzg/2012-08/01/content_2196556.htm
About the author: YAO Wenjian, assistant researcher, Office of the OUC System Construction, the OUC (CCRTVU) Development Planning Department