An Exploratory Study on the Implication of Virtual University Concept in the Developing Countries

Abstract

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are having a profound impact on learning and teaching in almost all countries, and in all models of education. The impact of these technologies is likely to continue unabated and, therefore, educators find it important to keep themselves abreast of the latest thinking. In this line of thinking, the concept of virtual university [VU] came into existence as the result of the modern ICTs. The main target of this paper is to deal with the relevant issues of VU which are emerging all over the world. Sux VU Models from different continents have been brought under study to formulate a suitable VU model for a developing country. This paper has provided a brief description of how the VU models are being implemented in real life and how effectively they are fulfilling the work processes. Theoretically, this paper has come up with a new extended model of a VU with prior identification of the common factors among all the existing models including some essential cost factors. For the empirical analysis, the study has chosen a leading private university of a developing country [Bangladesh), namely, American International University - Bangladesh [AIUB], where the process of virtualizing the physical university activities has been already started. Finally, the study finds the proposed VU model suitable for AIUB where physical- as well as virtual-university may coexist.