The need to establish more online campuses within Jamaica's colleges must be part of the future plans of universities, according to Jerry Ice, president and chief executive officer of The Graduate School in the United States of America.

"Learning, performance and competences can be achieved outside of the typical confines of a classroom," Ice revealed during the EduVision Awards of Excellence ceremony at the Hilton's Rose Hall Resort and Spa in Montego Bay.

He charged that face-to-face education was not the way forward, and that technology and broad-casting educational material through the Web was the best option to both increase efficiency and lower cost.

Outstanding contributions

The EduVision Awards of Excellence was established in 2003 to acknowledge the outstanding contributions of individuals, learning institutions and regional organisations in the field of technology in education.

Among the recipients of the award were e-Learning Jamaica, which has demonstrated effective-ness in integration of technology in education and for their other innovative projects, and Jean Hastings and Dr Parris Lyew Ayee who have both exemplified creativity, leader-ship and innovative contributions to education and technology.

Operating under the theme 'Technology in Education and Training for Development Goals', the fourth international conference on technology in education sought to create a forum for sharing research and best practices in the use of technology to enhance products, processes, services, education and other professional development activities.