Professional Guidance and Counselling Services for Open and Distance Learning Students in Nigeria
Authors

Counselling services are common features in conventional school settings and are designed to help students resolve personal and academic issues, explore career options and attend to their social needs. It is of great concern that these services are absent in Open and Distance Learning (ODL) programmes, although the peculiar nature of the programmes reveals the urgent need for them. ODL students should be able to access guidance and counselling services just as their counterparts in the conventional school setting. The main focus of this article is to point out the relevance of professional guidance and counselling services in ODL programmes in Nigeria. An in-depth description of these services and the benefits ODL students can derive from accessing them is presented. In addition, the authors adapted a conceptual model to accentuate the expected output of professional counselling services. The purpose of this model is to present a clear explanation of the fact that adequate provision of professional counselling services will lead to the improved school, workplace and family environment. It is expected that this will lead to good behaviour and improved academic performance, invariably creating a safe school, out of school and workplace environment for ODL students. Recommendations include the creation of awareness programmes through online seminars and workshops to educate ODL students on various ways to access guidance and counselling services.

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Students’ Experience in Learning Accounting via Open and Distance Learning (ODL)

Insight Journal ◽

10.24191/ij.v7i1.60 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. 29-40

Author(s):

Nur Syafiqah Hussin ◽

Naqiah Awang ◽

Farah Husna Mohd Fatzel

Keyword(s):

Distance Learning ◽

Traditional Classroom ◽

Financial Accounting ◽

Way Of Life ◽

Internet Connection ◽

New Material ◽

The Subject ◽

Open And Distance Learning ◽

Catch Up ◽

Almost All

Covid-19 is an unprecedented crisis that has affected almost all industry players including education. It has transformed our way of life and introduced a new normal to how things are done. As an effort to contain the outbreak of pandemic Covid-19, universities have shifted to online learning. In line with this, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) has decided to execute open and distance learning (ODL) for the current semester until 31 December 2020. ODL introduces a different learning environment as compared to the traditional classroom that requires students to be self-reliant in learning new things. Hence, the purpose of the study is to explore students’ experiences in the process of knowledge transfer through ODL specifically for accounting subjects. A questionnaire was distributed to students who were taking the subject of Introduction to Financial Accounting and Introduction to Cost Accounting in UiTM Pahang Kampus Raub and a total of 206 responses were received. The study found over half of the students enjoy learning through ODL but only one-third were looking forward to having ODL for the next semester. Poor internet connection is the main reason found in the study that makes ODL not preferred by the students. At the same time, few features were highlighted by the students about ODL such as the advantage of pre-recorded video to catch up the new material and flexibility for them to learn at their own pace.

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The Role of the Open and Distance Learning Subject Specialists in Promoting Self-Directed and Independent Learning: An Evaluation

i-manager s Journal on School Educational Technology ◽

10.26634/jsch.1.4.859 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 1 (4) ◽

pp. 37-49

Author(s):

Carmencita Castolo L ◽

Keyword(s):

Distance Learning ◽

Independent Learning ◽

Open And Distance Learning

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Hybrid learning - a safe route into web-based open and distance learning for the computer science teacher

Proceedings of the 6th annual conference on Innovation and technology in computer science education - ITiCSE '01 ◽

10.1145/377435.377493 ◽

2001 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

John Rosbottom

Keyword(s):

Distance Learning ◽

Science Teacher ◽

Computer Science ◽

Hybrid Learning ◽

Web Based ◽

Open And Distance Learning

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The Role of Open and Distance Learning in the Implementation of the Right to Education in Zambia

The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning ◽

10.19173/irrodl.v9i1.481 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Richard Siaciwena ◽

Foster Lubinda

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Distance Learning ◽

Right To Education ◽

Youth Policy ◽

Child Rights ◽

Rights Of The Child ◽

Child Policy ◽

Open And Distance Learning ◽

The Right

As a member of the United Nations, Zambia is committed to the observance of human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948. This is evidenced, among others, by the fact that Zambia is a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. Zambia has a permanent Human Rights Commission that includes a subcommittee on child rights whose focus is on child abuse and education. Zambia also has a National Child Policy and National Youth Policy whose main objectives are to holistically address problems affecting children and youth. This paper focuses on the progress and challenges currently facing Zambia and the role of open and distance learning in addressing those challenges.

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An Agent Service Grid for Supporting Open and Distance Learning

Remote Instrumentation for eScience and Related Aspects ◽

10.1007/978-1-4614-0508-5_9 ◽

2011 ◽

pp. 129-143

Author(s):

Alberto Grosso ◽

Davide Anghinolfi ◽

Antonio Boccalatte ◽

Christian Vecchiola

Keyword(s):

Distance Learning ◽

Service Grid ◽

Open And Distance Learning

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HOW MUCH ‘DISTANCE’ DOES LANGUAGE CREATE IN ODL MATERIALS? A BOTSWANA CASE STUDY

Progressio South African Journal for Open and Distance Learning Practice ◽

10.25159/0256-8853/1022 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 38 (1) ◽

pp. 58-73

Author(s):

Mmabaledi Kefilwe Seeletso ◽

Rinelle Evans

Keyword(s):

Distance Learning ◽

Limited English Proficiency ◽

Drop Out ◽

Instructional Materials ◽

Study Materials ◽

Mixed Methods Case Study ◽

Open And Distance Learning ◽

Instructional Dialogue ◽

Group Interviews

It is assumed that open and distance learning institutions develop study materials that adequately engage learners with quality content to assist their content mastery. However, distance learners continue to underperform, which raises the concern that high drop-out and failure rates may be ascribed to the study materials. This mixed-methods case study examined instructional material developed for secondary school learners studying via the open and distance learning mode. The study was informed by Sweller’s Cognitive Load Theory to evaluate the process of designing and developing instructional materials while Gorsky, Caspi and Trumper’s Theory of Instructional Dialogue was used to map interaction with and within the selected study materials. A self-designed evaluation rubric included language related criteria to gauge the accessibility of content. A questionnaire survey was undertaken with purposively identified participants: five material developers, 176 learners, and six tutors. Six semi-structured group interviews and twenty individual face-to-face interviews were conducted. Open coding and SPSS reports were used for qualitative and quantitative data analysis, respectively. Findings related to non-alignment of materials with learner profile, and the national syllabus, while inadequate proficiency in the language of instruction remained problematic. The outcomes of this study highlight the importance of well-trained material developers and focused ODL policies for quality assuring effective content design and development to accommodate diverse learners with limited English proficiency.

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