An Appraisal of ODL Interventions in Terrorism Affected Kashmir Valley

Implementing practical based courses under Open and Distance Learning (ODL) system is a very difficult and challenging task as the teaching of practical based courses involves intensive practical work. For removing the difficulties and challenges in implementing the practical based courses under ODL system, there is a need to study the existing status and problems found in the way of implementing practical based courses under ODL system. The learners and counsellors of practical based courses under ODL system are the practical stake holders of ODL system who can judiciously perceive and identify the existing status and problems in implementing practical based courses under ODL system. But, from the literature of research in the field of ODL system, it is found that hardly study has been carried out to study the perception of learners and counsellors in implementing practical based courses under ODL system. Therefore, the present study has attempted to study the perception of learners and counsellors in implementing practical based courses under ODL system. The study intended to achieve two objectives: (i) to study the perception of the learners in implementing practical based courses under open and distance learning system, and (ii) to study the perception of the counsellors in implementing practical based courses under open and distance learning system. The study is considered under descriptive survey type research. Twenty learners who were pursuing the Bachelor of Science (B. Sc.) course and twenty counsellors who were counselling B.Sc. learners in two selected study centers of Indira Gandhi National Open University(IGNOU) Regional Center, Bhubaneswar ( i.e. IGNOU Study Center, B.J.B. College, Bhubaneswar and IGNOU Study Center, Khalikote College, Berhampur) were taken as participants for the study. Purposive sampling method was followed for selecting the participants for the study. Data were collected personally from the participants in a natural and comfortable setting. Two tools (i.e. Perception scale for studying the perception of the learners in implementing practical based courses under open and distance learning system; and Perception scale for studying the perception of the counsellors in implementing practical based courses under open and distance learning system) were used for collection of data from the participants of the study. A mix of qualitative and quantitative methods/approaches of data analysis was used for analyzing the data of the study. The results of the study mainly highlighted the perception of the learners and counsellors regarding existing status and problems in implementing practical based courses under ODL system and their suggestions in implementing practical based courses under open and distance learning system.

Rise of Open and Distance Learning (ODL) systems in India is largely a 20th century phenomenon. The ODL systems have taken up responsibilities to identify the educational needs of diverse segments of people and accordingly plan innovative and flexible systems to meet their requirements. Though ODL systems have been on the priority of the Governments in India for a long time, Post 2015 Development Agenda of United Nations has given a renewed policy thrust for it. Despite their tremendous potential to address the problems in Indian Higher Education, the functioning of ODL systems is constrained by low reach of technology, poor infrastructure and sharp socioeconomic, linguistic and cultural variations in targeted areas. This chapter gives an account of gaps in theory and practices of Open and Distance Learning systems. Recommendations have been made to optimise the practice of ODL to suit Indian context. Existing research studies have been put in to perspective and recommendations have been made for practitioners of Open and Distance Learning systems.

Open and distance learning in higher education provides an opportunity to individuals who cannot attend university full time on campus. Urban area residents especially have an advantage by accessing such higher education. There are almost three million people who receive university education in this way, and almost 1,5 million students in the Open and Distance Learning System at Anadolu University. On campus university graduates can also register for any department as a second university to receive university education in the Open and Distance Learning System. Therefore, the number of students and graduates increase every year. The purpose of this study is to analyze the role of the Open and Distance Learning System at Anadolu University, which has helped Turkish higher education by means of increasing economic and social welfare. To achieve the goal, 9131 graduates were surveyed. The results indicate that the Open and Distance Learning System in question has been effective with regard to their employment status (before and after education), income levels and their social-economic welfare positions.

Growing urbanisation and large scale migration of people from the rural areas to urban centres has resulted in the large scale development of urban slum population. The Madhya Pradesh has approximately 24.31% of the urban population living in such slums which is expected to further grow in the years to come. The poorly paid unskilled job opportunities coupled with little or no educational avenues has perpetuated the poverty in the slums. Though educationcould be a viable tool to break this vicious poverty trap, it has not been explored to the extent it is required. Traditional educational systems due to its rigid structure cannot do much to bring the huge slum dwellers in to the fold of education. People are too vulnerable and cannot comprehend their problems. Their livelihoods commitments come first as a result of which most of them can not pursue full time education. It is in this context that Open and Distance Learning systems due to their Flexible and Innovative nature have an important role to play in slum areas. Indira Gandhi National Open University has started an innovative scheme of giving the “School Drop Outs” direct access to Higher Education. University does not put any precondition for the formal schooling and has created a channel of Higher Education under which “School Drop Outs” can directly take admission in graduation and other University level programmes, subject to clearing “Bachelor's Preparatory Programme”, a specially designed 6 monthly bridge course. The 6 monthly programme was popularised among the slum dwellers with the support of World Vision a non profit humanitarian organisation working in slum areas of Bhopal. The response of the slum dwellers for this course led to overwhelming response with more than 50 students taking admission with in less than 15 days. Authors of this paper have been engaged in the publicity and promotion of IGNOU's programmes with special focus on disadvantaged groups in Madhya Pradesh. In this paper, we have described our experiences while dealing with this special group and the further possibilities have been highlighted in this paper. The paper has been organised in following four parts. In the first part the conditions prevailing in slum areas have been described and the conditions which make ODL system relevant for these areas have been highlighted through a SWOT analysis. In the second part the proposed model of interventions has been described. In the third part the lessons learnt out of this experiment have been summarised and the recommendations for future interventions have been given.

Ponte Academic JournalOct 2022, Volume 78, Issue 10 A REVIEW OF THE DYNAMICS AND COMPLEXITIES OF PRE-SERVICE TEACHER TRAINING BY DISTANCE IN SOUTH AFRICAAuthor(s): Sunday Olawale OlaniranJ. Ponte - Oct 2022 - Volume 78 - Issue 10 doi: 10.21506/j.ponte.2022.10.3 Abstract:While there is broad consensus about the relevance of open and distance learning (ODL) to the teaching and learning delivery in higher education, there is limited research about the challenges facing distance learning institutions, especially those with pre-service teacher training. South Africa is one of the countries in Africa with strong open and distance learning system, with thousands of individuals obtaining their teaching qualifications annually. As established in literature, the training of sufficient teaching manpower for the continent of Africa might require the building of one new university per week for the next twenty years, had open and distance learning system not discovered. However, this review identified many challenges in the ODL based pre-service teacher training, especially in the areas of learners’ support system, communication and feedback, school-based mentoring of student teachers, as well as meeting the needs of students that are living with disabilities. The paper recommends some measures for stakeholders to strengthen ODL based pre-service teacher training so that it meets the 21st century demand for quality teachers. Download full text:Check if you have access through your login credentials or your institution Username Password

In this chapter, some decision problems faced in Higher Open and Distance Learning (ODL) systems are discussed. The terms open learning and distance education represent approaches that focus on opening access to education and training provision, freeing learners from the constraints of time and place, and offering flexible learning opportunities to individuals and groups of learners.KeywordsAnalytic Hierarchy ProcessDecision ProblemDistance EducationVehicle Route ProblemAnalytic Network ProcessThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

The research behavior/attitude support model in open learning systemsThe article contains the concept of developing a motivation model aimed at supporting activity of both students and teachers in the process of implementing and using an open and distance learning system. Proposed motivation model is focused on the task of filling the knowledge repository with high quality didactic material. Open and distance learning system assures a computer space for the teaching/learning process in open environment. The structure of the motivation model and formal assumptions regarding the task of solving the model were described. The proposed approach to solving the task bases on the games theory.

Open and distance learning system is now well-established serving millions of students globally. The technological developments in the 4th industrial revolution era have impacted open and distance learning system. Artificial intelligence, blockchain, 3D printing, computer vision, internet of things, internet of behaviour etc. have introduced smart services in teaching, learning, curriculum design, learning design, user experience, instructional delivery and evaluation and assessment systems. In this paper we discuss how such technologies have brought the digital transformation to open and distance learning. We also examine the meta immersive smart future of open education.

As with other countries of the developing world, vocational and technical education and training is an important aspect of Nigeria’s educational and developmental objectives, however the conventional approach to education is hard pressed to meet this need. Consequently, the open and distance learning system had been introduced to train people in essentially theoretical fields and extended to the vocational and technical fields. The National Open University of Nigeria, the first single-mode open university in West Africa established a Centre Lifelong Learning and Workplace Training to offer proficiency certificate courses in vocational and technical areas. These courses are directed at improving the skills, competencies and abilities of participants for enhanced workplace effectiveness, and enable them to recognize and utilize investment opportunities around them for financial empowerment and personal development. This paper reports the outcome of a primary qualitative investigation of the application of distance learning approaches for teaching practical skills and competencies based courses of the Centre. Using structured interviews and focus group discussions with registered learners, instructional facilitators, student counsellors and prospective applicants to these programmes, the study examined the perception of the participants about the effectiveness of the training received for skills oriented programmes at the institution. Opinions of participants about the instructional delivery of the content and learner-friendliness of study materials were recorded. The discussions also focused on the availability, and effectiveness of contact sessions and multimedia course ware. The findings suggest that, in general, skills development through open and distance learning system is practicable, effective and useful. It was also found that whilst there are print materials issued for instructional delivery, the preference of the learners was for intensive face-to-face practical sessions as complements to print materials. Conclusively, it was proposed that the practical/face-to-face components of the courses should be anchored to some existing apprenticeship training institutions/ organizations in there areas. This will enable participants to learn as they work and also lower the cost of practicals borne by the institution.

Efficient web-based open and distance learning services

The potential of implementation of blockchain technology in education to manage different internal processes seems quite obvious. The chapter discusses different areas of the open and distance learning system in general and learner support services in particular in which use of BCT can be a promising pay-off. The chapter focuses on the introduction of blockchain: how it started and recent developments, open and distance learning system in India, learner support services in open and distance learning, BCT in India, strategies of the government of India to augment blockchain, application of blockchain in open and distance learning in general and learner support services in particular, challenges in implementation of blockchain in open and distance learning and learner support in the country, and its implications.

Every instructional process involves a strategic assessment system for a complete teaching leaning circle. Any assessment system which is seriously flawed, should call for a change, a rethink or a repackaging for sustainability, and to be a part of teaching and learning. Assessment should be meaningful to both the assessors and the assessees. The learners who are the assessees in this case should not be left out in the process of assessment. This is an era of democratization and liberalization of the educational opportunities through the use of Open and Distance Learning. Therefore the components of the educational system, including assessment and evaluation should also be democratized through the group- self evaluation of learning outcomes in the Open and Distance Learning system. This paper takes a look at the benefits of the group- self evaluation, the concept of Open and Distance Learning, characteristics of learners in Open and Distance Learning and integrating group- self evaluation in the Open and Distance Learning system.

In the West African Region of Africa, the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) is the first full fledged university that operates in an exclusively open and distance learning (ODL) mode of education. NOUN focuses mainly on open and distance teaching and learning system, and delivers its courses materials via print in conjunction with information and communication technology (ICT), when applicable. This 'single mode' of open education is different from the integration of distance learning system into the face- to- face teaching and learning system, which is more typical of conventional Universities in Nigeria and other parts of the world. Thus, NOUN reflects a novel development in the provision of higher education in Nigeria. This study assesses the attitudes and perceptions of distance teaching and learning by students enrolled in the NOUN and of the National Teachers' Institute (NTI) compared to their experiences at conventional universities. One hundred and twenty (n = 120) randomly selected NOUN and NTI students of NOUN were the subjects of the study. The Students' Attitude and Perception Rating of Open and Distance Learning Institutions Inventory (SAPRODLII), developed by the researchers, was administered to the subjects to measure their attitudes and experiences. Results of the study showed that students generally have a positive perception and attitude towards ODL, compared to traditional forms of higher education.

As the digitization of education intensifies, cybersecurity has become a vital concern, particularly for Open and Distance Learning (ODL) systems that rely heavily on online platforms to deliver instructional content and manage academic resources. This study investigates the effectiveness of cybersecurity measures implemented within the University of Port Harcourt’s ODL system, with a focus on protecting online educational resources. The research further examines specific vulnerabilities and challenges affecting the cybersecurity infrastructure, such as user awareness, policy implementation, and technical capacity. Adopting a quantitative research approach, data were collected via structured questionnaires distributed to ODL users, and analyzed using descriptive statistics, specifically the mean. The findings indicate that while users express moderate confidence in the presence of basic cybersecurity measures, they also highlight critical shortcomings, including insufficient training, unclear security policies, and irregular system audits. These deficiencies pose significant risks to the safety and integrity of online educational resources. Based on these findings, the study concludes that although foundational security measures exist, a lack of strategic coordination and user engagement weakens overall cybersecurity effectiveness. Consequently, recommendations are made for institutional actors to prioritize awareness training, policy dissemination, continuous audits, and resource allocation to strengthen the ODL platform's security posture.

Individuals in a society should be systematically trained on value education so that they can appreciate values such as love, respect, tolerance, and honesty. Employment of value training approaches within Anadolu University Open and Distance Learning System will make it possible to educate many people on values. The purpose of this research is to determine the opinions of university students about providing value education through distance learning system. This study has been completed via use of semi-structured interview technique based on qualitative research approach. The participants are registered students studying at Social Studies Teacher Training Program, Faculty of Education, Anadolu University during the fall term of 2013-2014 academic years. Based on the selection criteria, 15 students who had already completed value education course and who were familiar with Anadolu University’s open and distance learning system partook in the study. Research data was analyzed through content analysis. Participating students believe that value education is a necessary component of social life and that students within distance learning system should be provided with value education. Furthermore, participants stated that value education could be integrated into distance learning. Based on the findings, it is possible to conclude that offering value education to students through distance learning system may significantly contribute to social life as it facilitates maintaining social order and raising effective citizens.