Abstract
Distance learning is seen as the obvious answer for remote learners, and the use of online media is expected to overcome any access difficulties imposed by geographical distance. However, this belief may be obscuring our understanding of the role that location and individual circumstances have in shaping student experience. This paper explores the variation in experiences of remote rural students who study with the Open University (UK). The researchers found that perceptions of remoteness depended on geography, but were also relative to individual circumstances. With respect to students’ sense of connection with university staff and peers, most mentioned their contact with their personal tutor. Networks with peers were less common, a matter of concern if peer networks are integral to fostering improved retention and progression. In this particular context, distance education may be playing an important and distinctive role for remote students by providing opportunities for connections with like-minded people.
Highlights
Distance learning is often seen as an obvious choice for many students with access limitations because it can provide higher education without the necessity for attendance at a campus, and geographically remote students are a case in point
Little is known about the ways students in remote areas experience study, which could indicate their levels of satisfaction and show strategies to increase retention rates. This may be because a focus on online learning within distance education as the best solution for all learners is obscuring our understanding of the range of contexts in which distance learning is experienced
In order to gain a rich picture of the experience of remote and rural students, we chose a qualitative approach, including semi-structured telephone interviews followed by focus groups, with the intention of providing an in-depth understanding of the perspectives of remote rural students on their experience of study with the OU
Summary
Distance learning is often seen as an obvious choice for many students with access limitations because it can provide higher education without the necessity for attendance at a campus, and geographically remote students are a case in point. Little is known about the ways students in remote areas experience study, which could indicate their levels of satisfaction and show strategies to increase retention rates This may be because a focus on online learning within distance education as the best solution for all learners is obscuring our understanding of the range of contexts in which distance learning is experienced. The relationship between spatial remoteness and inclusion is often seen as an infrastructure and access issue with frequent reference to roads and broadband access (see, for example, Mason & Rennie, 2004) While this technical and location focus is important – as poor infrastructure within remote locales stifles development – the theory that students’ learning experiences will be the same wherever they live if they can study online is unproven (Warren, 2007)
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