Distance Education University Research Articles

Factors to consider for inclusive distance education

Distance education is a modality that has come to change people's perception of university education, since it has brought opportunities to a great number of people who had not had them in the classroom. However, just because it is distance education, it cannot be said that it is a modality that is one hundred percent inclusive. For this article and from the author's perspective, several factors or variables must be addressed and put into action by the universities in order to really talk about inclusive education. Each of these factors is approached very generally, although a much broader analysis could be given for each of them in future writings. Inclusive education must be established from the mission of the university. From there, the objective of seeking greater equality, equity and above all justice for those people who have fewer resources and opportunities, and greater problems of access to university education begins. In the same sense, the purpose of this work is to provide insights into the factors that distance education universities must consider in providing inclusive education. What is stipulated here is the author's experience and the different outcomes of distance education academic activities, forums, and conferences attended by students and officials. The conclusion drawn is that universities must develop a guide to implement the strategy of the 15 factors mentioned above, and carry out corresponding control and evaluation, as well as comprehensive and clear management of universities to achieve inclusive distance education.

Reviewer Acknowledgements for International Journal of Social Science Studies, Vol. 11, No. 4

International Journal of Social Science Studies (IJSSS) would like to acknowledge the following reviewers for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Many authors, regardless of whether IJSSS publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Their comments and suggestions were of great help to the authors in improving the quality of their papers. Each of the reviewers listed below returned at least one review for this issue.Reviewers for Volume 11, Number 4Aurora Pestaño, University of San Jose Recoletos (USJR), PhilippinesDaniel Tia, University of Félix Houphouët-Boigny Abidjan, GRATHEL , Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)Encarnación ABAD ARENAS, National University of Distance Education (UNED), SpainFahri ÖZSUNGUR, Adana Science and Technology University, TurkeyJean Patrick Mve, Hohai University-China, CameroonJehu Onyekwere Nnaji, University of Naples II,Italy and Globe Visions Network Italy, ItalyJulia M. Mack, Gannon University, USAMd. Nasir Uddin, Prime Minister’s Office, BangladeshMei-Ling Lin, National Open University, TaiwanMOHD NORAZMI BIN NORDIN, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, MalaysiaNAZIAH ABD. KADIR, Universiti Selangor, MalaysiaSana Ali, Allama Iqbal Open University, Islamabad, PakistanYao Jingwu, Business School of Yulin Normal University, China James YoungEditorial AssistantOn behalf of,The Editorial Board of International Journal of Social Science StudiesRedfame Publishing9450 SW Gemini Dr. #99416Beaverton, OR 97008, USAURL: http://ijsss.redfame.com

Getting them done: a qualitative study of characteristics of mentors successful in graduating online students in a distance education context

Many doctoral students in online distance education programs are nontraditional students who require mentoring needs that may be different from traditional students. Additionally, time to completion is becoming more important as student debt is a growing public concern. The purpose of the study was to allow faculty (N = 22) in a for-profit, distance education university who have demonstrated ability to work at scale and have an excellent record of graduating doctoral students to give voice to the characteristics they felt were important to the mentoring relationship. 5 themes emerged: (a) regular and proactive communication; (b) building a trusting and empathic relationship with students; (c) timely, substantive, and specific feedback; (d) accountability; and (e) expertise in research, scholarly writing, and knowledge of internal and external resources. Several characteristics of excellent mentors are provided that can be used as a tool for faculty development and training.

Implementing data warehouse infrastructure for an e-learning system

The use of a data warehouse (DW) in e-learning applications helps us evaluate students from different perspectives. Depending on user behavior, we may change the content or appearance of the e-learning platform to achieve the best results. The aim of this study is to build a data warehouse infrastructure, which is a central information system for Anadolu University's distance education system. Thanks to the data warehouse project, all learners’ activities in the Learning Management System (ÖYS: Anadolum e-Kampüs) will be recorded regularly. Various analytical reports were obtained about students' study styles, preferred e-learning resources, and the time spent in the system. Additionally, the data warehouse system regularly pulls information from other information systems, such as the student information system related to the open education system. Data warehousing is designed to combine data from multiple sources into a single unified view, rather than performing operational operations like a database. Generally, data warehouses are used for analytical processing as opposed to transaction processing. They are used to analyze historical data and trends, as well as to identify patterns and insights that can aid in informing business decisions. When analysis and reporting is done in a different environment using data warehousing, there is no additional load on the database, which is already busy with daily operational processes. The data warehouse has made it easy to obtain student analytics for various periods, including daily, monthly, and yearly. The reports provided through this infrastructure are used in studies to increase the quality of the LMS system.

Social and educational evaluation of University Distance Education" (A Comparative Study of the Theoretical and Practical Faculties At Ain Shams University)

Social and educational evaluation of University Distance Education" (A Comparative Study of the Theoretical and Practical Faculties At Ain Shams University)

A network approach to understanding distance learners’ experience of stress and mental distress whilst studying

Research has shown that learners’ stress and mental distress are linked to poorer academic outcomes. A better understanding of stress and mental distress experiences during study could foster more nuanced course and intervention design which additionally teaches learners how to navigate through to protect their academic performance. The current study draws on data collected via validated self-reported questionnaires completed by final year undergraduate students (n = 318) at a large distance education university. We examined how common features of stress, depression and anxiety link to each other using a network analysis of reported symptoms. The results included findings demonstrating the symptoms with the greatest relative importance to the network. Specifically, these included the stress symptom ‘I found it difficult to relax’ and the depression symptom ‘I was unable to become enthusiastic about anything’. The findings could help institutions design interventions that directly correspond to common features of students’ stress and distress experiences.

Analysis, Evaluation and Reusability of Virtual Laboratory Software Based on Conceptual Modeling and Conformance Checking

Virtual laboratories have been increasingly used in tertiary education for natural and applied sciences, especially due to the COVID pandemic, generating a substantial investment in corresponding software applications, including simulation experiments and procedures. However, it is expensive and time-consuming to analyze, understand, model and implement the virtual experiments, especially when it is necessary to create new ones from scratch, but also when they must be redesigned and addressed to an audience in a different educational setting. We use UML Activity Diagrams and Petri nets to model experimental procedures and then apply conformance checking to detect possible nonconformities between expected model behavior and actual model execution. As a result, we provide an estimation of the conceptual proximity between experiments performed in different educational settings using the same virtual laboratory software, assisting educators and developers in making informed decisions about software reuse and redesign by providing a systematic and formal way of evaluating software applicability. A virtual microscoping experiment was used as a case study for validation purposes. The results revealed that the specific virtual lab software can be ported, without modifications, from tertiary to secondary education, to achieve learning outcomes relevant to that education level, even though it was originally designed for a distance education university. The proposed framework has potential applications beyond virtual laboratories, as a general approach to process modeling and conformance checking to evaluate the similarity between the specification of experimental procedures and actual execution logs can be applied to various domains.

Academician Perspective on the Implementation of Distance Education in Universities during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The purpose of this research was to examine the perspectives of academicians on distance education activities during the pandemic from various aspects. The research study was carried out using a case study design, which is one of the qualitative research methods. The perspectives of 24 academicians working at a state university were explored, and the data collected through an online platform using a structured interview form were analyzed by utilizing the content analysis method. The findings were reported in the form of themes, sub-themes, and codes, supported by participant expressions. Results indicated that academicians faced infrastructure-related problems during the pandemic process, which arose from various aspects. They expressed that distance education applications would be appropriate to use, especially in social sciences, theoretical courses, and crowded classrooms in the post-pandemic period. However, using distance education in math, sciences, and engineering may be inconvenient and create an inequality of opportunity. Academicians also stated that they experienced technical issues during the distance education process, open-to-abuse exams, low participation in classes, and problems in accessing education for students. They emphasized that encountering cases of cheating and plagiarism regarding the measurement and evaluation processes is an important deficiency. Furthermore, academicians made suggestions regarding distance education applications such as maintaining the hybrid teaching model, examining the practices of leading universities, introducing a new model, integrating virtual classroom applications into the process, or introducing existing interactive systems into the system.

The technological approach in scholarly and professional life of I. S. Pilko

The article is written on the occasion of Irina S. Pilko’s jubilee. The authors review the stages of her professional career, and characterize her scientific interests. They acknowledge her contribution to the national librarianship and training staff for the library and information field. The technological approach in the applied library studies is characterized. Irina S. Pilko’s scientific interests are: information communication technologies in the library and information education, technological approach in library and information production, information services for library users, information and bibliographic products and services. Pilko’s technological approach to professional training is manifested in the curriculum structure and contents. She regards educational technologies as the foundation for quality education and projecting of learning information environment in the system of distance education in universities. The ideas of I. S. Pilko have become widely used in the library and information field and continuing library education.

Market orientation of entrepreneurial university distance education and sustainable competitive advantage relationships: The mediating role of employee engagement

To be competitive in the distance education service delivery market, the need for a strategic approach by managers of these institutions to manage the increased competition cannot be compromised. Despite the available past and current studies on market orientation, the impact of market orientation on firms in the context of distance education is yet to be explored. Additionally, given the COVID crisis, the increasing reliance on distance education has resulted in a dynamic and turbulent environment in which market orientation assumes even greater importance. This study seeks to examine the mediating role of employee engagement in the link between market orientation and sustainable competitive advantage. Using the multistage sampling technique, 375 respondents were selected, consisting of key management and staff of a certain university’s distance education programme. Analytically, partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to address the various hypotheses of the study. Both customer and competitor orientations were found to have a significant positive effect on the university’s sustainable competitive advantage. The study’s outcomes will help shape policy and practise in distance education.

UNED (National Distance Education University) and the International Year of Light and light based Technologies and the International Day of Light in Spain

UNED (National Distance Education University) and the International Year of Light and light based Technologies and the International Day of Light in Spain

Investigating Lifelong Learners’ Continuing Learning Intention Moderated by Affective Support in Online Learning

During the pandemic crises, online learning has moved from the margin to the centre of education, thus making a change in the educational paradigm. The degrees of technology acceptance, therefore, pose a major challenge to administrators, educators, and students, including lifelong learners from all fields of work. This paper aims to investigate how technology acceptance facilitates lifelong learners’ continuing learning intention. By constructing a structural equation model based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) theory and verifying the mediating role of learning satisfaction and the moderating role of affective support empirically, this study addresses the online learning characteristics in terms of self-efficacy, satisfaction, and willingness to learn in the context of lifelong learners. Data were collected from the questionnaires embedded in the courses at a distance teaching university. A total of 513 questionnaires have been retrieved and 488 valid questionnaires have been processed and analysed via SPSS 26.0 and Amos 24.0. The findings indicate that positive relationships and positive correlations between learning satisfaction and continuing learning intention juxtapose, and satisfaction is positively correlated with continuing intention. Moreover, affective support moderates the three components significantly. The results of this research help expand the applicability of the TAM theory with more practical significance, conveying positive messages to the administrators, educators and lifelong learners in continuance of online learning, and thus maintaining retention, particularly in the post-pandemic new normal for the sustainability of higher education.

Research on the Design and Implementation of a Multi-scene Web-based Video Conferencing and Live Streaming System for Colleges and Universities

With the increasing popularity of distance education and online learning in colleges and universities, the network video conference and live streaming system with multiple scenes has become an important part of the information construction of college education. In this paper, for the problems of the current network video conference and live streaming system in colleges and universities, we design and implement a network video conference and live streaming system supporting multiple scenarios. The system adopts the audio and video transmission scheme based on WebRTC technology, supports multiple platforms such as Web, Android and iOS, and integrates a variety of functional modules, including screen sharing, interactive Q&A, voting, recording and playback, etc. The experimental results show that the system is stable and efficient, and it can meet the demand for web video conferencing and live streaming in multiple scenarios in universities.

МЕТОД ПРОЕКТОВ КАК СПОСОБ ОРГАНИЗАЦИИ ЦЕЛЕВОГО ДИСТАНЦИОННОГО ОБУЧЕНИЯ В ТЕХНИЧЕСКОМ ВУЗЕ

The presented article is devoted to the problems of distance learning in the target areas. The article discusses in detail the problems of university distance education. By distance learning in this article, we will understand learning with the help of information technology. Distance learning is defined differently by different authors. With such training, the teacher perceives the students as an impersonal mass and has no way to assess the degree of understanding of the proposed material. The main purpose of the study was to consider distance learning for students who entered the university in the target areas of various divisions of the Russian Railway. The authors of the article consider the problems of distance learning of students in target areas at the Samara State University of Railways on the example of teaching higher mathematics. One of the methods of organizing targeted university distance learning is proposed, the project method. With the help of the project method, we propose to solve professionally oriented tasks when teaching students in the target areas in the course of higher mathematics. It is this format of education that is most promising. The approbation of this approach to teaching target students in a distance format has shown the effectiveness of the proposed teaching method.

The UK Open University COVID Response: A Sector Case Study

During the coronavirus pandemic, nearly all forms of education underwent an online pivot, to some form of internet-based instruction. The UK Open University (UKOU), like many other distance education and online universities, found its expertise in designing and delivering effective online teaching in demand. This paper reports how the UKOU responded to this demand through a range of mechanisms in three main areas: curriculum, research, and outreach. The different responses in these areas are categorised to highlight six main requirements from the sector: Support, Understanding, Knowledge Sharing, Replacement, Resources and Capacity Building. Using these as a model, the discussion argues that they represent responses that could be undertaken at global, national, and regional levels to develop a more resilient and robust higher education sector that would be better equipped to cope with future disruptions.

The impact of self-regulated learning strategies on academic performance for online learning during COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic led higher education institutions to transition to online learning. The present study was designed to investigate students' self-regulated learning strategies on academic performance in online learning. We analyzed the differences in college students' self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies according to their grade point average (GPA). The study included 1,163 students at a distance education university in China. Two online questionnaires were used to determine online SRL strategies. GPA scores were obtained from the university exam database to determine academic performance. The analysis showed that there are great differences between different self-regulated strategies and between different students when accepting the online learning. The analysis also showed that self-evaluation, metacognitive self-regulation, and effort regulation were positive predictors of academic progress, besides, self-evaluation and effort regulation had mutual influence effect on the improvement of GPA in online learning. These data will help teachers, education policymakers, and education administrators adopt and implement online learning services to improve students' academic performance.

Contextual Content Analysis of Mission Statements of Open and Distance Education Institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa

The aim of this study is to evaluate the extent to which open, and distance education universities are fulfilling their stated purpose as higher education institutions in Sub-Saharan countries. The starting point of understanding the purpose of an institutions is to analyse the content of mission statements and the context in which the universities operate. The content of the mission statements of the six selected open and distance universities from Sub-Saharan countries were analysed using contextual content analysis. The role of mission statements is to communicate the purpose of the institution to stakeholders. Although most open and distance universities mentioned some of the principles of openness, many mission statements were silent on access, equity and student-centredness. The findings revealed that there is misalignment between what the university claims to do and their practice. This shows that these institutions did not consider the open and distance education principles and context when developing mission statements.

Design and Application of Media Asset Management System in University

Zhejiang Open University is a distance education university supported by information technology, which has accumulated a large number of educational audio, video, and other media materials during years of development. With the development of digital media, it is a new challenge to manage media materials since the media resource is becoming diverse and the file size is becoming large. Following this, the purpose of this study is to build up an effectively comprehensive digital management system to strengthen the intelligent storage and control of important educational materials.

A Case Study on How Distance Education May Inform Post-Pandemic University Teaching

Higher education recently found itself in the unprecedented situation of being forced to rapidly switch to online education as a demand of the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this article is to compare and contrast the experiences of university tutors who teach in two distance education universities with those who teach in a traditional university concerning their online lessons during lockdown. Forty university tutors participated in a survey to capture their teaching experiences. The survey was based on the transactional distance theory. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected from both groups. Analysis of the quantitative data indicates no significant differences between the two groups in scores regarding course structure flexibility and the degree of student autonomy; however, significant difference with a high effect size was found regarding instructional dialogue, in favor of the distance tutors’ group. Thematically analyzing the qualitative data allowed the researchers to group the data into three main themes focused on how the instructional dialogue was manifested in the classes of both groups: (a) the learning design approach adopted, (b) the tutor-led interaction for student support, and (b) learner-to-learner communication and the sense of an online community. Ensuing recommendations involve adopting social-constructivist approaches that can sustain high-quality instructional dialogue in online learning settings and creating distance education faculty development programs in traditional universities that will help tutors support dialogical forms of online pedagogy.

A Trajectory towards a Culture of Quality: A Phenomenological Study of an Open Distance Learning University in South Africa and in China

Over the past few years we have witnessed immense advancements of technology which challenge conventional teaching methodologies. Through an international staff exchange program that was attended over a period of two weeks, this paper compares two distance education universities from two culturally diverse continents; Africa and Asia, more specifically, a distance university in China and an open distance and e-Learning university in South Africa. This paper focuses on supporting students through quality assurance by reflecting on both distance-learning institutions and generated data by means of field notes and observations that took place during presentations. It is argued that effective and quality teaching and learning cannot occur without tightened quality control measures in a course. Arguably, if teaching and learning is quality controlled, success and throughput rates would improve. The findings in this paper indicate that an enabling environment that caters for quality assurance activities to be implemented on a continuous basis needs to be effected. Distance learning institutions need to move towards a culture of quality and by doing this they need to tailor their student support not just to produce graduates at end of a cohort but to produce quality graduates needed for the ever-evolving and rapidly transforming information and communication technologies. This paper concludes with recommendations for distance education institutions to move towards a trajectory of a culture of quality. It is argued that an environment that is conducive for quality assurance activities is needed for an effective culture of quality to ensue.