THE ROLE OF LEARNER SUPPORT AND STUDENTS’ SERVICES IN NATIONAL TEACHERS’ INSTITUTE PROGRAMMES

1. THE ROLE OF LEARNER SUPPORT AND STUDENTS’ SERVICES IN NATIONAL TEACHERS’ INSTITUTE PROGRAMMES PRESENTED BY : DR. (MRS) ESU NSAN CROSS RIVER STATE OFFICE, CALABAR ON SOUTH-SOUTH ZONAL NTI /DLS FIELD OPERATIONS Summit  FEBRUARY 2017

2. LEARNER SUPPORT AND STUDENTS SERVICES LEARNER SUPPORT CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE LEARNER SUPPORT SERVICES STUDENT SERVICES EXISTING PRACTICES IN NTI IDENTIFIED GAPS AND THE WAY FORWARD

3. INTRODUCTION • The need for learners support cannot be over emphasized in any successful distance education programme in this contemporary society. Indeed, the programme designmust apply effectively to learner support services and student support respectively. A cursory observation of many distance education institutions like NTI and Open University ,to mention but a few, shows that more resources are invested in the technical system to the detriment of the learner support system.

4. WHAT IS LEARNER SUPPORT? • Learner support comprises all the assistance provided by a distance education system which matches the facilities with a face-to-face system provided for the success of its students. Learning support lists the assistance provided by the institution in the actual process of learning to ensure that the learning tasks are performed successfully. • Thorpe (2003) defined learner support as all those elements capable of responding to a known learner or group of learners, before, during and after the learning process

5. Learners supports are complimentary services like: personal contact programme, counselling, organization of resources centres, library facilities, telephone teaching, interactive teaching through television and radio and other similar activities, establishment and maintenance of study centre,

6. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF LEARNER SUPPORT? The purpose of Learner Support is to provide a warm, supportive atmosphere for learners which will help them develop self-confidence and thus assist them to achieve personal success in their individual academic and life goals by making available a variety of resources, services, and referrals.

7. TYPES OF LEARNER SUPPORT SERVICES • Administrative Support • Counselling Support • Tutorial Support • Peer Support

8. information services, pre-admission services, post admission services, qualitative study materials, hand books and orientation manuals, student bulletin, students’ association, record keeping administration, pre-admission counseling, tutorial counseling, weekend courses at Study Centres, video conferencing, online support among others.

9. CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE LEARNER SUPPORT Effective learner support should be characterised by the following essential elements: • Responsiveness: It personalizes the learning process so as to be responsive to different individuals and groups (rather than relying on fixed elements such as a course syllabus). • Interactivity:It encourages and facilitates interaction among and between student(s), Institute, tutor, institutional support persons and academic content. Interactivity envisions the integration of all aspects of teaching, learning and student support in ways which encourage dynamic interactivity among them

10. CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE LEARNER SUPPORT • Context Specificity: It exists to further the goals of a particular institution and serves the needs of its learners within its specific context. In context specificity the plan should be based on environmental scans which identify its learners, current context, and key challenges and opportunities for the future action. • Learner Development: It both facilitates learning within courses and addresses broader issues of student’s skills and personal development.

11. CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE LEARNER SUPPORT • Openness to Change: Learner support systems evolve continuously to accommodate new learner populations, educational developments, economic conditions, technological advances, and findings from research and evaluation. • Integration:Effective learner support involves a high level of inter-functional collaboration and is seamless to the learner.

12. STUDENT SERVICES • Student Services is a department or division of services and support for students in an institution of higher learning. • Students’ services provide a full range of services and resources to support students and prospective students from application through graduation. • Some examples of students’ services include counselling, admission, library, registration, study skill, academic skills to mention but a few.

13. THE EXISTING ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE FOR LEARNER SUPPORT AND STUDENT SERVICES IN NTI PROGRAMME

14. The existing learner support system at NTI, Kaduna, comprises of headquarters, zonal offices, state offices and study centres, at each one of which specific responsibilities are fulfilled to keep the system working. Online services are equally provided to facilitate service delivery.

15. The headquarters at Kaduna is responsible for the preparation of study materials, assignments, Test and Examination question papers and their dispatch to the Zonal Offices. Creation of website for student’s application, registration and other payments, preparation of examination time table and other supportive materials.

16. Zonal Offices serve as links between the Head Quarters and the State Offices and coordinate the working of the latter • while State Offices coordinate NTI's operations in the respective states. • Study Centres function as the real interface opportunity between the trainees and NTI

17. Specifically, in the context of learner support, Zonal Offices are charged with the following responsibilities: • Coordinate activities of the State Offices relating to the Distance· Education Programmes; • Serve as custodians of non-security materials pending distribution to the State Offices and transport the materials to State Offices; • Collect and collate relevant data and returns for the use of Management in planning, policy formulation and general administration of the NTI Programmes;

18. Ensure that all data and returns pertaining to examinations are correct • and valid; • Repacking of examination scripts in the zone; • Receive examination results from HQs and distribute them • promptly to States Offices; • Inspect proposed Study Centres for approval and ensure that they are • accredited; • Build database on trainees, supervisors, Course Tutors and DE • Programmes in the Zone and ensure proper and up-to-date record keeping by the State Offices,among others.

19. State Offices are supposed to coordinate NTI's operations in the respective states. In particular their responsibilities in relation to NTI Programmes are as follows: • Ensure implementation of policies within their jurisdiction; • Liaise between NTI and the Ministry of Education and • other State or Federal Establishments in the state concerned; • Authorize and approve all purchases, monitoring exercises, etc. • in the state; • Serve as custodians of certificates, course materials • (which are to be issued to learners against payments • made by the trainees) and financial documents, among others.

20. Study Centres: function as the real interface opportunity between the trainees and NTI. Their responsibilities are as follows: • Announcements with regard to courses, admissions • and registration of trainees; • Collection of registration printout and tellers from • registered trainees and • remittance of such collections to the State Offices; • Search for, selection and appointment of • Course Tutors in consultation with the State Office concerned.

21. Arrangement for tutorial rooms, lab work, teaching practice, project work, • assignment handling, appointment of invigilators, conduct of examinations, • and handling of answer-scripts at the end of each examination session. • Issuance of available course materials to registered students. • Para –counsellors (tutors) offer counselling services to students. • Distribution of Tablets to registered PGDE students of the programme.

22. GAPS IN LEARNER SUPPORT AND STUDENT SERVICES IN NTI PROGRAMMES It is however observed that there are some identified gaps that needs to be filled to make the Institute more effective and value oriented for our clients. These gaps are identified and discussed below:

23. The Identified gaps • Inadequate supply of Printed course materials to learners • Inefficient student service delivery • Inappropriate feedback mechanism • Lack of educational resource website • Para-counselling • Insufficient attention on peer tutoring • Untrained tutors • Non formation of students associations • Non provision of computer laboratories in all our Study Centres:

24. RECOMMENDATIONS Learner support and student services have the potential to improve our students academic and personal development. The following recommendations are postulated for the various support types. • Administrative Support: • The Institute’s administrative system should provide the following support services : • Dispatch course materials in complete and timely fashion; • Who to contact for certain kinds of services for example, application, registration, complaints, etc; • Who to contact when things go wrong; • The dispatch of the right examination to the right location at the right time, and; • Accurate and complete records keeping

25. RECOMMENDATIONS contd. Administrative Support contd.: • A number of media can also be pressed into service to provide some of these information e.g. • Website: where they can post up-to-date information on courses, programmes , fees and staff; • Emails between tutors and learner; • etc

26. RECOMMENDATIONS contd. • Counselling Support: • A great deal of counselling material can be made available in print or other media. Such materials should focus on common problems faced by learners, including: • making sure distance study is right for you; • How to choose the course that is right for you; • How to apply for a course; • Financial assistance and how to apply for it; • Coping successfully with unfamiliar technologies; • Study skills • Time management • Strategies to overcoming examination anxiety. • Technology other than print can be audio cassettes, video cassettes and telephone.

27. RECOMMENDATIONS contd. • Counselling Support contd: • Personal-social, vocational and career guidance services should be put in place in order to assist the students in meeting their day to day all round challenges’.(that is the creation of viable guidance and counselling unit in all the state of the federation). • The Institute should collaborate with the professional counselling experts to provide guidance and counselling tips for tutors.

28. RECOMMENDATIONS contd. Tutorial Support: • Constant learners needs assessment should be carried out at regular intervals for learners services satisfaction • Regular training of facilitators on basic methods of teaching in open and distance learning programme (tutoring Handbook)

29. RECOMMENDATIONS contd. Tutorial Support contd.: • A comprehensive support system for tutors should be developed for NTI facilitators in order to assist them offer good tutorial support to learners.

30. RECOMMENDATIONS contd. Peer Support • Peer support should be encouraged at the centre level . • Online social networking to facilitate this should be put in place. • The new portal should have online communities where peers across various programmes can share relevant ideas, interact freely and give mutual support to each other educationally and otherwise.

31. RECOMMENDATIONS contd. • Financial support service should be integrated into the programme. For instance a portal should be develop to take care of instalment payment of 60% and 40% for each semester before the conduct of the semesters’ exams.

32. CONCLUSION The NTI distance learners expect students support to accommodate them from their point of entry to completion of their programmes. The effective and efficient implementation of these recommended support services to learners’ will go a long way in reducing the students’ attrition and dropout rate experienced in our various NTI study centres across the country.

33. CONCLUSION contd. The identified gaps and the way forward are equally highlighted and it is hoped that, if all the aforementioned suggestions are implemented, it will add more value to the quality and quantity of the programme delivery of the Institute.

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