Dr Mpine Makoe Institute for Open and Distance Learning

1. A student-centred approach – Incorporating students’ experiences in the development of a student support system Dr Mpine Makoe Institute for Open and Distance Learning

2. Outline of the presentation • Student Centredness • Student Support • Student characteristics Demographics Case studies • Experiences of distance learning • Unisa context • Open and Distance learning • Elements of student support

3. Student-centredness • Focuses on an individual student’s experiences, perspectives, background, capabilities and needs • Gives learners greater autonomy and control • Based on the needs of the learners than on teacher’s needs

4. Student-centredness • requires that students are seen as the main foci of the educational process and they are supported to take progressive responsibility for their learning. However, the pedagogy employed should enable successful learning establish links between students’ current meanings and new knowledge to be learnt, and encourage independent and critical thinking.

6. Student Support • tuition support in the form of detailed, individualised and timely feedback to formative assessment; regional tutorials in a medium (face-to-face, online, telematic etc) that is accessible to students; remedial interventions such as responsible open access programmes to help underprepared student achieve success in order to decrease the distance between student and teacher; • peer support in the form of institutionally arranged and supported peer self-help groups; • in-text support in the form of well-designed well-integrated courseware encouraging active learning and promoting dialogue between teacher and student in order to decrease the distance between student and study materials; • administrative support in the form of timely, accurate and accessible information from institution to students about all aspects of the learning process, from registration to graduation.

7. Elements of support systems • Registration • Tutoring • Counselling • Peer groups • Learning centres • Assessment • Educational technologies

8. Teaching and learning • Study material • Teaching and assessment goes hand in hand – continuous assessment • Reveals students’ strengths and weaknesses and suggests where the student might need help • Feedback is very important

9. Age demographics

10. Age demographics

11. Johannes • Age – 22 • Urban areas • Formerly from rural areas • Full time student • Son and a brother • Student since 2003

12. Mokgadi • Mid 30’s • Rural areas • Mother, wife, daughter-in law, community worker • Teacher • Student since 1993 • Switched from degree to diploma

13. How do we support our students?

14. Principles of student-centredness • Cognitive and metacognitive factors • Motivational and affective factors • Development and social factors • (McCombs and Vakili, 2005)

15. Student support services • Cognitively • Affectively • Systematically • (Tait, 2000)

16. books

17. Position Unisa as a leading provider of quality distance education programmes through an academic product that expands on its comprehensive character

18. thank you very much