A Diagnosis of Learner Opinions in BA (Humanities) Programme Offered by Institute of Distance Education, University of Swaziland, Swaziland

Abstract

This Programme Evaluation for BA (Hum) had been based on past learners’ opinion about various activities at Input, Process, and Output stage with a purpose to raise quality of every service rendered by the University of Swaziland to new and present students for this programme. The students remain at a distance and hardly meet with academics helping them. This was a Survey type research using Decision Management Approach based on Learner opinion on various issues drawn after a systemic analysis of various activities at Input, Process and Output stages of BA (Humanities) programme. A comprehensive Questionnaire/Opinionnaire having both closed and open type items covered in 28 pages was sent to about 800 past students, but, only 79 had answered the same and so, became sample for this study. They resisted the rigidity of conventional system rules and advocated for more openness at various stages. The academic counsellors do not follow the Modules, but the Books prescribed for conventional system. They desired separate question papers and examination dates being different than conventional system. They find themselves equally competent in comparison with conventional graduates while at work. They need their programme guide and orientation sessions to cover how to study and write assignments as well as more clarity on some pages of course content. They need options in selecting a question from among many during examination. They expressed some difficulties in understanding the content somewhere mostly in English Courses. The dealing by IDE staff with them was appreciated. They need frequent supplementary examinations to improve their grades quickly if had failed in one or more courses. They could not smell the meaning Openness and On Demand Examination, and so, most of them did not comment on these issues. Recommendations for raising quality may be implemented by the University of Swaziland. // Paper ID 279