The concern of this study is the slow uptake of online learning at the Institute of Distance Education (IDE) in Swaziland.
The Institute of Distance Education in Swaziland was set up in 1996 (Sukati, 2010) to offer distance learning to students. To date, most courses have used traditional print based materials, with some face to face contact in regional centres. IDE Policy makes clear that increasingly courses should be available online, using the institute’s learning management system (Moodle). However, uptake by lecturing staff of online learning has been very slow, and only a few courses are available on-line.
The study identifies the factors that are perceived to support or inhibit the adoption and implementation of online learning at the IDE, and strategies that are seen as effective in facilitating its adoption and implementation. The research is located in the qualitative paradigm, and uses interviews as the main data gathering tool. Five different but coherent interview guides were used to collect data from staff offering online learning; staff not offering online learning; IDE programme coordinators; and two members of senior management. Some documentary analysis was also undertaken. The findings show that there were institutional factors, personal factors and external factors that both supported and acted as barriers to the adoption and implementation of online learning at the IDE. The study proposed strategies that might strengthen the supportive factors and overcome the barriers to adoption and implementation of online learning at the IDE. The conclusion drawn from the study was that there were more barriers than supporting factors and that this explains the slow adoption and implementation to online learning at the Institute. It also shows that while similar factors operate on the adoption and implementation of online learning at IDE as those identified in the literature, there are some factors which are particular to the IDE itself, and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) (Davis, et al., 1989) is thus modified to show the factors operating in this context.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:wits/oai:wiredspace.wits.ac.za:10539/12254 |
| Date | 08 January 2013 |
| Creators | Maphanga, Phuzuk'mila Simon |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
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