Examining Student Support in Implementing Open Distance Learning during COVID-19

Abstract

In times of crisis and the global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has observed exponential growth of online education as educators and students are required to stay at home and resume with online learning entirely. With the new norms in education, come new experiences and challenges. The demands in online learning have pushed both students and educators to maximise their information communication technology (ICT) skills and caused some to be unwillingly ready for the new normal. The purpose of this study is to describe the student support of registered students in open distance learning (ODL) institutions during the COVID-19 era. Active learning theory is adopted as a theoretical lens for the interpretation of the data. This study used a quantitative research method approach to gather insights regarding the student experience pertaining to technology integration in the ODL context during COVID-19. The findings uncovered challenges associated with online student support in ODL context. This paper provide recommendations to key stakeholders in higher learning institutions and future research directions. Keywords: active learning theory, COVID-19, information communication technology, open distance learning, student support