{"title":"VIRTUAL SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETATIONS IN OPEN AND DISTANCE EDUCATION: A PROBE INTO ‘ENABLERS’ AND ‘CONSTRAINTS’","authors":"S. Ngubane, O. Adigun","doi":"10.17718/tojde.1309128","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"In line with the philosophy of inclusion and various legislative instruments which encourage ‘education for all’, ODL institutions have made provision for sign language interpreters (SLIs) to facilitate participation for deaf students. Although, some studies have examined issues of virtual learning and the ODL programme; a paucity of studies assessing virtual sign language interpretation (VSLI) in remote educational activities is evident. Therefore, a research study was instituted to probe into perceived enablers and or constraints of providing VSLI during the Covid-19 lockdown in Nigeria. Based on the Job Demand Resources Model, two research questions were raised and answered in this paper. This study adopted the qualitative research design and seven SLIs who had participated in virtual teaching and learning activities during the lockdown were purposively selected to participate in the study. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection, and the data collected were coded and analysed thematically through using an iterative process. Government policies and the empathetic nature of SLIs were found to be enablers of VSLI, while four themes, namely epileptic power supply; internet connectivity; lack of institutional support and the comprehensibility of deaf students who attended remote lectures were found to serve as barriers to effective and efficient VSLI. Based on the findings, appropriate recommendations were made.","PeriodicalId":46002,"journal":{"name":"Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9000,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.17718/tojde.1309128","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
In line with the philosophy of inclusion and various legislative instruments which encourage ‘education for all’, ODL institutions have made provision for sign language interpreters (SLIs) to facilitate participation for deaf students. Although, some studies have examined issues of virtual learning and the ODL programme; a paucity of studies assessing virtual sign language interpretation (VSLI) in remote educational activities is evident. Therefore, a research study was instituted to probe into perceived enablers and or constraints of providing VSLI during the Covid-19 lockdown in Nigeria. Based on the Job Demand Resources Model, two research questions were raised and answered in this paper. This study adopted the qualitative research design and seven SLIs who had participated in virtual teaching and learning activities during the lockdown were purposively selected to participate in the study. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection, and the data collected were coded and analysed thematically through using an iterative process. Government policies and the empathetic nature of SLIs were found to be enablers of VSLI, while four themes, namely epileptic power supply; internet connectivity; lack of institutional support and the comprehensibility of deaf students who attended remote lectures were found to serve as barriers to effective and efficient VSLI. Based on the findings, appropriate recommendations were made.
期刊介绍:
The Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education (TOJDE) is a peer-reviewed quarterly e-journal. International in scope, this scholarly e-journal publishes refereed articles focusing on the issues and challenges of providing theory, research and information services to global learners in any kind of distance education or open learning applications. TOJDE will particularly strive to meet the continuing education needs of practitioners and educators by providing a forum for the discussion of extended learning strategies, policies and practices, and trends in information technology as they impact the delivery of student support services for distance learners and faculties.