Some Characteristics, Reasons For Participation, And Study Problems of The Senior Secondary Level Correspondence Students In Ethiopia
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Date
1994-06
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Addis Ababauniversity
Abstract
The purpose ot thlS study was to investigate lnto some
characteristics , reasons for particlpatl0n, and study problems
ot a group ot students in ethiopia, namely, students who have
been enro~ ed in the correspondence education programme,
otrered by the Distance Education Dlvisl0n 0 the Department
of Adult Education, Ministry of Education, The study was
carr led out through a questionnalre sent to the 560 students
ot the correspondence programme, who were found being act1vely
pursulng their senior secondary courses, offered by the
Distance Education Division, /,,ul.-t.ZL June, 1992/93 academic
yea r . An lnstrument used tor data col ection, namely, the
questionnalre was first developed and then validated by a
group ot Judges and was adjusted for use in the light of the
comments received from the persons who performed the judging
task. Out of the 560 questionnaires sent to students, 382
questionnaires were returned filled correctly, i.e. a response
of 68.2 percent.
The results of the data collected from the 382 students
were tallied and described on the basis of the total
percentage of the response secured for each item of the
questionnaire o f the var i ab le s investigated . The findings of
the study revealed that the typical correspondence programme
student of the Distance Education Dlvision 1n Ethiopia is
between 20 and 4 0 years old, married and has more than one
children, The ma le students comprise 81,7 percent of the
stuuenL DOdy, 'ihe educatl0nal backgro nd or the students is
above ower senior second ary school eve, i, e; above 10
graaes or schoo llng , Tney are worklng student s almost
lnVar1aOl.Y 1n a wh i te collar occupa~ions, l'hey be~r the
ex~enses Oi tne cours~ out or tnelr own pocKets , and can be
to nd mostly 1n rura l areas,
Prcm.i..nert:. objectIves lor n(e1'i:<:,lng turtner studies
inc.Luc eLl ' t o gaul an arric ally recoyn:.ze<l cert:lr1cate' , 'to
PdSS an eXbm natlon' I 'to obtain competence Ior better jobs',
'to secure protessional promotion' 1n t:neir order ot
.f>re..{er~/J{.q. i The student rated convenience as the main
advantage ot tne correspondence stuny metno - , Because of their
worK commltments, they cannot avail themse lves of conventional
secondary schools.
Thus, trom the prominent reasons students gave for their
choice of the study form, supported by the findings on the
st:udents ' objective for learning, and student characteristics,
lt was concluded that the correspondence educ a tion programme,
ottered by the Distance E.ducation Division in Ethiopia, is
prlmarily chosen as a means of study by persons who, because
ot ramily Situation, vocational engagements or other
ooligations were not able to take advantage of educational
ot ers wnlch cemand regular class attendan ce ,
"
~
ยท .
Based on the major findings and conclusions of the study
it was recommended that the Distance Education Division should
set-up an evaluation panel responsible to assess the effectiveness
of its various programmes and activities. The most co~mon
complaint from students was the delayed feedback in tutors
comments to the assignments submitted for correction. In order
to tackle this problem, the Distance Education Division(D.E.D.)
may need to assess the efficiency of its postal delivery
system by various mechanisms. If the postal delivery system
is found to be inefficient, the D.E.D. may possibly be
decentralized by setting up a network of local study and
tutorial centres in different regions. Moreover a programme
of information dessimination using news-media, brochures and
posters as well as the facilities of educational radio
programmes may help attract potential beneficiaries of the
correspondence programme.
Description
Keywords
Correspondence Students In Ethiopia