Assessing learning material for distance education : a case study

Abstract

The question that directs this article is `How appropriate is the new study material in this case study as means of tuition within a new learning paradigm?' In order to determine the appropriateness of learning material for distance education, eight assessment criteria were proposed during July 2000 at the annual conference of the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration, and have been published recently in a scholarly journal. This article, by applying these criteria in a case study, assesses the appropriateness of tuition in Public Administration for first-year students at Unisa. The assessment shows, inter alia, that the study guide is adequately accessible to the learners enrolled for the course, that the language of the study guide is perceived as understandable and appropriate to the specific learner profile, that the learning material succeeds in promoting what are regarded as critical cross-field outcomes generic to all fields of learning, and that it facilitates contextualised understanding of the nature, content and scope of public administration. The study guide is shown to be engaged in an effort to shift control of the learning process over to the learners. The research shows that learners appear to be ready for learning material which enhances their competencies to learn and to think independently. This is enhanced by indications that the study guide provides learners with the opportunity to think for themselves and to prepare themselves as knowledge workers. These results lead to the conclusion that Study guide 1 for the course PAD100-X (currently the only study guide for the module PUB101-8) is appropriate as a means of tuition within a paradigm of lifelong learning.