Author :
Abstract
An outstanding contribution of the accelerated growth of information technology has helped people to come closer than ever, in terms of collaborative activities. Due to such advantages the use of computers increased in all walks of life in society. Along with this the demand for persons trained in PC assembly, maintenance, up-gradation and networking is also increased. Considering this societal need, the School of Continuing Education of the Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Nashik (YCMOU) launched Diploma in Computer Hardware Maintenance and Network Technologies (DCHMNT) programme in July 1999. As this is a pioneering program in this field and being a unique self-employment generating program of its kind, it needs to be studied in greater details to enhance the quality of content and implementation. In the present communication, we have discussed a study, which examines this academic programme in relation to the need-satisfaction, the quality and the relevance of the content of the program, course wise content appropriateness, appropriateness in concern with self study, the framework of the study material, the language of the books, difficulty level of the books etc. The results of pilot study has emerged an immediate need of revision of few courses in the program and its relevant study material.
Keywords
Abstract
An outstanding contribution of the accelerated growth of information technology has helped people to come closer than ever, in terms of collaborative activities. Due to such advantages the use of computers increased in all walks of life in society. Along with this the demand for persons trained in PC assembly, maintenance, up-gradation and networking is also increased. Considering this societal need, the School of Continuing Education of the Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Nashik (YCMOU) launched Diploma in Computer Hardware Maintenance and Network Technologies (DCHMNT) programme in July 1999. As this is a pioneering program in this field and being a unique self-employment generating program of its kind, it needs to be studied in greater details to enhance the quality of content and implementation. In the present communication, we have discussed a study, which examines this academic programme in relation to the need-satisfaction, the quality and the relevance of the content of the program, course wise content appropriateness, appropriateness in concern with self study, the framework of the study material, the language of the books, difficulty level of the books etc. The results of pilot study has emerged an immediate need of revision of few courses in the program and its relevant study material.
Keywords
- Distance education is a powerful way to meet the challenges of access, quality, cost andavailability of education to the masses. It fulfils the educational needs of the society.However, it is needed to evaluate continuously the distance education programs. Rather,we can say that program investigation is vital tool used by the ODL system to assess andimprove the quality and effectiveness of the knowledge dissemination. Passornsiri (1990).The study found that when student’s expectations were compared with actual benefitsthey received from studying at STOU, younger students perceived that benefits gainedwere less than expected, while older students perceived that their benefits were greater.Gomathi Mani (1990) According to her postal delays, less contact seminars, lack of studycentres and cost factor were the major problems. The counselling sessions helps studentsto avoid feeling of isolation and extend human support to students. Maria Ana T. Quimbo(1998) Investigation of distance education programs finds fundamental similarity withconventional education. These are aspects of the quality of learning, the effectiveness ofmaterials and services provided, the suitability of courses for the needs of the area or thepopulation served (Thorpe, 1998). Some aspects of learning may be inaccessible for theevaluator, whereas some aspects of provision are more open to inspection than is the casein conventional teaching. Maria Ana T. Quimbo (1998) Suchman (1967) proposed fivecategories of criteria- effort, performance, adequacy, efficiency and process to determinethe success or failure of a program. Single investigation is expected to meet all thesestandards. Concerns of the study of Mangiduyos (1998) are the qualities of adequacy,necessity, usefulness, and sufficiency of the components of the program. Cited that asearch for more indicators of school quality training yielded the standards to evaluate: Orbeing essential to the achievement of something, a state of need; or being advantageous,practical or of beneficial review measuring the results would and performed efforts; andperformed efforts; and , or having enough resources to meet the needs and what isexpected. Ashok K. Gaba and Nirod K. Dash (2004) In spite of the attempts made by ODLinstitutions to provide students with multiple media, the majority of the students dependprimarily upon the self-instructional printed materials as the major instructional input.However, attention should be paid to: The self-instructional printed material should beupdated with the latest information, sound instructional technology, and inbuilt variationsin the content treatment to meet the learning requirements of students, self-instructionalmaterial should be provided at the time of registration. Judith Calder and Ila Patel (2002).It was essential in a pilot project such as the COLLIT project that the investigationframework is sufficiently flexible to reflect and encompass the different developmentalprocesses and the different structures that emerged. Judith Calder and Ila Patel (2002) Thenext step was to develop an investigation framework for the project in India that tookaccount of both the overall investigation framework of the international project andreflected specific national concerns. The national evaluator prepared a draft of theinvestigation framework for COL Literacy project in India, which specified investigationobjectives and articulating the key indictors for understanding the context, inputs, processand outcomes of the project. Within the CIPP investigation framework, the internationalinvestigation consultant have identified five areas for monitoring and investigationnamely staff training, material and course development, local centre infrastructure, localcentre staff and learners which were detailed in a data matrix. Rodney Skager and R. H.Dave (1970) none of the specifications of criteria actually defines a curriculum element orindicates the nature of associated investigation instrument or procedures. The criteria andspecifications are suggestive, however, of starting points and areas of emphasis. T. GradyRoberts (2005) theoretically and conceptually, educational investigation can be undertakenat four levels (Kirkpatrick 1998). Investigation at the first level attempts to determinestudent reactions. Second-level investigation seeks to determine the amount of learningthat has occurred. Investigation at the third level focuses on a change in studentbehaviour. Fourth-level investigation examines holistic results. Ehrman and Zuniga (1997), In most higher education institutions, courses are often evaluated at the first level byassessing student’s reactions or attitudes towards a course they are taking. This is oftenachieved by using a standardized investigation instrument administrated at theconclusion of course for summative investigation purposes. Such an instrument often ischaracterized by a series of Likert- type questions and may include a few open –ended questions (Howland and Moore 2002).
- The DCHMNT program is of 18 months duration. It consists of three semesters each of sixmonths duration. The industrial training of three months training is a compulsory part ofthe program. The first semester consists of two theory courses based on digital electronicsand microprocessor and one practical course. The codes of the courses are DCE101(theory), DCE102 (theory) and DCE103 (practical). The second semester consists of onetheory and two practical courses based on PC troubleshooting and maintenance. Thecodes of the courses are PUM102 (theory), PUM103 (practical) and PUM104 (practical).The third semester consists of one practical and one theory course based on networkingtechnology. Two different options are provided to the students at the third semester asWindows 2000 Server [NET 101(theory) and NET102 (practical)] and Linux [NET105(theory) and NET106 (practical)]. Each theory and practical course is evaluated separatelyfor 150 marks. The question paper of each theory course consists of section 1 with 90marks and section 2 with 60 marks. Section 1 consist 6 long answer questions (answer in10-12 lines) and 6 short answer questions (answer in 5-6 lines). Each long answer questionis evaluated for 10 marks and each short answer question is evaluated for 5 marks. Section2 consists of 30 multiple-choice questions each carrying 2 marks. Each practical course isevaluated in three components (100 marks for practical demonstration, 30 marks for theworkbook writing and 20 marks for the viva). The one textbook and three workbooks areused as study material for the first semester. One textbook and one workbook are used forthe second semester as a study material. And one book is used as study material for thethird semester. The students with 10th standard pass qualifications or the preparatoryexamination for the graduation passed is eligible for the admission to this program. The main objectives of the DCHMNT program are:
- The pilot investigation study is carried out by feedback survey method. The items in thescale are of mixed types. An approach is followed in the feedback study, which considersthe involvement of learners as well as the counselors, and the coordinators involved in thetransaction of distance learning materials or counseling in the classrooms. Three types ofquestionnaires were designed; one for the learners, one for the counselors and one for thecoordinators. The questionnaire for the learners consisted of 7 questions about thepersonal information, 14 questions related to study material and its relevance. Counselorquestionnaire consists of 12 questions about the study material and its relevance. And thecoordinator questionnaire consists of 4 questions about the study material. The number ofstudents enrolled on an average per year for the program is 1000. The study centers ofDCHMNT program are spread all over the State of Maharashtra in India. Thequestionnaire is sent to 10 functional study centers for the learners, the counselors and thecoordinators. Out of the whole feedbacks only 103 learners’ feedback, 13 counselor’sfeedbacks and 4 coordinators feedbacks are randomly selected. (At many of the studycenters both roles of the counselor and the coordinator are performed by the same personhence only 4 coordinator feedbacks are considered who are the different persons than thecounselors at that study centers). From the total learner respondents 19 are of firstsemester, 56 are of second semester and 28 are of third semester. All the third semesterlearners in this sample are enrolled to windows 2000 server option. As the Linuxnetworking Technology option is just launched at the time of study no learner is enrolledto this option. The feedback request forms are sent to the respondents (learner’s meansstudents, counselors and coordinators) by postal means. The feedback data was analyzed mainly by calculating the percentages.
- NET 101: Network Technology (Windows 2000 Server), Theory Course (Only third semester learners)
- NET 102: Network Technology (Windows 2000 Server), Practical Course (Only third Appropriate: 23 opinions: 82%
- Windows 2000 server(Response from third
- Aslam, M. (2006). Application of ODL methodologies in non-formal settings and qualityassurance: A case study from the Indira. Gandhi National Open University, NewDelhi, India. In B. N. Koul and A. Kanwar et al (Ed), Perspectives on Distanceeducation: Towards a Culture of Quality . (pp. 47-48)Vancouver: Commonwealth of Learning
- Calder, J. & Patel, I. (2002) Monitoring and evaluation framework for Technology-basedcommunity learning centers in India. In H P Dikshit (Ed) Access & Equity: Challenges for open and Distance Learning New Delhi, India: Kogan Page
- Chauhan, P. (2001). Towards Improved Student Support Services in Open Learning. University News, 39 (2), 15-17.
- Gaba, A. & Dash, N. (2004). Course evaluation in open and distance learning: a case study from Indira. Gandhi National Open University. Open Learning, 19(2), 222-224.
- Griffee, T. (2004). Research in Practice: Understanding Significance Testing Program Evaluation. Journal of Developmental Education. 27(3), 28-34.
- Gültekin, M. (2009). Quality of Distance Education in Turkey: Preschool Teacher Training Case. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning 10(2) ,12-14
- Jelf, A. (2002. Constructing quality assurance for distance education: Reflecting on whatwe have learnt and the potential impact on access. In H. P. Dikshit et al (Eds), Accessand equity: Challenges for open and distance learning. New Delhi, India: Kogan Page
- Kntayya, M., Othman, H., Mohamad, A., Idrus, M. (2003). Evaluation of Course Deliveryand Learning Supplement of the Distance Education Academic Program of the Universiti Sains Malaysia. Malaysian Journal of Distance Education 5(2), 77-88.
- Kumar, N. (2007). Decisive Evaluation in Distance Education: A Case Study of TheCertificate in Computing at IGNOU, India. Malaysian Journal of Distance Education 9(2), 43-63.
- Mani, G.( 1990) Problems unique to distance education. In B. Mugridge (Ed), Distanceeducation development and access. Caracas: MarianCroft Prakash, O.(2004. Nurturing quality in education. University News 42(48), 10-13.
- Paul, M.C. (2005). Higher Education in India and the need of quality assurancemechanisms for developing a knowledge society. University News , 43(21) , 14-16.Prasad, V.S. (2004). Best practices in higher education for quality management. University News, 43(4), 4-7.
- Passornsiri, N.( 1990). STOU in it’s first decade Distance education development. In B. Mugridge (Ed), Distance education development and access. Caracas: MarianCroft
- Quimbo, M.(1998). A Model for evaluating distance education Programs. In H. P. Dikshit(Ed) Access & Equity: Challenges for open and Distance Learning. New Delhi: Kogan Page
- Roberts, T. G., Irani, Tarcy, A. (2005). The development of an instrument to evaluatedistance education courses using student attitudes. American Journal of Distance Education 19(1), 51-64.
- Rodney, S. & Dave, R. H. (1970). Developing criteria and procedures for the evaluation of schoolcurricula in the perspective of lifelong education: A multinational study. Unesco Institute For Education: Pergamon press
- Stella, A. (2002). Quality assurance of new forms of ducation. University News, 40(7), 8-10.Tian, B. , Zuhairi, A. (2007). The practice of a quality assurance system in open anddistance learning: A case study at Universitas Terbuka Indonesia (The IndonesiaOpen University) International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning 8(1), 15-19.
- Zuhairi, A. & Suparman, A. (2002). Managing quality and accessibility in open anddistance learning. In H. P. Dikshit et al (Eds) Access and Equity: Challenges for Open and Distance Learning. New Delhi, India :Kogan Page