Isolation and control in Distance Education: The case of the Ghanaian Student

Abstract

The establishment of Distance Education at the tertiary level has been fully embraced by universities in Ghana. Its operations focus on the programmes of the University and support for the student learners. Distance learners are bound to face various challenges including methods of learning, adjustment and management of time. Although Distance Education has been found to be cost effective to many people of different backgrounds, many students are not able to cope with this new industrialized form of learning. The distance learner are regarded as independent, self-directed and self-motivated, yet they face the problem of isolation as they study under most trying circumstances alone and at their own pace. They are separated by distance and geographical location. The lecturer looked at the dynamics of isolation in distance education, the theory of transactional distance as postulated by Moore (1981) and how Ghanaian Universities are providing tutorial and other support services to bridge transactional distance and reduce the degree of isolation. Furthermore, emphasis was placed on the forms of control existing in the operations of the programme in Ghana. This study established that in Ghana, institutional and social controls dominate over learner control and that the Ghanaian student is not completely isolated.