Open and Distance Learning for Sustainable Development

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2 The unique position of the students in rating changed motivation (a) toward the subject
taught; perhaps also (b) toward a career associated with that subject; and perhaps also (c)
with respect to a changed general attitude toward further learning in the subject area, or
more generally.
3 The unique position of the students in rating observable matters of fact relevant to
competent teaching, such as the punctuality of the instructor and the legibility of writing
on the board.
4 The unique position of the students in identifying the regular presence of teaching style
indicators. Is the teacher enthusiastic; does he or she ask many questions, encourage
questions from students, etc.?
5 Relatedly, students are in a good position to judge--although it is not quite a matter of
simple observation--such matters as whether tests covered all the material of the course.
6 Students as consumers are likely to be able to report quite reliably to their peers on such
matters of interest to them as the cost of the texts, the extent to which attendance is taken
and weighted, and whether a great deal of homework is required--considerations that
have little or no known bearing on the quality of instruction.
7 Student ratings represent participation in a process often represented as "democratic
decision-making."
8 The "best available alternative" line of argument
Conclusion
As it is known worldwide, the issue of quality assurance in the ODL mode of education is
synonymous with establishing credence for the mode of education. Apart from an attempt to
eliminate the widely held notion that distance education is a second rate mode of education,
academic facilitation is used to eliminate the loneliness that distance learners experience in the
course of studying ‘alone’. But most importantly, its major aim is to enhance the internal quality
assurance process of distance learning systems, by ensuring that the process of the academic
facilitation meets the broad educational objectives of the courses as well as expectations of
distance learners from tutorial facilitators. It is in an attempt to improve on the already established
quantum of credence that the issue of student rating of academic facilitators is being canvassed.
Considering the value the academic ratings by students would have on the learning outcome, on
the preparedness of the facilitators for facilitations and their attitude to their given work and
schedules and by extension the product churned out by ODL institutions, student ratings of
academic facilitators should be assimilated into the quality assurance criteria in the administration
of ODL although the validity criteria for student rating of academic facilitators must be laid down
for all and sundry to know for it to have the desired reliability. It must be noted that many neodistance
learners have a slightly ‘mixed-up’ perception of the role of tutoring and tutorial
facilitators in open and distance learning. This is not unconnected with the hitherto held notion
that facilitators are lecturers who should take them step-by-step through each unit of course from
objective through the wrap-up. This is, however, not the case, what facilitators are expected to do
is to clarify areas that seem difficult for the learners to understand. This presupposes that fact that
the learners would have studied the course materials in order to determine which aspects are
giving them problems. It is these difficult aspects that the facilitators would activate all their
professional skills and knowledge to clarify. They do this by asking further questions that would
lead to moments of enlightenment; use of anecdotes and analogies; practical examples as well as
discussion of case studies etc. Given this standard approach to facilitation, learners can then be
asked to assess/evaluate their academic facilitators against some agreed benchmarks.
The assessment of academic facilitation is one of the strategies that an ODL institution can use to
ensure that the quality of their programmes and institution can be ascertained. When facilitation is
properly done and tutorial processes are adequately evaluated, the quality of a distance education
system is assured.