Tutoring in an online and ODL environment
Role of a tutor in an online and ODL environment
With the global expansion of online learning, there is a growing need
for competent online instructors with the ability to effectively communicate, manage technology, and
deliver and assess content. Of course, this is in addition to the basic role of
a tutor which includes knowledge of the curricula and pedagogy. In a distant and
online learning environment, the tutor’s role has become more critical to the
success of distant and online students than those on campus because of the
distant learners’ greater diversity, greater need for self-management,
technical self-efficacy, and information literacy and the potentially isolating
impact of the online learning environment (Peters B., et al, 2017).
Brindley and Jean Louis (1990) contend that while students should be able to maintain their independence, they do not necessarily have the right skills or background training to make sound decisions about their education nor do they know how to meet their educational goals. To help them meet the instructional goals, tutors must possess certain competencies.
To help us understand the nature and role of a tutor in open, distance and eLearning, we shall separately learn about the role of a tutor in traditional open and distance learning and then learn of the same in an online learning environment, for the obvious reasons of differences in these ecosystems.
LEARNER ACTIVITIES
1. Read Learner support | OER Africa From https://oasis.col.org/items/f19c01e1-f23d-45dd-be3d-e8ca0fad5d17(pg. 3-1 to 3-10) on the tutorial support in open and distance learning. Note down the tutorial models and the role of the tutor in ODL. This should take about 30 minutes.
2. Read Croft (1994: 11) in which the author largely discusses how tutorial is done in person, through study groups or individually, or in a mediated format, usually by mail, teleconferencing or computer conferencing, audiocassettes or radio. It is mostly applicable to the traditional open and distance learning. Here, Face-to-face contact sessions with the distance learners are also used as a necessary strategy to overcome their social as well as the academic alienation. This session is sometimes called counselling sessions.
3. Watch this 15 minutes YouTube
video on Learner support where Dr Bates discusses the role of the tutor in
online learning here: