In this study, we investigated the impact of socio-demographic factors on the manifestation of botho/ubuntu philosophy in online education. We used Albert Bandura's social cognitive theory to understand how botho/ubuntu influences stakeholders' attitudes and actions. We employed a quantitative approach with a cross-sectional design and gathered…

Micro-credentials are increasingly meeting the growing need for a flexible workforce and are particularly well suited to the open and distance learning (ODL) environment. While artificial intelligence (AI) is driving educational advancements, its integration into micro-credentials for ODL remains fragmented, hindering further growth. This research…

Purpose: In the open and distance learning (ODL) system, widely scattered learners across various age groups often feel isolated. New-age media-enabled co-creation can help reduce this isolation. However, fostering collaborative academic engagement to break this isolation presents challenges for ODL institutions. Therefore, understanding the…

This study examined the reasons for high dropout numbers in programs offered through open and distance education (ODE). A mixed method approach was employed to collect data from a purposive sample of instructors and students at the Open University of Sri Lanka. A total of 38 reasons were revealed, of which aligned with existing dropout models as…

The Internet has been massively utilized for educational purposes during the last ten years with many platforms, including e-Learning Services (e-LS). This survey study aimed to report factors affecting the intention to use e-LS in the Indonesian Open University (OU) context. The original technology acceptance model (TAM) was extended, involving…

Purpose: In the last few decades, the growth in management institutions in India has become significant. The Open and Distance Learning (ODL) institutions also have started offering management programmes at various levels. In the ODL scenario, the learning path has been shifting from the traditional Self-Learning Material (SLM)-based model to…

Purpose: The authors constructed an automatic essay scoring (AES) model in a discussion forum where the result was compared with scores given by human evaluators. This research proposes essay scoring, which is conducted through two parameters, semantic and keyword similarities, using a SentenceTransformers pre-trained model that can construct the…

Leveraging technology to break the iron triangle of access, cost, and quality is a legacy of open universities (OUs), becoming a source of inspiration for higher education in general. Today, OUs face increasing competition from conventional universities, no longer enjoying the first-mover advantages as they did in the earlier years. Can artificial…

Organizational culture acts as the mortar that connects the bricks. Every institution has its own unique culture which has been adopted and shared by all employees over the years. As establishment stories, ways of doing business, and communication styles change, culture also adopts itself to these in a way that is specific to that organization.…

Can the open universities in the UK and Greece be seen as representing two ideologies of openness? That is the main question this article poses. I argue that these institutions, shaped by their unique social, political and historical contexts, embody different interpretations of openness. The Open University in the UK was founded with a commitment…

The objective of this qualitative case study is to examine the views and various roles of etutors working in an open distance e-learning (ODeL) environment. Online teaching and tutoring have become very popular, especially with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, when etutoring was introduced to bridge the geographical gap and distance between…

The primary objective of this research is to ascertain the manner in which higher education institutions offering open and distance education incorporate the concept of openness into their vision, mission, core values, and tactics. This study employs a descriptive research design to ascertain the current state of affairs. The research methodology…

There may be many kinds of e-learning material presented to learners. However, learners may not have the consciousness or not want to spend time to examine to select the most appropriate one. Recommendation systems seem to be a feasible solution for an efficient learning process both for learners and the service provider. In this study, we propose…

The University Without Walls experiment on the University of Massachusetts, Amherst campus, began in 1971. The central animating concepts of the original experiment include the value of knowledge that is learned both within and without 'the walls' of the university. These various knowledge sources are integrated into the student's individualized…

The objective of this paper is to contribute to our understanding of 'crisis' in higher education through the analysis of a unique series of events involving a decisive change in the relationship between a university and the state. A descriptive case study approach is used to investigate the crisis in governance at Athabasca University, an open…