Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify the learner characteristics attributable to the likelihood and the duration of programme completion in the Bachelor of Science (BSc) and Bachelor of Technology Honours in Engineering (BTech) degree programmes of the Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL). Design/methodology/approach: Data were…

The teaching-learning system in India changed significantly during the COVID 19 pandemic situation. Educational institutions adopted blended learning approaches for effective teaching and used digital technologies to deliver academic programs. Online learning during pandemic situations helps learners learn the necessary skills to meet the need for…

Social demand for higher education has more than doubled in the past 20 years. However, only one-third of all countries' higher education systems are enrolling more than 50% of the traditional age cohort. Despite major advancements in achieving higher levels of access and participation, inequalities and inequities in higher education persist and…

The rapid worldwide expansion of enrolment in higher education (HE) has led to greater diversity among students, with more first-generation learners, HE returnees, and disadvantaged groups. Yet, inequalities in participation persist and have worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. The implementation of flexible learning pathways (FLPs) can help HE…

The purpose of this study is to provide an overview of how open universities depict their current institutional engagement in open educational practices. In view of the growth of programming for nontraditional students by conventional universities, particularly through online learning and increasing interest in open educational practices, the…

This study investigated attitudes towards teaching mathematics via mobile learning in open learning systems. The sample of the study consisted of 57 male and female students enrolled in the mathematics course in the department of educational studies at the Arab Open University/Jordan for the academic year 2016/2017. Results of the study showed…

The focus of this study is on Open University students' entry-level critical thinking skills. The research questions were: how are students' age, and level and discipline of previous education related to critical thinking skills; is the level and discipline of previous education connected to the accuracy of students' self-evaluation of their…

Student persistence has long been a major challenge for open universities. Despite the evolution of open education, an overall high student attrition rate remains. This paper examines the changes and trends in factors related to student persistence in open universities. It reviews the empirical studies from the 1970s to the 2010s which reported…

The new pedagogical opportunities that massive open online course (MOOC) learning environments offer for the teaching of fee-paying students on university-accredited courses are of growing interest to educators. This paper presents a case study from a postgraduate-taught course at the Open University, UK, where a MOOC performed the dual role of a…

The study aspires, by giving voice to the experiences and perceptions of adult learners and their educators, as they embark on distance learning courses delivered by the Open University of Cyprus and the Hellenic Open University to unveil the adult learning and "fine-grained" processes at work during the organization and delivery of the…

This paper discusses Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) as a method for the assessment of prior learning. The Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) is a procedure to offer learners an individualized curriculum based on their prior experiences and knowledge. The placement decisions in this process are based on the analysis of student material by domain…

Education practices focused on adult learners, such as prior learning assessment (PLA), are becoming more established in the United States. Initially, PLA was developed to provide greater access to higher education for World War II veterans and later for adult learners more generally as a way to balance the concentrated efforts most colleges and…

The Open and Distance Learning (ODL) has come to stay as an alternative mode to meet the higher educational requirements of diverse groups. Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), a system leader in India, plays a major role in giving access and equity, besides maintaining and coordinating standards of distance education in the country.…

The United Kingdom Open University has experimented with a range of information and communication technologies (ICT) to support learners and foster the development of learning communities, including online resources, email, e-messages, SMS messaging, and Second Life. The initial creation of information and resources to support study has been…

America does not have the workforce it needs for the economy that it has. That was a conclusion of the Commission on the Future of Higher Education in 2006. The Commission went on to note that if current trends are not reversed, the US economy and per capita income will actually decrease over the next 15 years, for the first time in US history. In…