Distance Learning and the Quality of Teacher Education in Rwanda: A Case Study of Byumba Distance Learning

This study examined the contribution of distance learning to the quality of teacher education in Rwanda and was conducted to establish whether the teachers' experiences and qualifications, acquired through the distance learning program, adequately led to quality education. The study was guid...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Anastase, Mvuyekure
Format: Other
Language:English
Published: Kabale University 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12493/891
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This study examined the contribution of distance learning to the quality of teacher education in Rwanda and was conducted to establish whether the teachers' experiences and qualifications, acquired through the distance learning program, adequately led to quality education. The study was guided by three objectives: namely, to investigate the effect of distance learning on the teaching-learning process; to examine the academic relevance of resources used in the distance learning program in Rwanda; and to evaluate whether the graduates from the distance learning program had the skills, knowledge, and attitudes required for qualitative, effective, and efficient education. Concerning the sample and methods used in this study, the simple random sample technique, Questionnaires, interviews, and a documentary study were used. A simple random sample was used to enable each and every individual or case in the entire population to have an equal opportunity to be selected for analysis. Distance Learning Program; intake two, which started in 2011, was chosen as a targeted population. The rationale for selecting this intake is that the students were still following the program and were familiar with it based on the time they had already covered. All of these make them good sources of information about the program. Besides the tutors who were assisting the teacher trainees in the program, the lecturers from the Kigali Institute of Education who were appointed to take part in the training, and the head teachers whose teachers are following the program were also involved. In accordance with the number of respondents, Cochran's formula for sample size was used, and the formula gave a sample size of 58 respondents. As far as the data collection instruments are concerned, questionnaires were chosen because they are easy to administer and save time. Two types of questions were used: closed-ended questions and open-ended questions. In closed-ended questions, participants were allowed to choose from a pre-existing set of dichotomous answers, such as yes or no. A small number of leading questions that required answers like "strongly agree" or "strongly disagree" were also used to get an opinion from the respondents in limited words. Concerning open-ended questions, the respondents were motivated to explain their answers by reacting to the question in order to obtain the quality of their thinking and the reality of their answers.