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ABILITY COURSE 1 (AB 1)

CRITICAL UNDERSTANDING OF ICT

Topic : Select an educational problem and conduct an online survey. Submit a

report on the procedure and analysis of the survey result along with screen
shot.

Task -3

NAME : INCHALKAR RAVINA MUKUND

CLASS: F.Y B.ED (2020-2021)

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CERTIFICATE
This to certify that Ms. Inchalkar Ravina Mukund student of class F.Y B.ed (2020-2021)
has successfully completed task/ activity/case study/ project work of the respective
subject CRITICAL UNDERSTANDING OF ICT on topic/title SELECT AN EDUCATIONAL
PROBLEM AND CONDUCT AN ONLINE SURVEY. SUBMIT A REPORT ON THE
PROCEDURE AND ANALYSIS OF THE SURVEY RESULT ALONG WITH SCREEN SHOT.

Principal sign /stamp

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TOPIC: PROBLEMS FACED BY STUDENTS IN DISTANCE LEARNING

Introduction:

Information and communication technologies (ICT)

Information and communication technologies (ICT’S) is a broader term for information

technology (it), which refers to all communication technologies, including the internet,
wireless networks, cell phones, computers, software, middleware, video-
conferencing, social networking, and other media applications and services enabling
users to access, retrieve, store, transmit, and manipulate information in a digital form.
ICT’S are also used to refer to the convergence of media technology such as audio-visual
and telephone networks with computer networks, by means of a unified system
of cabling (including signal distribution and management) or link system. However, there
is no universally accepted definition of ICT’S considering that the concepts, methods and
tools involved in ICT’S are steadily evolving on an almost daily basis.

DISTANCE LEARNING

Distance learning provides an exceptional learning opportunity as it allows for flexibility

in learning methods and materials, schedules, and physical location. Like all learning
models, distance learning does have some inherent problems, especially in the areas of
isolation, support, technology and discipline. We break down some of the most common
challenges of distance education, as well as ideas for improving the learning
experience for every student.

DISTANCE LEARNING IN INDIA

Distance learning began in India to bring education to those who could not afford to
attend regular classes in conventional universities or colleges. Over the years, people
have used various terms to refer to distance education - correspondence education,
independent study, distributed learning, flexible learning, open learning and now with
the introduction of technology into distance education, newer terms are cropping up -
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online learning, e-learning, computer-based training (cbt), internet-based training (ibt) or

web-based training (wbt).
Distance education is learning through technical media (printed material, audio material,
video material, digital material) when there is a separation or distance between the
teacher and the learner. Distance learning systems in India can broadly be divided into
the following types:

1. Open Universities: they were originally set up to only offer programmes of study
through distance education mode. Examples of open universities in India include the
indira gandhi national open university (ignou), dr. B.r. ambedkar open
university (braou), yashwantrao chavan maharashtra open university, nashik etc. The
dr. B.r. ambedkar open university was the first open university to be set up in India in
1982. Now we have one national open university (ignou) and 13 state open universities
in india.

2. Dual mode universities: these universities offer regular campus-based programs as

well as distance learning programs like the university of Delhi (Du) and university of
mumbai. After DUintroduced correspondence courses in 1962, other conventional
universities began to offer various programmes through correspondence courses and
thus set up DISTANCE EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS (DEI) and/or correspondence courses
institutes (cci).

These dual mode universities serve the educational needs of more than 1.5 million
students in India. The total enrolments in correspondence/distance education in the
dual mode universities are much larger than enrolment in the open universities. Other
examples of such dual mode universities include annamalai university (dde), acharya
nagarjuna university (cde) and the icfai university sikkim.

3. Mixed mode universities: such universities offer a wide variety of modes of study to
the learners - regular campus programmes, distance education through traditional
methods like printed material and contact classes, and now the increasingly popular
technology-based online degrees. Amity university and lovely professional university
(lpu) are examples of mixed mode universities.
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However, it is interesting to note that with advances in technology and the increasing
penetration of the internet in india, the thin line dividing these different types of distance
learning systems is slowly fading with open universities like ignou now offering online
programmes as well.

COMMON PROBLEMS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION

Lack of support:

The physical absence of the instructor during asynchronous learning

(independent learning) means that they may not be available to guide or
support the student when they need it most. This means the student may
need to wait for the next synchronous learning (live instruction/class time)
period to get support or will have to reach out to the teacher via email or other
communication channels.

Oftentimes, getting support relies on the student formulating questions and

asking for help; something some students may find difficult. Also, if the student
has misunderstood a concept or is missing vital building blocks in their
knowledge, they may not be aware that they are on the wrong track. Working
one-to-one with a tutor will ensure your student gets the support they need
and help them build back any educational foundations they may be missing
due to distance learning.

Feelings of isolation

A lot of learning is peer-based as students use discussion and groups to work

through material. Teaching others, explaining concepts, answering questions
and defending positions are all excellent ways to learn and develop critical
thinking skills. While these are still possible in distance learning, they don’t
have the same social impact as working together in person.

Socially, your child may feel isolated and miss out on the regular interaction
they enjoy in a classroom environment. While this is a common problem of
distance education, you can help your child feel more connected to their peers
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by encouraging their participation in class discussions and by creating

opportunities outside of class, like phone calls or video chats with friends,
group online gaming, and in person interactions.

Academic discipline

In a synchronous learning environment there is a certain amount of social

pressure and regulation. Students have to show up on time, with homework
done, and they are guided through their learning like in an in person
classroom. This means students are accountable to their teacher and peers to
be a productive member of the class.

On the other hand, asynchronous learning doesn’t provide the same sense of
accountability, as students are working through the class material and
learning independently. Some students are self-disciplined and have no
problem with the independence of distance learning, while others may feel a
little lost. You can help by establishing a structure and routine for completing
classwork and studying. It is also helpful to teach your child executive
functioning skills, like organization, prioritization, and time management to
help them stay on top of everything. Executive functioning skills are essential
to success in academics and life, but we aren’t born with them.

Technology

Advances in technology have made distance learning a more viable option as

students are able to interact with each other and with the instructor, utilize
audio, video and text to learn and use the internet for research. To ensure that
your student is an effective distance learner, they must have access to all the
technology they need and to be able to effectively navigate and use the tools at
their disposal.
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ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF DISTANCE LEARNING

To do or not to do - that is the question that plagues most students who are
contemplating pursuing an education through distance learning. Over the years,
distance education in various forms - distance learning programs from open universities,
online programs and so forth, have helped realised the educational aspirations of
students who could not attend full-time and campus-based classes.
Students often have apprehensions over opting for higher education via distance
learning, as they lack clarity about the pros and cons of this mode of education. It's a
good idea to understand the advantages and disadvantages of pursuing a degree
through distance education before you decide if you want to go for this mode.

Advantages of distance learning

1. You can pursue a job along with studies: a major chunk of students who actually
opt for distance education are those who don't want to give up their jobs but want a
higher education, too. Distance education comes as a blessing for such students. You
can study on the weekends, when you're back from work or even in the middle of the
night. You get to learn while you earn!

2. You can save money: for any given program, the fee of a distance education degree
(online or otherwise) may be much more affordable than the fee of a regular on-campus
degree. Students who are looking for economically viable options can go for a distance
learning program.

3. You save time: there's no time wasted in going to and from college, no time wasted
waiting for a bus or train. In a distance learning program, your classroom is right in
your bedroom - the study material on your desk or the e-material on your computer.
Students who don't have enough time on their hands can turn to distance education as
an option and pursue it from the comfort of their homes.

4. You can learn at your own pace: the prospect of going back to classroom
education can be intimidating for many of us. Asking a question or revealing that you
are unable to grasp a concept in class can be quite embarrassing for many students.
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Distance education comes to your rescue here!

If you are self-disciplined and self-motivated, the best benefit of distance education is
that you can learn at your own pace. It's a known fact that different people learn in
different ways and at different speeds. In a classroom, when everyone is being
taught together, it is often difficult to have every student on the same page. Some
students are too shy to raise their doubts in class.

5. You can study whenever, wherever: except in scenarios where you have to attend
an online tutorial at a given time or a lecture through videoconferencing, you can pretty
much study whenever you want to, wherever you choose to. You need not be stuck in
a classroom, but can go study in your garden, on your living room couch or in the
comfort of your own bed. Irrespective of whether you're a morning lark or a night owl,
you can choose an optimum time to study whenever you're at your productive best.

6. Gaining recognition among employers: distance education over the years has
finally found some acceptance and recognition among employers, which is an
encouraging sign. As long as the distance learning program is accredited, you need not
be worried. In India, all distance education programmes that are approved by the
distance education council (DEC) stand automatically recognized for the purpose of
employment to posts and services under the central government. Private sector
employers also value a distance education degree now, and even encourage employees
to pursue higher education along with their job so that employees can develop skills and
expertise in their field of work. But there's a flip side to every story. A factor that's
advantageous for one student might prove to be a drawback for another. Here are some
situations that can turn out as disadvantages of distance learning.

DISADVANTAGES OF DISTANCE LEARNING

1. Chances of distraction high: with no faculty around for face-to-face interaction

and no classmates who can help with constant reminders about pending assignments,
the chances of getting distracted and losing track of deadlines are high. You need to
keep yourself motivated and focused if you want to successfully complete your distance
learning course. Distance education is not a good idea if you tend to procrastinate and
can't stick to deadlines.
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2. Hidden costs: although the cost of a distance education program is usually cheaper
than a regular program, there can be hidden costs involved. For example, if your
distance learning course is offered online, you might have to incur some initial expenses
like installing a computer and getting a reliable internet connection. You may need to
buy additional resources such as a printer, a web camera and so forth. Some expenses
might be recurring, like maintenance and electricity costs.

3. Complicated technology: overdependence on technology can be a major drawback

in distance learning mode of education, especially when the learning takes place in an
online environment. Any malfunctioning software or hardware can bring an ongoing
class to a standstill and interrupt the learning process. Similarly, if a student is not
computer and tech savvy, his learning experience can be dissatisfactory.

4. Quality of faculty compromised: often considered to be the lesser cousin of regular

education, distance education is often plagued by lack of enough good quality faculty
members. In other cases, even if the instructor is good, he or she may not be comfortable
with teaching in an online environment. Sometimes the technology might not do full
justice to the delivery and design of the course. A student loses out in all these
scenarios. Distance education providers should realise that it is not the technology,
but good and effective teachers that teach students.

5. Questionable credibility of degrees: even though distance and online education is

starting to get recognition, there are still a lot of fraudulent and non-accredited degrees
being offered. With the increase in the number of distance/online programs, the number
of scam operators are also rising. This affects the credibility of recognised distance
learning degrees among prospective employers.

6. Lose out on networking: the advantages of pursuing a regular programme go

beyond just interaction with teachers and good course content. Mba graduates from
premier business schools (b-schools) in India would vouch for the fact that the
opportunities to network with established alumni, renowned faculty and industry heads
go a long way in paving a secure career. A distance learning program loses out on this
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very important aspect ,Despite these perceived drawbacks, distance learning is gaining
popularity among students like never before, with many students satisfied with their
learning experience. With further advances in technology and more training to adapt
teachers to this new mode of learning, the disadvantages in distance learning can soon
be sorted out.

5. Things to know about distance education in India

If you're planning to pursue your higher education through distance learning in India,
here are five things that you must know:

1. You have the option of pursuing a distance learning programme from the one and only
national Open University of India - the Indira Gandhi National Open University
(IGNOU) or any of the 13 state open universities in India. Apart from these there are
140+ dual mode universities which offer programmes through the distance mode.

2. All distance programs must be approved by the Distance Education Bureau (DEB) of
the University Grants Commission (UGC.) You can access the list of ODLs (Online and
Distant Learning Institutes) that are currently approved by the DEB on their website.

3. Distance learning has evolved a lot in the last couple decades. With advances in
technology, distance learning now also includes online learning or e-learning. A
traditional open university like IGNOU now provides a host of online programmes, some
of which include:

 Post Graduate Diploma in Sustainability Science (PGDSS)

 Appreciation Programme on Sustainability Science (APSS)
 Post Graduate Diploma in Food Science and Technology (PGDFT)
 Post-Graduate Diploma in Food Safety and Quality Management (PGDFSQM)

4. Though two degrees cannot generally be pursued simultaneously, a student can

pursue two programmes simultaneously through the distance mode or combination of
distance and regular modes from the same or different universities/institutions in the
following various combinations:

 One Degree and one Diploma/PG Diploma/Certificate

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 One P G Diploma and one Diploma/Certificate

 One Diploma and one Certificate
 Two PG Diplomas
 Two Diplomas
 Two Certificates

5. There are now many institutes/ colleges/ universities in India that offer only online
courses. University18 is such an example. It has been developed in a Public Private
Partnership with national universities like Karnataka State Open University (KSOU),
Uttarakhand Open University (UOU) and IIM Shillong. Another such 100 percent online
education platform is UTS. You can submit assignments online, access an online library
24-7 and take exams online.

Google forms

Google Forms is a free online tool from Google which allows users to create forms,
surveys, and quizzes as well as to collaboratively edit and share the forms with other
people. Educators can use Google forms to assess their students at the beginning of the
class and gauge pre-existing knowledge. Furthermore, Google forms can be used to give
feedback to and receive feedback from students and parents. Similarly, students can
use Google forms to assess their own learning and set the learning goals as well as to
collect data for their research projects.
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Procedure of Google forms

Step-1 1
Head over to your Google Docs and click on Create then on Form

Step-2
Give your form a title and a description

Step-3

Choose a background for your form to make it look descent. To do this click on " Theme "
on the top bar as is displayed in the screenshot below. Choose among the themes there
and click on the one you want and then hit done.
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Step-4
Now you start filling up you form. Provide your questions

and then choose which type of questions you want to use. You can choose from :

Here is how each form looks like.

1) Multiple choice questions 2) Grid

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3) Scale 4) choose from list

5) Check-boxes 6) Paragraph text

7) Or just text
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Step-5 5

Click on " Add Other " to add the option other to your questions. It will look like this

Step 6
If you want to add page break to your form so that students answer a set of questions
on one page and then click on continue to answer the others here is how to do it : Click
on " add items " located at the bottom of the page and add the forms you want .

Step -7
Customize the confirmation message by either :
 Choosing link to submit another response

 Publish and show a link to the results of this form

 Allow responders to edit answers after responding

Step- 8
To share your form you have three options :
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1. Share a direct link to your form with others

2. Share your form on social media websites ( Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus)

3. Share your form via email

4. Or embed it in your classroom blog or website

REPORT OF MY SURVEY

As topic for my survey is problems faced by students in distance learning I had

created questionnaire for the survey through Google forms below are the
evidences of my survey

 Screenshots Of Survey Questions

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Responses of survey

There were 59 responses on survey. I had sent the survey questionnaire to only
those respondents which are learning through distance mode .

As the question was how do you feel overall about distance education more than 50%
i.e. 30 students said that distance learning is Average which means they are neither
happy nor disappointed. Less than half i.e 22 students said that distance education is
very poor .less than quarter i.e 10 students said that distance education is below
average. 5 students also said that distance learning is good. while only 1 student said
that distance learning is excellent.

From the above pie chart i can say that more than half i.e 38 students have said that
they have their own device for learning . while less than half i.e 20 students said that
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they have the device but it doesn’t work well. Only 1 have said that he/she doesn’t
have the device and they have to share the device with others .

From the pie chart we can see that little less than full i.e 52 students have said they use
smartphone as device for distance learning. While few students i.e 6 of them have said
that they use laptop as device for distance learning and only 1 student have said that
he/uses desktop as a device for learning .

From the above pie chart we can see that almost half i.e 28 students have said that they
spend 3-5 hours on an average on distance learning . while more than quarter i.e 23
students have said they spend 1-3 hours on an average on learning. Only 6 students
have said that they spend 5-7 hours on learning and 2 students have said that they
spend 7-10 hours on learning .
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From the above pie chart we can see that 39% i.e 23 students have said that remote
learning was slightly effective for them . 37.3% i.e 22 students have said remote
learning was moderately effective . 15.3% i.e 9 students have said that remote learning
for them is not at all effective .3.4% i.e 2 students have said remote learning is
extremely effective for them and 5.1% i.e 3 students have said that remote learning is
very effective for them.

From the above pie chart we can see that 35.6% i.e 21 students have Said
School/University has been moderately helpful for them in providing resources to learn.
While 30.5% i.e 18 students have said that school / university has been slightly helpful.
16.9% students have said that school/ university are very helpful and 13.6% have said
schools and colleges are not at all helpful .
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From the above pie chart we can see that 40.7% students have said it is extremely
stressful distance learning during Covid 19 pandemic. While 39% students have said
that it is moderately stressful and 20.3% have said it is slightly stressful.

From the above pie chart we can see that 37.3% students have said they do not enjoy
distance learning and there are quite few challenges , while 27.1 of students have said
that they enjoy remote learning but they would like to change few things . 23.7%
students have said that they do not enjoy at all and 11.9% have said that they enjoy
learning remotely.
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From the above pie chart we can see that 42.4% of students have said that teachers are
helpful while studying online. 30.5% have said that teachers are very helpful while
studying online . 10.2% students have said that teachers are slightly helpful and same
percentage of students have said teachers are not at all helpful. And 6.8% of students
have said that teachers are extremely helpful.

From the above pie chart we can see that 61% of students are satisfied with the
technology and software they are using for online studying . while 39% of students are
not satisfied with the technology or software they are using for online studying .
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From the above pie chart we can see that 66.1% students are saying that they are
satisfied with the software or technology teachers are using for online teaching while
33.9% have said that they are not satisfied.

From the above pie chat we can see that 30.5% of students have said that their
classmates are moderately helpful while equal percentage of the students have also
said that their classmates are very helpful while learning from home . 28.8% of students
have said that their class mates are slightly helpful and 8.5% of students have said that
their classmates are extremely helpful while learning from home.

From the above pie chart we can see that there are lots of problems faced by students in
distance learning . 28.6% students face study material problem as no proper source is
available. While 21.4% students face problem of attending online classes as they might
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have personal reason or they might be working somewhere . 10.7% of students have
said they face travelling problem in distance learning .8.9% students have said that they
have problem because of strict deadlines of project submission and Majority of students
i.e 30.4% of students have said that they face other problems in distance learning in
Covid 19 pandemic .

Reflection :

While doing my study I have learned many things . The benefit is that we can take
opinion of all age group people . Technology has changed many things in this current
world . now everything is at tip of fingers . From this study I came to know what all are
the difficulties the students are facing as distance learner . I came to know their view
points on distance learning

CONCLUSION
Distance learning is a great technology evaluation to our generation and has added a
new level on higher education. It seems as cheaper than traditional class, and students
are open to work over their flexible schedule. Distance learning provide a bright future to
our education with its positive probability. Though almost all universities and college
start to focus on online education, some people find difficulty in distance learning for its
lack in guidance and technical support. However, it can be a great blessing to bring
success to the whole society with some proper development. Information and
communication technologies (ICT’S) can significantly enhance poor people's human and
social capabilities and have a positive impact on their well-being.