An Evaluation of Learners’ Perceptions of Student Support Services (SSS) in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

Abstract

The quality of Student Support Services (SSS) assumes vital importance in
Open and Distance Learning (ODL) because the services facilitate the
teaching and learning processes while making learning a more rewarding
experience for the learners. This paper presents the findings of a study
conducted to identify the importance and efficacy of the SSS package
currently available for learners in the OUSL. The analysis is based on the
findings of a comprehensive study carried out by a team of academics of
the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. The research methodology
adopted for this study included a questionnaire survey, focus group
discussions and participant observations.

The study revealed that learners considered regular day schools, audiovisual
aids and timely availability of course material as the most
important components of SSS. The study ranked the satisfaction levels
and compared them with the rank order importance of SSS components. It
was found that there is a significant discrepancy between the order of
importance and the order of satisfaction levels indicating that the SSS
providers have not been able to prioritize the order of importance of the
components to ensure client satisfaction. It reveals that there are
significant shortfalls and lapses in the different components of the SSS
package. There was also a significant discrepancy in the satisfaction
levels of different regions.

DOI: 10.4038/ouslj.v5i0.2141

OUSL Journal Vol.5 2009 22-40