Many people are going for degrees/diplomas through distance learning/ online learning/ flexible learning. Are they feeling typical classroom learning too crammed? Or do they find it boring? Rather, they have very little time to spare, sitting through classes on a daily basis whether in the evening or by the day. This is more so in the case of those degree/diploma seekers who are employed. With regard to the number of people completed higher education in India, I am sure the figure compares poorly with that of developed countries. We don’t have enough Universities, or ones that we can boast of with world-class teaching. In this scenario, flexible/ distance learning is a godsend. Then a question arises: are our educational institutions in a better position to deliver in this field effectively. Do they have the right tools, concepts and approaches to cater to the ambitious and yet anxious distance learners?

Let us peep into typical classroom. Here, the student and the teacher are synchronal, that is they are face to face to each other. Despite the advantage I find one thing most discomforting. This is with the age-old tendency of teachers plagiarizing lessons straight from text books and verbally dumping on the susceptible students, at the most they tinker (personalize) at random. This might also be by oversight, I am afraid. Besides, most tutors are in an anxious haste to complete the syllabus too fast, that their job is done well in time for the examinations. I got my own doubts on the best of them even and wonder if they could effectively cater to the individual attention needs of each and every student. For, in a real classroom the student is not allowed enough time to reflect on the given topics and questions in the course. In other words he or she is not given adequate space or leverage to focus and reflect on what is taught. When the student goes home and reads his lessons, again there is likelihood he or she may get a different perspective of the ideas taught in the day. Sadly, the chances of student getting clarified are poor on the revised understanding, when no opportunity comes his or her way to catch the attention yesterday’s teacher.

This is where distant learning sounds opportune. But unfortunately the techniques are not evolved and refined to the exact needs of today’s learners in diverse backgrounds like age, social, economic, etc. The material is usually run-of-the-mill kind.

It is high time the educational institutions took some time and focused on their syllabi and tests and tailor-made their learning material to suit the needs of distance learners in a way the learners can reflect and comprehend better on the contents at their individual pace. The distance learner has the advantage of contact classes to clarify any doubts with a real tutor. So it is ideal to change the old course models being sent to the students to come out with improved interface and layout with audio and video inputs. That way, there is a chance for more and more students to complete their basic degrees/ diplomas and/ or obtain additional qualifications and boost their academic profiles with ease.

Finally, the institutions will have to come out with some credit systems so that a distance learner can leisurely obtain his or her credits periodically, accumulate them and finish the course successfully at his or her own pace, maybe in 3 -5 years (normal 1- 3 year programs), instead of failing in the rushed schedules of rigid programs.