Why ODL is an alternative for visually impaired learners in 21st century

Open and distance learning (ODL) as “a way of providing learning opportunities that is characterised by the separation of teacher and learner in time and or place; …the use of a variety of media… [For] two-way communications that allow learners and tutors to interact; [and] the possibility of occasional face to face meetings between tutor and learners (COL’s; 2009). Today, ODL allows learners to access instruction and learning materials including those with disabilities. With regard to this new era of learning approach, it raised several significant questions as to why visually impaired learners choose to pursue their study in ODL institution, does ODL accommodate visually impaired learners’ for higher education particularly in the 21st century? This is a qualitative study which in-depth interviews being done on 10 visual impaired graduates either with low vision or totally blind who were studying in OUM, to find out why they chose ODL University to pursue their study. Besides, this study is also meant to detect what is their main difficulties and needs in the ODL environment. The finding indicated that ODL is an alternative for visually impaired to pursue their higher degree although they had face some accessibilities issues. (Abstract by author

How to access and administer the selection interview?

It is common that many employers have no idea as to what to do when Orang Kurang Upaya (OKU) candidates come for job interviews. As a result, they just simply entertained them and always end up with unfavorable outcome. Perhaps, some employers are really interested to hire OKU staff but they are not able to materialize this due to the psychological barriers as well as lacking experience in handling OKU applicants. On the other hand, OKU candidates also wish to secure jobs but are always unsuccessful because they are not performing during the interview. Therefore, both parties, employers and OKU alike, need proper guidance. They need more information on how to make use of available tools to assess the capabilities and the abilities of OKU candidates. The problem is that there are so many tools such as application forms, CV, psychological tests, interviews, reference letters etc. what and which tools are more practical and reliable as well as valid? Therefore, this paper will discuss with you concerning how employers can use the interview as an effective predictor of OKU candidates’ performance. This paper will also discuss how employers can conduct interview sessions effectively and what are needed in order to be prepared for interviewing OKU candidates. Then, it will also provide some useful guidelines to OKU candidates on interview matters. (Introduction by author

The Role of NGO in Promoting Life Long Learning for Person with Visually Impaired and Blindness

The main focus of this paper is to examine how the life long learning take-place through NGO such as Society of the Blind in Malaysia (SBM). Therefore, the aims and objectives of this paper are as follow: 1. To discuss the roles of NGO in the work of life-long learning among the blind and visually impaired community. 2. To share the current practice of NGO serving the blind and visually impaired in life long learning. 3. To identify and report on how the blind and visually impaired can achieved economy empowerment through life long learning

Lifelong learning for person with virtually impaired blindness: A Case Study In Society of The Blind In Malaysia

The main focus of this paper is to examine how the life long learning take-place through NGO such as Society Of The Blind In Malaysia (SBM). Therefore, the aims and objectives of this paper are as follow: 1. To discuss the roles of NGO in the work of life-long learning among the blind and visually impaired community. 2. To share the current practice of NGO serving the blind and visually impaired in life long learning. 3. To identify and report on how the blind and visually impaired can achieved economy empowerment through life long learning

Pentingnya penyelidikan kepada badan-badan bukan kerajaan

Kertas kerja ini bertujuan untuk membincangkan satu persoalan utama yakni, pentingnya penyelidikan kepada sesebuah badan bukan kerajaan dan impaknya ke atas kesejahteraan sosial komuniti yang mereka sasarkan. Antara hujah-hujah yang menyokong tentang pentingnya sesuatu penyelidikan kepada badan bukan kerajaan termasuk penyelidikan dapat membantu NGO menjelaskan sesuatu perkara dengan cara yang saintifik, memberikan data yang konkrit, mengenal pasti sebab-sebab berlakunya sesuatu perkara dan sebagai sumber maklumat yang sahih. Tumpuan perbincangan banyak berlandaskan kepada pengalaman pembentang yang secara kebetulan terlibat secara langsung dalam beberapa NGO yang berkaitan dengan orang kurang upaya. Di sampping itu, kertas kerja ini juga ada mengemukakan beberapa cadangan agar penyelidikan yang sistematik dapat dipergiatkan di kalangan NGO melalui usaha kerajaan seperti menyediakan dana penyelidikan, melatih lebih ramai tenaga mahir untuk menjalankan penyelidikan dan hasil penyelidikan dimanfaatkan sepenuhnya melalui data bank yang dicadangkan. akhir kata, dengan adanya aktiviti penyelidikan dan hasil ddapatannya tentu sekali akan membantu para pemimpin NGO untuk membuat perancangan yang strategik dan seterusnya melaksanakan pelbagai program yang berkesan untuk memajukan kesejahteraan sosial komuniti kelak. (Abstrack by author

Education Opportunities For People With Disabilities: A Case Study In Open University Malaysia

Open and distance learning (ODL) offers a great opportunity to people with disabilities or learner with disability to pursue their studies in a university. This form of study is widely adopted in many countries within the rehabilitation context to enable disabled people to improve their academic qualifications and social integration within communities. In Malaysia, there are several universities that provide ODL opportunities to its citizens including people with disabilities. Prominent among these universities is the Open University Malaysia (OUM). This paper aims to discuss the initiatives taken and role played by OUM to encourage people with disabilities to further and complete their tertiary education through open and distance learning. The paper also reports the major findings of a survey conducted through phone interviews of learners with disabilities. The survey findings focus on why students with disabilities choose to study in OUM and the learning difficulties faced by these learners in an ODL environment. Finally, some recommendations are made to improve the effectiveness of ODL for learners with disabilities. (Abstract by authors

Psychology Students Feedback on the Overall Programme Structure in ODL Context: A Case Study at OUM

Generally, the study of students’ feedback may serve various purposes such as for programme improvement; accountability and decision making; judgments of merit, worth, and significance of the programme. The ultimate goal of this study is to enhance the effectiveness of online study and delivery. The aim of this paper is to study psychology students’ feedback on the overall structure of the Bachelor of Psychology programme offered in OUM. The specific objectives of the study are to determine whether the curriculum matches their needs, whether they can pursue a profession after graduation, whether they are satisfied with the courses, and whether they learned psychology courses as planned. This is a descriptive study and case study technique was utilised. The sample consists of 436 psychology active students throughout the country. Structured questionnaire was used to collect the data and the questionnaires were distributed via Google Drive. The Cronbach Alpha for the instrument was 0.79. The study results indicated that students’ feedback was very positive with the overall structure of the psychology programme. The data shows that the mean score for all the items fall into the high category. The score mean ranges from 3.806 to 4.164. This finding indicates that the psychology programme offered in OUM is satisfactory and well accepted by the students