McCarthy, Olive

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Title Square pegs in round holes: Experiences of distance learningprogrammes in UCCAuthor(s) McCarthy, OlivePublication date 2004-07Original citation McCarthy, O. (2004) 'Square Pegs in Round Holes: Experiences ofdistance learning programmes in UCC', in Hyland, A. (ed.) UniversityCollege Cork as a Learning Organisation,  Cork: University CollegeCork.Type of publication Book chapterLink to publisher'sversionhttps://www.ucc.ie/en/media/academic/teachingandlearning/documents/UCC-as-a-Learning-Organisation-Aine-Hyland.pdfAccess to the full text of the published version may require asubscription.Rights © 2004 the authors. Published by The Staff Enhancement &Development Committee University College Cork.Item downloadedfromhttp://hdl.handle.net/10468/5111Downloaded on 2018-08-23T20:27:27ZCHAPTER 14SQUARE PEGS IN ROUND HOLES: EXPERIENCES OF DISTANCELEARNING PROGRAMMES IN UCCOlive McCarthyCentre for Co-operative Studies & Department of Food Business and DevelopmentFrom the earliest days of proposing the distance learning BSc in Mutual and Credit UnionBusiness, it became clear that this new programme was not going to fit comfortably into ‘the waywe do things around here’. Everything from course marketing to registration and teaching toexaminations could never slot into the neat formula of conventional university course offerings.And considering the target students for this BSc programme, that was not surprising. Picture addressing a group of potential students who have been away from the formal educationsystem for several years, live a distance from UCC, hold down full-time jobs, have a spouse orpartner, school-going children and aging parents. Now tell this group that if they wish to studyfor a degree in UCC, they must follow the conventional route to education: daily lectures oncampus requiring full-time commitment. There will be few followers. But invite this group tostudy when and where they wish, attend weekend lectures and tutorials in a venue close to homeevery 3-6 weeks, and complete the exams at venues and times designed to suit their needs. Therewill be a cohort of followers. And this has been precisely the experience of the Centre for Co-operative Studies and theDepartment of Food Business and Development in developing distance learning degreeprogrammes. A number of successful distance learning degree programmes have been developedwith the co-operation of other academic departments and universities: the first of these, the BScin Mutual and Credit Union Business, which builds on the Diploma in Credit Union Studies andthe Diploma in Social Integration and Enterprise and is offered through the Faculty of Commerce,broke new ground. In many respects, it paved the way for the BSc in Rural Development, whichis offered by the four NUI constituent universities and builds on the Diploma in RuralDevelopment. In UCC, it is offered through the Faculty of Food Science and Technology. Andmost recently, the MBS in Co-operative and Social Enterprise has been approved by the universityas a distance learning progression route for graduates of the distance learning degrees. The MBSwill be delivered entirely over the worldwide web. The first key to the success of these programmes to date has, first and foremost, been the strongteamwork that has been associated with their delivery. Genuine co-operation and strong workingrelationships between academics and administrators within and across many departments andsections in the university have steadily built up. The second key to success has been the clearidentification of the needs of distance learning students and the tailoring of courses andconventional structures to suit these needs. This has been a learning process and has resulted inthe necessity for a paradigm shift by both academics and administrators throughout theuniversity. Existing structures are evolving to accommodate the unique needs of distance learnersseparately and in a more flexible manner, perhaps, to those of conventional students. Opennessto change and willingness to accommodate unique needs have been crucial. Unlike mostconventional students, distance learning students do not need to present themselves on campusfor registration, lectures and tutorials, or examinations. Distance learning students nowexperience greater flexibility across a range of issues, primarily because of a recognition of theirconflicting personal commitments. From a staffing point of view, openness to skills development and capacity building has beencentral to distance learning. Training in the design and writing of effective distance learningmaterials has been essential. Courses in website design and on-line learning have been invaluable. Advances in technology have played no small role in accommodating the needs of distancelearning students. These have been introduced gradually and fine-tuned as necessary. In2002/2003, the use of Blackboard software was piloted on one module. It proved extremelyeffective as a supportive tool to the extent that students, in their feedback, have requested adedicated website for their entire course. This is being provided from 2003/2004. The use of CD-ROM for course materials has also been piloted, giving students access to hyperlinks for browsingrelevant websites. The ability of students to access timetables and results through the universitywebsite has been hugely welcomed by the distance learning students and is a resource that is widelyused by them. Indeed the ease with which students have taken these new technologies on boardhas prompted the delivery of the new MBS in Co-operative and Social Enterprise entirely over theweb, enabling true distance learning to be offered by the university anywhere in the world. Therecent acquisition of mobile classrooms in the university is another new technological resource thatwill be usefully employed and reminds us that we need continuously to bear in mind the webaccess needs of mature students, particularly those who suffer from social disadvantage. Access tothe web may also be possible for distance learning students through local libraries, credit unions,co-operatives, and other community development organisations.For the most part, the existing structures have adapted well to accommodate the needs of distancelearners. Fundamental challenges remain to be addressed more comprehensively, althoughdiscussions are on-going at a number of levels. The first of these relates to resource allocation forwhich interim structures are in place. This has implications at a number of levels, but particularlyin the employment of staff. The second relates to the issue of credit accumulation. Theintroduction of such a system may help to improve access to university programmes by thosedistance learners who feel more comfortable breaking their learning into more manageable chunks. Overall, our experiences of distance learning programmes have been positive and rewarding. Attimes, placing a distance learning student within the current university learning structures hasbeen akin to forcing a square peg into a round hole. Over time, however, the hole is proving thatit can be moulded in different ways to accommodate differently shaped pegs. Given thedemographic decline in the numbers of conventional students seeking third level education,distance learning is likely to continue to grow in importance for the future of the university.

Square pegs in round holes: Experiences of distance learning programmes in UCC

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Square pegs in round holes: Experiences of distance learning programmes in UCC

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