| Muhammad Safdar Raja |
| Distance and Non Formal Education, Allama Iqbal Open University Islamabad, Pakistan |
| October, 2007 |
Abstract |
| ABSTRACT Title: Feasibility Study of Guidance and Counselling Provision at the Regional Offices of AIOU Pages: 159 Researcher: Muhammad Safdar Advisor: Dr. Muhammad Shafi Mirza University: Allama Iqbal Open University Year: 2007 Subject Area: Distance and Non-Formal Education Degree: M.Phil (Education) The problem of study was Feasibility Study of Guidance and Counseling Provision at Regional Offices of AIOU. The research was a descriptive study. The objectives of the study were to:(1) Evaluate the role of guidance and counselling in the teaching learning process of distance education (2) T0 investigate the existing guidance and counselling facility at the regional offices of AIOU. (3) To describe the feasibility of guidance and counseling provision at regional offices of AIOU. (4) Suggest the measures for guidance and counseling provision at regional offices of AIOU. The importance of education, emergence, role and need of distance education in developing human capital and its effective role in socio-cultural and economic development of a society and Pakistan was discussed. After the study of related literature, these three questionnaires were drafted on five point’s likert-scale, validated, tried out and administered, (1) Questionnaire for regional directors (2) Questionnaire for tutors (3) Questionnaire for students. To conduct the study, three populations were taken, (1) All Regional Directors, Deputy Directors and Assistant Directors of regional offices of AIOU in the Punjab and Islamabad (2) Students of M.A (Education), M.Ed (DNFE) semester Spring and Autumn 2004 and (3) Tutors of M.A (Education), M.Ed (DNFE) of the respective semesters. From this population three samples, 20 regional directors in Punjab and Islamabad, 97 tutors and 335 students from the Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Sargodha regions were randomly selected. Questionnaires for regional directors were administered personally and by friends. Questionnaires for tutors were also administered personally and by friends mostly in tutorials and workshops. Questionnaire for students were administrated personally, by friends and by mailing. The data was collected, organized, tabulated and analyzed by applying percentage and mean score formulas. The major findings were: (1) Majority of the respondents that is 92% disagreed that existing guidance and counselling services at regional office s are enough for the learners. (2) Majority of the respondents that is 88% agreed that tutors and student counsellors need special training for guiding the learners. (3) 92% respondents disagreed with the statement that guidance and counselling services are available at every regional office. (4) 100% respondents agreed that there is utmost need of a counsellor at every regional office. On the basis of these findings it was concluded that (1) existing guidance and counselling services at every regional office are not enough for the learners. (2) There is no regular training for student counsellors and tutors. (3) Most of the learners and tutors are unaware about the appointment of counsellor at regional office. (4) There is utmost need of a student counsellor at every regional office of AIOU. Therefore the researcher recommended that (1) Guidance and Counselling services may be improved at regional offices of AIOU (2) A continuous training programmes for guidance and counselling services may be developed and launched for the tutors and counsellors (3) A student counsellor may be appointed at every regional office of AIOU. (4) Existing guidance and counselling services may be advertised in the prospectus of AIOU. |
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