Background
to the Study
The success of any teaching and
learning process depends largely on the instructional procedures. For a given
instructional procedure to achieve desired objectives it must be properly use
of instructional facilities. The National Teachers Institution is principally a
teacher education body that offers instructions to its learners through the use
of distance education mode of training. The concept of distance education is
very encompassing, because it is bounded by past and present practices and each
variation tends to provide a distinct dimension to the concept.
Shale (1996) argued that as field of
study and research distance education has very little conceptual coherence. The
term distance education grew out of the need for a concept broader than
correspondence study. Distance education encompasses new communication
technologies for the delivery institution. Holmberg (in Tarrison, 1998) defined
distance education as the various forms of study at all levels which are not
under continuous and immediate supervision of tutors present with their
students in lecture rooms or on the same premises, but nevertheless benefit
from the guidance and tuition of tutorial organization (garrison 1998:30).
Distance education is an innovative
informal education, which is becoming popular and acceptable in Nigeria. It’s
popularity and acceptability stem from the act that it offers to the learners
an-on-the job training opportunity for updating and, upgrading their academic
professional knowledge, and skills (Nduanya, 1997). Writing on the rational for
distance education is imperative as a means of providing education to the
increasing population that needs formal education on the background of limited
vacancy in the formal school setting. Distance education has come to be an
alternative form of formal education in which the learner learning at a
distance. The learner has limited contact with his teacher but leaves more
through well structured and packaged instructional materials. The learner most
of the time is separated from the teacher in terms of time and space.
The model of distance education
offered by the National Teachers Institute (NTI) Kaduna provide an-on-the job
training for serving teachers and all those interested in obtaining the Nigeria
Certificate in Education (NCE).
It is administered as part time study
with instructional course materials such as course books, cassette, tapes and
other forms of visual and audio aids. The initial focus of the institute on
distant learning programme was the training of unqualified primary school
teachers to obtain their Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE). Due to the
inherence of on the job training and the experience of the teachers Grade II by
introduced the Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) by Distant Learning
System (DLS). This was to ensure that the school system was not disrupted since
most of those who were to be trained were serving classroom teachers. The
success of distance learning mode of education required the extensive use of
instructional facilities because instructional materials as the teaching and learning
process are highly required in distant education. This is because the principal
participants in distance educator are adult learners. Distance education in
developed countries makes use of electronic devices and other instructional
facilities extensively. The NTI model of distant education is basically print
based. It relies mostly on the use of printed course materials, which include
self-instructional course books in the delivery of instruction to students.
The above provision for course
materials for learning is supplemented with periodic race to-face contact
between the learners and the instructors (course tutors at designated locations)
(study centres). During these contact, sessions, the learners have face-to-face
contract with the instructors. Principally, the contact sessions provide an
avenue for tutorials and writing of review tests, assignments and conduct of
practical lesson in the science, cultural and creative arts, physical and
health education classes. The use of instructional resources in distant
learning becomes a necessity because of its central role among adult and
distant learners.
According to Ibe (1998), an
instructional material is an object or means of communication process that
stores and distributes human experience or knowledge, therefore the totality of
the information carrying devices.
Human and material make up
instructional resources. Then, he includes the entire instructional system,
which he enumerates to include “the total package of material text, students’
guided and teacher guide that are needed to reach the goals of any
instructional unit, course of curriculum along with supporting activities and
processes required to operate the system as it is designed to be operated.
Instructional materials consist of all
forms of information carriers, which can be used to promote and encourage effective
learning in teaching activities. Since adult learner undergo distant learning
and combine their study with a number of other related roles as a means of
facilitating learning, it becomes imperative to concretize learning through the
extensive use of instructional resources. Here the teacher must make proper use
of relevant materials that are suitable for both the learner and the lesson
objective.
The above situation calls for devotion
and commitment in planning, selection and delivery of instructions. A
well-prepared instruction could be destroyed by non-availability or improper utilization
of learning materials by the teacher. According to Ibe (1998) utilization of
instructional materials associated with the function of the teacher as the
manager of the instructional process is important for the teacher to arrange
the mechanics of the presentation and also plan to make the materials
meaningful to the audience. He outlined the utilization procedures that the
teachers should follow and summarize them as previewing the materials,
preparation the environment, preparing the audience and finally presenting the
materials.
Rearettably, instructional resources in
most cases are limited or completely lacking, which lead to inefficient
performance on part of the tutors. Again, the few available ones are sometimes
not utilized in NTI/NCE/DLS and this leads to or make teaching and learning
process to become ineffective. It is on the basis of these that it becomes
necessary to investigate the extent of availability, adequacy and utilization
of instructional resources in the NCE programme of National Teachers Institute.
Statement of the Problem
The persistent problem of
non-availability or inadequacy of most instructional resources in NTI/NCE
programme has been of great concern to the entire society. This situation coupled
with ineffective utilization of the available instructional resources tends to
generate a deep gulf in the programme. The level of availability and
utilization tends to generate double as to whether these instructional
resources are provided, if so, how are they utilized?
In fact, it raises questions as to
whether some instructional resources are available while others are not and why
they are over utilized or under utilized. It is this uncertainty as to the
extent of instructional resources provided and utilized that raises doubt on
the quality of graduates of NTI/DLS programme.
Some of the product of this programme
find it difficult to effectively teach the subjects they majored in and one
begins to wonder as to whether their apparent non-performance is because they
were not properly taught use to the non-availability of utilization of
instructional resources in the various centres. This situation leads to poor
primary education.
The problem of this study is what is
the extent of availability, adequacy and utilization of instructional resources
in the NCE programme of the National Teachers Institute in Ebonyi State.
Purpose of the Study
The study will examine the
availability adequacy and the extent of utilization of instructional resources
at the NTI study centers in Ebonyi State. Specifically, the study is being
designed to:
1.
Determine
the availability of instructional resources.
2.
Find
out the adequacy or otherwise of instructional resources.
3.
Find out the extent of utilization of the available
institutional resources at the centres.
Significance of the Study
The findings of this study when
concluded shall be of immense benefit to the students, course facilitators,
center co-ordinators, parents as well as the entire community.
This study also is significant in that
the result with enable the NTI management know those instructional resources that
are available and the ones that are not available, when this is known, NTI
authority will be in a position to consider provision of instructional,
resources that are not yet available in different centers.
Again the results of the study would
show the extent the resources are adequate. When the adequacy of the available
resources are identified, the authority in charge of the resources will then
try to ensure that the teachers are trained to utilize those resources that
have been identified to be available and if the teachers are found to be efficient
in the utilization, they shall also gain since their experiences and learning
would be enriched.
Furthermore, this study is significant
because it would reveal the extent the available resources are utilized. This
will enable the management to know those resources that are either over
utilized or under utilized in order to carry out supervisory function. This
will help NTI organizers to make effort towards ensuring that those factors
that bring about over utilization or under utilization are emphasized.
Another significance of the study is
that it would help to make the NTI programme in the various centers more
effective. This is because the result of the study will sensitize the NTI
authorities towards providing those resources that are not available and also
ensuring that the ones provided are effectively used.
Scope of the Study
The focus of this study is to
determine the extent of availability of instructional resources, adequacy and
the extent of utilization of instructional resources by the course tutors at
the NTI/NCE/DLS in Ebonyi State. The study will make use of NTI course tutors
and students available for the programme in the state.
Research Questions
The following research
questions will guide the study.
1.
What
is the extent of availability of instructional resources in the NTI/NCE study
centers in Ebonyi state?
2.
To
what extent are the available instructional resources adequate?
3.
To
what extent are the available instructional resources utilized?
Hypotheses
The following
hypotheses will be tested at 0.05 level of significance.
1.
There
is no significant difference between the mean responses of students and course
tutors on the availability of instructional resources for the teaching of
NTI/NCE/DLS students in Ebonyi State.
2.
There
is no significant difference between the mean responses of students and the
course tutors on the level of utilization of instructional resources for the
teaching of NTI/NCE/DLS programme in Ebonyi State.
There is no significant
difference between the mean responses of students and the course tutors on the
level of adequacy of instructional resources for the teaching of NTI/NCE/DLS in
Ebonyi State.