Urging learners not to be discouraged by the ‘new normal’

ENZO AMUELE



The director of the Namibian College of Open Learning (Namcol), Heroldt Vekaama Murangi, has urged all learners who are about to write their final examinations to study hard despite the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This is an unprecedented year which affected the lives of many people, in particular our learners. We should continually remind ourselves that was established as an open, distance e-Learning (ODeL) institution using a variety of methodologies to enable multiple forms of interaction,” he says.

He adds that this methodology enables them to bridge or narrow the gap between tutors and learners. “This form of education delivery allows the learners to study any time, anywhere and in their own convenient space,” he adds.

Murangi says the environment is open to learning and students should not be discouraged because of the Covid-19 pandemic, or what they refer to as “the new normal”. The institution acknowledges that the in-person contact with tutors was affected because of restrictions on travelling and gatherings.

Murangi urges Namcol learners to continue studying because the mode of delivery promotes self-directed, self-determined and independent learning.

Eighty percent of the learner’s time should be for self-study and the remaining 20% should be for engaging tutors and fellow learners for in-person contact or by using technologies such as social media applications like WhatsApp for support.

Murangi acknowledges that learners and students at all levels of education across the country are emotionally affected by the pandemic, but he encourages them to continue with the journey of learning and not to lose hope.

According to him, the African child is tough and can be compared to a traditional chicken which survives under difficult circumstances. The same can be said for learners; they remain resilient and for many years have been excelling despite their socio-economic situations. In his view, these tough conditions are not new to them.

McKayla Saayman, a student, says she has been doing self-study this whole time. “Attending classes during the week was just a plus because that’s when I asked for a better explanation of certain things I didn’t understand in my subjects.” She says she is ready for the November examinations.

She also suggests that the E-learning platform be updated daily rather than weekly and that pre-recorded lessons should be uploaded on the platform.

“My dear learners, despite all these challenges, study hard as the final examination is fast approaching. From our side, we will put the necessary support to help our students as they execute that mammoth task,” Murangi emphasises.

According to Murangi, the institution has produced additional learning resources for the secondary education programme that are loaded on the Notesmaster platform, while the notes for TVET and tertiary programmes are accessible on the Moodle open resources platform.

“The onus is upon students to access the relevant materials on these platforms,” he says. Grade 12 learners are also encouraged to access the website of the ministry of education, arts and culture for old question papers and model answers.

Murangi adds that the institution is currently busy with the ministry’s e-learning project of developing online content for grades 8-11 on the Notesmaster platform for use by all learners and teachers across the country.

“We are also producing educational radio and video programmes to benefit the entire country.”

He says the institution is ready to continue teaching amidst the pandemic.

On the other hand, Murangi believes that Covid-19 has allowed the institution to think and start doing things differently, which includes enhancing the use of e-learning and fostering relations between educational institutions and the stakeholders.

He advises learners to use their time wisely as they have lost a lot of time during the lockdown imposed by the government to curb the spread of the pandemic.