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Distance Education in the Teacher Education Program of Zimbabwe Susan Marie Zvacek Iowa State University

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Distance Education in the Teacher Education Program of Zimbabwe Susan Marie Zvacek Iowa State University Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Retrospective Theses and Dissertations Dissertations 1989 Distance education in the teacher education program of Zimbabwe Susan Marie Zvacek Iowa State University Follow this and additional works at: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/rtd Part of the Curriculum and Instruction Commons, and the Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons Recommended Citation Zvacek, Susan Marie, "Distance education in the teacher education program of Zimbabwe " (1989). Retrospective Theses and Dissertations. 11179. https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/rtd/11179 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Dissertations at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Retrospective Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INFORMATION TO USERS The most advanced technology has been used to photograph and reproduce this manuscript from the microfihn master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6 " x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. University Microfilms Inlernational A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor. Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800 521-0600 Order Number 9014974 Distance education in the teacher education program of Zimbabwe Zvacek, Susan Marie, Ph.D. Iowa State University, 1989 UMI 300 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Arbor, MI 48106 Distance education in the teacher education program of Zimbabwe by Susan Marie Zvacek A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department: Professional Studies in Education Major: Education (Curriculum and Instructional Technology) Approved: Signature was redacted for privacy. In Charge of Major Work Signature was redacted for privacy. Signature was redacted for privacy. Iowa State University Ames, Iowa 1989 ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vi PREFACE vii CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1 Teacher Education in Zimbabwe 1 Distance Education in Zimbabwe 10 Statement of the Problem 19 Research Questions 19 Objectives of the Study 22 Limitations of the Study 23 Significance of the Study 24 CHAPTER TWO REVIEW OF LITERATURE 25 Introduction 25 Theory of Distance Education 25 Role of Research in Distance Education 32 Evaluation of Distance Education Programs 35 Media in Distance Education Programs 38 International Applications of Distance 40 Education Distance Education and Teacher Education 44 Adoption of Innovations 48 Curriculum Development 53 Systems Theory 57 Summary of Perspectives 64 CHAPTER THREE METHODOLOGY 69 Qualitative Research 69 Methodology 7 3 Summary 90 CHAPTER FOUR DATA SUMMARY 91 Distance Education Survey 91 Workshop Presentations 96 Workshop Evaluation 109a Visits and Interviews 113 Documents 121 Summary 122 iii CHAPTER FIVE EVALUATIVE DESCRIPTION 12 6 Triad Perspective Model of 126 Distance Education Environment/Social System/Objectives 127 Structural/Innovât ion/Experiences 138 Process/Time/Organization 151 Monitoring/Communication/Evaluation 160 Chapter Summary 17 0 CHAPTER SIX RECOMMENDATIONS AND 172 PROJECT SUMMARY Program Strengths and Weaknesses 17 4 Program Recommendations 186 Areas for Further Research 201 REFERENCES 207 APPENDIX A DISTANCE EDUCATION SURVEY (DES) 22 0 RESULTS APPENDIX B PRESENTATION NOTES AND WORKSHOP 24 8 ACTIVITIES APPENDIX C WORKSHOP EVALUATION RESULTS 257 APPENDIX D INTERVIEWS AND CAMPUS VISITS 264 NOTES APPENDIX E DOCUMENTS 297 APPENDIX F PROCEEDINGS FROM DISTANCE 316 EDUCATION — A WORKSHOP iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Triad Perspective Model of Distance 64b Education (TPMDE) Figure 2. Workshop Goals and Objectives 75a Figure 3. Distance Education Workshop Schedule 75c Figure 4. Workshop Participant Information Form 76b Figure 5. Distance Education Survey Form 78a Figure 6. Distance Education Workshop 81b Evaluation Form Figure 7. Timeline of Project Activities 89 Figure 8. Mean Score Ranking of Characteristics 94b as Ranked by Distance Education, Science Education, and Total Workshop Participants Figure 9. Workshop Participants' Opinions of the 95a Distance Education System Figure 10, Workshop Participants' "Guesses" of 95b Students' Opinions of the Distance Education System Figure 11. Science Education Workshop 95c Participants' Opinions of the Distance Education System Figure 12. Distance Education Workshop 95d Participants' Opinions of the Distance Education System Figure 13. Science Education Workshop 95e Participants' "Guesses" of Students' Opinions of the Distance Education System Figure 14. Distance Education Workshop 95f Participants' "Guesses" of Students' Opinions of the Distance Education System V Figure 15. Proposed "Zimbabwe Model" for 104b Distance Education Figure 16. Model of Communication Channels in 107b the Zimbabwean Distance Education System Figure 17. Workshop Evaluation; How Much Did 110a You Learn? Figure 18. Workshop Evaluation; How Effectively 110b was the Workshop Organized? Figure 19. Workshop Evaluation; Is Distance 110c Education Important for Zimbabwe? Figure 20. Workshop Evaluation: Were the 111b Workshop Leaders Knowledgeable? Figure 21. Relationships Between the Distance 134 Education Program and the Environment vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This project has truly been a labor — of love, excitement, learning, accomplishment, and sometimes frustration. I'd like to thank the people who have enabled me to hit print and realize a life-long goal. Thank you to my committee: Dr. Donald Erbach, Dr. Anton Netusil, Dr. Roger Volker, and Dr. James Weaver. I appreciate the time they invested in reading this document, their helpful suggestions, and willingness to accommodate everyone's busy schedules. Also, thanks to Dr. Richard Warren for joining the committee as a substitute and contributing thoughtfully at the end. Thank you to Dr. Michael Simonson, an exemplary major professor. Without his guidance I would never have had the opportunity to participate in this project. His "pep talks" were well-timed and kept me on track when I began to get discouraged and his mentoring has shown me what a scholar is. A special thanks goes to my parents, Donald Zvacek and Betty Zvacek, and to my brothers, Dennis and Kevin, for never letting on if they wondered whether I would ever finish. Thank you for believing in me. Thanks to everyone who helped along the way. I get to pay it back now with my graduate students. I know I'll do fine -- I've had excellent role models. vii PREFACE Dissertation research in the field of educational technology, traditionally, has been conducted in the objective, positivistic paradigm. This document is unlike that traditional model and may, therefore, seem unusual to the reader. Because there was no standard format for dissertations involving naturalistic inquiry, a format was developed by the author that would allow a complete description of the research project without departing drastically from the familiar arrangement of information. Chapter One, Introduction, provides a background for the study. Chapter Two is a review of the current literature in the field, and also includes a discussion of the development of the Triad Perspective Model of Distance Education (TPMDE) that was created by the author out of the research and the three theoretical bases that guided this study. Chapter Three, Methodology, describes the data collection measures used, and Chapter Four is a summary of the data gathered. Chapter Five, Evaluative Description, is a discussion of the data, organized according to the TPMDE structure. Chapter Six is a discussion of the relevance of the project's results and the recommendations that were developed from those results. Five appendices contain the notes, responses, viii and documentation from each of the data collection measures. Although not a frequently used model in educational technology, naturalistic inquiry was the most appropriate choice for this study. By developing a comprehensive foundation of knowledge about the Zimbabwean distance education program, additional research will be facilitated. Research emphasizing objective, quantitative results or subjective, qualitative information will increase the level of understanding regarding distance education in the discipline. This
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