Refers to the state of being either engaged in a regular work-related income activity or not, while studying as a distance learner.
Published in Chapter:
Distance Learning in Kenyan Universities: The Relationship between Learners' Characteristics and Academic Performance
Winfred K. Kithinji (Kenya Methodist University, Kenya) and Anne W. Kanga (Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Kenya)
Copyright: © 2017
|Pages: 14
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-2000-9.ch013
Abstract
Anchored on the premises that Distance Learning (DL) is fundamentally learner centered (LC), and that universities facilitate DL programs through various forms of media and technologies, this study investigated the contribution of learner characteristics to academic performance among distance learners. Adopting the triangulation design validating quantitative data model, the predictive power of the following variables was examined: age, gender, entry qualification, region of residence, employment status, marital status, academic self-concept, and study strategies. Findings show that learner characteristics were positively related to academic performance. The overall regression model was significant (F (8,162) =2.633, p<.05). While the multiple correlation coefficient was .339, the study found that approximately 11.5% of the variance of academic performance was associated with learner characteristics (r2=.115). Specifically, employment status and study strategies were statistically significant predictors of CGPA [(t=3.16, p<.05) and (t=2.23, p<.05) respectively]. Study recommended that universities should profile distance learner characteristics and align student needs with all the instructional processes of DL.