E-Tutoring

ABSTRACT
Technology has become an indispensable instructional tool in the contemporary world. The circumstances of today’s education environment make it crucial for distance education and e-learning institutions to adopt technology for instruction and student support. University of South Africa supports its undergraduate students via e-tutors who are appointed for every 200 students scattered all over the country. E-tutors explain the content and discourse of specific modules and guide students in academic writing. Although all registered students are assigned to e-tutors many of them do not participate in the online learning activities. The paradox of not participating in free available learner support tutorials requested by the students themselves motivated this investigation. The objective of the study was to find out why many students fail to patronise the e-tutorials; the academic support they have requested. Sixty (60) first year undergraduate students in adult education participated in the case study which revealed that most countryside students do not participate in e-tutoring either because of computer illiteracy, lack of access to computer or internet facilities.