Academic Workload Planning for Open and Distance Learning (ODL) Universities: The Experience of National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN)

S/N	Faculty	Lecturer-student Ratio
1	Art	1:30
2	Administration	1:30
3	Education	1:30
4	Science	1:20
5	Engineering	1:15
6	Medicine	1:10
7	Veterinary Medicine	1:10
8	Pharmacy	1:10
9	Management Science	1:30
10	Agricultural Science	1:15
11	Environmental Science	1:15
12	Social Science	1:30
13	Law	1:30

Table 2

Teaching Activities in NOUN

Work Schedule	Responses
Teaching activities done	Yes	No
Programme development	55	16
Course development	71	0
Course material writing	71	0
Course review	71	0
Course coordination	71	0
Online Facilitation	61	10
Project supervision	70	1
Teaching practice/SIWES	66	5
Laboratory or field work, clinical practice/practicum	30	41
Mentoring others in ODL teaching	21	50
Assessment (Tutor Marked/Computer Marked Assignments and Examination)	71	0
Monitoring of examination	51	20
Participation in Conference Marking	71	0
Weighted Mean	60 (85%)	11 (15%)

[i] N = 71

Table 3

Scholarship Activities in NOUN

	Responses
Scholarship: Teaching-focused and Teaching Scholar:	Yes	No
Active participation in seminars, conferences at local and professional level	27	44
Participation in training on modern technology for teaching and learning in ODL	55	16
Being innovative in ODL teaching practice and delivery	11	60
Sharing teaching ODL teaching practice through workshops, seminar, and conferences	7	64
Research-Related Work – personal research work that will increase your chance for promotion	71	0
Weighted Mean	34 (48%)	37 (52%)

[i] N = 71

Table 4

Service Related Work in NOUN

	Responses
Service Related Work:	Yes	No
Active participation in committees at departmental, faculty and university levels	71	0
Administrative services such as Dean/HOD/Chair of a committee, desk officer (project, examination, seminar, publications etc)	48	23
Professional consultancy to other institutions	11	60
Professional contribution to the society	24	47
Contributions to external professional bodies in your field of specialization	10	61
Weighted Mean	33 (46%)	38 (54%)

[i] N = 71

Table 5

Level of Satisfaction of Teaching Activities by Academic Staff in NOUN

Work Schedule	Satisfactory	Unsatisfactory	Don’t know
Teaching activities done:
Programme development	68	3	0
Course development	51	20	0
vCourse material writing	29	42	0
Course review	16	55	0
Course coordination	32	39	0
Online Facilitation	5	66	0
Project supervision	71	0	0
Teaching practice/SIWES	45	26	0
Laboratory or field work, clinical practice/practicum	33	38	0
Mentoring others in ODL teaching	69	2	0
Assessment (Tutor Marked/Computer Marked Assignments and Examination)	12	59	0
Monitoring of examination	41	30	0
Participation in Conference Marking	67	4	0
Weighted Mean	41 (57.7%)	30 (42.3%)	0

[i] N = 71

Table 6

Level of Satisfaction of Scholarship Activities by Academic Staff in NOUN

Work Schedule	Satisfactory	Unsatisfactory	Don’t know
Scholarship: Teaching-focused and Teaching Scholar:
Active participation in seminars, conferences at local and professional level	12	59	0
Participation in training on modern technology for teaching and learning in ODL	11	60	0
Being innovative in ODL teaching practice and delivery	10	61	0
Sharing teaching ODL teaching practice through workshops, seminar, and conferences	10	61	0
Research-Related Work – personal research work that will improve your specialisation	45	26	0
Weighted Mean	18 (25.4%)	53 (74.6%)	0

[i] N = 71

Table 7

Level of Satisfaction of Service Related Work by Academic Staff in NOUN

Work Schedule	Satisfactory	Unsatisfactory	Don’t know
Service Related Work
Active participation in committees at departmental, faculty and university levels	68	3	0
Administrative services such as Dean/HOD/Chair of a committee, desk officer (project, examination, seminar, publications etc)	50	21	0
Professional consultancy to other institutions	2	69	0
Professional contribution to the society	15	56	0
Contributions to external professional bodies in your field of specialization	14	57	0
Weighted Mean	30 (42.3%)	41 (57.7%)	0

[i] N = 71

Table 8

Effect of Academic Workload in NOUN

To what extent do you agree with the following statements?	SA	A	UD	D	SD
Inability to meet timelines reduces the job effectiveness and efficiency	58	10	0	3	0
Uncontrolled workload could lead to a reduction in the quality of service delivery	61	5	1	3	1
Lecturers often repeat question items because of so many activities they need to attend to a time	58	6	3	3	1
Most lecturers are unable to publish because of other urgent activities they need to respond to.	15	40	3	8	5
Weighted Mean	48 (67%)	15 (21%)	2 (3%)	4 (6%)	2 (3%)

[i] N = 71

[ii] Key: SA = Strongly Agree, A = Agree, UD = Undecided, D = Disagree, SD = Strongly Disagreed.

Table 9

Descriptive Statistics of Respondents on Teaching Service

	N	Mean	Std. Deviation
Lecturer Status	71	3.76	1.388
Teaching Service	71	38.70	3.751
Valid N (listwise)	71

Table 10

ANOVA on the Responses of Academic Staff on Academic Services

	Sum of Squares	df	Mean Square	F	Sig.
Between Groups	930.851	5	186.170	224.353	0.000
Within Groups	53.937	65	0.830
Total	984.789	70

Table 11

Multiple Comparisons on Teaching Service (Scheffé’s method)

(I) Lecturer Status	(J) Lecturer Status	Mean Difference (I-J)	Std. Error	Sig.	95% Confidence Interval
(I) Lecturer Status	(J) Lecturer Status	Mean Difference (I-J)	Std. Error	Sig.	Lower Bound	Upper Bound
Professor	Associate Professor	1.25	0.519	0.339	-0.53	3.03
	Senior Lecturer	3.938^*	0.467	0.000	2.34	5.54
	Lecturer 1	7.000^*	0.455	0.000	5.44	8.56
	Lecturer II	10.000^*	0.475	0.000	8.37	11.63
	Assistant Lecturer	11.750^*	0.519	0.000	9.97	13.53
Associate Professor	Professor	-1.25	0.519	0.339	-3.03	0.53
	Senior Lecturer	2.688^*	0.394	0.000	1.33	4.04
	Lecturer 1	5.750^*	0.381	0.000	4.44	7.06
	Lecturer II	8.750^*	0.404	0.000	7.36	10.14
	Assistant Lecturer	10.500^*	0.455	0.000	8.94	12.06
Senior Lecturer	Professor	-3.938^*	0.467	0.000	-5.54	-2.34
	Associate Professor	-2.688^*	0.394	0.000	-4.04	-1.33
	Lecturer 1	3.062^*	0.306	0.000	2.01	4.11
	Lecturer II	6.062^*	0.333	0.000	4.92	7.21
	Assistant Lecturer	7.812^*	0.394	0.000	6.46	9.17
Lecturer 1	Professor	-7.000^*	0.455	0.000	-8.56	-5.44
	Associate Professor	-5.750^*	0.381	0.000	-7.06	-4.44
	Senior Lecturer	-3.062^*	0.306	0.000	-4.11	-2.01
	Lecturer II	3.000^*	0.317	0.000	1.91	4.09
	Assistant Lecturer	4.750^*	0.381	0.000	3.44	6.06
Lecturer II	Professor	-10.000^*	0.475	0.000	-11.63	-8.37
	Associate Professor	-8.750^*	0.404	0.000	-10.14	-7.36
	Senior Lecturer	-6.062^*	0.333	0.000	-7.21	-4.92
	Lecturer 1	-3.000^*	0.317	0.000	-4.09	-1.91
	Assistant Lecturer	1.750^*	0.404	0.005	0.36	3.14
Assistant Lecturer	Professor	-11.750^*	0.519	0.000	-13.53	-9.97
	Associate Professor	-10.500^*	0.455	0.000	-12.06	-8.94
	Senior Lecturer	-7.812^*	0.394	0.000	-9.17	-6.46
	Lecturer 1	-4.750^*	0.381	0.000	-6.06	-3.44
	Lecturer II	-1.750^*	0.404	0.005	-3.14	-0.36

* The mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level.

Table 12

Descriptive Statistics of Respondents on Academic Workload

	N	Mean	Std. Deviation
Lecturer Status	71	3.76	1.388
Academic Workload	71	33.93	4.761
Valid N (listwise)	71

Table 13

ANOVA on Academic Workload

	Sum of Squares	df	Mean Square	F	Sig.
Between Groups	1495.63	5	299.126	213.624	0.000
Within Groups	91.016	65	1.4
Total	1586.65	70

Table 14

Multiple Comparisons on Academic Workload (Scheffé’s method)

(I) Lecturer Status	(J) Lecturer Status	Mean Difference (I-J)	Std. Error	Sig.	95% Confidence Interval
(I) Lecturer Status	(J) Lecturer Status	Mean Difference (I-J)	Std. Error	Sig.	Lower Bound	Upper Bound
Professor	Associate Professor	0.65	0.675	0.967	-1.67	2.97
	Senior Lecturer	6.462^*	0.606	0.000	4.38	8.54
	Lecturer 1	9.850^*	0.592	0.000	7.82	11.88
	Lecturer II	13.329^*	0.616	0.000	11.21	15.44
	Assistant Lecturer	13.650^*	0.675	0.000	11.33	15.97
Associate Professor	Professor	-0.65	0.675	0.967	-2.97	1.67
	Senior Lecturer	5.812^*	0.512	0.000	4.05	7.57
	Lecturer 1	9.200^*	0.495	0.000	7.5	10.9
	Lecturer II	12.679^*	0.524	0.000	10.88	14.48
	Assistant Lecturer	13.000^*	0.592	0.000	10.97	15.03
Senior Lecturer	Professor	-6.462^*	0.606	0.000	-8.54	-4.38
	Associate Professor	-5.812^*	0.512	0.000	-7.57	-4.05
	Lecturer 1	3.388^*	0.397	0.000	2.03	4.75
	Lecturer II	6.866^*	0.433	0.000	5.38	8.35
	Assistant Lecturer	7.188^*	0.512	0.000	5.43	8.95
Lecturer 1	Professor	-9.850^*	0.592	0.000	-11.88	-7.82
	Associate Professor	-9.200^*	0.495	0.000	-10.9	-7.5
	Senior Lecturer	-3.388^*	0.397	0.000	-4.75	-2.03
	Lecturer II	3.479^*	0.412	0.000	2.06	4.89
	Assistant Lecturer	3.800^*	0.495	0.000	2.1	5.5
Lecturer II	Professor	-13.329^*	0.616	0.000	-15.44	-11.21
	Associate Professor	-12.679^*	0.524	0.000	-14.48	-10.88
	Senior Lecturer	-6.866^*	0.433	0.000	-8.35	-5.38
	Lecturer 1	-3.479^*	0.412	0.000	-4.89	-2.06
	Assistant Lecturer	0.321	0.524	0.996	-1.48	2.12
Assistant Lecturer	Professor	-13.650^*	0.675	0.000	-15.97	-11.33
	Associate Professor	-13.000^*	0.592	0.000	-15.03	-10.97
	Senior Lecturer	-7.188^*	0.512	0.000	-8.95	-5.43
	Lecturer 1	-3.800^*	0.495	0.000	-5.5	-2.1
	Lecturer II	-0.321	0.524	0.996	-2.12	1.48

* The mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level.

Step 1:	Study the institutional vision and mission.
Step 2:	Study existing benchmark on workload as recommended by the national accrediting body. Relate the benchmark with the institutional vision and mission.
Step 3:	State all activities to be carried out by academic staff in line with the benchmark and institutional demand.
Step 4:	In line with step1 and step 2, arrange the activities into major categories and assigned expected percentages of achievement to the Categories.
Step 5:	List the activities in each category.
Step 6:	Calculate the total number of official working hours per week, per semester and per academic year.
Step 7:	Calculate the total number of hours for all annual leave including other official holidays such as public holidays declared by government.
Step 8:	Calculate the total number of hours for breaks during working hours per week, per semester and per academic year.
Step 9:	Add up step 7 and step 8 as per week, semester and academic year.
Step 10:	Subtract step 9 from step 6 to get the actual working hours
Step 11:	Divide the hours in step 10 (the answer after subtraction) into categories in step 4 using the assigned percentages.
Step 12:	Divide the hours in each category in step 11 with the number of activities in each category. This will help determine the minimum number of workload for each activity. It will also help to watch out for over concentration on certain activities to the detriment of others

Step 1:	Study the institutional vision and mission.
	Vision: To be regarded as the foremost university providing highly accessible and enhanced quality education anchored by social justice, equity, equality and national cohesion through a comprehensive reach that transcends all barriers
	Mission:
	To provide functional cost effective flexible learning* which add life-long value to quality education for all who seek knowledge*.
Step 2:	Study existing benchmark on workload as recommended by the national accrediting body. Relate the benchmark with the institutional vision and mission.
	From the benchmark, the activities of the academics cover teaching, research and community service. Teaching=40%, research=40% and 20% for community service.
	8 working hours per working day
Step 3:	State all activities to be carried out by academic staff inline with the benchmark and institutional demand.
	At the institutional level, key things to consider include social justice, equity, equality, national cohesion, flexible learning and quality education.
	The activities are as shown in Tables 1, 2 and 3 in this document.
Step 4:	In line with step1 and step 2, arrange the activities into major categories and assigned expected percentages of achievement to the Categories.
	See the defined categories in Tables 1, 2, and 3.
Step 5:	State the number of activities in each category.
	Teaching Activities = 13 Scholarship and Research related work = 5 Service Related work = 5
Step 6:	Calculate the total number of official working hours per week, per semester and per academic year. (Note, only the days within the time frame of the semester are considered).
	The 2016 academic calendar was used. Academic year resume on 11th January 2016 Academic year ends 20th December 2016 Working hours per day = 8 hours Number of working days in the academic year = 248 days Official working hours in the academic year = 248 days x 8 hrs = 1984
Step 7:	Calculate the total number of hours for all annual leave including other official holidays such as public holidays declared by government.
	Annual leave = 30 days x 8 hrs = 240 hrs Public holidays = 12 days x 8 hrs = 96 hrs
Step 8:	Calculate the total number of hours for breaks during working hours per week, per semester and per academic year. One hour of break per working day Break hours in the academic year = 248 days x 1hr = 248 hours
Step 9:	Add up step 7 and step 8 as per week, semester and academic year.
	240 + 96 + 248 = 584 hrs
Step 10:	Subtract step 9 from step 6 to get the actual working hours
	Actual working hours: Step 6 (1984) - Step 9 (584) = 1400
Step 11:	Divide the hours in step 10 (the answer after subtraction) into categories in step 4 using the assigned percentages.
	• Teaching Activities = 40%
	$\frac{40}{100} \times \frac{1400}{1} = 560 hours$
	• Scholarship and Research relatedwork = 40%
	$\frac{40}{100} \times \frac{1400}{1} = 560 hours$
	• ServiceRelated work = 20%
	$\frac{20}{100} \times \frac{1400}{1} = 280 hours$
Step 12:	Divide the hours in each category in step 11 with the number of activities in each category. This will help determine the minimum number of workload for each activity. It will also help to watch out for over concentration on certain activities to the detriment of others. (Note, the institution is to determine the weight of the activities and apply as determine. In this model, the weight on the activities in each category is same).
	• Teaching Activities= activities
	$\frac{560}{13} = 43 hours per activity per academic year$
	• Scholarship and Research relatedwork = 5 activities
	$\frac{560}{5} = 112 hours per activity per academic year$
	• ServiceRelated work = 5activities
	$\frac{280}{5} = 56 hours per activity per academic year$

References

Authors

Metrics

Articles in this issue

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.9.3.498 | Journal eISSN: 2304-070X

Journal RSS Feed

Language: English

Page range: 313 - 333

Submitted on: Dec 4, 2016

Accepted on: Jul 29, 2017

Published on: Jul 1, 2017

Published by: International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE)

In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services

Keywords:

distance education,

workload,

model,

academic activities

© 2017 Juliet Obhajajie Inegbedion, published by International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE)
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Volume 9 (2017): Issue 3