Doctoral Students' Experiences of Digital Learning and Support Mechanisms in a Distance Education System

Author(s) : *Fareed ul Hassan, **Dr. Syed Abdul Waheed ,*** Dr. Nadia Gilani

Abstract:

This qualitative study aimed to explore digital literacy and learning, the university support services particularly in the form of supervisory and peer support offered by a public sector distance learning university in Pakistan. Data were collected involving 16 semi-structured interviews and 3 focus group discussions (FGDs) allowing a total of 25 doctoral students enrolled in a distance education program in different semesters to participate in the study after selecting them through snowball sampling. Thematic Analysis was utilized to examine the collected data. Inductively coded data emerged into themes including digital literacy, supervisory support, and peer support indicating that distance learners encountered several challenges due to insufficient support services in the University. To address these challenges, it is recommended that policymakers should implement a university monitoring dashboard, provide digital literacy training for both students and supervisors and ensure full-time access to the university's digital library. It is anticipated that this study will significantly contribute to the existing literature by aiding in the development of digital literacy skills programs and a support mechanism for doctoral distance learners.
Keywords: Distance learning, supervisory support, digital literacy, peer support, phenomenology.