NTC-South Africa online education: "A global classroom in my laptop bag"
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Honeydew, South Africa
An applauded historical event occurred recently for the faculty and several Board of Trustees members at Nazarene Theological College (NTC) in Johannesburg, South Africa, when they completed their first six-week online course entitled: HIV/AIDS Care and Counseling through the d-Course Web online delivery system.
The course was developed for distance education students enrolled in the bachelor of theology degree program by Anna-Marie Lockard, vice president for Academic Affairs. Lockard also facilitated the online module, which commenced on June 9.
The pilot project was successfully completed by the full-time faculty and selected members of the Board of Trustees. Participants completing the course include: Mashangu Maluleka, Lodrick Gama, Cathy Lebese, Maaike van der Zwaag, and Stanley Ushe.
Ushe serves as a Nazarene district superintendent in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. As a successful participant in the online course, he shared the value of the learning program, saying, “I thank God for this golden opportunity afforded me to be part of this online program. Honestly speaking, it has been a great benefit to me not only taking this course, but the exposure to online education. The experience has been great and I do appreciate the great work NTC is doing. I will encourage many of my people to get involved in this program.”
NTC Principal Mashangu Maluleka, also a participant in the class, creatively remarked, “A university at your fingertips. A global classroom in my laptop bag. The freedom to attend the class whenever it suits me. An environment where every student learns and teaches others. Learning has never been such fun. What more can a student ask for?”
NTC-South Africa received full accreditation of its bachelor of theology degree program through distance education in September of 2007. The degree is nationally recognized through the South African Department of Education, the Council of Higher Education, and the Higher Education Quality Commission. Since the inception of the program, nearly 100 students have enrolled.
NTC-South Africa’s mission is to provide Wesleyan-holiness theological distance education to men and women throughout the Africa Region. Currently, students comprise population groups from South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and the U.S. NTC’s continued mission is to provide affordable, accessible, and quality higher teaching and learning.
The full time faculty members of NTC are currently undergoing extensive online training to develop the entire bachelor of theology program through an online delivery system.
--NCN News-Africa
The course was developed for distance education students enrolled in the bachelor of theology degree program by Anna-Marie Lockard, vice president for Academic Affairs. Lockard also facilitated the online module, which commenced on June 9.
The pilot project was successfully completed by the full-time faculty and selected members of the Board of Trustees. Participants completing the course include: Mashangu Maluleka, Lodrick Gama, Cathy Lebese, Maaike van der Zwaag, and Stanley Ushe.
Ushe serves as a Nazarene district superintendent in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. As a successful participant in the online course, he shared the value of the learning program, saying, “I thank God for this golden opportunity afforded me to be part of this online program. Honestly speaking, it has been a great benefit to me not only taking this course, but the exposure to online education. The experience has been great and I do appreciate the great work NTC is doing. I will encourage many of my people to get involved in this program.”
NTC Principal Mashangu Maluleka, also a participant in the class, creatively remarked, “A university at your fingertips. A global classroom in my laptop bag. The freedom to attend the class whenever it suits me. An environment where every student learns and teaches others. Learning has never been such fun. What more can a student ask for?”
NTC-South Africa received full accreditation of its bachelor of theology degree program through distance education in September of 2007. The degree is nationally recognized through the South African Department of Education, the Council of Higher Education, and the Higher Education Quality Commission. Since the inception of the program, nearly 100 students have enrolled.
NTC-South Africa’s mission is to provide Wesleyan-holiness theological distance education to men and women throughout the Africa Region. Currently, students comprise population groups from South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and the U.S. NTC’s continued mission is to provide affordable, accessible, and quality higher teaching and learning.
The full time faculty members of NTC are currently undergoing extensive online training to develop the entire bachelor of theology program through an online delivery system.
--NCN News-Africa