Editorial

सार

Many activities due to the onset of Covid-19 in 2020 led to sporadic progress during the period and in the subsequent years too, especially those activities which needed physical presence. Our referred journal ‘Indian Journal of Opens Learning’ also got delayed during the period, and therefore we had to combine all the issues into one volume for 2020.

We have included in this volume seven research papers, two book reviews, twoworkshop reports on ODL, and abstracts of the research papers in Hindi. Vijay Kumar andSalooja, in the first paper, report the findings of a needs analysis for a masters programmein Food Safety and Quality Management to be offered through open and distance learning. The results indicate greater need for such a programme for food safety professionals and the food industry. In the second paper, Manoj Dash and Sandhya Dash report the effectiveness of Mobile e-Learning Terminal Van for quality delivery of skill-based programmes in especially the tribal and remote village areas. The next paper by Amitosh Dubey also deals with effective delivery modes in distance education through review of published research which indicates dominance of audio-video and satellite for developing countries, and that of multimedia and web-based technology for the developed countries. The auther also presents various communication approaches used for delivery and interaction in ODL programmes.

In the next paper, Radhika Puthenedam reports the findings of a needs analysis study on dance through ODL which suggests for a one-year diploma and inclusion of specific content areas relating to dance study and graduate employability. The findings of the study should be useful to offer of skill-based courses/programmes through ODL in other disciplines too. Manjari Agarwal and G. Lakshmi report the findings on assessment of entrepreneurial awareness and skills among learners of two open universities which should be useful to designing skill-based programmes offered through open and distance learning.

Arbind Jha and Anshuman Sharma, in the next paper, report the learning and coping styles of university students during the Covid-19. No gender difference was reported, by the researchers; and the participants used largely self-learning and social media and friends as coping strategies during the pandemic. In the last paper, Srivastava, Abrol, Mishra and Pulist report the case of IGNOU going digital during Covid-19 in respect of all its activities including planning, governance, administration, teaching-learning and learner support, and student assessment. The experiences shall be handy for increasing technology-enabled operations in the future.

The two book reviews and the two workshop reports should be useful to our readers. Hope this volume is useful to all those engaged in open, distance and online learning.

Editorial Team
Indian Journal of Open Learning