The Southern African Development Community Centre for Distance Education (SADC-CDE) — a regional centre supported by Commonwealth of Learning (COL) and hosted by Botswana Open University (BOU) — recently held an Open and Distance e-Learning (ODeL) Research Workshop in Gaborone, Botswana. The main objective of the workshop was to equip attendees with an array of knowledge and skills that included applying the concepts and principles of ODeL, authoring publishable articles and identifying reputable journals. The workshop, held from 28 – 30 November 2022, was attended by 40 participants from BOU.

In her welcome remarks, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Services, Professor Kgomotso Moahi, while acknowledging COL’s support, noted that SADC-CDE has taken a lead in promoting research in Open and Distance Learning institutions in the SADC region. Professor Moahi asserted that, “It is necessary to note that at the end of the workshop the attendees will be able to write publishable journal articles around ODeL.”

The workshop was facilitated by Professor Nkobi Pansiri who provided participants with detailed explanations and hands-on activities on research in ODeL.

Professor Jane-Frances Agbu, Adviser, Higher Education at COL posited that “the workshop stimulates improved capacity of institution staff on the intricacies of research in open and distance learning. This will provide much-needed data and resources for effective implementations in this regard.”