A cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University

Drawing upon cultural-historical activity theory, this research analyzed the structural contradictions existing in a variety of educational activities among a group of alienated adult students in Korea National Open University (KNOU). Despite KNOU’s quantitative development in student enrollment, t...

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Autor principal:	K. P. Joo
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Athabasca University Press 2014
Materias:	Cultural-Historical Activity Theory contradiction open university distance higher education Special aspects of education LC8-6691
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/03e3fcc283964220aa88311a076bfa13
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:03e3fcc283964220aa88311a076bfa132021-12-02T17:16:06ZA cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University10.19173/irrodl.v15i1.16051492-3831https://doaj.org/article/03e3fcc283964220aa88311a076bfa132014-01-01T00:00:00Zhttp://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/1605https://doaj.org/toc/1492-3831 Drawing upon cultural-historical activity theory, this research analyzed the structural contradictions existing in a variety of educational activities among a group of alienated adult students in Korea National Open University (KNOU). Despite KNOU’s quantitative development in student enrollment, the contradictions shed light on how the institution’s top-down, bureaucratic pedagogical system collided with individual expectations and needs. In particular, the participants’ critical viewpoints demonstrate the incompatible social roles that the open and distance higher education institution plays in Korean society. For example, while KNOU contributes to extending higher education opportunities for those who have unmet educational needs, the value of the KNOU degree has not been socially acknowledged since there is little, if any, competition in the entrance process. This study also documents how these contradictions were culturally and historically embedded in the participants’ distance higher education activities. Given the persistent contradictions, the research findings illuminate that KNOU’s efficiency-oriented model has not effectively facilitated the students’ learning as its distance higher education system is inevitably based on a compromise between a competitive, quality curriculum and the efficient extension of audiences. K. P. JooAthabasca University PressarticleCultural-Historical Activity Theorycontradictionopen universitydistance higher educationSpecial aspects of educationLC8-6691ENInternational Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, Vol 15, Iss 1 (2014)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Cultural-Historical Activity Theory contradiction open university distance higher education Special aspects of education LC8-6691
spellingShingle	Cultural-Historical Activity Theory contradiction open university distance higher education Special aspects of education LC8-6691 K. P. Joo A cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University
description	Drawing upon cultural-historical activity theory, this research analyzed the structural contradictions existing in a variety of educational activities among a group of alienated adult students in Korea National Open University (KNOU). Despite KNOU’s quantitative development in student enrollment, the contradictions shed light on how the institution’s top-down, bureaucratic pedagogical system collided with individual expectations and needs. In particular, the participants’ critical viewpoints demonstrate the incompatible social roles that the open and distance higher education institution plays in Korean society. For example, while KNOU contributes to extending higher education opportunities for those who have unmet educational needs, the value of the KNOU degree has not been socially acknowledged since there is little, if any, competition in the entrance process. This study also documents how these contradictions were culturally and historically embedded in the participants’ distance higher education activities. Given the persistent contradictions, the research findings illuminate that KNOU’s efficiency-oriented model has not effectively facilitated the students’ learning as its distance higher education system is inevitably based on a compromise between a competitive, quality curriculum and the efficient extension of audiences.
format	article
author	K. P. Joo
author_facet	K. P. Joo
author_sort	K. P. Joo
title	A cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University
title_short	A cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University
title_full	A cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University
title_fullStr	A cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University
title_full_unstemmed	A cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University
title_sort	cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in korea national open university
publisher	Athabasca University Press
publishDate	2014
url	https://doaj.org/article/03e3fcc283964220aa88311a076bfa13
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A cultural-historical activity theory investigation of contradictions in open and distance higher education among alienated adult learners in Korea National Open University

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