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Postgraduate Diploma in Distance Higher Education
The Postgraduate Diploma in Distance Higher Education is designed to enable potential, new and current lecturers to facilitate their courses online. The development of this programme follows a broad move towards online learning (e-learning) and the tendency to supplement contact programmes with a range of online teaching technologies, at both public and private higher education institutions worldwide.
Requirements
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To apply for this qualification, a student requires:
- A relevant Bachelor’s Degree at NQF Level 7
OR - An Advanced Diploma at NQF Level 7
AND - Appropriate working experience related to higher education, distance higher education or post-secondary technical and vocational education and training, which will be regarded as important determinants.
We recommend having the following to study online:
Computer skills:
Computer skills and the ability to perform common tasks
Email and file management (create, access, edit, save, upload and download documents)
Ability to use a word processing program
Web-browsing skills
Computer requirements:
Laptop or PC
A stable internet connection
Video recording
Audio storage and playback
Audio recording
Web browsing
Document creation
Access to social networking
E-book storage and reading
Study notes storage and reading (PDF, MS Office)
Video storage and playback
• Completed application form.
• Certified copy of South African Identity Document (South African citizens only) / official passport (foreign students).
• Certified copy of highest qualification and any other certification as proof of meeting minimum entry requirements for this programme.
• SAQA and USAF verification as it is required for verification of recognition of foreign qualifications.
The following supporting documentation must be included if you are applying for CAT:
• Certified academic transcript(s) of training from a previous educational institution or FPD at the same NQF Level.
• Study guide that supports the credit claim at the same NQF Level.
The following supporting documentation must be included if you are applying for RPL:
• Testimonials/reference letters from previous or current employers.
• Portfolio of Evidence of your work experience and skills equivalent to an NQF Level.
• Full curriculum vitae indicating employment history and work experience in relevant field.
• Portfolio of evidence of research project (if applicable).
MODULES
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
This module will teach students to demonstrate a sound knowledge of distance higher education as a field of study as well as the underpinning principles and methodologies attached to distance higher education. It will provide important contextual and background knowledge for the study of the other modules.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
In this module we will explore pedagogies – that is, practice grounded in theory – for online teaching and learning environments. We will reflect on the unique characteristics of educational technologies and how these can be harnessed for teaching and learning.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
You will be offered opportunities to present evidence of monitoring your professional online teaching practice and becoming a reflexive practitioner in a scholarly fashion. Using the principles of action research is promoted. The ultimate aim is to showcase cutting-edge online teaching practice, which should be included in the philosophy mentioned under the module on professionalism. The expectation is that the evidence be made public. Making it known means drafting a concept article for publication or a conference paper – both authentic ways of learning and authentic assessment opportunities. These two distinct ways of disseminating the outcome of educational research on one’s online teaching practice are expectations of higher education – your world of work. If relevant in your institutional context, you may opt to compile a portfolio of evidence based on the action research of practice that you have to conduct.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
This module will challenge you authentically as you will be expected to enact the role of assessor of learning. As assessing learning is integral to one’s online teaching practice, you will design online assessment opportunities relevant to your field of specialisation. Constructive alignment between assessment and other aspects of the curriculum you are responsible for should be evident. You will need to monitor your development as a professional in assessment and present evidence of quality authentic assessment. Through self-regulated professional learning, you will understand what accountable assessment entails. Engaging with the meaning of the construct ‘evaluation’ will allow you to acknowledge the role of evaluation, for example, where one will be tasked with programme evaluation – at the internal or external level.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
In this module, you will explore the importance of adapting the curriculum design process to the unique requirements of online learning in general and institution-specific expectations, which are documented as policy statements. While similarities exist in contact and online programmes, one must understand the role that learning theories, such as self-regulated learning, constructivism, multiple intelligence and Whole Brain® thinking, play in the planning, implementing and evaluating online/distance education programmes. Using specific curriculum development and evaluation frameworks, such as constructive alignment and competency-based curricula, you will enact the role of curriculum developer as you design your curriculum or part of a curriculum, such as a module for which you are responsible. Evidence of transformed curriculum development practice should be presented.
Total Fees: R3,092 per module
Credits : 10 per module
Advances in educational technology change the way we teach and learn. In this module, you will explore pedagogies and educational technologies relevant to online teaching and learning environments. The module revolves around conceptualising instructional tools and e-learning. The focus of sources you will engage in is teaching and learning theories and strategies that support the attributes of the 21st century. Furthermore, planning and managing instructional tools and e-learning at institutional and practice levels must be mastered. Principles of instructional design, focusing on the use of educational technology, will be used in designing online learning and assessment opportunities. Using gamification, creating podcasts, and innovative means to enhance the quality of online teaching and learning to enrich one’s online teaching practice should be part of the evidence-based approach followed throughout all the modules. Evidence of incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) in online learning should be presented. Furthermore, evidence of futuristic thinking about the expectations of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) should be made known. The transformational impact of educational technology on one’s online teaching practice should be evident.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
Learning opportunities will be created so that you will gain insight into leadership and management in higher education as a field of specialisation – as it applies to distance learning specifically. Relevant theories, such as transformational leadership and Whole Brain® leadership, will be interrogated. The focus is mastering relevant competencies needed to address related complexities you might encounter daily, with the expectation that you will construct new meaning based on your lived experience. Evidence of enacting the attribute of leadership should be presented. Taking a leadership role in establishing and mentoring a curriculum development team or mentoring an early-career academic are good examples. It is not only about leading others but also about leading the self. One’s institutional leadership role should be extended beyond the confines of one’s place of work. Enacting leadership as an attribute of the 21st century should become evident in one’s involvement in professional higher education associations at national and international levels.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
Service learning and community engagement are an expected outcome for higher education institutions. A responsive curriculum implies that we design the facilitation of learning to benefit the community and meet its needs. It requires that we not only produce graduates that are ready for the marketplace but that we deliver an education system that promotes and develops good citizens in our society.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
Quality assurance and enhancement in online higher education involves a range of practices, policies, and processes aimed at ensuring and enhancing the quality of education provided by institutions and one’s practice – specifically in online learning contexts. You will be expected to create a new meaning of practising quality enhancement and assurance in your higher education institution and own practice. This meaning-making will be based on insight into relevant theoretical underpinnings concerning online learning in the South African and international contexts. You will need to demonstrate extensive studying of relevant sources and competence in document and text analyses of, for example, policy documents and guidelines at the institutional and national levels and study material at the programme level to inform innovative and transformational practice. Becoming agents of transformation is advocated instead of acting as agents of change, as change itself is insufficient.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
Well-being in higher education has become a non-negotiable responsibility for academics. One needs to construct meaning of wellbeing, mental health and wellness, especially in the context of online learning. As lecturers are not necessarily professionally equipped with the relevant competencies to initiate any intervention, a referral is imperative. Lecturers should ensure that they are familiar with entities, facilities, and processes to follow at the institutional level when they take action to refer students for professional intervention. Competence in enacting one’s pastoral role should be evident. Self-well-being should be used as an example when becoming involved in the well-being of others. Competence in creating a supportive environment is essential.
Total Fees: R3,092
Credits : 10
Personal branding is an emancipatory act stemming from knowledge of self and knowledge of the higher education landscape. It is about competency and insight into means of defining, developing, and promoting one’s unique professional identity. It is closely linked to lecturer-identity formation that is engaged in the module on professionalism. Such a professional identity should include promoting the self as specialist in the field of online teaching, being a curriculum development specialist, and assessor, among other. Personal branding revolves around self-awareness, setting career objectives, creating consistent messaging, leveraging social media and online presence, networking, and utilising personal branding tools (e.g., LinkedIn). The ultimate aim with personal branding in academia is to build a memorable and authentic personal brand that will be recognised by the broader higher education community of one being a scholar of note – at national and international level. Enacting leadership as an attribute of the 21st century should, for example, become evident in one’s involvement in professional higher education associations – an essential part of professional branding.
FEES FOR 2025
*Fees quoted are for 2025 and are subject to an annual increase.
Number of modules: 12
Programme credits: 120
SAQA ID: 109941