Students ’ experiences and challenges of blended learning at the University of Dar es Salaam , Tanzania

Recent developments in Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), especially eLearning, have heightened the need for University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) to supplement oncampus face-to-face delivery as well as meeting increased students’ enrolments through blended distance learning. Since 2008, the University has been offering three postgraduate programmes: Postgraduate Diploma in Education, Postgraduate Diploma in Engineering Management, and Master degree in Engineering via dedicated Learning Centres in Mwanza, Arusha, and Dar es Salaam. In total, 310 students have been enrolled into these programmes since 2008. However, the implementation of these programmes has resulted in mixed and unpredictable results. This paper reports on students’ experiences as well as challenges UDSM has been facing during the implementation of blended learning courses in Tanzania. The data were generated through documentary reviews and 22 responses from a questionnaire distributed to students enrolled into these programmes. The study has revealed outdated learning resources, unavailability of instructors during live online sessions, under-utilization of Learning Centres, and technical difficulties are the main factors that affect students from exceling well in blended learning programmes. These findings have a number of important lessons and implications for similar institutions running blended learning or wishing to implement blended learning specifically in developing countries.