Quelles sont les caractéristiques de l’emploi et du travail des tuteurs en formation ouverte et à distance ?

Abstract

With the rising popularity of Open and Distance Learning (ODL) and the significant development of interactive media, it is important to be concerned about the situation of tutors. This exploratory research focuses on multiple case studies and aims to answer the following question: How are the tutors’ employment and work defined, based on the respondents’ perceptions, from four institutions offering distance learning? Individual interviews were conducted with 44 ODL practitioners. The results show that the status of the tutors is precarious, since, in most cases, they can not do this work full-time and they have no guarantee that their contract will be renewed from one semester to another. Working from home, their remuneration is paid by the act (for each corrected work, for each e-mail sent, etc.), per student or, per course. They say they are underpaid for their work, which is relatively invisible. They must follow the guidelines provided by the design teams, without prior consultation. Communication with the design teams is often bad, each working independently of others. Being shown little consideration for their experience, they do not feel recognized for the work they do which generates a lot of frustration and demotivation. Although the skills expected of tutors are constantly increasing, tutors are not trained to deal with this situation. This article sheds light on the situation of ODL tutors who, it seems, occupy a rather uncomfortable position.

Keywords

• open and learning
• employment of tutors
• tutors’ work
• working conditions