School of Alternative Learning

At the Ghana Institute of Journalism, Accra (GIJ) we believe in an ICT driven research-based teaching and learning environment where learning is a lifelong pursuit and our ethical training of graduates who will transform society and help improve the practice, research skills and understanding of journalism, public relations, advertising, communications and related disciplines. Our School of Alternative Learning is a School of research, teaching and provider of extension services in continuing, blended and distance education. Our firm belief is that nothing should deny any student access to a higher education. At the School of Alternative Learning, we are dedicated to offering you a flexible tertiary level education, wherever you are in Ghana.

We have enhanced the flexibility of our certificate (short courses), diploma, undergraduate, top-up and post-graduate degree programmes to make participation attractive to everyone who live locally in and around the Greater Accra Region as well as those who live outside the region and willing to pursue weekend learning. The School of Alternative Learning coordinates the running of GIJ’s diploma, undergraduate, top-up, and post graduate degree-level classes in the evenings and weekends to accommodate students with weekdays and daytime commitments, particularly those who live locally in and around the Greater Accra Region. GIJ has partnered private hostel facilities to accommodate students coming from outside Greater Accra Region and the country.

We are now able to offer a Diploma in Communication; Bachelor of Arts in Communication; Master of Arts in Journalism; Master of Arts in Public Relations, Master of Arts in Media Management; and Master of Arts in Development Communication degrees to students who have taken advantage of lifelong learning. Certificate (short courses) programmes are offered on various thematic areas. The Institute is working with the departments and faculties on introducing additional diploma, undergraduate, Masters (MA/MPhil) programmes in journalism, public relations, advertising, communications, social sciences and related disciplines.

We take pride in the Institute’s reputation as a caring institution where every student matters, and where excellent education with innovation, visionary faculty, using immersion professional programmes and immersive learning environments is a top priority. Our passion is to become a center of excellence in instructional technology research, learning and continuing education in the sub-region. This will lead us to emerge as the center of excellence in blended and e-learning.

The current focus of the School is to research and publish in continuing education, blended and distance learning within the context of traditional and new media. We are pioneering blended and distance learning with our use of digital technology. We will always want you to think online tutorials and course materials that you can download from an app. We at Ghana Institute of Journalism’s School of Alternative Learning invest in the latest digital technology to make your studies as flexible, convenient and portable as possible. One of our future projections is to have the GIJ Educmedia app which will make our course materials available on tablets, smartphones and other mobile devices. The free app will enable students to download digital versions of School of Alternative Learning-produced textbooks, DVDs and audio CDs, allowing studies to be done at home, at work, or on the move. This gives students the true mobile learning experience. Research is our passion and our research output informs and directs our teaching and extension activities.

Welcome to our School and I am delighted to extend a warm invitation to you to make the best use of our research, teaching and extension activities at Ghana Institute of Journalism and the School of Alternative Learning’s regional learning centers.

Dr. Stanley Kwame Marcus Semarco

Dean
salternative.learning@gij.edu.gh
infosalternative.learning@gij.edu.gh

Vision Statement

We aim to be one of the top Higher Education centers of excellence in blended and e-learning globally, with a reputation for instructional technology research and teaching, learning and continuing education specializing in journalism, communication and related disciplines programmes.

Mission Statement

The mission of the School of Alternative Learning is dedicated to serving the needs of students, the industry and society by ensuring that GIJ’s regional learning centres are first-choice learning centres for students with weekdays and daytime commitments, where faculty embrace the use of advance modern technology and innovation in research and pedagogy that fosters excellence in teaching and flexible learning for the development of world-class human resources and capacities.

The Ghana Institute of Journalism in 2007, started a two-year Top-Up degree programme starting from Level 300 basically to afford past students who had acquired a diploma certificate to further their education up to a degree level. In 2009, the programme was expanded to include an evening session as a result of the increased number of applications received. In 2012, due to space constraints, a weekend session was introduced to run alongside the evening programme. The Diploma and postgraduate programmes were later introduced to the Weekend School to run alongside the Top-Up degree programme.

Ghana Institute of Journalism adopted the Distance Education and Distance learning programme; coordinated by the School of Alternative Learning with the aim of offering prospective students the opportunity to choose GIJ and pursue our Diploma, Degree and Postgraduate programmes wherever they are, whenever. The specific purposes for the introduction of Distance Education in GIJ are detailed as follows:

1. 1. Provide opportunities for continuing education beyond the formal school year
   2. Promote educational equity among various ethnic groups
   3. Provide education to the geographically disadvantaged.
   4. Increase in the number of students needing opportunities to study within the 18-26 age group.
   5. Provide virtual classrooms and blended learning opportunities.
   6. Increase the number of skilled personnel at higher levels by providing the working and professional workers an opportunity to pursue their education at a higher level.
   7. Help increase the manpower for the communication industry in Ghana
   8. Provide working adults with the right academic opportunities that will enhance their academic qualifications, knowledge and work efficiency.
   9. Establish links with Adult Education organisations and professional bodies to improve visibility and public image of the School and its units.
   10. Providing more access, more flexibility and better learning resources.
   11. Expand and strengthen the financial resources of the School and its units.
   12. Expand and strengthen the human and financial resources of the School and its units.
   13. Monitor and evaluate activities of the School and feedbacks to ensure internal and external stakeholders satisfaction of our services.
   14. Research and publish in continuing education, blended and distance learning within the context of traditional and new media