Growing involvement of the Internet and digital media are shaping the present context of distance education (DE) and reconstructing the ways education is being provided globally. Whereas the generations of DE have counted to 5 phases, online learning has received the third generation in its development (Heydenrych and Prinsloo, 2010), and it is only recently that the approach has been practiced in Ethiopia giving accreditations to five HLIs to run the system to teach MBA courses. For its implementation to be successful, the system of online learning requires its practitioners to have got intensive professional development. 

This study believed that the proposed HLIs used the conventional school instructors while implementing the online learning program and doubted that there would be problems (that might arise from the lack of appropriate training, long-lived biases, short of tech skills, etc.) in satisfying the stakeholders taking part in the program. This study was meant to explore the experiences of American College of Technology (ACT) and Harambee University (HU) how they implemented the online learning program for the courses they provided to their MBA students. 

Keywords: online learning; digital content; learning management system; modular object-oriented dynamic learning environment.

JEL Classification: I23; O33; O36.

Cite this chapter:

Tessema, A. M. (2023). Exploring the Implementation of Online Learning at the Higher Institutions of Ethiopia: The Case of American College of Technology & Harambee University. In L., Nicola-Gavrilă (Ed), Digital Future in Education: Paradoxes, Hopes and Realities (102-139 pp.). ISBN: 978-606-95516-1-5. Book Series Socio-Economics, Research, Innovation and Technologies ((SERITHA) ISSN: 3008-4237. https://doi.org/10.57017/SERITHA.2023.DFE.ch6

Chapter’s history: 

Received 24th of March, 2023; Revised 30th of May, 2023; Accepted for publication 20th of June, 2023; Published 30th of September, 2023.