ENHANCING RETENTION: EXPLORING STUDENT DROPOUTS IN THE B.SC. PROGRAMME OFFERED BY THE FACULTY OF NATURAL SCIENCES AT THE OPEN UNIVERSITY OF SRI LANKA, BATTICALOA REGIONAL CENTRE

Abstract

The Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL), the country’s leader in open and distance learning, is experiencing a decline in Bachelor of Science students from the Faculty of Natural Sciences at the Batticaloa Regional Centre. Student records indicate that dropout rates have increased from 2016/2017 to 2023/2024 academic years. This mixed-methods study aims to identify the academic, personal, economic, and technological stressors contributing to these withdrawals and to propose appropriate interventions. The research will focus on these factors to inform strategies such as curriculum modifications and enhanced learner support services, helping B.Sc. students of the Faculty of Natural Sciences at the Batticaloa Regional Centre—who reside on the university campus—succeed and strengthen OUSL’s open and distance learning model. Studies investigated why 200+ B.Sc. students of Natural Sciences faculty dropped out over the past five years using a mixed-methods approach that included both qualitative and quantitative methods. Google Form questionnaires sent to past students were used to gather information. Focusing on the Batticaloa Regional Centre, the study gave a region-specific analysis that found similar trends, personal problems, and institutional flaws. This gives a full picture of the reasons why students drop out of university. The findings suggest that most students struggle with severe academic loads and stress, notably from Continuous Assessment tests (CAT). Online students lack peer contact and academic support, which increases isolation. Poor infrastructure and lack of dorms, study areas, and exam rooms delay growth. Lack of lab access and poor virtual tools are obstacles to practical’s related syllabus components. Delayed or confusing course materials make exam preparation difficult. The results bring to light some of the biggest problems that full-time students who work and go to university experience, namely work stress tied to their employment and issues with their courses in terms of infrastructure and logistics, together with a greater need for emotional and cognitive learner support. To fix this problem, the study suggests adding more study rooms, hostels, and exam rooms to the infrastructure, switching from one CAT to an assignment, having multilingual discussion groups, and making sure that textbooks are delivered on time and are prepared in a way that is easy to understand.