Abstract
The thrust of the Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) is to produce graduates who, in addition to being specialists in their respective fields. In trying to develop these research capacities, the statistics and basic mathematics courses become indispensible. The teaching of these quantitative courses poses both opportunities and threats to the successful delivery of these courses. The purpose of this study was therefore to investigate the challenges of teaching quantitative courses through distance learning. The study also sought to identify the perceptions of Statistics lecturers within the four faculties of the university and the challenges they faced. The study examined the challenges and strategies that can be implemented by the institution to overcome these challenges. Convenient sampling of lecturers currently teaching the courses was employed. Findings indicate that there are several challenges in teaching the courses due to a generalized fear of quantitative subjects by students, lack of motivation and attitudinal problems as well as inadequate preparation of students for examinations.