An assessment of student satisfaction with e-learning: An empirical study with computer and software engineering undergraduate students in Turkey under pandemic conditions

Abstract

As COVID-19 reached Turkey in March 2020, all universities switched to e-learning in a very short period. Computer and software engineering (CE/SE) undergraduate students studying at university campuses have switched to e-learning. This paper seeks to understand the e-learning experience of CE/SE undergraduate students. A questionnaire was created and applied to CE/SE undergraduate students in Turkish universities. The data were analyzed using quantitative and qualitative techniques. The questionnaire received 290 usable responses. The highlights from the findings include: the participants (1) used video recordings intensively for e-learning and found them useful; (2) found face-to-face lectures more beneficial compared to digital live lectures; (3) used external online resources to improve their learning performance in courses; (4) thought that the materials and methods utilized for assessment should be adapted to e-learning for a better and fair evaluation; (5) perceived significantly less instructor support and classmate interaction and collaboration in e-learning compared to on-campus education settings; (6) rated their perceived satisfaction from e-learning as 2.85, slightly under the mid-level of the 5-point Likert scale; (7) perceived instructor support, student interaction and collaboration, and student autonomy as noteworthy factors in high-quality e-learning.

Exploring Romanian Engineering Students’ Perceptions of Covid-19 Emergency e-Learning Situation. A Mixed-Method Case Study

“…However, the main technical challenges listed by participants referred to internet access and connectivity, problems with the devices (camera/microphone), or the inability to connect and use the online platform selected by the professor. These results align with previous studies in which students listed the aspects of access to internet connection or infrastructure as the main challenges encountered during online learning (Giray, 2021). However, during the focus groups discussions, other challenges emerged and were included in other themes and subthemes, such as the high number of assignments and projects, the inability to focus due to distractions, the doubled time and effort put into understanding certain subjects or the lack of motivation due to sense of disconnection from the "student life."…”

“…The result is in line with other studies analyzing the students' perception of face-to-face learning in comparison with online or hybrid learning conducted before and during the Covid-19 pandemic (Castle and McGuire, 2010;Giannoulas et al, 2021;Ionescu et al, 2020;Muthuprasad et al, 2021). Another relevant aspect, also confirmed by previous studies, is that students' engagement and satisfaction are directly connected with the ability to have personal dialogues with professors and peers (Chigeza and Halbert 2014;Nortvig, Petersen and Balle, 2018;Giray, 2021).…”

“…When asked what aspect of their university experience they missed most, all students ranked first social interactions and colleagues, highlighting the importance of the overall students' experience and the university community. Other previous studies highlight the concern over students' lack of sense of community during online learning classes both before the Covid-19 (Joksimovic et al, 2015) and during the pandemic (Giray, 2021;Muthuprasad et al, 2021). In addition, these studies reveal the importance of the sense of community for students' well-being and overall engagement and the impact on their social, psychological, and academic outcomes (Gopalan and Brady, 2020).…”

“…The participants in the study, especially 2 nd and 3 rd year students, stated that they feel overwhelmed by the increased number of individual homework and projects they had to deliver as part of their online activity and evaluation. In addition, several other studies mention the increased academic workload of students during online classes in the form of various types of assignments (Armstrong-Mensah et al, 2020, Giray, 2021) which shows that this was a growing trend in universities all over the world.…”

The Satisfaction of Health Students to Online Learning Methods During the Covid-19 Pandemic

“…The results of this study stated that the majority of respondents were not satisfied with the online learning as much as 39.2 %. This research is in line with Girey, (2021) that the student is not satisfied learning in e-learning because it is difficult to interact and collaborate between students and lecturers (Giray, 2021;Ismiyati & Nurhaeni, 2016). However, in some research is not in line with this research, as stated by (Almusharraf & Khahro, 2020) that the students were very satisfied with the learning platform online especially with the use of the app Google Hangout during lectures, followed by Google Classroom and IM (Moodle) during the pandemic Covid-19.…”