How Did the COVID-19 Pandemic Affect Higher Education Learning Experience? An Empirical Investigation of Learners’ Academic Performance at a University in a Developing Country

Abstract

COVID-19 has dramatically reshaped the way global education is delivered. Millions of learners were affected by educational institution closures due to the pandemic, which resulted in the largest online movement in the history of education. With this sudden shift away from classrooms in many parts of the globe, universities had to rapidly shift to virtual and digital strategies. Many believe that the adoption of online distance learning will persist after pandemic. A new hybrid model of education is expected to emerge, and, given the digital divide, new shifts in education approaches could widen equality gaps. This is one of the first empirical studies investigating the effect of the sudden shift from face-to-face to online distance learning due to COVID-19 lockdown at one of the universities in Egypt. Comparison of grades was made between 376 business students who completed a face-to-face course in spring 2019 and 372 students who completed the same course but fully online via distance learning mode in spring 2020 during the lockdown. T-test was conducted to compare grades of quizzes, course work, and final exam for the two groups. Chi-square test was used to compare grade distribution for both groups. The effect of gender, credit hours, age, and CGPA was assessed. The results suggested that there was no statistically significant difference in students’ grades. In addition, the unplanned and rapid move to online distance learning at the time of pandemic did not result in a poor learning experience as was expected. The study also included a survey of 435 students and interviews with a sample of professors about their learning and teaching experience during the lockdown. The results of this study provide specific recommendations for universities, instructors, and higher education portal designers about future application of online distance learning. Since Egypt decided to make the shift to online distant learning in all future higher education plans, the results of this research would be especially vital for universities in Egypt and other developing countries. If administered correctly, this shift could lead to a larger learner population, more cost efficiencies, and more university revenue.

Predictors of academic performance during the covid-19 outbreak: impact of distance education on mental health, social cognition and memory abilities in an Italian university student sample

“…The impact of DE on academic performance has been little explored, and the research has shown contradictory results. An Egyptian study did not find any statistically significant difference in students’ academic learning and performance in the shift from face-to-face to online DE due to the COVID-19 lockdown [ 60 ]. A significant positive effect of COVID-19 confinement on students’ performance was reported by Gonzalez et al [ 42 ], who showed that students’ learning strategies became more continuous habits, improving their efficiency and autonomous learning performance.…”

Comparison of Hub and Home Mode Learning: An Action Research from Philippines

“…Recent studies underscored the different actions of the Higher Educational Institutions (HEI's) all over the world in securing the health of the students as well as the academic personnel, and likewise in mitigating the spread of coronavirus or COVID-19. Most of HEI's closed the schools in March 2020 and shifted their paradigm from face-to-face to distance or remote learning (Almazova et al, 2020;Balakrishnan, 2020;Bozkurt et al, 2020;CHED, 2020;Ghazi-Saidi et al, 2020;Goncalves, 2020;Habaragoda, 2020;Karademir et al, 2020;Mukherjee & Hasan, 2020;& Refaat El Said, 2020).…”

“…The COVID-19 pandemic was announced by World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2020 (WHO, 2020). As response to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, most Asian countries declared lockdown on March 16, 2020 (Balakrishnan, 2020;Bozkurt et al, 2020), and shifted their paradigm from face-to-face to distance learning or remote learning to secure the health of the students as well as the teachers (Almazova et al, 2020;Balakrishnan, 2020;Bozkurt et al, 2020;Ghazi-Saidi et al, 2020;Goncalves, 2020;Habaragoda, 2020;Karademir et al, 2020;Mukherjee & Hasan, 2020;& Refaat El Said, 2020). The Philippines as one of the Southeast Asian countries recorded its first COVID-19 cases on March 6, 2020, and to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19, the Philippine government suspended the classes at all levels in the National Capital Region on March 9, 2020 and later extended the suspension of classes in entire island of Luzon by declaring Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) or lockdown until April 14, 2020 (Bozkurt et al, 2020).…”

Telework Experience of Pedagogues during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Strong Learning Seniors and Relaxed Leaders?

“…The benefits of digital means of teaching, in terms of collaboration between teachers and students and verifying students' knowledge, have presented promising alternatives to traditional pedagogical means [6][7][8]. However, studies in this area have been focused mainly on learning methods rather than teaching methods [9][10][11]. Meanwhile those applying the methods have not been the focus of researchers' attention; pedagogues' ability to collaborate with students and colleagues in a virtual environment, their attitude towards digital products, and evaluations of the changes to work and work conditions during the pandemic have not been fully explored.…”