Sustainability of Foreign Language Education at a Slovak University during COVID-19 Global Pandemic

Abstract

The current paper scrutinizes the students’ voice on the educational COVID-19 based changes that occurred at the Department of English Language and Literature, Faculty of Humanities, University of Žilina, Slovakia. The respondents’ study program is Teaching English Language and Literature. The significance of the study lies in the urgent need of today’s educators to detect students’ views on new modes of studying applicable these days to find beneficial solutions for the provision of high-quality education services. The focal point has been placed on the students’ voice, i.e., on the students’ comparative approach towards current online and traditional classroom mode of studying/learning. The research has been supported by a questionnaire with 11 EFL-related statements to test the hypotheses of this study. Hence, the objectives of the research have been to compare the quality of education performed through the online and offline classroom frameworks, evaluate the effectiveness of the students’ language skills development, and track students’ level of satisfaction with the running online model of studying – all this viewed and uttered by students themselves. The current research employs “mixed methods” that imply the integration of quantitative and qualitative data within a single inquiry. Overall, 61.6% of the surveyed students expressed their satisfaction with the blended learning system and their readiness to apply it in further teaching practice. This research is not exhaustive and might broaden into a comparative study of the students’ language-related feedback of the online/offline education among other European and non-European English language departments, building a substantial basis for policy decisions.