University Students' Perceptions On Online And Onsite Education During Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to major changes in education. In a short time, both students and teachers had to make the transition from onsite to online education in the spring of 2020. This study aims to identify university students' perceptions on online and onsite education, in the context of COVID-19 pandemic, after returning to onsite education, in March 2022. 420 Bachelor and Master degree students from a medium sized state university took part in this survey. Our study investigated students' perceptions on teaching activities, on social interaction with teachers and colleagues, on time management and preference in online and onsite education. The results indicate students' preference for online learning. More than half of the students say that exams are easy to pass in online education, compared to onsite education, they feel relaxed during online classes and tired at the end of onsite classes and emphasize the advantage of online learning in terms of availability of materials and instruments needed for academic assignments. The majority of students consider that they manage their time more efficiently in online education and if they would have the power to decide on the format of academic activities, students would choose the online format.