A Critical Analysis of Malaysian Higher Education Institutions’ Response Towards Covid-19: Sustaining Academic Program Delivery

Abstract

The COVID-19 global pandemic has caused massive disruptions in many sectors of society including higher education. Although the mainstream news outlets and social media have discussed how Malaysia's higher education system coped with the disruptions caused by COVID-19, a fuller narrative needs to be properly documented. This qualitative narrative review involved an analysis of various types of publications including scholarly articles, world organizations' reports, university documents as well as commentaries and reports from mainstream news outlets and social media that directly focus on the topic. It is evident from the review that Malaysian HEIs' priority was in safeguarding student and staff welfare in terms of their health and safety. While providing emergency aid to students and support for institutions, the Ministry of Higher Education together with HEIs developed administrative measures to safeguard the delivery of programmes through remote online learning. The analysis confirmed that while online learning is considered appropriate during an emergency period, the digital divide clearly still exists, posing the greatest challenge to Malaysia's recovery post COVID-19. The critical review on the immediate impacts of the pandemic on teaching and learning point to key recommendations for leadership, student welfare, and the importance of flexible education and evidence-based policymaking.

Teaching and Learning during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Topic Modeling Study

“…One of the striking conclusions was the effect of the digital divide, and how that severely hampered the delivery of even the basic form of education in several parts of middle-and low-income countries of the world [1,2]. This unprecedented situation has now brought forth significantly relevant disparities in Education 3.0, which is underpinned by virtual learning and access to the Internet, as well as the proposed Education 4.0, assisted by the fourth industrial revolution [19].…”

“…Educational systems at all levels had to be suspended or moved online due to lockdown and social distancing rules, which aimed at limiting the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19. This has significantly affected communities with limited technological infrastructure, access to high-speed internet and smart device penetration [1,2]. Despite this, educational institutions, from pre-school to higher education, in many parts of the world, had to adapt and rapidly adopt online and distance learning models that were enabled by information and communications technology (ICT).…”

Kesihatan Mental dan Motivasi Pelajar Semasa Pembelajaran Dalam Talian Sepanjang Pandemik Covid-19

“…Pembelajaran yang mengaplikasikan perkembangan teknologi telah menjadikan pembelajaran dalam talian menjadi lebih mudah. Walau bagaimanapun, pembelajaran dalam talian memberi cabaran kepada golongan pelajar kurang upaya, kurang berkemampuan dan kepada pelajar yang terpinggir untuk mengakses internet semasa pandemik (Mahiswaran et al, 2020;Azman & Abdullah, 2021). Kajian menurut Muniroh et al (2020) dan Shivangi (2020), pembelajaran dalam talian memerlukan proses pembelajaran kendiri iaitu kemahiran pembelajaran sepanjang hayat.…”

Pembelajaran dalam Talian Sepanjang Pandemik Covid-19: Faktor Akses Internet dan Sosioekonomi Terhadap Motivasi Pelajar Kolej Komuniti

“…Pandemik Covid-19 yang melanda Malaysia telah mendorong kerajaan melaksanakan arahan Perintah Kawalan Pergerakan (PKP) yang pertama pada 18 Mac 2020 untuk membendung penyebaran wabak tersebut (Muzaffar, 2020;Azman & Abdullah, 2021). Walaupun terdapat ura-ura yang perintah tersebut akan ditamatkan pada 31 Ogos tahun lalu, PKP masih berlarutan hingga ke September 2021 disebabkan angka kes covid-19 yang terus meningkat.…”