An empirical analysis of the impact of mobile instant messaging for collaborative learning during the Covid-19 lockdown in a rural-based university

Abstract

The world-wide outbreak of Covid-19 effected radical change in most institutions of higher learning. These institutions were forced to adopt any technologies at their disposal to continue with teaching and learning and, during that time, many students and lecturers at rural-based universities adopted mobile instant messaging (MIM) for collaborative learning. This study investigates the impact of MIM for collaborative learning during a Covid-19 lockdown in one rural-based university. Data were collected from both students and lecturers using a closed-ended questionnaire, and analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics. The study found that MIM had a positive impact on collaborative learning in the rural-based university during the Covid-19 lockdown.