Online Learning in Higher Education during COVID-19 Pandemic: A case of Ghana

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major concern across the globe affecting nation's socioeconomic development including education. It has pushes many HEIs in world to move into remote learning as a substitute of in-person instruction. The study explored students' response to online learning in higher education in Ghana. The study was guided by three research questions. Descriptive survey design was adopted and online questionnaire was used to gather data from 467 students in a higher education of Ghana. The data was analysed using frequency and percentage. Overall, the study found that students had positive response to online learning. They knew of online learning and some of the platforms like UCC Moodle platform, Alison and Google classroom. They would also like to use other social media platforms. They would use smart phone and laptop for the online learning. However, they were not ready for online learning because they lacked formal orientation and training, perceived lack of constant access to internet connectivity and financial unpreparedness. Management of the university should provide resources to help students assess whether they are ready to take an online course and offer suggestions for preparation. Since internet accessibility is expensive in Ghana at the moment, management of the university should hold negotiations with Cellular operators for educational discount for distance students. Academic staff should provide instructional support through instructional activities that can help students in appraising their readiness, gaining the needed skills to learn online and consider using flexible approaches to teaching and deadlines to accommodate students with reliable Wi-Fi or broadband access challenges as well as emotional response to help student ensure smooth transition to emergency remote learning/teaching.

Jordanian University Students’ Attitudes toward Online Learning during the COVID-19 Pandemic and Lockdowns: Obstacles and Solutions

“…However, results of the study revealed that students who possess laptops and have more access to internet bundles and routers have more positive perceptions of eLearning than students who use mobile phones for the same purpose. This result lends support to the findings of previous studies (Agormedah et al, 2020;Agung et al, 2020;Febrianto et al, 2020), which reported that students' household income influences their online learning. Thus, students' socioeconomic status and household income affect their learning and progress positively or negatively.…”

“…Recent research on eLearning during the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide has reported on the benefits of online platforms as an alternative to face-to-face classroom instruction (Agormedah, Henaku, Ayite & Ansah, 2020;Agung et al, 2020;Coolican et al, 2020;Febrianto et al, 2020;Kalloo et al, 2020;König et al, 2020;Shawaqfeh et al, 2020). However, students have reported encountering many obstacles during online lectures, namely internet interruptions and instability, and their inability to buy laptops, mobile phones and internet bundles necessary for their eLearning.…”

“…A few studies have discussed the sudden shift from on-campus face-to-face learning to online learning, emphasizing the pros and cons of this unprecedented shift. In Ghana, Agormedah et al (2020) designed a survey questionnaire through which they investigated the effect of online teaching on 467 Ghanaian university students. The researchers found that respondents had a positive attitude toward online learning despite having reported several challenges that negatively affected their learning progress.…”

Using interactive technologies and distance learning in sustainable education

“…Institutions use distance learning technologies and often expect student outcomes to soar. Only by combining the right distance learning technologies with trained teachers and the focus on sustainable education, the educational institutions can offer more personalised teaching to positively impact students' learning outcomes in higher education [5,6].…”

Is There a Change? Distance Education Studies in COVID-19 Pandemic

“…It was impossible to predict that the virus, which emerged at the beginning of 2020, would affect our lives so much. With the spread of the virus, this change has undoubtedly begun to influence the field of education as well [1]- [3]. Countries limited their educational activities within the scope of the quarantine measures an d t hen d ecided t o make use of distance education.…”