Perceptions, Accessibility and Mental Readiness of Secondary School Students Towards ESL Online Learning: A Case Study

Abstract

The educational issues in one of the public schools in the northern region of Malaysia were worrying due to the lack of English teachers. There were only two English teachers out of 45 for all 343 pupils, translating to an instructor-to-student ratio of 1:171. This scenario brought a negative impact on the hopes of parents, the possibilities for students to succeed in English, and their self-esteem. The aim of this study was to investigate the perception of students towards online learning, the online accessibility level of students, and the mental readiness level of students for English online learning. The school consists of students who reside in suburban and rural areas. This study discovered that students' perceptions of online learning, online learning accessibility, and mental readiness for English online learning were all below the moderate level, indicating that they were struggling with online learning. This study was conducted to contribute adequate information on the condition of the students in the urban area towards online learning, and it can be used as a guide for policymakers in developing education policies that are both effective and feasible, allowing them to take the necessary steps to avoid students from falling behind in the exam.