Perceptions of Saudi students to Blended Learning Environments at the University of Bisha, Saudi Arabia

Anas, Ammar

doi:10.24093/awej/call6.17

Cited by 19 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…However, the students in Al-Mubireek's study were only required to participate in online learning for two hours per week. A study by Anas (2020) at Bisha University confirms that Saudi students value blended learning and appreciate the interactivity of online tools, such as discussion forums and collaborative activities.…”

Section: Literature Review Vlles: Merits and Barriersmentioning

confidence: 94%

Saudi University Students’ Perceptions towards Virtual Education During Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of Language Learning via Blackboard

Al-Nofaie¹

2020

AWEJ

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Following the spread of COVID-19, many parts of the world have fully shifted to virtual education. Issues regarding students' readiness for this mode of education have been the main concerns in countries where students are not used to virtual classes. This article presents a case study that investigated the perceptions of Saudi university students towards learning via Blackboard, during the unusual mode of delivering education caused by Covid-19. The aim was to identify the merits and challenges of online learning in order to understand the students' learning experiences during the pandemic period and suggest practical solutions. The participants were 25 university students majoring in the English language at the bachelor of arts level. The instructor (the author) taught them classes on morphology. Based on an analysis of the students' learning logs, the students preferred the asynchronous environment to the synchronous one due to its flexibility. However, unlike research findings identified in relevant studies on virtual education for language learning, the present study reveals that virtual education is not always appealing for students. This study is one of the few studies that compare the synchronous and asynchronous aspects of BB in the Arabian contexts. It is hoped that this study will help university authorities to set out more practical educational plans in the case of emergencies. Also, this study will inform the practices of university instructors and designers of professional development courses in the near future.

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Section: Literature Review Vlles: Merits and Barriersmentioning

confidence: 94%

Saudi University Students’ Perceptions towards Virtual Education During Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of Language Learning via Blackboard

Al-Nofaie¹

2020

AWEJ

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“…However, few EFL studies have explored Blackboard during COVID-19 so far. Notably, the researcher has found few studies focusing on Blackboard in the Saudi EFL context (Anas, 2020;Almekhlafy, 2020;Al-Nofaie, 2020;Hakim, 2020;Khafaga, 2021). In his study, Almekhlafy (2020) found that EFL students in the preparatory year generally did not have positive perceptions toward online learning through Blackboard as the only tool of learning during COVID-19.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saudi EFL Students’ Use and Perceptions of Blackboard before and during Online Learning Amid COVID-19

Alsuhaibani¹

2021

AWEJ

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Online learning becomes the means of education during COVID-19. Blackboard is one of the learning management systems that has been widely used before and during the pandemic. This study focuses on English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students’ use and perceptions of Blackboard. It explores and compares EFL students’ use and perceptions of Blackboard considering three phases: before COVID-19 in 2019, during online learning in 2020, and during online learning in 2021. A questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were used to collect the data. A total of 381 Saudi EFL students participated in the study. The results show that there are statistically significant differences in EFL students’ use of Blackboard between the three phases. EFL students’ use of Blackboard increased during online learning in 2020 compared to 2019, especially concerning the frequency of visiting Blackboard and the time students spent using it. Further, EFL students’ use of Blackboard increased significantly during online learning in 2021 compared to 2019 with regard to visit frequencies, time spent, and Blackboard tools used. Considering perceptions, the results indicate that there are statistically significant differences in students’ perceptions of Blackboard in terms of easiness and usefulness between the three phases. Interestingly, students had more positive perceptions of Blackboard before COVID-19 in 2019 and during online learning in 2021. The technical problems that students faced while using Blackboard during 2020 might have affected their perceptions. The study results of students’ use and perceptions of Blackboard are discussed in light of institutional policies and support.

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“…On the other hand, other studies have identified the absence of direct communication as a weakness of online learning (Al-Nofaie, 2020). Anas (2020) confirms that although students appreciate the interactivity of online tools, they value blended learning more. The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of virtual education in reducing language classroom anxiety for Chinese learners in Saudi Arabia and the best way of using virtual educational tools according to students' opinions of their experiences with this mode of education during the quarantine period.…”

Section: Context Of the Studymentioning

confidence: 59%

The Effects of Virtual Education On Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety in Saudi Learners of Chinese

2022

JALHSS

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This article discusses the effects of virtual education on foreign language classroom anxiety in university learners of Mandarin Chinese at the University of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Studies of foreign language anxiety have been conducted broadly in the context of actual classrooms and have specifically focused on English, which is widely spoken worldwide. This study bridges the gap in this area as it deals with the context of virtual education, which was applied suddenly due to the spread of COVID-19 in 2020, and on a language that is rarely spoken in Saudi Arabia. The aim of this study is to provide educators and practitioners in the field of foreign language teaching with insights into possible future applications of virtual educational tools. Quantitative and Qualitative methods were applied to collect data for this study of 28 sophomore students in the department of Chinese Language. A questionnaire was conducted, based on Al-Saraj's (2014) Arabic Foreign Language Anxiety Questionnaire (AFLAQ), a modified version of the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Questionnaire (FLCAS) developed by Horwitz et al. (1986). Data from interviews with the participants and the instructor were used to validate the quantitative data and to understand in greater depth the participants' experiences with virtual education. According to the participants, virtual education greatly reduced feelings of anxiety due to the absence of anxiety-provoking factors in physical classrooms. Results indicated that foreign language classroom in this context is caused by technical issues and the uniqueness of the language. Blended learning was recommended by almost all the participants in this study to be applied in the future by incorporating technology in the education systems more effectively to maximize the benefit of both modes of communication.

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Perceptions of Saudi students to Blended Learning Environments at the University of Bisha, Saudi Arabia

Cited by 19 publications

References 9 publications

Saudi University Students’ Perceptions towards Virtual Education During Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of Language Learning via Blackboard

Saudi University Students’ Perceptions towards Virtual Education During Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of Language Learning via Blackboard

Saudi EFL Students’ Use and Perceptions of Blackboard before and during Online Learning Amid COVID-19

The Effects of Virtual Education On Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety in Saudi Learners of Chinese

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