Higher education students’ online class experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

This study explored the online class experiences of higher education students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the study determined the online learning platforms, experiences, and strategies used to cope with the online learning challenges and proposed interventions to address the students’ challenging experiences. The students’ experiences were collected using a quantitative research design, employing questionnaires and Google Forms. For the open-ended questions, discourse analysis was used to analyze the students’ shared experiences. Purposive sampling was used to select the respondents from one state university in Cebu City, Philippines. The results revealed that the students preferred an asynchronous mode of learning using cellular phones, Google tools such as Google Classroom, Zoom and Facebook messenger during their online classes. While learning, they encountered challenges such as poor connectivity, distraction from attending classes due to errands at home, and lack of study areas. To cope with these challenges, the students managed their time, took rests in between study hours, and making a checklist of the tasks to be accomplished. Hence, this study contributes to the developmental goals on education for sustainability through providing interventions based on the students’ experiences, challenges and coping strategies shared during their online classes during the pandemic.