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- Title
The Impact of The COVID-19 Pandemic on The Teaching and Learning Process at a Rural Tertiary Institution.
- Authors
GRIFFITHS, DIAN C.; WILLIAMS, PAUL A.
- Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the landscape of Jamaica's economy, health, and education system. This study aimed to assess its impact on lecturers and students at a rural tertiary institution in Western Jamaica. The current study is a mixed-method design, and the case study research method was utilized to collect data. A representative sample of 18 lecturers and 129 students was surveyed using an online Google form questionnaire employing convenience sampling. The findings showed that Broadband Internet from a leading local service provider was mostly utilized by students (55.2%) and lecturers (88.2%). The internet portal mostly used was Schoology (43.8%); 23.5 % of lecturers disclosed it was their first time teaching online and 52.9% reported having received prior training on how to use an online platform. Of the students, 43.9% reiterated that they appreciated using the web portal Zoom as against Moodle which saw 27.3%. 54.7% of the students preferred face-to-face in comparison to online (22.7%) and 22.7% favoured the blended approach. Students reported challenges returning to school due to fear of COVID-19 (27.2%) underlying ailments (18.4%), financial challenges (44%) and other challenges (10.4%). Statistical analysis showed that there was no significant difference between students' overall performance between courses taught during the pandemic and pre-COVID-19 (p=.551). The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the teaching and learning process at the institution. However, with the implementation of online portals, training, access and upgrade to Internet service, lecturers and students were adapting to the virtual classroom. The paper gives recommendations towards embracing the digital transformation.
- Subjects
JAMAICA; VIRTUAL classrooms; COVID-19 pandemic; CONVENIENCE sampling (Statistics); WEB portals; DIGITAL transformation; INTERNET access
- Publication
Journal of Arts Science & Technology, 2023, Vol 15, Issue 3, p164
- ISSN
0799-1681
- Publication type
Article