Effectiveness, Challenges, and Future Preferences of Online Lab Classes During Covid-19: A Study on The University Students of Science Faculty in Mymensingh
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.67120/jkkniujss.v6.i1.a44Keywords:
Effectiveness, Obstacles, COVID-19, Online-Lab-ClassAbstract
The COVID-19 pandemic pressured the sudden adoption of online education, a problem exacerbated by the students of science faculties who are required to work with their hands. This research involved a comparison of the experiences of 137 students out of 8,628 students of Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University (51) and Bangladesh Agricultural University (86) by using a descriptive and exploratory design with semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. The lack of lab facilities (54.2%), unreliable internet (37.7%), and lack of devices are the most frequent (8.1%), but more frequent among rural learners (77.4%), with an intermediate level of satisfaction. Most students are indifferent towards the long-term effects in the future, and more than half of them want to keep taking the online theory courses in the future. The regression analysis indicated that negative effects were on technical disruptions (β = -0.271, p = 0.002), and the access to the tools (β = 0.368) and institutional support (β = 0.169) had positive effects. Instructional effect (r = 0.501, p < 0.001) was observed as a result of these barriers. This work underscores that SDG-4-compliant measures that enable digital equality, virtual laboratories, and powerful instructor services are of value.
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