Online Learningin a Philippine State University: What Matters Most?

Abstract

 Implementing online learning in the Philippine state universities and colleges during the COVID-19 times has been a tremendous concern among administrators, educators, and students. Perceived learning problems between students and the course content and interactions with their instructors and peers were evident as revealed in empirical observations and studies. The condition posed challenges to both instructors and students. Thus, this qualitative constructivist-interpretative case study with a semi-structured interview was conducted to describe the students’ perceptions and experiences of online learning as described in Moore’s Transactional Distance Theory. Twenty participants from Batangas State University JPLPC-Malvar, Batangas Province, Philippines were purposively chosen based on the availability and flexibility of schedule, ability to communicate in English, and had undergone online classes for the two semesters. Using predictive data analytic, this study revealed that most respondents believed that their interactions with the course content and instructors were essential but with less agreement with student-student interactions. Based on the findings, the researcher concluded that online learning, the methods of content delivery, interactions with course content, and instructors met most of the students’ expectations. The participants also confirmed that positive traits and habits (student character) were most important to survive online learning and thrive in virtual environments. Hence, it is recommended that university administrators should provide sufficient support (training, administrative, monetary, and promotional), hire more qualified faculty, and motivate faculty to provide rich, sustainable, and effective online teaching programs.