AD ALTA
JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH
education are considered by students to be the fact that teaching
is carried out from home and they do not have to travel for
education (71.4 %). Related to this is the fact that almost 67 %
of respondents also see economic benefits in distance education
– saving on food, accommodation, transport, etc. Approximately
60 % of respondents also consider some form of time flexibility
to be a benefit, e.g., that they can watch the recording of the
(video) lecture at a time of their choice. More than half of the
students stated that they also considered the fact that there is no
need to get ready, use make-up and the like to be an advantage.
Almost 23 % of respondents also consider the acquisition of new
digital skills and knowledge regarding the use of platforms and
digital tools for online learning to be positive. According to
some students, online learning has no benefits and is difficult for
them to study in such way. The biggest surprise, however, was
the result, in which 51 % of respondents mentioned the great
advantage of online teaching to be the fact that in addition to
learning, they can do several other things (watch series, listen to
music, etc.). This possibility clearly cannot be considered a
positive, as the learning process should not be disrupted by other
influences. This digital and media multitasking leads to a lower
level of concentration, memorization of knowledge, impaired
thinking, or other problems in the context of education.
Graph 5: Disadvantages of online learning
Source: own processing
Graph 5 presents the disadvantages that students perceive in the
context of online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to most students, the biggest disadvantage of distance
education is the absence of social contact with classmates, which
was indicated by 61.5 % of respondents, insufficient contact
with the teacher is negatively assessed by almost 38 % of
students. Students also consider the lack of motivation to learn to
be a significant problem, which was supported by more than 58
% of respondents. In addition to weak social contact with peers,
respondents also have a negative perception of online
interpretation or insufficient explanation as well as
understanding of the study topic (57.7 %), or of procrastination,
which is experienced by almost half of the entire research
sample. About 40 % of students said that the weakness of online
learning is the fact that they do not have enough privacy and
space to concentrate when learning from home – they are often
disturbed by various stimuli (other household members, other
responsibilities determined by parents, etc.). One third of
respondents also report technical problems, such as a bad
internet signal, poor connection or poor sound or video quality,
and less than 9 % of respondents also consider the fact that they
have to learn to work with new programs, technologies or other
platforms through which online teaching is implemented, as
negative. Approximately one percent of all respondents believed
distance learning has no disadvantages. Within the “Other”
category, students most often stated that online study is much
more difficult, especially in cases where they do not understand
the lectured curriculum, they also negatively assess teacher
readiness, lack of study materials but also the fact that laboratory
exercises are replaced by theoretical lectures and practice is
absent. Based on these results, it can be stated that Assumption
2, that most respondents consider the absence of contact with a
teacher to be the biggest disadvantage of online teaching during
the COVID-19 pandemic was not confirmed.
At the end of the questionnaire, we were interested in the
respondents' opinion on selected statements related to online
education in the context of the pandemic – we asked to what
extent they agree with the submitted statements.
Statement 1: I have more trouble concentrating in online
teaching than in full-time teaching.
Statement 2: I achieve better results and evaluation in online
teaching than in full-time teaching.
Statement 3: My teachers have adapted well to online teaching.
The results in this context yielded interesting data. More than 66
% of the research sample agrees with Statement 1, thus
identifying with the results of other more general research. These
clearly show that the impact of digital technologies on the
learning process is tangible and has negative consequences.
Especially in the context of the specifics of cyberspace and
digital media and thus a new type of rhizomatic thinking,
problems with concentration on lectures or assignments are often
mentioned in connection with learning. In this context, it can be
stated that Assumption 3, that most respondents report a
problem with concentration during online teaching was
confirmed.
Related to this are the results of expressing agreement or
disagreement with the second statement, which applies to the
learning outcomes of online teaching during the COVID-19
pandemic. Only less than a third of the research group said that
the evaluation and results of the study are better for them
especially during online teaching. However, almost 70 % of
respondents do not agree with this statement. Therefore, it can be
stated that the distance method of online education does not,
according to students, have a sufficiently motivating effect on
their study results.
Graph 6: I have a problem with concentration
Source: own processing
Graph 7: My performance and grades have improved
Source: own processing
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