Investigating Learners’ Teaching Format Preferences during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Empirical Investigation on an Emerging Market

Monica Ioana Burcă-Voicu, Romana Emilia Cramarenco and Dan Cristian Dabija
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Monica Ioana Burcă-Voicu: Department of European Studies, Babeș-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, 400090 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Romana Emilia Cramarenco: Department of European Studies, Babeș-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, 400090 Cluj-Napoca, Romania

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 18, 1-21

Abstract: This paper aims to measure learners’ preferences for a specific teaching format (online, hybrid, or face-to-face) based on their experience, usage, and interaction with e-learning platforms (Moodle/MS Teams), on their participation in e-learning courses delivered via online streaming platforms (Zoom), on teaching staff skills and teaching–learning abilities, as well as on the advantages and disadvantages of those forms of learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In implementing the research question, a conceptual model was developed, which was further analyzed by means of structural equations modelling via SmartPLS 3.3.9 (SmartPLS GmbH, Boenningstedt, Germany). The data were collected via quantitative research implemented through an online questionnaire addressed to learners (students) from an emerging market during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research contributes to extending social learning theory and the social cognitive learning theory by pinpointing the learners’ preference for the online educational format and by showing how a blended learning environment in universities can be developed by fructifying the gains in terms of digital skills acquisition during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper highlights the contribution of the online educational environment in extending the use of interactive digital tools and resources, engaging the learners, and creating the opportunity for them to become accountable for their learning experiences.

Keywords: emergency remote teaching (ERT); online education; e-learning platform; learners’ teaching preference; COVID-19 pandemic (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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