Volume 25, Issue 111, May, 2021

Medical specialty students’ perceptions, experiences, and barriers regarding online learning: A cross-sectional study during the covid-19 pandemic

Shaimaa Abdalaleem Abdelgeleel^1♦, Dalia Negm Eldin¹, Mahmoud Abdel Hameed Shahin^2,3

¹Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, National Cancer Institute, Cairo University, Cairo 11796, Egypt
²Department of Nursing, Mohammed Al-Mana College for Medical Science, Dammam 34222, Saudi Arabia
³Department of Nursing, Al-Ghad International Colleges for Applied Medical Sciences, Qassim 52375, Saudi Arabia

^♦Corresponding author
Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, National Cancer Institute, Cairo University, Cairo 11796, Egypt

ABSTRACT

Objective: To investigate medical specialty students’ perceptions, experiences, and barriers regarding online learning as a new direction for education after the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in Egypt. Methods: This cross-sectional survey distributed a three-domain questionnaire focusing on perceptions, experiences, and barriers to physiotherapy students of the Egyptian Chinese University at the end of the second semester 2020/2021. Results: The study involved 413 students, with a mean age of 21.9 ± 1.4 years. The majority (90.1%) had access to a computer, and nearly all had internet access. The mean total scores for student perception and experience were 35.9 ± 9.2 and 45.6 ± 12.5, ranging from 20 to 50 and 26 to 65, respectively. Students’ perception and experience scores were affected by several factors, including sex, computer experience, and training for online courses. Students’ most significant barrier was network problems (77.2%), followed by a lack of required skills (67.8%), costs (65.6%), lack of technical support (65.4%), and lack of motivation (62.7%). Conclusion: This research analyzed real-life experiences and identified how students’ new experiences during the pandemic could be enhanced. Sex, computer availability, and training independently impacted students’ online learning perception and experience scores. Network problems were the most significant barrier for students.Online learning experiences present challenges and opportunities during the pandemic. Instruction, encouragement, and better internet networks are ways to enhance online learning.

Keywords: Barriers, COVID-19, Online Learning, Perception

Medical Science, 2021, 25(111), 1123-1132

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