Online Program

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Student Learning and Course Preferences at a Minority-Serving Institution (309951)

Keywords: Online learning, diverse students, student preferences, challenges, support services and resources

Since March 2020 millions of students have been forced into virtual learning modes of instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this talk, we present our research into the impact of this “forced” virtual transition on student experiences and perceptions, challenges faced, and implications for future online education. Based on the data analysis using a mixed methods approach, we present the stories of a sample of nearly 400 diverse undergraduate business students enrolled at a 4-year public university, designated as a minority-serving institution. Apart from challenges posed by a lack of interaction with peers and faculty, external factors such as mental health issues, job losses, family issues like lack of access to daycare for children, unavailability of an appropriate space devoid of distractions, etc., create barriers to their continuing education. Moreover, we study differences in students’ perceptions about learning between synchronous and asynchronous online course formats and how this varies by different demographic groups. We also link these experiences to choices students make about enrolling in online courses in the future.