Assessment of Filipino Higher Education Students’ Readiness for e-Learning during a Pandemic: a Rasch Technique Application

Abstract

This paper investigated the level of e-learning readiness of Filipino higher education students in the midst of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Although e-learning is not new in the Philippines, its enforced adoption nationwide as a measure to keep education going must be studied, given the general uncertainty in student readiness. Using Rasch analysis – specifically, the Andrich rating scale model (ARSM) for item response theory – results showed that student readiness for e-learning is a multidimensional metric that is consistent with many claims. Filipino students are ready in terms of computer/internet self-efficacy; however, they are not ready in terms of learner control. The differential item functioning (DIF) analysis showed that gender significantly differentiates e-learning readiness under learner control and self-directed learning. Meanwhile, program classifications have significant differences in responses under computer/internet self-efficacy and online communication self-efficacy. This paper reveals the importance of determining student readiness for e-learning in the midst of a difficult situation – a pandemic.