Computer Self-efficacy and Perceptions of Online Learning during the Covid-19 Lockdown in Iran High Schools

Abstract

The sudden shift to online teaching following the outbreak of COVID-19 has confronted English language learners with numerous challenges. The students’ perceptions and practices in online learning environments might be influenced by their technology-oriented abilities to survive in the current educational predicament. The current study elucidated the 12th-grade high school students’ online learning experiences in a developing country during the global pandemic in light of their computer self-efficacy (CSE) level. To this end, a total number of 110 students completed the computer self-efficacy scale. The results indicated a moderate to low level of computer self-efficacy among the participants. According to the obtained scores, they were divided into low-CSE and high-CSE groups and asked to ruminate over their online learning experiences during the pandemic by answering eight questions in the form of self-reflection essays. The self-reflections of the two groups were separately analysed, and the recurrent themes were extracted. The results revealed several commonalities and discrepancies between the low- and high- CSE students considering their distant learning experiences within the COVID-19 lockdown. The findings provide pedagogical recommendations for enhancing online learning efficiency among high school students.