Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education in Pakistan : An Exploratory Study

Abstract

The outbreak of novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), reported initially in December 2019 by China, has caused disruption all over the world. To control the spreading of this virus all the countries around the world imposed strict lockdown leading to shutting down of all businesses, educational institutions, entertainment centers, etc. Higher Educational Institutions (HEI), across the world, switched to online mode of learning instantly to continue their degree programs. Following the trend, Higher Education Commission of Pakistan encouraged HEIs to begin online classes. Although, online learning seemed to be the best possible solution during indefinite closure of institutes, but the sudden change in teaching and learning paradigm was not well accepted and unprecedented challenges emerged. This study aims at identifying the barriers specific to students and teachers in this abrupt shift. Moreover, it examines the satisfaction level of undergraduate students regarding online education practices during the COVID-19 epidemic. The study employed survey design and carried it out through two distinct questionnaires that are, for students and teachers which were distributed online via social media platforms. A total of 1280 students participated in students’ questionnaire while 112 teachers contributed to filling out teachers’ survey. Content Quality (CQ), Content Availability (CA), Teacher Interaction (TI), and Mode of Lecture Delivery (MLD) were considered as the predictor variables for student satisfaction. Regression and correlation analyses were performed to find out the contribution of the aforementioned variables. The survey results concluded that the lack of interaction among students and teachers is the major hurdle in online learning. Regression results revealed that the overall model with all four predictors was significantly predictive of student satisfaction. The results further revealed that MLD is the strongest and most significant of all. We believe the findings of this study can provide beneficial insights in improving the paradigm shift with greater efficiency in this pandemic.