Abstract
PurposeDuring any crisis situation like a pandemic, war or natural disaster, online/blended learning could meet the academic needs of the learners in a bigger way. The use of information and communication technology (ICT)-based technologies has converted the entire teaching pedagogy to a learner centred pedagogy, following which the skills of using technology are to be seen as the most essential qualifications on the part of both the teachers/educators and learners. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to understand the perceptions of the teachers and learners regarding the use of online/blended learning modes in teaching learning transactions. Another purpose of the paper being to find out the prospects and challenges of providing online/blended learning in a country like India, particularly during and in post-Covid-19 situations.Design/methodology/approachThe academic analytics approach was used for the study. A structured questionnaire was designed in Google Forms covering the perceptions of the teachers and learners in different Indian universities and colleges regarding online/blended services and analysis was done using Google Analytics. Further, analysis of the data received had been done by using simple statistical tool like percentage.FindingsBlended learning could be the solution for providing education in the context of the 21st century India. However, unlike in case of the conventional education, open education has widened the scope of learning adhering to the motto – “Bring your own device” to learn. The extensive use of open educational resources, massive open online courses, social media and meeting apps during the Covid-19 lockdown, has opened up the minds of the knowledge-hungry people, further enabling them to receive the necessary educational inputs, training and skills even during the current pandemic situation. This is going to have a big impact in the ways of educational transactions in the days to come.Research limitations/implicationsThe discussions in the paper are limited to a study of representative states of India, and it is a general study only. The sample size was limited to only 120 as the response rate was significantly low compared to the number of addressees to whom the questionnaire was sent.Practical implicationsThis study will help in understanding the present state of online/blended learning in a country like India. The use of online learning was no doubt intensified by the sudden outbreak of the Covid-19 Pandemic. However, the study will also help in preparing a roadmap, at the policy level, regarding the beneficial use of online/blended teaching learning models both by the teachers and learners during any future crisis-like situations in a country like India.Social implicationsThrough this paper, a new social constructivism has been visualised to know the acceptability of online/blended learning opportunities on the part of the teachers and learners across India. If that social constructivism can actually be realised through the benefits of online learning, India might emerge as one of the important leaders of education in the coming days. To that extent, the Covid-19 pandemic can be seen as a blessing in disguise.Originality/valueIt is important to examine the perceptions of both teachers and learners on the use of online learning in their regular curriculum transactions most particularly when the whole world is facing the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has adversely affected millions of learners across the world. The paper is original because it explores the current state of online/blended learning in a developing country like India to provide a practical and realistic vision of a new way of learning in the post-Covid-19 situations.
Highlights
The 21st century education calls for personalised, productive and collaborative teaching– learning experiences that are expected to transform the entire education system from traditional face-to-face (F2F) mode to techno-based independent mode where the basic focus will be laid on developing the potentials and creativity of the learners in the best possible ways
With the boom in online technologies and an increasing use of internet and social media for imparting education in the 21st century, a new social constructivism has been in place so that teachers can reach out to each learner or learners can directly interact with their teachers and share their ideas and thoughts with their peers
WhatsApp and meeting apps like Zoom, Cisco WebEx or Google Meet as an emergent response to the Covid-19 crisis. Whether such efforts are transforming the Indian educational system from the pedagogical point of view is a matter of serious discussion. It is high time we seriously addressed, which is the purpose of this paper, the perception of both teachers and learners towards the use of online/blended learning in their regular curriculum transactions during the Covid-19 pandemic so that both teachers and learners in Indian colleges and universities are able to continue their transactions without any disruption and so that a proper roadmap is prepared for the judicial use of online/blended learning at the policy level in post-Covid-19 situations
Summary
The 21st century education calls for personalised, productive and collaborative teaching– learning experiences that are expected to transform the entire education system from traditional face-to-face (F2F) mode to techno-based independent mode where the basic focus will be laid on developing the potentials and creativity of the learners in the best possible ways. Since the conduct of fully online courses nearly 20 years ago, the traditional distance education gradually evolved into a system that engaged both teachers and learners in an interactive online environment, a system in which content is delivered through varied means They mentioned how the subsequent developments in online technology had led to the creation of courses that could rival and even surpass the in-person classroom experiences in terms of the flexibility in learning and assessment. They opined that the use of OERs is yet another way to aid the learners who might not be able to afford physical textbooks, as most OER materials are available digitally. The authors proposed a hybrid model incorporating the resources from both
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