Abstract
BackgroundDuring the COVID-19 lockdown period many education institutions have shifted their focus from the traditional face-to-face education to online instruction mainly through various social media (SM) tools. However, it is not known if these results can be generalized across locations where infrastructure facilities are unevenly distributed. Further, no previous work has explored the role played by SM tools in knowledge translation. The objectives of this work are 1. To evaluate the students perceptions on the accessibility and acceptability of SM tools via an anonymous online survey and 2. Assess the efficacy of SM tools as an educational medium in imparting knowledge change.An online survey using an anonymous web-based questionnaire was conducted to assess the student’s accessibility and acceptability of SM tools as a direct information sharing pathway between the faculty and students. A randomized comparative design was utilized to evaluate knowledge change via an online examination administered 10 min before and after an online class delivered via 2 different SM platforms (Google meet, YouTube) and e-mail.ResultsData were obtained from 627 participants through a survey. Though 71.1% of the respondents believed online classes have helped them in their study, only 21.4% and 22.6% of the participants strongly agreed that social networking platforms are helpful for teaching and will be used for teaching/learning in the future respectively. The ANOVA responses to evaluate knowledge transfer from 224 participants who were randomized to receive course content through Google meet, YouTube, and e-mail showed no significant differences in outcomes before and after the delivery of contents.ConclusionOur findings suggest that multiple external and internal factors need to be addressed before substituting classroom teaching with online teaching, especially during emergencies.
Highlights
During the COVID-19 lockdown period many education institutions have shifted their focus from the traditional face-to-face education to online instruction mainly through various social media (SM) tools
Our findings suggest that multiple external and internal factors need to be addressed before substituting classroom teaching with online teaching, especially during emergencies
45.7%, 41.7%, and 12.4% had been living in the urban, rural, and semi-urban areas, respectively; 58.2% participants used to commute from their own home to college before lockdown, 14.4% participants used to stay in hostels, and 27.4% participants were living in rented houses
Summary
During the COVID-19 lockdown period many education institutions have shifted their focus from the traditional face-to-face education to online instruction mainly through various social media (SM) tools. It is not known if these results can be generalized across locations where infrastructure facilities are unevenly distributed. The web has grown from a hyperlinked collection of read-only information to the inclusion of resources that can facilitate online discussion, participation, and sharing of various forms of content SM tools promote informal learning by providing more than one channel to communicate with other parties for accessing course content and video clips, sharing instructions and notes, and student engagement [5, 6]. Whether SM enables deeper learning needs to be explored
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
