Traditional Classroom Teaching versus Online Teaching in COVID-19 Pandemic: Perspective and Experiences of School Teachers in Northern India

Abstract

Introduction: Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic affected everyone across the globe. The complete lockdown was imposed worldwide to cut down the chain of transmission. During lockdown, the decision was taken to shift from classroom teaching to online application (app)-based teaching. Numerous studies have documented that compared to classroom teaching, online teaching possesses various challenges both for teachers and learners. Aim: Assessment of perception of the school teachers regarding online teaching compared to traditional classroom teaching. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 100 school teachers of various government and private schools in Northern India from November 2020 to December 2020. An online questionnaire (English language) of 15 questions was used for assessing school teachers’ perspectives and experiences of online teaching compared to traditional classroom teaching and was designed on basis of 5-point likert scale. Informed consent was obtained before the data collection. Data analysis was done using Microsoft excel 2019 software. Results: Among the 100 school teachers who participated in the study, 74% were females and the majority of study participants i.e. 69% were in the age group 31-50 years. Overall, 86% agreed that the online method is a supplement and not a replacement for traditional classroom teaching. Only nine teachers were fully satisfied with online teaching methods. The difference in school teachers’ perceptions was found to be statistically significant (Paired t-test) while comparing classroom teaching to online teaching on various variables viz-teachers satisfaction, students’ feedback, students’ punctuality, and learning experience. Conclusion: Classroom teaching provides more opportunities to monitor students’ progress, learning, assessment, feedback and discussion, and online teaching can also be used to supplement classroom teaching as and when required.