Geography Programme, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, 88400, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.
International Relations Programme, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, 88400, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.
Sci Rep. 2022 Oct 15;12(1):17316. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-22360-4.
The outbreak of the pandemic Covid-19 has transformed the education system in most countries worldwide. Following the lockdown measures in Malaysia, the Malaysian education system has fully transformed from conventional learning to online learning or known as e-learning as an alternative to minimize social contacts and physical communication to curb the transmission of Covid-19. In this regard, this study aims to identify the challenges faced by students in higher learning institutions throughout Malaysia during the implementation of the e-learning program. This study is based on a large sampling consisting of 2394 students from both public and private universities. The result from this study is analyzed through inferential methods such as the Spatial Analysis, the Principal Component Analysis, and the Mann-Whitney U test and through descriptive methods using the frequency analysis and the percentage analysis. Findings from this study suggest that location significantly influenced the challenges faced by students throughout the implementation of e-learning in higher learning institutions. For example, students in rural areas which can be identified as "vulnerable groups" are more likely to face both technical and connection with the internet access, tend to have a declining focus on learning and are prone to physical health problems, facing social isolation and low digital literacy compared to students in urban areas. Based on geographical analysis, students in Sabah, Perlis, and Melaka are most at risk of facing e-learning challenges. An anomaly case of students in Kuala Lumpur, however, posed another different result compared to other cities as they confront similar challenges with students in rural areas. This study provides the nuances of location and its implications for vulnerable groups that may put them at disadvantage in the e-learning program. Findings from this study will help to inform the relevant authorities and policymakers in improving the implementation of e-learning in Malaysia, especially towards the vulnerable groups so that it can be delivered more systematically and efficiently.
新冠疫情大流行的爆发改变了全球大多数国家的教育系统。在马来西亚实施封锁措施之后，马来西亚教育系统已全面从传统学习转变为在线学习，也称为电子学习，作为减少社交接触和身体交流以遏制新冠病毒传播的一种替代方式。在这方面，本研究旨在确定马来西亚各高等学府的学生在实施电子学习计划时所面临的挑战。本研究基于包括公立和私立大学在内的 2394 名学生的大型抽样调查。这项研究的结果通过空间分析、主成分分析和曼-惠特尼 U 检验等推理方法以及使用频率分析和百分比分析的描述性方法进行分析。本研究的结果表明，地理位置显著影响了学生在整个高等学府实施电子学习时所面临的挑战。例如，农村地区的学生可被视为“弱势群体”，他们更有可能面临技术和互联网连接方面的挑战，学习注意力下降，容易出现身体健康问题，面临社交孤立和数字素养低的问题，与城市地区的学生相比。基于地理分析，沙巴、霹雳和马六甲的学生最有可能面临电子学习的挑战。然而，吉隆坡的学生是一个异常案例，与其他城市相比，他们面临着与农村地区学生类似的挑战。本研究提供了地理位置的细微差别及其对弱势群体的影响，这可能使他们在电子学习计划中处于不利地位。本研究的结果将有助于为马来西亚的相关当局和决策者提供信息，以改善电子学习的实施，特别是针对弱势群体，以便更系统和有效地实施。
