The effect of emergency remote teaching on the university students’ end-of-term achievement

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the effect of emergency remote teaching (ERT) on the end-of-term achievement of university students. Accordingly, two sets of end-of-term achievement scores of all students attending Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam University, a Turkish state university were compared in terms of educational modality. More specifically, the first set was comprised of scores the students obtained from the tests at the end of 2019-2020 academic year when the courses were delivered via face-to-face education while the second set consisted of scores they obtained from the tests at the end of 2020-2021 academic year when the courses were virtually conducted due to ERT exerted by Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, the views of students and instructors about the differences between the achievement scores driven by ERT and reflection of actual learning in scores during this period were analyzed. The findings indicated that the achievement scores obtained in associate degree and undergraduate degree programs were significantly increased during ERT while no statistically significant difference was found in the scores obtained in graduate degree programs. The findings also showed that the students and instructors are well aware of the increase in achievement scores, which they attributed to various factors such as lack of exam security and devoting more time to the lesson. They generally agreed that the achievement scores obtained in ERT do not reflect the actual learning level of students. Finally, it was revealed that the subjective perceptions about the change in the achievement scores largely overlapped with the objective statistical results.

Keywords

• Emergency remote teaching
• Face- to-face education
• End-of-term course scores
• Higher education

References

1. Akdemir, A. B., & Kılıç, A. (2020). Yükseköğretim öğrencilerinin uzaktan eğitim uygulamalarına bakışının belirlenmesi. Milli Eğitim Dergisi, 49(1), 685-712.
2. Aksu-Dünya, B., Aybek, E. C., & Şahin, M. D. (2021) Yükseköğretimde Uzaktan Ölçme ve Değerlendirme Deneyimleri: Üç Devlet Üniversitesinden Bir Örnek. Ahi Evran Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, 7(1), 232-244.
3. Al Salmi, S., Al-Majeed, S., & Karam, J. (2019). Online Exams For Better Students' Performance. In: 9th International Conference on Education, Teaching & Learning (ICE 19), April 26-28, Wager College, New York, USA.
4. Alexander, M. W., Bartlett, J. E., Truell, A. D., & Ouwenga, K. (2001). Testing in a computer technology course: An investigation of equivalency in performance between online and paper and pencil methods. Journal of Career and Technical Education, 18, 69-80.
5. Aristovnik, A., Keržič, D., Ravšelj, D., Tomaževič, N., & Umek, L. (2020). Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Life of Higher Education Students: A Global Perspective. Sustainability, 12(20), 8438. doi:10.3390/su12208438
6. Bork, R. H., & Rucks-Ahidiana, Z. (2013). Role ambiguity in online courses: An analysis of student and instructor expectations (CCRC Working Paper No. 64). New York: Columbia University, Teachers College, Community College Research Center.
7. Brallier, S. A., Schwanz, K. A., Palm, L. J., & Irwin, L. N. (2015). Online testing: Comparison of online and classroom exams in an upper-level psychology course. American Journal of Educational Research, 3(2), 255-258.
8. Bozkurt, A., & Sharma, R. C. (2020). Emergency remote teaching in a time of global crisis due to CoronaVirus pandemic. Asian Journal of Distance Education, 15(1), 1-6 https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3778083

9. Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2007). Research methods in education (6th ed.). New 255 York, NY: Routledge.
10. Creswell, J. W. & Plano Clark, V. L. (2015). Karma Yöntem Araştırmaları Tasarımı ve Yürütülmesi. (Tra. Eds. Y. Dede, S. B. Demir). Anı yayıncılık.
11. Dodd, R. H., Dadaczynski, K., Okan, O., McCaffery, K. J., & Pickles, K. (2021). Psychological Wellbeing and Academic Experience of University Students in Australia during COVID-19. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(3), 866. doi:10.3390/ijerph18030866
12. Eastman, J. K., Iyer, R., & Reisenwitz, T. H. (2008). The impact of unethical reasoning on different types of academic dishonesty: An exploratory study. Journal of College Teaching & Learning (TLC), 5(12).
13. Ebel, R. L. & Frisbie , D.A. (1991). Essentials of Educational Research, Prentice Hall of India
14. El Said, G. R. (2021). How Did the COVID-19 Pandemic Affect Higher Education Learning Experience? An Empirical Investigation of Learners’ Academic Performance at a University in a Developing Country. Advances in Human-Computer Interaction, 2021.
15. Elsalem, L., Al-Azzam, N., Jum'ah, A. A., & Obeidat, N. (2021). Remote E-exams during Covid-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study of students’ preferences and academic dishonesty in faculties of medical sciences. Annals of Medicine and Surgery, 62, 326-333.
16. Er Türküresin, H. E. (2020). Covid-19 pandemi döneminde yürütülen uzaktan eğitim uygulamalarının öğretmen adaylarının görüşleri bağlamında incelenmesi. Milli Eğitim Dergisi, 49(1), 597-618.
17. Giannini, S., Jenkins, S., & Saavedra, J. (2020). “Reopening schools: When, where and how?”, UNESCO, https://en.unesco.org/news/reopening-schools-when-where-and-how.
18. Gonzalez, .T, de la Rubia, M.A., Hincz, K.P., Comas-Lopez, M., Subirats, L., Fort, S., Sacha, G.M. (2020) Influence of COVID-19 confinement on students’ performance in higher education. PLoS ONE, 15(10): e0239490. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239490
19. Hansen, P., Struth, L., Thon, M., & Umbach, T. (2021). The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Teaching Outcomes in Higher Education (No. 073). University of Bonn and University of Cologne, Germany.
20. Holmberg, B. (2005). The evolution, principles and practices of distance education (Vol. 11). Bis.
21. Hodges, C., Moore, S., Lockee, B., Trust, T., & Bond, A. (2020). The difference between emergency remote teaching and online learning. Retrieved from Educause Review website: https://er.educause.edu/articles/2020/3/the-difference-between-emergency-remote-teaching-and-online-learning.
22. Ilgaz, H., & Adanır, G. A. (2020). Providing online exams for online learners: Does it really matter for them?. Education and Information Technologies, 25(2), 1255-1269.
23. Iglesias-Pradas, S., Hernández-García, Á., Chaparro-Peláez, J., & Prieto, J. L. (2021). Emergency remote teaching and students’ academic performance in higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic: A case study. Computers in Human Behavior, 119, 106713.
24. Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam Üniversitesi. (2020). Uzaktan Öğretim İle Yapılacak Derslerin Yürütülmesi ve Sınavların Yapılmasına İlişkin Usul ve Esaslar
25. Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam Üniversitesi. (2017). Önlisans ve Lisans Eğitim-Öğretim ve Sınav Yönetmeliği, 2017
26. Khan, R. A., & Jawaid, M. (2020). Technology enhanced assessment (TEA) in COVID 19 pandemic. Pakistan journal of medical sciences, 36(COVID19-S4), S108.
27. Lenhard, W. & Lenhard, A. (2016). Calculation of Effect Sizes. Retrieved from: https://www.psychometrica.de/effect_size.html. Dettelbach (Germany): Psychometrica. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.17823.92329
28. Loton, D., Parker, P. D., Stein, C., & Gauci, S. (2020). Remote learning during COVID-19: Student satisfaction and performance. https://doi.org/10.35542/osf.io/n2ybd
29. OECD (2020), "Remote online exams in higher education during the COVID-19 crisis", OECD Education Policy Perspectives, No. 6, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/f53e2177-en.
30. Sarı, H. (2020). Evde Kal Döneminde Uzaktan Eğitim: Ölçme ve Değerlendirmeyi Neden Karantinaya Almamalıyız? . Uluslararası Eğitim Araştırmacıları Dergisi , 3 (1) , 121-128 . Retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/ueader/issue/55302/730598
31. Stowell, J. R., & Bennett, D. (2010). Effects of online testing on student exam performance and test anxiety. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 42(2), 161-171.
32. Supriya, K., Mead, C., Anbar, A. D., Caulkins, J. L., Collins, J. P., Cooper, K. M., ... & Brownell, S. E. (2021). COVID-19 and the abrupt shift to remote learning: Impact on grades and perceived learning for undergraduate biology students. bioRxiv.
33. Şenel, S. & Şenel, H. C. (2021a). Remote Assessment in Higher Education during COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Assessment Tools in Education, 8(2), 181-199.
34. Şenel, S. & Şenel, H. C. (2021b). Use of take-home exam for remote assessment: A case study from Turkey. Journal of Educational Technology & Online Learning, 4(2), 236-255.
35. Şeren, N., Tut, E. & Kesten, A. (2020). Korona virüs sürecinde uzaktan eğitim: Temel eğitim bölümü öğretim elemanlarının görüşleri. Turkish Studies - Education, 15(6), 4507-4524 https://dx.doi.org/10.47423/TurkishStudies.46472
36. Rane, V., & MacKenzie, C. A. (2020). Evaluating students with online testing modules in engineering economics: A comparision of student performance with online testing and with traditional assessments. The Engineering Economist, 65(3), 213-235.
37. Tinjić, D., and Halilić, M. (2020). The Impact of Digitalization on Student Academic Performance in Higher Education: Investigating the change in academic performance of university level students after a sudden switch to digital education due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Case of Jönköping International Business School.
38. Wibowo, S., Grandhi, S., Chugh, R., & Sawir, E. (2016). A pilot study of an electronic exam system at an Australian University. Journal of Educational Technology Systems, 45(1), 5-33.
39. World Health Organization. (2020). WHO Director-General’s opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 - 11 March 2020. Retrieved May 4, 2021, from https:// www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-at-th e-media-briefing-on-covid-19—11-march-2020.
40. Yağan, S.A. ve Çubukçu, Z. (2019). Eğitim programları ve öğretim bilim dalı doktora programlarının öğrenci ve öğretim üyesi görüşlerine göre değerlendirilmesi,. Turkish Studies: Educational Sciences, 14(4), 1861-1885.
41. Yağcı, M. (2012). Çevrimiçi sınav ortamlarının öğrencilerin akademik başarılarına etkisi. Education Sciences, 7(1), 331-339.
42. Yakar, L. (2020). Ölçme sonuçlarının yorumlanması ve not verme. N. Doğan (Ed.) Eğitimde ölçme ve değerlendirme içinde 271-288, Pegem Akademi.
43. Yıldırım, A. ve Şimşek, H. (2018). Sosyal bilimlerde nitel araştırma yöntemleri (11. b.). Ankara: Seçkin Yayıncılık.