Challenges still hamper effectiveness of online education: Microsoft-Lenovo study

As per the study, physical distance did not deter students or teachers from getting the technical support they needed while e-learning. The low use of available solutions and social challenges stemming from extended periods of remote learning have been the biggest barriers to success in online learning.

While both students and educators see enormous potential in online learning, challenges such as distraction and social isolation still hamper the effectiveness of online education, according to a new study commissioned by Lenovo and Microsoft.

The study surveyed 783 educators in the Asia Pacific, along with 669 parents and 1,935 students aged 16 to 25 above about their experience with e-learning during the global pandemic. The research was conducted across 12 markets in the Asia Pacific during May 2021.

As per the study, physical distance did not deter students or teachers from getting the technical support they needed while e-learning. The low use of available solutions and social challenges stemming from extended periods of remote learning have been the biggest barriers to success in online learning.

Here are the key findings of the study:

• Over 80% of students and 95% of educators increased their use of technology in 2020, while 68% of students and 85% of educators spent more money on technology during the past year than they had in the previous year. In the coming year, 66% of students and 86% of educators expecting to further increase their spending on learning technology.
• Among students, accessibility (63%) and flexibility (50%) were named as major advantages of online learning. Meanwhile, 64% of educators highlighted the advantages of centralizing the teaching materials in one easily accessible online resource such as Microsoft Teams for Education.
• Students and their parents said it was “extremely important” that their technology provides security (50%), privacy (52%), flexible performance (26%), and continuous value (29%).
• However, although 72% of students used a laptop such as a Lenovo Yoga and 29% used a tablet such as a Lenovo IdeaPad to access online learning, few had embraced the full suite of learning solutions: just 38% of students used video conference apps such as Microsoft Teams, only 20% used cloud-based document sharing, and 14% used remote access files.
• The top four factors listed as challenges by students and their parents were distractions at home (54%), less motivation to attend online classes at home (48%), lack of immediate feedback and interaction with teachers/classmates (46%) and social isolation or difficulty in meeting people (41%).

The study suggests that new subscription models, smarter collaboration platforms, AI-enabled devices, and virtual reality can unlock future potential.

To access the full report, head over to the official press release by Lenovo.