We asked Malaysian students what they want in their online learning. Here are their responses.

This article is Part 2 of our “Student Voice Matters” series, a collection of articles on Malaysian students’ experience with online learning.

In Part 1 of “Student Voice Matters”, a student survey designed by Project ID to find out how students are coping with the switch to online learning, we examined the commonly used platforms used by students, their preference for either online or offline learning, how they feel about their current experiences and the challenges they face.

We found a majority of students still prefer offline (in-classroom) learning, citing a preference for face-to-face interaction. This was underpinned by connectivity issues, inconsistent learning structures, and a lack of interaction, which contributed to a disrupted learning experience for students.

The week’s article focuses specifically on the experiences of students as they transition from offline to online learning, asking them what they enjoyed most, what learning platform they preferred using, what their ideal learning experience looks like, as well as suggestions for improvement.

Students want clearer teacher instructions and learning structure for their online learning

Key Findings:

• Students want clearer teacher instructions
• Classes organised by different teachers result in scheduling conflicts
• A result of the shift to remote learning is students are less able to access their teachers for additional clarification

While poor internet connection was the biggest challenge students faced in online learning, our survey found clearer teacher instructions and a consistent learning structure were the main preferences of students to improve their online learning experience. A desire for clearer instructions stemmed from students not being able to access their teachers for clarification. The issue is further exacerbated by classes organised by different teachers resulting in scheduling conflicts. This suggests teaching via an online medium might require a different skill set than that of its offline counterpart, requiring attention to the method of communication to make up for the lack of physical presence.

“Systematic learning on all subjects, scheduled classes. Homeworks with clear instructions and a channel to ask the teachers questions” — 17-year-old male student from Negeri Sembilan

“Online learning is mentally tiring for me, the structure and homework given is inconsistent and the classes always clash with other subjects.” — 17-year-old female student from Johor

Students appreciate the novelty and flexibility of online learning

Key Findings:

• The flexibility of online learning empowers students to manage themselves better
• Additional online learning materials and resources add to the convenience

The newness of online learning was greeted with cautious optimism by some students, presented with an unfamiliar method of learning. Students enjoy the flexibility of online learning which empowers them to manage themselves at their own pace, while also enjoying the convenience of accessing additional learning materials and resources online. This suggests having human interaction and genuine engagement is a significant factor in ensuring a positive online learning experience.

“I am able to look up things immediately and it helps me to learn better. I can also sit and set up my study space to ensure that it’s conducive for learning. Besides that, I can give myself a break and it helps me focus and learn better compared to studying in school.” — 16-year-old female student from Selangor

“… saya tidak perlu menyalin nota pada waktu kelas tetapi saya hanya perlu screenshot layar nota yang cikgu share di skrin” — 17-year-old female student from Penang

Students prefer Whatsapp, Google Classroom for teaching platforms

Key Findings:

• Whatsapp and Google Classroom are the preferred platforms for learning, as they are the most accessible
• Platforms such as Zoom require stable connectivity and supported devices for optimal teaching utility

Considering how reliable internet is fundamental to an effective online learning experience, most students choose Whatsapp and Google Classroom for learning as they are the most accessible especially for areas with low connectivity. These two asynchronous platforms, alongside YouTube, are preferred as a poor internet connection does not necessarily interrupt the learning experience. However, there is a clear preference for synchronous and interactive platforms such as Zoom but their requirements of stable connectivity and supported devices make this choice less feasible than others.

“Sangatlah ideal bagi saya jika semua guru dapat melakukan proses Pengajaran dan Pembelajaran (PdP) melalui video call kerana PdP melalui WhatsApp dan Google Classroom serta aplikasi yang tidak membenarkan video call menyukarkan saya untuk memahami sesuatu pembelajaran dengan mudah :(“ — 15-year-old female student from Selangor

“The bad internet connection while we are on Zoom or Google Meet makes it very hard to learn because of the bad quality video.” — 17-year-old female student from Johor

The ideal online learning experience for students

Key Findings:

• Students emphasize the importance of pedagogy, good platforms, and a positive experience
• Suggestions include the use of quizzes as a form of assessment to replace writing tasks and to make learning more interactive
• Students also note an increase in homework, and express hope that teachers will be reasonable considering the unique circumstances of the MCO

According to students, an interactive, engaging and fun online experience is key to sound online learning. They express a desire for quizzes to replace writing tasks as a more interesting form of assessment, keeping their engagement levels high. Other suggestions include incorporating more elements into online teaching such as setting norms, using interactive platforms, conducting Q&A sessions and implementing a reward system. Additionally, a number of students note an increase in homework, while expressing hope that teachers can be accommodating in order to prevent demotivation and burn out.

“I would like to add more online quizzes after teaching and send soft copy notes to my students. If they score well for quizzes, I would reward them with points….” — 17-year-old female student from Sarawak

“There must be variations of teaching mechanisms for virtual classes to make use of the full potential of our gadgets. Teaching can’t be as simple as giving out assignments…We lack interaction. That is what online classes should have. More interactive learning, more visual learning” — 17-year-old male student from Sarawak

“Saya harap cikgu-cikgu akan lebih berusaha untuk membuat aktiviti yang menarik seperti bermain Kahoot selepas tamat sesi pembelajaran ataupun mengadakan sesi soal jawab selepas sesi tamat.” — 17-year-old female student from Sabah

“…some of my teachers gave us homeworks without a limit. They give us homeworks almost everyday, even on weekends…I expect that teachers who did not use live teaching should teach or give homeworks according to the timetable that we used in school so that we have enough time to spend with our family and ourselves…I will really spend the whole day to complete and submit them. This makes me feel so tired, stressed and exhausted…” -16-year-old female student from Penang

What we found useful for online learning

Based on our survey, and what we have learned in our experience organising online programmes for students, Project ID has gathered some practices we found to be useful for students and their online learning. These will be explored in greater depth in Part 3, but can be briefly summarised as:

• Re-frame students’ perspective on online learning
• Ask students what works
• Create a nurturing, accessible setting to make up for the benefits of a physical classroom
• Create clarifying mechanisms for students
• Set session norms
• Blend synchronous and asynchronous learning
• Nurture independent learning

Listening to our students

As we discovered in our last article, there is no “one-size fits all” solution to make online learning work. However, what is more important is speaking to students to find out what they really want and how to meet their needs. While we know transitioning to online learning has come with its share of challenges, the responses from our students paint a detailed picture about what that experience is like.

Our survey highlights to us how online learning has vastly different requirements from offline teaching, which is hardly the fault of our educators as the extenuating circumstances that forced this sudden change were exceptional. Ultimately, carrying forward the community of the classroom into its new virtual setting will go a long way in encouraging students to participate.

Having heard our students’ voices, in part 3 we summarised the main challenges from the first 2 articles and gave recommendations that educators may find useful for online learning.

This article and survey findings were developed and compiled by the Project ID team with additional analyses support from Bain & Company and Teach For Malaysia.

Project ID is an education social enterprise that runs high-impact programmes empowering students to lead self and others with 21st century skills. Since the beginning of the MCO, Project ID has run over 30 online workshops with more than 600 student participation across Malaysia.