Factors from Academics that Affect Student Learning in an Online Educational Setting

The COVID-19 pandemic that hit Malaysia in the first quarter of 2020 has pushed higher education institutions (HEIs) to implement online learning as a substitute. Regardless of the challenges of online learning that many researchers have studied, lecturer factors that influence students’ learning are deemed to be examined during online learning as students’ academic engagement depends on various aspects, such as lecturers. This study investigates the students’ opinions on the lecturers’ actions during online learning to identify factors that make their learning on the English communication online course easier during the pandemic. A qualitative approach using thematic analysis was conducted, in which the data were collected from 445 NDUM undergraduates through a questionnaire. The findings indicated that the factors that enhance students learning are lecturer competence, teaching aids, teaching assessment, class activity, and online classroom management. The findings further revealed that teaching competence, such as the lecturer’s knowledge of the course content, significantly impacted the students’ learning during the pandemic. However, online classroom management is the minor factor the students mention the most. In addition, these findings also support the technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) framework, which consists of three types of knowledge that lecturers are required to combine: technology, pedagogy, and content. Hence, by identifying and understanding the factors, HEIs can develop strategies to ensure that the lecturers take the necessary actions. The study implies that maximising lecturer competence in knowledge during online learning can improve students’ learning achievements at the end of the online course.