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On return to campus after the pandemic, students were subjected to receiving lectures online, in class, or by the emerging hybrid approach. This study reports students' preference over the three approaches based on the experience gained during the 2022/23 academic session. One hundred and twenty-seven (127) on-campus Education students in one public university in Malaysia participated in the study. Data was collected through an online forum and interviews with the participants. The data collected was analyzed using content and thematic analysis. Preference for the hybrid approach emerged as a finding with three themes describing what makes the wholly online class unpopular (themes one and two); and, the popularity of the hybrid approach (theme three): 1. On-campus learner-environment challenges; 2. Perceived lack of Faculty engagement and support in the online learning environment; and, 3. Student engagement through faculty presence and technology innovation. What the students valued most in the hybrid approach is the face-to-face technology-enhanced classroom interaction that is retained, believing that learning is more effective and interesting in class than online. They considered the additional online learning activities as complementing the classroom learning. The approach provides an opportunity for fundamental learning in class and supplementary learning online. These findings imply that institutions should prioritize technology integration into face-to-face instruction, leveraging innovative approaches to enhance student engagement and learning outcomes. Lecturers should consider adopting hybrid teaching models that combine the benefits of in-person interaction with the flexibility of online learning, catering to diverse student preferences and optimizing the educational experience.
Garba et al. (Fri,) studied this question.