Factors Affecting Student Engagement in Online Learning during Covid-19: A Case Study of Students' Perceptions

During the lockdown time of the novel coronavirus illness 2019 (COVID-19), the entire educational system, from basic to tertiary level, has collapsed not just in Vietnam but around the world. This transition has brought both pros and cons to students and teachers. Teachers and students who previously did not consider online learning to be authentic education have now got a taste of it. Faculty members acquired new technological abilities. Large numbers of emergency remote courses were deployed almost simultaneously by institutions with a small online footprint, illustrating the potential for scalability in the online learning method. However, this transition was planned and carried out fast, necessitating urgent redesigns of courses that were originally designed for live instruction, causing various challenges for both stake holders. One of the most significant challenges is the lack of student engagement in online environment. This study was carried out to investigate students’ perceptions of factors influencing their engagement in online classes during the pandemic of Covid-19. Data was collected from 157 students from different majors. The questionnaire was designed with Google form using a five-point Likert scale. The results show that students have positive perceptions of the factors that influence their participation in the lesson including the quality of the learning management system, teacher personality and availability, teachers’ lecturing skills and teacher activation of students in classes.