AB003. Factors influencing the coping experience of health science students in remote learning during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the Philippines

Background: In response to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions, many countries have resorted to alternative learning activities for education. Remote learning is now considered as the ‘new normal’—with the greatest burden on countries that have underutilized this method and its platforms. With the sudden shift in teaching methodologies, there is a need to determine the factors in the coping experience of students during the pandemic to provide evidence-based solutions to bridge the various gaps faced in remote learning.

Methods: A descriptive, quantitative, cross-sectional study design was employed for this study. There were 167 undergraduate health science college students, who consented and completed the online, self-administered, structured questionnaire.

Results: For technological factors, respondents had access to a stable internet of at least 4 hours (52.1%) and resources such as personal mobile phone (91.6%) and laptop (88%); and learning management systems such as Zoom (99.4%) and Canvas (82.6%). Human factors (i.e., teaching methods and course handling) were major influencers in learning. Most agreed that their study habits and attitudes—regularly checking for announcements (90%), and accomplishing assigned tasks (80%), resulted in more time spent for schoolwork (81%). The identified psychosocial factors contributing to the stress and anxiety of the students included a combination of concerns on health (81.4%), deadlines (92.8%), school and household workload (86.3%), school delay (79.6%), and isolation (67.6%).

Conclusions: Although the respondents noted advantages of remote learning, the majority disagreed with continuing its implementation after the pandemic (75.4%); traditional face-to-face remained the preferred mode of learning. The experience of students with remote learning during this pandemic provides valuable data to understand coping with shifts in teaching methodologies. The findings of the study underscore the importance of a resilient education system that also considers the learning capacity and mental health of students, especially for resource-limited countries.

Keywords: Remote learning; coronavirus disease pandemic (COVID-19 pandemic); undergraduate students; health science; learning experience