Online vs. Face-to-Face Teaching: Advantages and Challenges from Students’ Perspective

Abstract

The aim of this research was to examine students’ perceptions of online and face-to-face teaching by combining quantitative and qualitative research approaches. The research was conducted on a sample of 524 students, and the general results confirm that students are more oriented towards face-to-face rather than online classes. Online teaching is recognized as a more flexible form of learning that enables better organization of time, spatial independence, economy and greater availability of teaching content. This form of learning is often accompanied by a lack of motivation, limited social interaction with professors and colleagues, as well as technical and other difficulties that affect the quality of acquired knowledge. On the contrary, face-to-face teaching is perceived as more stimulating for learning, as it provides direct contact, better exchange of information and a higher level of engagement and motivation, although it is less economical and requires more time resources. The obtained results indicate the need to combine the best aspects of both forms of teaching, which include flexibility and digital possibilities of online learning with direct contact and motivational effects of traditional teaching.