Transitioning from Face-To-Face to Online Learning During COVID-19: Changes in China's Universities

This paper's purpose is to evaluate faculty members' and students' opinions regarding the quality, benefits and challenges of online learning, transitioning from face-to-face learning during and after COVID-19 in Chinese universities. The paper relied on a quantitative study involving an online survey using a random sample method in June 2020. The sample size was 400 persons, including 160 instructors and 240 students from a university in China. Scores earned by students who took a face-to-face Introduction to Economics course and students who took the same course online during the quarantine were compared with the Students' T -test. There was no significant difference in in the overall grade or the tests, term paper, and final exam grades. Time management skills, more freedom for instructors and students, and reliable Internet access at home were the extreme challenges most participants encountered in online courses. The research findings can be applied in further studies focusing on the quality, challenges, perspectives, and strategies of online education, the transformation of academic programs and instructor training to facilitate the transition to online learning. Future research could be done in other countries to get more comparative data.