Challenges and Opportunities of Online Learning in the Philippine Context: Thriving in the New Normal

ABSTRACT

The research focused on the challenges and opportunities given by the fast transition of academic institutions to remote online learning amid the country's Covid-19 pandemic. Data from online surveys and focus groups were analyzed using descriptive statistics and theme analysis. The consequences and complexity of limited internet connectivity, loss of human interaction, and low skill in digital platforms were highlighted as the primary problems and disadvantages of online learning. The adaptability of the children to the online platform and the teachers' originality, flexibility, and eagerness to learn and adapt in the digital environment transformed these issues into learning opportunities. The university's continued efforts and will to prosper in the new normal of education, eventually preparing itself for the future normal of education, were attributed to the success of distant synchronous and asynchronous online learning. © 2022 ACM.