Results of Survey on Higher Education Announced
February 18, 2021
Last week, the Council of Higher Education (CoHE) conducted a survey for students and faculty members to ask their opinions on online education that has been carried out in higher education institutions during the pandemic. Both students and academic staff showed great interest in the survey, which covers all universities and was carried out in a short time.
1 million 255 thousand students and 27 thousand 820 faculty members from 207 universities voluntarily participated in the survey conducted to raise awareness on issues such as evaluation, communication and sharing related to online education.
CoHE attaches importance to innovative changes, effective communication, strong cooperation, delegation of authority to universities and authority sharing in the work processes based on quality education, digital transformation, and data management. The survey analyzed all aspects of the distance education offered in higher education institutions during the pandemic.
The survey will create an important roadmap in the decision-making processes of CoHE's future education and training practices. The New CoHE, which attaches importance to the management of the decision-making processes in a sharing, participatory and transparent way, asks for the opinions of stakeholders in decision-making processes regarding the issues within its jurisdiction and shares the matters outside its jurisdiction with those concerned. (In this regard, the sections in the survey which are related to the spring term were shared with the Ministry of Health last week.)
- It has become the largest survey on higher education
55% of the students, who participated in the survey which has become the largest survey on higher education conducted by CoHE without service procurement in Turkey, are women and 45% of them are men. 43% of the academic staff are women and %57 of them are men.
While 74% of the respondents are undergraduate students, 22% of them are associate degree students and 1% is doctoral students. 45% of the academic staff are from social sciences and 32% of them are from science and engineering.
- 43% of the students considered CoHE’s authority transfers positively
43% of the students and 72% of the academic staff expressed a positive opinion on the "delegation of authority" regarding the evaluation of the transfer of authority to universities with the flexible management approach of CoHE, including the pandemic. Especially the low level of support of the students on this issue was considered significant.
- Favorable opinion on CoHE's policy of asking the opinion of the Ministry of Health
78% of the students and 94% of the academic staff stated that they found it appropriate for CoHE to get the opinion of the Ministry of Health to start in-person learning during the pandemic. It was observed that both students and academic staff supported this policy to a large extent.
- Students' access to the internet and digital course content
83% of the students and 97% of the academic staff reported that they had electronic devices that provide access to distance education. 89.6% of the academic staff and 97% of the students stated that they had sufficient internet access.
- Students' ability to benefit from online course materials and content
90% of the students stated that they were able to benefit from the course materials and contents offered in online education, and 25% of them noted that online courses had a positive impact on their learning. While 48% of the students stated that online education positively affected their education life or that its effect was not obvious, 37% stated that they were able to make more time for themselves and their courses during distance learning.
- Students' education preferences in the spring term
While 27% of the students wanted to have in-person courses in the spring term, 47% preferred the education to be "online" and 26% preferred to have blended learning. 46% of the students participating in the survey wanted to have in-person education in the classroom, 29% wanted the education to be completely online, and 25% wanted to have blended education following the COVID-19 period.
- The views of faculty members on online education
While 69% of the academic staff stated that they spent more time to prepare their courses, 43% stated that both the attendance and success of the students decreased.
61% of the academic staff stated that online education did not change or positively affected the academic activities other than teaching, and 64% stated that they did not have any difficulties to carry out the courses efficiently.
74% of the faculty members stated that they acquired new technological and pedagogical skills. 61% wanted the education to be online, 26% wanted to have blended learning and 13% wanted in-person courses.
44% of the academic staff prefer to have in-person courses, and 56% prefer online courses or courses with online support after the pandemic.
Click here for the report on the student survey about the efficiency of online learning during the pandemic.
Click here for the report on the academic staff survey about the efficiency of online learning during the pandemic.