Teachers’ and Students’ Attitudes Toward Online Physics Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic in UAE

Abstract

Since the detection of first cases of Covid-19 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) the education system has faced drastic changes after schools’ closure in response to the pandemic. UAE schools started teaching online as an alternative measure without stoppage to limit exposure. This study uses a cross-sectional descriptive design to examine teachers' and students' attitudes toward online Physics education in the UAE after four months of teaching and learning online. Cross-sectional participants included 418 secondary school students and 58 physics teachers who had to rely on online education to deliver their instruction during the 2020-2021 academic year in one of the major cities in the UAE. Using comparative method to compare the attitudes of students and physics teachers, based on various categorical groups, indicated that statistically significant differences in attitudes exist between public and private schools’ students. However, there were no statistically significant differences in attitudes of physics teachers’ groups toward using online education to deliver their instruction. On the other hand, there were statistically significant differences in attitudes among students based on gender. The findings of this study were discussed within the recent educational reforms introduced in the UAE and they are likely expected to impact not only physic teaching and learning but also future online educational practices in general.