A Study on Quality in Virtual Foreign Language Learning- A Student Perspective

Abstract

The transformation of face-to-face learning to online learning as a result of the outbreak of COVID - 19 pandemic affected every sector of education. Foreign language education was similarly affected by the shift of teaching methods from face-to-face learning to online learning. The study aims on identifying the student perception of online learning in relation to face-to-face learning in a foreign language literature classroom. The sample group consisted of 29 undergraduates from the University of Kelaniya, who followed German as a foreign language for their four-year honours degree programme and participated in fully online sessions for one year. A mixed method was used to collect data for the research. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected from the students through a questionnaire, which consisted of open-ended and closed-ended questions. The results of the study show that the students have experienced positive aspects of online learning such as flexibility, possibility of saving energy and time, improvement of target language skills, literary skills, vocabulary skills and concentration level during online sessions. Disadvantages experienced by the students were internet issues, power failures and lack of social relationships, which were unavoidable during online sessions. Even though majority of students believed in the effectiveness of online learning and had positive experiences, the unavoidable drawbacks hindered them from preferring fully online sessions. Therefore, to get the best outcome, mixed method - the so-called blended learning was more preferable to teach literature in a German-as-a-foreign-language classroom according to the student perspective.