LEARNING: THE CHALLENGES FACING TERTIARY INSTITUTION STUDENTS IN DELTA STATE

The study explores the challenges students in tertiary institutions have been facing in Delta state since the unexpected introduction of online learning in Nigerian schools as a result of global lockdown due to Covid 19 pandemic. The descriptive method was adopted for the study. 486

respondents were drawn from four tertiary institutions purposively selected for the study. (84 lecturers and 402 students). The instrument used was a self administered, 25 item questionnaire on challenges facing both students and lecturers in an online situation. Data were analysed using percentages. The participants were mostly females, 78.1% lecturers and 87.2% students. 60.7% of the lectures had masters degree and above, while 64.6% of the students were NCE students and 35.4 were undergraduates. The study found that technology problems such as poor/ internet connections, lack of portable devices necessary for the process, high cost of data subscription were some of the challenges of online learning. Others included lack of digital competence, power supply interruption, intrusion from visitors or even family, lack of interest and inadequate preparation for online learning experience, particularly on the part of the students. The study recommended blended learning approach which is a combination of online learning and face to face learning to promote a smooth evolution from the traditional approach to a full online learning environment among others