A Comparative study of Face to Face Learning vs.

Online Learning as different learning

environment of Mapua University students

A Comparative Analysis Paper Presented to

Archt. Eurydice Rayanna Chan

Mapua University

In partial fulfillment of the requirements in

Architectural Essays and Reviews (AR135)

By

Hernandez, John Raymar B.

2015127103
 A Comparative study of Face to Face Learning vs. Online Learning as different learning
environment of Mapua University students

For centuries, “Face to Face” learning has been a standard teaching method for instructors
because it provides more interaction, collaboration, practice, and role play between students and
the professor and students alike. This kind of teaching method has been a staple for schools and
universities, and it has been recognized as the “real” way of learning since the students must be
individually present inside their classes, they tend to be more serious in learning something.

In this generation, technology plays an important role in our daily lives. It helps us to do
our task quickly by just clicking or tapping. With the progressive use of technology, an alternative
method of learning is emerging in the current generation which is the “Online Learning” that
focuses on students to complete their studies through the internet as their media. Although Online
Learning provides opportunities for visual learning, the chance for an interactive and collaborative
class has lessened. Face to Face learning and Online Learning have similar qualities in terms of
their way of providing students knowledge, but they both differ in their uses and the benefits they
offer their audience. To address this gap, this paper will provide a direct comparative analysis of
Face to Face learning and Online Learning to conclude whether an Online learning platform can
potentially replace the traditional method of teaching in the environment of Mapua University.

Mapua University prides itself as one of the top technological schools in the Philippines as
it provides its students top-class education through cutting-edge methods. Mapua trains the
individuals to possess important knowledge, skills, and values that will make their students
globally competitive and truly qualified to serve a wide range of professions in different fields.

Since 2015, Mapua University is one of the schools in the Philippines that uses the
Blackboard Learning application as a new learning management system (LMS) to provide both
teachers and students an easier and more effective way to access course materials (Tomas, 2015).
In addition, the institute also provided the students and professors the Blackboard Collaborate. An
online interactive class that the university is offering to the students as a way of promoting the use
of technology since Mapua University is considered as a technological school. The use of the
Blackboard collaborate can sometimes be an alternative method of teaching in Mapua University
depending on what type of class the student is enrolled to. The said application can also be a tool
for students and professors to conduct online classes during suspension of classes.

In some ways, traditional learning and online learning are similar in their own way. An
instructor can provide information and interact with the class in real-time, but the amount of
differences overshadows the similarities that the two methods provide. The point of comparison
of these two approaches of learning is to assess the effectiveness of one learning method over the
other as well as its benefits and its constraints. According to Will (2018), the first essential
difference of the two methods is in the classroom management. He stated that in a physical
classroom, the instructor is free to move around, interacting with the students in different ways in
a way that will make the activities run smoothly. He further added that the addition of a human
element during classes increases student-professor engagement making the traditional method of
learning more effective. While similar, online learning also provides its fair share of interaction
although on a disadvantage of a lack of visual feedback to the professors from its students. This is
a huge factor because according to Essays, UK (2018), studies show that immediate and efficient
feedback response is crucial to an effective learning. Furthermore, the essay specified that
sometimes, discussing issues and problems with your instructor in person is a lot easier than typing
it out or trying to explain in face-time online.

Online education, or nowadays referred to as “distance learning”, grew popularity because

of its flexibility and convenience that an online education provides. In line with an article of Marin
Gardner entitled “Online vs Traditional Education” (2017), Online learning tend to be more
beneficial and cost efficient for students who work full-time and have family responsibilities. This
means lesser travel time and the freedom to accomplish assignments at times when it is most
convenient. According to a study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT, 2014),
Online Learning or what they call as Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) is as effective as a
traditional course regardless of the level of their studies. They concluded that it is likely that these
advantages come from the students’ freedom and ability to pause and replay either a specific part
or even the whole class, therefore, the students become increasingly versatile to learn at the best
time of day, the accessibility of good material, and so forth.

Some students prefer the environment of Online Learning because they can assess
questions with their instructors without fear of being ridiculed by their fellow students. Although
the idea of having enrolled in an online class may be promising, there are several obstacles in
launching an online class. Delvecchio & Lougney (2007) provided a list of disadvantages of online
learning which includes:

• Online learning requires more time for attending class and completing assignments than
any traditional classroom course. This concludes that students have to be highly motivated
and responsible because they will accomplish their tasks on their own.
• As stated before, students feel isolated from the instructors because of visual barrier that
an online class provides.
• Online Learning students also needs to have good writing and communication skills
because it is possible to interpret the professor’s instructions due to not meeting face to
face.
• It is difficult to manage computer files and online-learning software.
• Some of the students may also have trouble installing software that is required for the class.
• Without good computer organizational skills, learners may lose or misplace reports causing
late submissions.

Most of these statements are applicable to what Mapua University provides their students.
Though the Institute boasts itself to providing individuals with “state-of-the-art” facilities, Mapua
still lacks the edge to truly maximize the potential of Online Learning classes this is due to the fact
that Blackboard Collaborate is subject to technical difficulties and crashes.

On the other hand, majority of the researchers of the effects of Online Learning discuss the
positive effects of using this method because it improves student commitment in the learning
process (Rashty, 2003, p.2). By this, the student becomes an active participant in the classroom.
Additionally, Siowk Lee (2001, p. 45) also agrees on this because she states that students become
more responsible and spend extra time learning through online classes. Since the students are
getting a lot of resources, they find conversation to be easy.

To further help the researcher with the study a quantitative analysis was conducted to the
students of Mapua University of different programs specifically; Architecture, Civil Engineering,
Construction Engineering Management, and Mechanical Engineering. A total of 27 respondents
with ages varying from 19 to 30 years old took the survey to evaluate the comparison between
Online Learning and Face to Face Learning as learning environment in Mapua University. 15
respondents are of 20 years of age which is the average.

Fig.1: Age of respondents

The respondents also vary from the number of years they are staying in Mapua University.
From year 1 to year 5, 14 respondents are already in their 4th year in Mapua and the youngest of
all the respondents is 1 Freshmen from the Architecture department.

Fig. 2: Year level of the respondents

The surveys show that 100% of the 27 respondents prefer their classes to be conducted in
a classroom. This shows that most of the Mapua University students still prefer the traditional
method of teaching which is Face to face discussion. 88.9% of the respondents agree that their
interest in an online class vary depending on which class they are attending to.

Fig. 3: Does your interest in an online class vary depending on a subject?

Blackboard Collaborate is a fairly new addition to Mapua University’s learning methods

therefore, the standard of using the application is not yet quite in its maximum potential with its
frequent crashes and connection issues. Nonetheless, 59.3% of the respondents thinks that Online
Learning cannot replace the traditional method of teaching while 11.1% agrees, 29.6% of the
participants are still unsure if online learning can replace face-to-face learning. This must because
of the promising potential of the use of Blackboard Collaborate in a technological school such as
Mapua University.

Fig. 4: Do you think Online Learning can potentially replace the traditional method of
teaching?
 Several factors are considered as to why do these respondents think that Online Classes are
not effective in Mapua University. The most common answer among them is the lack of visual
feedback through your professor or classmates with 85.2% of the respondents chose this option
most. The effect of this factor is quite relevant because the flow of the discussion is somewhat
dependent on the visual feedback from the audience. When According to Will (2018), when
presenting directly to an audience in the same room, we or the professors are able to adapt the
delivery depending on the audience. Additionally, he added that a room full of bored faces is a
sure sign to a presenter or instructor that they need to introduce a more interesting activity or adapt
their delivery to engage the audience more.

Fig. 5: Effectivity of Online classes

The following results of surveys are whether the participants agree or disagree with the
following statements. These statements are the most crucial factors in determining the outcome of
the study for it revolves more on the learning environment that the respondents experience in their
stay in Mapua. Various elements like comparison of which is more suitable in Mapua, what
learning materials are better for the access of the students. The results of the following drastically
helped in the conclusion of this study.
 Fig. 6: Face to Face Learning is more difficult than Online Learning

Fig. 7: Online Learning is suitable in Mapua University

Fig. 8: Online Learning can be an alternative method of teaching in Mapua

Fig. 9: Learning materials/Recorded lectures are as effective as Face to Face teaching

Fig. 10: Online learning is more motivating than traditional learning

Fig. 11: Online materials vs Traditional teaching materials

 Fig. 12: The present condition of Online learning

To conclude the study, Online Learning and Face to Face learning has been an important
factor in our learning environment in Mapua University. Although there is a promising potential
with the use of Blackboard Collaborate to conduct classes online, the outcome of this study says
otherwise. While the respondents of the survey conducted agrees that Online Learning can be an
alternative for the traditional way of teaching in Mapua University, the majority of the participants
disagrees that online learning is a suitable mode of education for the students of the Institution.
Self-paced learning and the option to freely choose time and location drastically influence the
learners’ motivation. The research can urge the university to minimize the use of Online classes
until the problems stated on the given survey can be addressed to fully maximize the use of
potential of online classes by upgrading or enhancing the technology used in communication e.g.
video conferencing, electronic portfolio, and also developing an effective plan for the quality of
course materials, course workload and schedule of program.
 APPENDICES

1. What is your age? o Communication barrier between student

and instructor.
2. What is your year level? o Others: ___________________
o 1 For the following, choose whether you agree
o 2 or disagree with the statements.
o 3 1. Face to face learning is more difficult
o 4 and challenging than Online Learning
o 5 o Agree
3. Where do you prefer to have your classes o Disagree
conducted? 2. Online learning is a suitable mode of
o Classroom education for students in Mapua
o Online o Agree
4. Does your interest in an online class vary o Disagree
depending on a subject? 3. Online learning can be an alternative for
o Yes the traditional way of teaching in Mapua.
o No o Agree
5. Do you think Online Learning can potentially o Disagree
replace the method of teaching? 4. Learning materials/Recorded lectures are
o Yes as effective as Face to face teaching.
o No o Agree
o Maybe o Disagree
6. Why do you think Online Classes are not 5. Online Learning is more motivating than
effective? You can choose more than one. traditional learning.
o The anonymity of not being physically o Agree
present in a classroom. o Disagree
o The lack of visual feedback through your 6. Online course materials are more
professors or classmates comprehensive than traditional teaching.
o Easily distracted because of Internet access o Agree
o Disagree
 7. Online learning can fulfill the needs of present
times for teaching masses.
o Agree
o Disagree

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