Readiness towards online learning among physiotherapy undergraduates

BACKGROUND: Online learning is an attractive option for educators, especially as means of overcoming the challenges posed by the global pandemic. Although it is best to evaluate student readiness prior to commencement of an online course, to ensure successful development and delivery of student-centric teaching and learning strategies, readiness towards online learning among physiotherapy undergraduates is unknown. The main aim of this study was to examine physiotherapy undergraduates’ readiness towards online learning. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, participants were selected through a combination of total population and convenience sampling. The Student Online Learning Readiness questionnaire was distributed among physiotherapy undergraduates from two public and two private universities in Malaysia to investigate their technical, social and communication competencies. Information about device characteristics were obtained to evaluate their equipment readiness. Descriptive and group comparisons were conducted using independent t-test, and analysis of variance with p < 0.05 as level of significance. RESULTS: A total of 352 physiotherapy undergraduates participated. The response rate was 81.6%. The results showed that physiotherapy undergraduates in these four institutions had moderate levels of readiness towards technical competencies (M = 3.7 ± 0.5), social competencies with instructor (M = 3.7 ± 0.6), social competencies with classmates (M = 3.8 ± 0.6) and communication competencies (M = 3.6 ± 0.5) related to online learning. The overall readiness for these four competencies was moderate (M = 3.7 ± 0.4), however the physiotherapy undergraduates had high (> 80% possessed smartphones and laptop) level of equipment readiness. Institution and gender had no significant effect on the level of readiness (p > 0.05). Year 1 and 2 had significantly higher levels of social competencies with instructor compared to final year physiotherapy undergraduates (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Physiotherapy undergraduates in these four institutions had moderate to high levels of readiness towards online learning. Technical, social and communication competencies could be further enhanced with appropriate strategies. SIGNIFICANCE: This study provides an insight into the level of readiness towards online learning among physiotherapy undergraduates. The findings of our study shed light on issues to consider when designing online courses. A pre-course training for undergraduates prior to the commencement of online courses may be useful. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Not Applicable.