The virtual COVID-19 classroom: surveying outcomes, individual differences, and technology use in college students

The COVID-19 pandemic caused many colleges to quickly shift to virtual learning, leading students to rely on technology to complete coursework while also experiencing new situations and stressors. The present study explored students’ technology use in their online course in conjunction with several student outcomes and individual difference measures. Ninety-six undergraduate students were surveyed about devices used and their perceptions of those devices. In addition, the survey measured students’ engagement, motivation, procrastination, perceived stress, and self-efficacy. It also asked students to report their current grade as well as how satisfied and isolated they felt in their course. Relationships emerged in predictable ways between course outcomes and individual difference measures. And though laptops were most used for coursework, more smartphone use related to lower feelings of isolation. Lower feelings of isolation then related to higher grades and less stress. Regression analyses confirmed that smartphone use explained unique variance in feelings of isolation, and further revealed that perceived stress consistently predicted all outcomes. From these results and complementary qualitative survey data, it seems that both laptops and smartphones hold importance for academics in the current context. Educators should further explore the role of device in students’ experience as well as consider this information when designing online courses.