Identifying the challenges of online education from the perspective of University of Medical Sciences Students in the COVID-19 pandemic: a Q-methodology-based study

BACKGROUND: Challenges of online education among students of the University of Medical Sciences during the COVID-19 disease pandemic have often gone unrecognized. This study aimed to identify online education’s challenges from the perspective of students of the University of Medical Sciences during the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran. METHOD: The six-step Q method was used to systematically predict the different perspectives of 31 students at the Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. RESULTS: Four distinct patterns of Challenges of Online Education from the Perspective of participants in the COVID-19 Pandemic were identified. Four factors, which explained 69% of the total variance, included: 1) inadequacy for practical learning (26%) 2) inadequacy of Internet and website services (17%), 3) barriers related to educational content and interaction between teacher and student (8%), and 4) lack of motivation (18%). CONCLUSION: The identified challenges reflect the spheres that need to be focused on in interventions to facilitate the successful implementation of the challenges of online education from the perspective of the University of Medical Sciences Students in Iran and other developing countries.