Strengths and Weaknesses of Online Learning EFL Teachers' and EFL Students' Perceptions and Attitudes Case of EFL Master One Didactics Students at Mohamed-Cherif Messaadia University, Souk Ahras

Abstract

Abstract The world has been at conflict for the previous three years as a result of the spread of the Corona pandemic, pushing educational institutions to take unprecedented efforts to tackle the outbreak. Similarly, Algerian educational institutions also found it necessary to implement this new mode of instruction and learning though they are not qualified enough for the online learning process. This improvised decision resulted in an unstable learning environment. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate if the strong points of online learning are enhanced and the weak ones are avoided, and to explore both teachers and learner's perceptions and attitudes towards it. To test the hypothesis that identifying the strengths and weaknesses of OL can enable teachers and students to ensure a successful online learning experience, two questionnaires have been distributed to both EFL teachers and EFL Master one students at the department of English university of Souk-Ahras, in addition to an online class observation to support the data obtained from the two questionnaires. As a result, the findings showed that the presence or absence of specific essential factors, such as teachers' and learners' perceptions and attitudes may affect the implementation of this new learning modality that can consequently be either beneficial or unsuccessful for both students and teachers. Thus, it can be concluded that online learning is an effective educational delivery method that is also extremely difficult to use