Study: One year later, students and educators in Asia Pacific are beginning to crack the code for online learning

• New study from Lenovo and
  Microsoft shows enormous opportunities in e-learning, but limited adoption of full
  range of solutions
• Challenges such as such as
  distraction and social isolation still hamper effectiveness of online education
• New subscription models, smarter collaboration platforms, AI-enabled
  devices, and virtual reality can unlock future potential

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 24 August 2021 –
As schools cross the one-year mark since the rapid shift to virtual
classrooms, a new study commissioned by Lenovo and Microsoft has found that both
students and educators see enormous potential in online learning, but are just
beginning to enjoy its advantages. The biggest barriers to success in online
learning have not been a lack of technology access, but low use of available
solutions and social challenges stemming from extended periods of remote
learning.

Conducted by specialist firms YouGov and Terrapin
across 12 markets in Asia Pacific during
May 2021, the study examined nearly 3,400 students,
parents and educators to understand their assessment of e-learning since the
pandemic began, including 218 students in Hong Kong, and explored how
technology can further engage students and support learning.

“With schools closed in many countries for
the better part of 2020, educators, parents and students alike have grappled
with new learning technologies. This study has helped us better understand how
educators, parents and students have adapted to online learning during the
pandemic, what the real challenges are, and what solutions can be deployed to
help make learning technologies more effective,” said Fan Ho, General Manager, Hong Kong and Macau, Lenovo.

“The role of
technology has become a much needed lifeline in enabling teaching and learning between
students and educators today. Despite the challenges faced over the last year, we
admire the resilience and adaptability students and educators have had as
classrooms shifted from traditional set-ups to virtual environments. As we move
forward, it is clear innovation will continue to transform learning experiences
– and we remain committed in supporting the industry with the right tools and
solutions so that they are equipped for the new age of education,” said Larry
Nelson, Regional General Manager, Education, Microsoft Asia.

Technology
in education became the norm during the past year – with mixed results

Across Asia Pacific, more than 80% of
students and 95% of educators increased their use of technology during the past
year, while 68% of students and 85% of educators spent more money on technology
during the past year than they had in the previous year. This trend will
continue, with 66% of students and 86% of educators expecting to further increase
their spending on learning technology in the coming year.

Educators and students had differing
opinions on the impact of online classes on educational performance. Educators
were relatively positive about their teaching performance online, with 59%
confident that teaching performance had improved, and 24% believing it had been
maintained. However, students’ assessment was mixed: around a third of students
believed their performance had improved, another third believed it had stayed
the same during the period of online learning, and the remaining third believed
their learning performance had declined.

Accessibility and convenience are major
advantages of online learning

 

Among
students, accessibility (63%) and flexibility (50%) were named as major
advantages of online learning, including the ability to access a broad variety
of content and materials from all over the world. Additionally, 62% of students
and 67% of educators praised the convenience of eliminating the need to
commute.

 

Meanwhile, 64% of educators highlighted the
advantages of centralizing the teaching materials in one easily accessible
online resource such as Microsoft Teams for Education , along with 50% who
commend the fact that e-learning encourages collaborative learning, and allows
for more personalised learning and support.

 

Students and educators know what they want
– but are just beginning to leverage existing solutions

 

Students and their parents said it was
“extremely important” that their technology provides security (50%), privacy
(52%), flexible performance (26%), and continuous value (29%). Just 17%
considered it to be extremely important to have the lowest possible cost for a
technology solution.

 

Educators were also interested in
education-specific security (75%) and data privacy (79%), but additionally
named collaboration features (64%), student assessment tools (63%), general
ease of use (59%), and accessibility features (53%) as extremely important.

 

However, although 72% of students used a
laptop such as a Lenovo Yoga and 29% used a tablet such as a Lenovo IdeaPad to
access online learning, few had embraced the full suite of learning solutions:
just 38% of students used video conference apps such as Microsoft Teams, only
20% used cloud-based document sharing, and 14% used remote access files. Around
15% of students had access to an online learning management system.

 

Almost 95% of educators used a
laptop such as a Lenovo ThinkPad for their daily teaching. While 76% had used
video conference apps, only 56% used cloud-based document sharing, and just 36%
used remote access files. Around 66% used an online learning management system.
Additionally, 34% had used a virtual reality platform such as Lenovo
ThinkReality.

 

Students and educators find ways to cope
with tech support, but distraction, engagement and isolation are barriers

 

Physical distance did not deter students
or teachers from getting the technical support they needed while e-learning; although
many school technical support teams were unable to cope with the volatile
demand, students and educators found alternative sources of support. Students
were more likely (33%) to ask a classmate, friend, or younger household member
for help than they were to go to school tech support staff (15%). Similarly, 47%
of educators addressed their concerns to the school tech support team, but 32%
simply tried to find an answer themselves, 31% asked another teacher, and at
least 11% consulted with a nearby teenager.

 

Around 14% of educators had embraced device-as-a-service (DaaS). DaaS offers a
subscription-based model including laptops, desktops, tablets, tech support,
software and management services.

 

Students and educators found the most
profound barriers to online learning in the social sphere. More than 60% of
students and educators indicated that they experienced weakened social
relationships during the period of online learning. The top four factors listed
as challenges by students and their parents were distractions at home (54%), less
motivation to attend online classes at home (48%), lack of immediate feedback
and interaction with teachers/classmates (46%) and social isolation or
difficulty in meeting people (41%).

 

While video conferencing applications
provide many avenues for real-time interaction, attending all their classes through
a screen proved to be challenging for students. 75% of educators listed “students
get distracted or lose concentration during live sessions” as one of the major
barriers to e-learning.

 

New subscription models, smarter
collaboration and devices can unlock potential of online learning

 

“What we see from this study is that there
can be enormous benefits from education technologies, but students and
educators have yet to embrace its full potential,” continued Amar Babu. “Both
students and educators are looking for collaborative, personalized learning –
using technologies that can keep them engaged, with the material and with each
other. Lenovo is at the forefront of these technologies, with built-in features
leveraging Artificial Intelligence, helping create opportunities for online
engagement, and providing convenience and reliability.”

 

Lenovo’s services portfolio supports ongoing learning
by bringing end-to-end solutions to schools and universities.

• Lenovo Managed Services equips all
  devices with cybersecurity software and secure collaboration tools that ensure
  data protection and student safety
• Lenovo Device as a Service (DaaS) ensures
  comprehensive technical management, helpdesk, and support for students and
  educators on and off campus
• Lenovo Hybrid Classroom solutions
  create more dynamic learning environments with all-in-one smart collaboration
  systems like the ThinkSmart Hub, making it easy for students and
  educators to connect, share, and learn remotely.
• VR devices and solutions such as ThinkReality
  and Lenovo VR Classroom 2 allow educators to further engage and inspire
  students through virtual reality lessons that enhance students’ understanding
  of subject matter

As the world adjusts to a new normal, education
is entering a new age of teaching and learning. Advanced technologies are
paving the way for students to experience immersive learning with real-world
applications, and empowering educators to help students continue learning
through new and different methods, wherever they may be.  

About
the Study

Conducted in May 2021, the research surveyed 783
educators in Asia Pacific, along with 669 parents and 1,935 students aged 16 to
25 above about their experience with e-learning during the global pandemic.
Respondents surveyed were from Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Thailand,
Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Philippines, Korea, India, and Japan.