Identifying predictors of student satisfaction with distance learning during the covid-19 pandemic

Nataša Zrim Martinjak

Summary:  Identifying the predictors of student satisfaction with a learning programme can help faculty improve it and offer insights into programme implementation and student needs according to the students’ individual characteristics. The latter characteristics came to the fore more than ever during the Covid-19 pandemic, when life situations changed, and contributed to the determination of student learning characteristics and satisfaction. This research focused on student satisfaction under these conditions of the pandemic and aimed to determine how student satisfaction is related to other study factors and how much of it can be explained by individual factors. Student satisfaction, it was found, was statistically significantly related to other study factors. Moreover, according to the regression analysis, after controlling for gender, dealing with mental distress, and frequency of contact with other students during distance learning, student satisfaction was most strongly predicted by academic efficiency. Student satisfaction, these findings indicate, is statistically significantly predicted by both study and other individual characteristics and circumstances faced by students. It can be concluded that, while assessing student satisfaction, the orientation to study factors from the perspective of teaching performance must be complemented by an emphasis on the role of students in learning.