Filipino University Students’ Attitudes Towards Government’s Pandemic Response: Influences of the Online Learning Environment

Abstract

The findings from the data in chapter 5 overwhelmingly support the hypothesis that students’ experiences with the online learning environment influence their perceptions of the government’s pandemic response. In answering the original question “How did college students’ remote learning experiences influence their view towards the government’s pandemic response?,” it can be summarized into two categories: direct influence and indirect influence. For some, the experiences in the online learning environment directly triggered their views, as was the case with Respondent 8 when she went from being apolitical to becoming an activist and Respondent 5 when his observation of other countries returning to face-to-face classes garnered resentment from him. For others, their experiences with the online learning environment motivated them to become better versed in the steps that were taken by the government to deal with the pandemic, and they developed negative perceptions upon becoming more informed. Either way, the online learning environment had a tangible impact on motivating the students' perceptions of the pandemic response. It is evident from the gathered data that the online learning environment indeed creates a unique environment for students to garner opinions of the government’s pandemic response that would otherwise not be developed.