Differences in the Digital Divide, Educational Level, and Gender in Turkey During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comparison of Turkish Tertiary-Level Sophomore and Junior Students' Views on Online Learning

Abstract

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic forced many educational institutions to move face-to-face education to entirely online education. This digital transformation has, in turn, reinforced the digital divide between learners who have easy access to digital devices and the Internet and other learners who do not have those. In addition to the digital divide, the differences in their genders and educational levels potentially impact leveling up learning. Therefore, the study in the present chapter has aimed to examine university-level sophomore and junior students’ differences in learning online during the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of gender, educational level, and the digital divide. Data from a survey indicate that both females and males, and sophomores and juniors had different attitudes toward using digital devices, attending virtual classes and accessing online courses through the mobile phone or the home Internet. Based on the findings on their differences, the chapter makes some implications and recommendations for policymakers, course designers and teachers in the course design, especially in the emergence.

Citation

Meri-Yilan, S. (2023), "Differences in the Digital Divide, Educational Level, and Gender in Turkey During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comparison of Turkish Tertiary-Level Sophomore and Junior Students' Views on Online Learning", Sengupta, E. (Ed.) Higher Education in Emergencies: International Case Studies (Innovations in Higher Education Teaching and Learning, Vol. 52), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 51-64. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2055-364120230000052004