A

DISSERTATION REPORT ON
“TO STUDY IMPACT OF VIRTUAL EDUACATION ON
STUDENTS IN INDIA ’’

Submitted To
SAVITARIBAI PHULE PUNE UNIVERSITY
For Industrial analysis and desk research

Submitted By
PAYAL PRAMOD WARGHAT
MAYURI RAM KAVARE
ABHILASHA GAJANAN UIKE
SHAIKH TAYYABA MOHAMMAD

GUIDED BY
PROF. NILAMBARI MOHOLKAR

DIMR INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT BALEWADI

PUNE
411045

BATCH 2020 - 2022

 INDEX
SR.NO TOPIC Page No

1 Executive Summary 01

2 Introduction 02

3 Objective 04

4 Observation of virtual 05
education on students in India
5 Research Methodology 08

6 Literature Review 10

7 Data Analysis and 11

Interpretation
8 Finding 14

9 Suggestions 15

10 Conclusion 16

11 Questionnaire 17

12 Bibliography 18

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The objective in the undertaking, this project was to supplement
academic knowledge with absolute practical exposure to the day
to day impact of virtual education on students.
This project: “To study the impact of virtual education on
students”, involved a detail study of the impact of virtual
education on students.
Due to the increasing number of events, including but not
limited to natural disasters, inclement weather, and other
emergencies that result in school closures, it has become necessary
for school districts to create a robust virtual learning model of
instruction. Doing so allows districts to overcome setbacks in
student learning associated with school outages when in-person
instruction is lost. Having an online learning platform is a critical
success factor necessary to provide structured academic learning
opportunities for students during periods of school closure and
beyond.
The virtual learning plan is adaptable to address any
scenario that requires distance learning. This shift may fluctuate
depending on the scenario-based need. The virtual learning plan
requires teachers to use the district learning management system
wherein they would house lessons and provide instruction to
students, while also using various technology tools for enhanced
virtual communication (i.e. Google Classroom, ZOOM, Goggle
Chat, etc.) for a given period. Several new papers shed light on
these issues, building on previous work in higher education and
assessing the efficacy of online education in new contexts.
The results are generally consistent with past research:
Online coursework generally yields worse student performance
than in-person coursework. The negative effects of online course-
taking are particularly pronounced for less-academically
prepared student and for students pursuing bachelor’s degrees.
New evidence from 2020 also suggests that the switch to online
course-taking in the pandemic led to declines in course
completion. However, a few new studies point to some positive
effects of online learning, too. This post discusses this new
evidence and its implications for the upcoming academic year.
 1

INTRODUCTION

The global outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has spread

worldwide, affecting almost all countries and territories. The
outbreak was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan,
China. The countries around the world cautioned the public to
take responsive care. The public care strategies have included
handwashing, wearing face masks, physical distancing, and
avoiding mass gathering and assemblies. Lockdown and staying
home strategies have been put in place as the needed action to
flatten the curve and control the transmission of the disease

Bhutan first declared closing of schools and institutions and

reduction of business hours during the second week of March
2020. The complete nationwide lockdown was implemented In
between, movements were allowed, offices began functioning,
schools and college reopened for selected levels and continued
with online class for others. More than 170,000 children in
Bhutan from classes PP–XII are, today, affected by the school
closure. The impact is far reaching and has affected learning
during this academic year or even more in the coming days.
Several schools, colleges and universities have discontinued
facto-face teaching. There is a pressing need to innovate and
implement alternative educational and assessment strategies.
 2

Research highlights certain dearth such as the weakness of online

teaching infrastructure, the limited exposure of teachers to online
teaching, the information gap, non-conducive environment for
learning at home, equity and academic excellence in terms of
higher education. This article evaluates the impact of the COVID-
19 pandemic on teaching and learning process across the world

The challenges and opportunities of online and continuing

education during the COVID-19 pandemic is summarized and
way forward suggested.

School time also raises social skills and awareness besides

being fun for the children. There are economic, social and
psychological repercussions on the life of students while they are
away from the normal schedule of schools. Many of these students
have now taken online classes, spending additional time on virtual
platforms, which have left children vulnerable to online
exploitation. Increased and unstructured time spent on online
learning has exposed children to potentially harmful and violent
content as well as greater risk of cyberbullying. School closures
and strict containment measures mean more families have been
relying on technology and digital solutions to keep children
engaged in learning, entertained and connected to the outside
world, but not all children have the necessary knowledge, skills
and resources to keep themselves safe online.

3
 OBJECTIVES

1To examine the current scenario of virtual education in India

2 To improve advanced educational experience

3 To study the impact of virtual education on students

4
 OBSERVATION
The Good
Online education allows for learning something beyond the
norm. A learner has access to unlimited topics and global experts
in niche subjects – something otherwise not affordable or
imaginable for many. Online programs allow people of a wide age
group to learn at their own pace, without inhibitions, and without
compromising on their other responsibilities.
With the emergence and spread of COVID-19 in India,
online education has trickled down to the most basic level — 
schools and colleges! When asked about their experience with
online teaching, a student from a college in Bengaluru said, “The
online option is a need in this pandemic situation. It has brought
education to us without us going anywhere, and it is more
flexible”. Probably, students are finding it a welcome change from
strict schedules and long-distance commutes to attend classes. For
some others, who find learning in large classes intimidating, this
may be a less stressful option. Many teachers are making the best
of this situation by exploring new methods of teaching and
assessment.
This is encouraging. But the moment online education moves
from an optional to the only form of learning, and that too long
term, the bad and the ugly slowly become evident. India is
beginning to get a taste of this now.
The Bad
Using the internet for entertainment is common, but for
online lessons is a big challenge. Teachers may not be well-versed
with creating digital content, and conveying it effectively online.
A sudden expectation from them to upgrade, and from students to
adapt, is unfair.
Body language and eye contact, which are important cues
for the teacher, are difficult to perceive in an online class. “I do
not receive continual feedback in the form of students’ reactions
during online sessions, which reduces the effectiveness of
teaching”, says a college teacher in suburban Mumbai. How many
students have paid attention in a class? Of those, how many
understood the lesson? Is the teaching pace alright? Are some
students getting left behind? These questions arise even in
traditional classrooms, but they are harder to address in online
classes. A parent of an 8-year-old attending a private school in
Gurgaon says, “  There shouldn’t be online classes for such young
kids. Their concentration span is small and they do not pay
attention after a while.” The 8-year-old added,  “I hate them
(online classes)!”
5
Even college students seem to value the in-class
physical learning experience much more than a virtual one.
Many acknowledge that phones can be very distracting. In
addition, science and technology programs often include
hands-on laboratory sessions, dissertation projects and field
trips to complement theoretical studies. This aspect of
learning is severely limited in online education.
Finally, education is not just about subject knowledge but
also about developing social skills and sportsmanship among the
students, which is built over years. Relying solely on online
education may hinder the holistic development of children, and
many may underperform later in their professional and personal
lives.
The Ugly
While India enjoys a wide geographic and cultural diversity,
it also suffers from a huge socio-economic divide. Only a  small
part of the Indian population has access to online education right
now. Interrupted power supply, weak or non-existent internet
connectivity, and unaffordability to buy necessary devices are
major concerns. “In a Class of 40 students, after two months of
online classes, around 20 students regularly attend class with
whatever device and connection they have. Around 5 – 8 students
are completely absent till date and rest are fluctuating”, says
a school teacher in Ratnagiri in Maharashtra. A teacher in
a government-aided school from the small town of Chamber in
Himachal Pradesh says,“It is a frustrating experience to engage
students of lower classes in online mode. There are network issues
on both teachers’ and students’ ends”.
To deal with internet connectivity and device availability
issues, ‘classes’ in many places are happening via sharing of
videos by teachers over WhatsApp or YouTube, so that students
can watch them at their convenience. This too, however,
That is not all. With limitations of livelihood in a family, the
first ones to receive a blow are often girls. In a recent survey of
733 students studying in government schools in Bihar, only 28%
of the girls had smartphones in their homes, in contrast to 36% of
the boys. These smartphones almost always belonged to male
adults, often being lesser accessible to girls than boys, and half of
these families could not afford internet data packages. Therefore,
lessons aired on television was the main option for a majority of
the students participating in this survey. However, girls were
found to spend a disproportionately longer time on household
chores than boys, which often overlapped with the time of telecast
of these lessons. Such gaps in education could worsen the
already wide gender gap in employment in India.
7
 Research Methodology
There is a lack of design advice on how to construct usable
Virtual learning environment. This paper presents an outline of a
Methodology for design of virtual learning environments and,
more
Specifically for design of virtual universities. According to the
“waterfall model” for software development, the methodology
has five principal phases: analysis and requirements definition;
system and software design; implementation; testing; operation
and maintenance. The virtual university presented in this paper
has been developed in the framework of a national project for the
creation of virtual educational space in Bulgaria.
Keywords: Virtual university, Virtual Learning Environment, E-
learning It is a common opinion that information and
communication technologies will revolutionize university
education. In the last few years major progress has been achieved
in the design of virtual learning environments. In this context,
traditional universities have begun to open themselves beyond
their traditional borders and undertaken first steps in order to
become at least partially virtual universities offering distance
education. There are a lot of virtual learning environments
(VLE) all over the world, but the design methods for VLE are
in a relatively early stage of development. The methodology
for designing such environments is uncharted, but necessary
before committing to large scale development. In this paper there
will be presented an inclusive methodology for design of VLE, in
particular, for design of virtual universities (VUs). The
methodology includes all important stages, which have to be
passed in the process of VLE creation. VLEs are learning
management software systems that synthesise the functionality
of computer-mediated communications software and on-line
methods of delivering course materials . The methodology for
such a software system has to be Created using the principles of
system engineering. System engineering is the activity of
specifying, designing, implementing, validating, deploying and
maintaining systems as a whole. Systems engineers are not just
concerned with software but also with hardware and the system
interactions with users. The Journal for the Integrated Study of
Artificial Intelligence, Cognitive Science The Journal for the
Integrated Study of Artificial Intelligence, Cognitive Science and
Applied Epistemology, Communication and Cognition, Belgium,
There are a number of different general models of software
development: “the waterfall approach”, “evolutionary
development formal Published model of the software development
process was derived from other engineering process because of
the cascade from one phase to

Another, this model is known as the waterfall model. In our case

system engineering process is under the influence of the waterfall
approach .The principal phases of the model are illustrated in
According to this system engineering process, the
methodology for design of VLE and more specifically,
methodology for design of virtual university was created. The
methodology is depicted as a block diagram showing the major
stages and the interconnections between them. Each stage is
represented by a rectangle in the block diagram and the
existence of relationships between stages is indicated by arrows
joining these rectangles. The methodology is illustrated in Figure
The block diagram will be supplemented by brief description of
each stage Research into virtual learning emphasises the
importance of the connection between students and their
Literature Review

Teachers. This can be lost if there is no ‘live’ contact element at all.

As Beale notes, this does not necessarily mean that every lesson
needs to include a video meeting, though there is a beneficial
psychological impact of knowing that the teacher is still in contact
and regular face-to-face online discussions can enable this. There
are other forms – a discussion thread which begins during a lesson
and is open throughout can perform the same role, though in cases
where meeting functions are available, students may be directed to
use these rather than email. As well as the teacher-student
relationship, student-student links are important. There is evidence
of improved learning when students are asked to share their
learning experiences with each other.[16] Beale’s research summary
also emphasizes the importance of a supportive and encouraging
online environment. Distance learning is challenging for students
and the experience can be frustrating and de-motivating if
technology fails (e.g., if work gets lost or a live session cannot be
joined due to a connection failure or time-zone difference). More
than ever, teachers need to work at providing positive
encouragement to their students, praising and rewarding success
and acknowledging challenges when they exist. It is also valuable if
teachers can identify new skills that students are acquiring – not
least skills in problem-solving, using information technology and
resilience – and encourage their classes when they see evidence of
these. In online learning environments where the instructor
presence is low, learners have to make the decisions
regarding when to study or how to approach the study
materials. Therefore, learners’ ability to self-regulate their
own learning becomes a crucial factor in their learning
success …

101
Technological and Economic
Development of Economy, 2010,
16(1): 94–10Analysis and interpretation of the results
obtained
Data Analysis and Interpretation

As indicated in Figure 4, all the students from cluster 1 are the

most active students, spending most of their time in VLE.
Unfortunately their final evaluations are lowest as compared to
the other clusters even it is hardly noticeable. In order to and out
the reasons of this phenomenon, we have to make a deeper
analysis of data from the 1 cluster. Table 4 shows the results of
grouping VLE tools according to their influence on the quality of
studies.
 Figure 5 indicates the time spent in VLE by the students from the
1cluster. It is evident from Figure 5 that only 4 students have
spent more than a half their time using important VLE tools:
studied materials, made assessments, etc. e rest time was spent
irrationally: students checked, what their personal achievements
are, who is online, took part in discussions, etc. therefore a
conclusion might be drawn that the high activity percentage of
using VLE is not a guarantee of a good study performance. Since
a purposeful, logical usage of the important tools is an important
criterion for course developers and instructors as well, a course
instructor, having information about this criterion can optimise
course navigation, the time spent by students in VLE and redirect
students’ work to a purposive way, instead, sometimes they use all
possible tools without evaluating their usage possibilities and
purpose in general (Romero et al. 2008).the largest students’
group is in cluster 2. The members of this cluster are most
inactive VLE visitors, but the average of their final evaluation is
the highest one. Again, with a view to explore these data, we have
to make the statistical analysis of this cluster data. Figure 6 shows
students’ activities according to different VLE objects that are
divided into 3 groups as in the previous example. The diagram
shows that the students of this cluster use both important and
unimportant VLE tools. Using the important VLE tools for their
studies, some students have spent more than 70–80% of their
time. Only a small part of their time was spent for unimportant
tools. us, it is possible to state that the students of the 2 cluster
use study materials with exact predetermined aims. They did not
spend their time browsing everywhere. On the contrary, they
have found the necessary study materials and tools and used only
them. We way draw one more conclusion: the students from this
cluster do not use a lot of VLE tools (discussions, chats, etc.).
They prefer to study environments traditionally.

103
In distance education an instructor’s role is very important. An
instructor affects the quality and the final result of the distance
learning course. If the instructor is active in the study process,
tracking students’ activities, participating in students’
discussions, promoting these discussions, then the results of such a
course are better than that of the neglected students of courses.
Therefore, in order to and out why the students from the 2 cluster
were so inactive, but achieved the best results, we have
additionally researched the activities of the course instructors.
Their activities were differentiated into the following groups:
1. Students’ stimulation.
2. Course development and renewal.
3. Course administration.
4. Course testing.

Students’ stimulation. is group

includes the instructors whose
activities stimulates
Students to use VLE tools, participate In The discussions, develop
new topics, Do Reply to e-mails
Course development. is group
consists of instructors whose
activities are devoted to course renewal,
replenishment with additional elements, for example, adding new
links to external resources, new chats, les, etc.
Course administration. is group
includes instructors whose
activities are necessary for course
administration: reading e-mails, reviewing study materials,
evaluation of studentsassignments, tests, etc.
Course testing. is group includes instructors whose imitate
students’ activities suas testing assessments and assignments,
reviewing materials and other resources. us, a course instructor
can be sure that a student will see the result as it had been
planned by a course developer. Figure 7 illustrates the course
instructor activities according to the groups that participated
In the distance learning Courses .As we can see from Figure 7
most of the time spent by instructors is devoted to the course
Administration. Only a very small part of their time was spent for
students’ stimulation, and application of active learning methods.
us is possible to state that students’ passivity was influenced by
passive instructor’s activities. The diagram in Figure 8 shows that
very different kinds of promoting activities were applied by
instructors. In some courses students were stimulated very
actively, in other courses, students were le on their own. Is can be
the Reason of different achievements of students of different
clusters: conscious students
Continued their studies independently; other students’
participation was passive and more incidental in general.
When preparing the study materials, course developers and
instructors have to evaluate the learners’ group and to
concentrate not only on the ways of traditional course
presentation (materials prepared for printing, assessments), but
also on stimulation of students of

104 S. Preidys, L. Saactivities. e

diagram in Figure 8 shows that
very dif-

105
This group by involving them into active learning. Is would let us
to achieve better results and would not disappoint the students
who choose virtual learning courses.
Activities of the students from the 3 cluster are very similar to at
of the cluster, but they are a bit more active than the latter. The
students belonging to the 3cluster are less actively using
important VLE tools, a bit more attention pay to less important
tools, but they
Do not spend their spare time for using unimportant tools (Figure
9).
Representatives of this cluster are the most potential students, but
their potential is not used. The students can concentrate on the
most important course elements; they are interested in the new
ICT learning tools, but having no support from the course
instructor, they lose a possibility to achieve better results. A better
performance is expected, if we notice such students and apply
active teaching methods to them.
Findings
Virtual learning is not considered a new phenomenon, there was
an increasing global trend of using electronic learning or Virtual
Learning in the last decade and some higher education institutes
in developing countries have adopted this trend recently.
However, this technology has not been evenly dispersed
throughout all nations and cultures.
More than nine months have passed since the WHO declaration
of COVID-19 as a pandemic, with an abrupt shift to online
teaching and electronic learning. Furthermore, the uncertain
future concerning returning to normal life and stopping this
pandemic results in maximum dependency on Virtual Learning
especially in higher education.
Like other countries, India faced significant challenges in higher
education and transferred its in-person educational system to
virtual learning. A particular urgent challenge was for face-to-
face university courses to be delivered online. In this study, the
Virtual Learning perception, challenges, and predictors of its
acceptance as a method for education during the COVID-19
pandemic were investigated among the university medical staff
members.
The majority of the participants agreed (32.1%) and strongly
agreed (56.1%) that the technological skills to provide online
courses increase the educational value of the experience of the
faculty staff members. Similarly, these findings from our research
support the results of previous studies [17–19].
The majority of our participants agreed (59.5%) on the
advantages of time flexibility of teaching the online course. In
contrast, other previous studies , reported that faculty members
considered that Virtual Learning can take time and can lead to
student monitoring difficulties and can reduce the interest in
direct traditional teaching.
These various perceptions might be related to unfamiliarity with
the Virtual Learning medium, different technological knowledge,
and skills of the participants which highlight the need for formal
training and workshops on using various technological methods
and platforms for strengthening the Virtual Learning activities.
The current study showed that 36.1% and 63.9% of the
participants strongly agreed, and agreed respectively that the
online course enables staff to teach at their own pace. Similarly, a
previous study appreciated the self-pacing of online learning.
Also, most of our participants disagreed/ strongly disagreed
(44.2%) that exams in an online course are harder for students.
The reason for this staff perception might be attributed to the fact
that most of the online tests are based on multiple-choice
questions which allow testing a large number of students quickly,
and across a vast expanse of content than essay questions.
Furthermore, the automated marking of the tests saves the staff
members efforts and time. On the contrary, another study by
Hannafin et al. noted that many observational and participatory
evaluations of distant learning were difficult. Likewise, Oncu &
Cakir noticed that because of the lack of face-to-face interaction,
informal assessment can be challenging for online instructors.
Nevertheless, there are indeed best practices and techniques for
conducting assessments securely with a sort of protection system
in the online environment.
Suggestions
This study has some potential limitations. Being a cross-sectional
study, the participants’ perceptions may change over time.
Therefore, a further longitudinal study is required to enhance the
understanding of determinants that are critical to the adoption of
Virtual learning systems in our community. Also, the present
study was conducted in one medical college. So, in the future,
additional studies need to be done using subjects from other
universities to assess the adoption and acceptance of Virtual
learning in higher educational institutes.
Conclusion
Virtual education was underutilized in the past, especially
in developing countries. However, the current crisis of the
COVID-19 pandemic enforced the entire world to rely on it
for education.

In the current study, the majority of participants strongly

agreed with the perceived usefulness, perceived ease of
use, and acceptance of Virtual Learning. The highest
challenge for accepting Virtual Learning were insufficient/
unstable internet connectivity, inadequate computer labs,
lack of computers/ laptops, and technical problems. The
significant indicators affecting Virtual Learning acceptance
were age under 40 years, teaching experience less than 10
years, and male gender. This study highlights the
challenges and factors affecting the acceptance of Virtual
learning as a tool for teaching within higher education, in
developing countries and may lead to strategic
development and implementation of Virtual Learning and
view technology as a positive step towards evolution and
change.
Questionnaire

1.Have you tried to access Virtual learning from Home?

a.Yes-no problem
b.Yes-but have had problems
c.No

2.Which is the Virtual learning meeting platform you have used?

a.Google Meet
b.Zoom Meetings
c.Teams Meetings
d.Skype Messanger

3. What specifically Virtual Learning good for?

A. Managing Interactive self study and tutorials
B. Reduce learning time
C. Increase the consultation time
D. Enhances learning activities
 
4. Limitation of Virtual Learning:
A. Involves basic equipment and a minimum level of computer
knowledge in order to perform the tasks required by the system
B. Some topics are not appropriate for Virtual Learning.
C. Students can customize their learning pace according to his
ability
D. Virtual Learning is flexible.
 
5. Virtual Learning is self-directed and self-paced means 
A. Learners control the amount of time they spend on any
particular topic.
B. This allows learners to spend additional time on difficult items
before moving on or to skip material they already understand.
C. Students can learn forever
D. Students can learn without being bothered deadline
 
6. Virtual Learning is flexible it means
A. Virtual Learning can be accessed in anyplace
B. Virtual Learning can be accessed by anyone
C. Virtual Learning can be accessed without a lot of rules
D. Learning can take place anytime and anywhere, as long as the
necessary equipment is accessible
 
7. Virtual Learning or training happens in real-time with an
instructor facilitating the training. Most commonly this type of
learning takes place over the Internet, using a “chat room” on
specialized Web Sites. Each student logs in at a specific time and
can communicate directly with the instructor and with each other.
A. Blended Virtual Learning
B. Synchronous Virtual Learning
C. Asynchronous learning
D. Distance Learning
  
8. Virtual Learning provides consistent and effective training it
means
A. No variation in the delivery of lessons
B. All of the target learners can participate simultaneously and
receive the same information.
C. All teachers will have the same style in delivering lessons
D. Reducing the variability introduced through multiple sessions in
different locations
 
 
9. One of Virtual Learning Strategy is "Virtual Learning requires
motivation and self-discipline" its means . . .
A. Successful Virtual Learning students are able to study
independently and incorporate study time into their busy lives.
B. Students must learns everytime
C. Virtual Learning requires a real commitment to keep up with the
flow of the process and to finish within the required period of time.
D. Students should set aside regular study time.
 
10. The critical skills in Virtual Learning is 
A. the ability to efficiently read and interpret instructions
B. The ability to chating
C. The ability to express ideas or opinion through writing.
D. The ability to browsing
 
 
11. Some of the advantages of Virtual Learning are
A. Train more independent learners in the learning process .
B. Does not require the preparation of learning
C. Does not require teacher or instructor.
D. Reaching a wider geographical area

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Sr. Title Name of the

No. author
1 Online learning during Pravat Kumar Jena
lockdown period for covid- (2020)
19 in India, international
journal

2 Impact of lockdown on Pradip Chouhan, (2020)

learning status of
undergraduate and
postgraduate

3 Managing and responding to Rajib Shaw (2020)

pandemics in higher
educational institutions:
initial learning from COVID-
19