58% Indians say virtual education was ineffective: Ipsos IndiaBus Survey

The verdict is out on the efficacy of Virtual Education. According to a pan-India Survey by Ipsos to assess the effectiveness of Virtual Education during the pandemic in these last 2 years, the findings are somewhat alarming, with at least 6 in 10 of the respondents (58%) believing Virtual Education was ineffective. Further, respondents aged 45+ (probably with children in schools or colleges) were most disillusioned (63%) with virtual education and its effectiveness. And notably a greater number of women (60%) gave a thumbs down to Virtual Education. The survey also shows that SEC C respondents (65%) were most unhappy with the success of virtual education.

Parijat Chakraborty, Group Service Line Leader, Ipsos Public Affairs & Corporate Reputation, said, “I’m not surprised with the findings. While the students did not lose their crucial years of studies, the learning per se was nowhere close to physically attending of classes. Attention span was low in virtual classes and tech glitches, problem solving, it was a lot to deal with. For women, it magnified their workload, whether homemakers or working women and mothers, with daily chores, office work, no domestic help and online classes and assignments to deal with. This phenomenon is also laudatory that education continued despite the strained macro forces.”

The survey shows more disparities by regions. East India (67%) and South India (65%) had higher level of disenchantment with the effectiveness of virtual education. Fully employed (62%) were unhappy and those from Tier 2 towns (65%) found the online model of education ineffective.

Positive impact areas

While the virtual education model did not keep pace with the brick and mortar, conventional school format, the survey shows that the virtual education model did lead to some positive impacts. At least 1 in 2 (50%) of respondents polled said that the ability to manage technology improved, virtual connecting skills improved (42%), interaction with co-students/ friends improved (41%), interaction with teacher improved (40%) and social skills improved (38%).

Negative impact

At least 36% of the respondents polled felt, the biggest downside was that the ability to concentrate on studies deteriorated during online classes.

Impact of online education and exams on overall quality of education

The survey showed polarised views on the quality output of the online education model. So, while 34% felt it worked, 32% gave it a thumbs down.

Ipsos IndiaBus is a monthly pan India omnibus quantitative survey that uses a structured questionnaire and is conducted by Ipsos India on diverse topics among 2,800+ respondents from SEC A, B and C households, covering all adults of both genders in a representative way. The survey is conducted in te Metros, Tier 1, 2 and 3 towns, providing a more robust and realistic view of Indians. The respondents were polled face to face and online. The margin of error is +/-3% with 97% accuracy levels.