Abstract: This paper aims to identify the determinants of online effective learning in three public universities in Cambodia during the COVID-19 pandemic using our joint survey data of about 1500 samples collected from National University of Battambang, Royal University of Phnom Penh and Royal University of Fine Art. From our survey data we found that a vast majority of students in both rural areas and urban areas used smart phones for online study. However, about half used computers. Microsoft team, Telegram and ZOOM were the main platforms for online learning during COVID-19. The internet service was still poor, and the quality of the internet service was not much different between rural and urban areas. Using a simple logistic regression model, we found that older students are more likely to choose online/hybrid learning than younger students, students from families whose income were reduced during COVID-19 are less likely to choose online/hybrid learning in the next semester, the more severe the economic effect of COVID-19 are, students are more likely to choose online/hybrid learning, students who use home Wi-Fi are more likely to choose online/hybrid learning than students who use mobile Wi-Fi, teacher’s skills for online learning is also important for students to choose online/hybrid learning, students who are more active in sports are more likely to choose online/hybrid learning in the next semester. The findings suggest that online learning is appropriate for senior students while face-to-face learning shall be provided to freshman students.

 

Keywords: online learning, COVID-19, anxiety, depression, sport activities, effectiveness