From Classroom to Online: Comparing the Effectiveness and Student Academic Performance of Classroom Learning and Online Learning

The COVID-19 pandemic temporarily shifted the teaching and learning mode in most tertiary institutions in Ghana from the classroom to online. Accordingly, this present study aimed to compare classroom learning effectiveness during the coronavirus pandemic to the effectiveness before the coronavirus pandemic at the University of Cape Coast. The performance of stu- dents in both teaching and learning modes was also compared. This study was a case study research, and both primary and secondary data were employed. The effectiveness was measured using course content, pedagogical approaches, interactivity and assessment, feedback and evaluation. Data on effectiveness was collected using a questionnaire, and students’ assessment was used to measure their performance. The data were analyzed using a pair- ed-sample t-test embedded in Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 26. The results show that classroom learning was more effective than online learning. Additionally, the students exhibited good academic performance in classroom learning than online learning, although the difference was not statistically significant. The contribution of the findings is discussed.