PERCEPTION OF STUDENTS ON THE EFFICIENCY OF IMPLEMENTING THE MICROSOFT TEAMS PLATFORM IN DISTANCE LEARNING

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, schools were closed worldwide, and teaching occurred through distance learning. The conducted research aims to identify the perception of high-school students on the efficiency of implementing the Microsoft Teams platform in distance learning, with a focus on its functionality and practicality as a tool for interactive learning, cooperation, and feedback. An analysis of attitudes has been conducted regarding the socio-pedagogical features of students (sex, school, academic achievement, and class). The sample comprises 135 highschool students from the Republic of Srpska (Bosnia and Herzegovina). The results reveal that students achieve more than average scores according to several salient aspects, and are primarily associated with the functionality and practicality of the Microsoft Teams platform in distance learning. These results indicate that students consider the MT platform functional and practical in distance learning concerning information and resource sharing, group work, simplifying of interactive learning, effective discussions, and stimulation of interaction both between students and teachers and among students themselves. The research outcomes reveal the existence of statistically crucial differences between students’ stands in terms of school and the sex of a student. Additionally, from the stated responses, it could be concluded that the implementation of this platform demands extensive digital competence of teachers and students, as well as an informatic and communicational infrastructure of higher quality.