KOTA SAMARAHAN: Despite hardships faced by lecturers and students in adapting to the new norm of online learning, the quality of teaching by Universiti Malaysia Sarawak’s (Unimas) remains unchanged.
Unimas vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Mohamad Kadim Suaidi said intensive preparations were made prior to the full implementation of online teaching in the university.
“We ensured that the quality of teaching is maintained.
“We have not reduced the course assessment rates. In fact, we are also maintaining the quality and standard of our assessments,” he told reporters when asked to comment on University College of Technology Sarawak (UCTS) vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Khairuddin Ab Hamid’s call for course assessment grades not to be lowered.
However, Mohamad Kadim admitted that there were challenges faced by Unimas students in terms of internet coverage, facilities and devices, among others.
“To ensure that our students are not lagging behind in their studies, we have implemented an asynchronous mode of teaching to deliver our learning materials via all sorts of online channels.
“These include WhatsApp, Facebook, emails, Unimas’s own eLeap platform, as well as other social medias,” he explained.
Mohamad Kadim added that the university was not conducting any live online teaching as it might be problematic for students to keep up with the schedule.
“This is to ensure that all the students receive their learning materials.
“We understand that there are some disadvantaged groups who reside in the rural and interior areas where the internet connectivity is not so good,” he said.
