Perspective of Teachers and Students towards the Education Process during COVID-19 in Romanian Universities

The COVID-19 pandemic has created important changes in all areas, highlighting many vulnerabilities, but also opportunities based on the use of technology. This paper aims to provide an overview of the online educational process from two perspectives—that of students and that of professors from Romanian universities. Data were collected from 844 students from Romanian universities disregarding the area of study. To achieve the main goal of this paper, both qualitative (in-depth interviews) and quantitative methods (surveys) were used, the data being processed using the SPSS Statistical software. The results of this paper highlight the discrepancy between the perspectives of the two parties directly involved in the university educational process. The study shows that the pandemic forced both stakeholders to work harder than before, which negatively affected the way the educational process unfolded, the pleasure of the teaching/learning process, the level of enthusiasm, and sometimes even the academic results. The final conclusions of this paper also highlight the need to make financial investments for the acquisition of licenses to create virtual animations or simulations, as well as for training teachers in their use. Research also indicates that to maintain students’ attention in class, especially online, teachers should use new teaching strategies, such as the use of debates and brainstorming sessions.