Students’ experiences with and perceptions of distance learning through learner-generated comics

Abstract

Learner-generated comics are powerful communication tools that allow students to convey complex thoughts and emotions through both verbal and visual modes. In this study, comics were used to explore students’ experiences with and perceptions of distance learning (DL) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Female university students were chosen as a purposive sample to discover deep sociocultural meanings in society that could be invisible to men. This study analyzed thirty-two comics created by students using a suggested new analytical framework that draws on systemic functional linguistics theory. The findings were categorized into three dimensions: ideational (who, where, and what), interpersonal (relationships and emotions), and textual (main themes of the comics’ stories). Quantitative content analysis was applied to analyze ideational and interpersonal dimensions (frequency), and qualitative analysis was applied to analyze textual dimensions (themes). Thematic analyses were categorized into three themes: challenges, advantages, and disadvantages. The findings were interpreted through a cultural lens in a style that presents the chief subjects that should be carefully considered in future scenarios of digital education. Several implications and future studies are suggested, especially about cultural issues in education, the quality of DL, and addressing the challenges and disadvantages associated with it.

Keywords:

• Covid-19
• digital comics
• grammar of visual design
• content analysis
• sociocultural issues
• visual methodologies

Authors’ contributions

The article has been written by only one author.

Conflict of interest

The author declares that she has no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

The author acknowledges the Deanship of Scientific Research at King Faisal University in Al-Ahsa for the financial support (GRANT665).

Notes on contributors

Hibah Aladsani

Hibah Khalid Aladsani is an assistant professor of educational technology with the Curriculum and Instruction Department, King Faisal University, Saudi Arabia. She received her PhD from Sheffield University, UK, in 2019. She has published internationally with well-known publishers, such as Elsevier, Routledge, Springer, and SAGE. Her research interests include e-learning, using social network sites in education, and qualitative research methodologies. She has presented at various academic events in Saudi Arabia and UK. She won first place in the 2022 Faculty Excellence Award at King Faisal University. She is a member of the British Educational Research Association (BERA) in the UK, and the Association for Learning Technology (ALT) in the UK. Twitter: @HibahKA and @haladsani.