Review

The monograph Satysfakcja z nauki zdalnej - problemy, wyzwania i rekomendacje dla uczelni wyższych [Satisfaction with Remote Learning - Problems, Challenges and Recommendations for Higher Education Institutions] by A. Bęczkowska, R. Skrobacki and J. Flicińska-Turkiewicz (Wydawnictwo Naukowe TYGIEL, Lublin, 2023) explores themes embedded within the contemporary narrative concerning the state of education and learning, the future of higher education institutions in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, new forms of communication between learners and teachers, nurturing relationships, and concern for the mental state of all subjects of the education sector. The American writer, satirist and humourist Mark Twain believed that civilisation is the limitless multiplication of unnecessary necessities. In a twist of fate, without the pandemic, there would have been no need for an immediate shift to remote learning and no new distance learning avenues would have opened up at such a rapid pace. Over time, it has become part of the academic landscape as well as education at various levels, including in-school and out-of-school learning. Polish political activist and philosopher Maria Szyszkowska believes that the civilisation of abundance is being wrongly correlated with an era of happiness. In order to be happy, considering subjective conditions and individual characteristics, one needs to be in touch with other people, rather than with things. At the same time, civilisation is inextricably linked with technology. As authors note in their paper: “The COVID-19 pandemic can be viewed as a catalyst for change in the field of remote learning and schooling.”

The monograph comprises an introduction, three chapters (detailing theory, methodology and research), as well as conclusions. There are no issues or concerns regarding the layout and organisation of content. I would suggest taking into consideration changing the work’s title to: Nauka zdalna - wyzwania i rekomendacje dla uczelni wyższych [Remote Learning - Challenges and Recommendations for Higher Education Institutions] since the original title makes it seem like a paper, rather than a monograph. The term challenges encompasses a number of other areas, including issues, satisfaction and obstacles. The focus on satisfaction with remote education can be communicated in the introduction, since it is highly visible in the part concerning the research questions. I leave it for the Authors’ consideration. In item 1.2.4. Factors connected with relationships, the sentence seems incomplete, with missing information as to whom and what it concerns, and what are the factors. The same issues occur in item 3.1.4.1. Students’ ability to engage in terms of time and resources, with missing information on the resources in question. The same can be said of the next item.

The introduction raises some concern, as it goes more into the historical catalysts for rapid change, as the author(s) put it, rather than providing some kind of introduction to the issues at hand. While it might be a good idea to highlight the broader context, it needs to be done in a skillful way, without departing too far from the main topic. The key challenge is to make the general statements included in the introduction relevant enough to the subject matter at hand. It could be a reference to the main hypothesis or the understanding of the key term, then focus the entire introduction around it. It could also be used to make the reader curious and raise some doubts to convince them to continue reading. In the theoretical deliberations, it would be worthwhile to refer to Jacek Pyżalski’s Edukacja w czasach pandemii wirusa COVID-19 [Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic], which is available online. In the ‘Works Cited’ section, I could not find a reference to J. Cayanus & M. Martin (2008), even though that work was mentioned in the text.

The main purpose comprises several elements linked with the conjunction ‘oraz’ [‘and’]. It might have been a good idea to highlight a single main purpose and provide an explanation, as well as the outcomes of the overarching goal. As of now, it says: “The proposed main purpose of this study is to identify the factors that determine students’ and lecturers’ satisfaction with remote learning at GSW Milenium and to provide recommendations for students, lecturers, administrative staff and university managers based on these factors.”

In the study part of the monograph, the authors use variables - they should have been defined and indicated in the table of contents and in the methodology section.

What is more, the title mentions recommendations, which could have been listed in the conclusions to the monograph. Please refer for example to: J. Pyżalski & N. Walter, Edukacja zdalna w czasie pandemii COVID-19 w Polsce - mapa głównych szans i zagrożeń. Przegląd i omówienie wyników najważniejszych badan związanych z kryzysową edukacją zdalną w Polsce - available online.

I consider Satysfakcja z nauki zdalnej - problemy, wyzwania i rekomendacje dla uczelni wyższych to be an interesting and needed publication. This monograph should be studied by educators, sociologists, scholars and teachers who are exposed to remote education and want to learn more about the specifics of the online education landscape. I recommend this engaging monograph for publication in the hope that it will contribute to an even better understanding of the process of remote education or the use of its elements in teaching and learning. One of the key valuable aspects of this publication are references to studies on remote education carried out in other countries, including Singapore, India, Spain, the United States and Poland. I found it interesting that the authors noted the need to foster motivation in lecturers and students and seek ways to keep them focused and interested in the process of remote communication.

As for the scientific approach, the research part referred to a five-degree Likert scale, the Cronbach Alpha index, and the value of the r-Spearman correlation coefficient. In addition, the authors carried out an analysis of the differences between the index levels of the first and second student surveys using the Mann-Whitney U test. They also referred to numerous authors, including J. Cayanus & M. Martin; I. M. K. Ho, K. Y. Cheong & A. Weldon, K. M. Sheldon, J. C. Hilpert and others. The findings raised questions about the skills of lecturers, including a lack of specific remote education training in the early stages of the pandemic, issues with rapport, as well as technical problems such as organisation issues, work from home, inadequate equipment, camera and connection issues.

Education is a relationship that is fostered by means of communication - during the pandemic, that communication was mediated by devices. The monograph highlights the issue of satisfaction and presents findings concerning the factors influencing student and lecturer satisfaction with remote learning using the example of an existing higher education institution. The publication can also serve as a reflection upon the broadly understood education of the future, epitomised in the words of Ryszard Kapuscinski’s Lapidarium: “Upon encountering an obstacle that one cannot destroy - one begins to destroy themselves.”