Student's attitudes towards online assignment submission at College of Health Sciences, University of Bahrain

Technology has made a significant impact on assessment, including its use to automate assignment submission. All processes in the workflow - submission of assignments, assessment, and feedback given are performed using electronic files. Online assignment submission was introduced at the College of Health Sciences (CHS), University of Bahrain (UoB) in 2008 through the Learning Management System. This research attempts to answer two questions: Firstly, what are the perceptions of the CHS instructors and students about the use of online assignment submission? Secondly, what challenges do instructors and students encounter in using online assignment submission at the CHS? One hundred and forty (140) students from different programs at the College have participated in this study. Ninety six (96%) of the CHS students had very good computer skills and e-learning experience and 63% of the students reported familiarity with online assignments during their study period at the CHS. Eighty percent (80%) of students prefer to submit and to get their assignments grades online. Also, eighty three percent (83%) think that online assignment submission is quicker than the hard copy submission. Eight (8) teaching faculty from the Integrated Sciences Department participated in the interviews. The interview results revealed that although most teaching faculty have good skills in using computers and its applications, they prefer to use traditional teaching methods with increased dependence on computer applications. They also believe that the Web based programs with supporting materials such as online assignments, animations, and videos support the teaching process and make learning more enjoyable.