THROWN INTO THE DEEP END: EXPERIENCES OF REAL ESTATE AND URBAN PLANNING STUDENTS IN NAVIGATING E-LEARNING DURING COVID-19

Abstract

Built environment undergraduates are future professionals who will shape cities in the future. Normally, they acquire adequate, relevant and current industryrelated knowledge during their study. Yet, the COVID-19 pandemic has replaced their normal learning process with emergency online learning that must be navigated by educators and students alike. Under normal circumstances, the programme syllabi and materials are designed for conventional face-to-face learning specific to the future profession. The physical and social restrictions related to COVID-19 prevention have thrusted upon the built environment students learning limitations that are specific to their field. This paper aims to explore the experiences of real estate and urban planning students during the emergency online learning period not only to document the students’ experiences but also to inform on future curricula development. A constructivist-based qualitative approach was adopted, with qualitative data collected from an online open-ended questionnaire on real estate and urban planning students. Using the framework by Khalil et al. (2020), a thematic content analysis was conducted around four core themes: (1) educational impact, (2) time management, (3) challenges encountered, and (4) preferences for the future. The findings support future syllabi that are emergency-resilient and can ensure professional education that is highly adaptable in emergency situations.