Resumen

MABIZELA, S E. Navigating change: Assessing the influence of online teaching on academic performance in pharmacy cohorts during COVID-19. Afr. J. Health Prof. Educ. (Online) [online]. 2025, vol.17, n.2, pp.62-67. ISSN 2078-5127.  https://doi.org/10.7196/AJHPE.2025.v17i2.1436.

BACKGROUND: This study investigates the academic performance of three consecutive cohorts of pharmacy students, with a specific emphasis on admission criteria. The multifaceted admission policy allocates 40% of positions to the highest academic achievers, while the remaining 60% is distributed among top performers from quintiles 1&2, rural backgrounds, and students identified as top achievers within the black and coloured demographic. This classification framework facilitates a nuanced examination of academic performance variations across diverse admission parameters within the pharmacy student cohorts. OBJECTIVES: This study sought to determine the influence of the transition to online learning on students' academic performance, taking into account different entrance categories, in the light of the circumstances imposed by the COVID-19 epidemic. METHODS: This retrospective study examines the academic trajectories of three cohorts of pharmacy students (N=358) enrolled from 2019 to 2021. The primary objective involves the analysis of each cohort's academic performance, employing admission data as a differentiating parameter, with the first-year progression outcome serving as the dependent variable. Subsequently, a comparative analysis of the three cohorts is conducted, utilising the first-year progression outcome as the dependent variable to discern nuanced differences RESULTS: In 2019, academic performance among students with different admission categories was not statistically significant F(2, 101)=2.697, p=0.072. In the year 2020, there were notable disparities identified among different groups F(3, 73)=13.627, p<0.001. However, in the year 2021, no significant distinctions were found F(3, 95)=0.490, p=0.690. The results of the cohort-based analysis revealed significant performance variances F(2, 277)=28.282, p<0.001 CONCLUSION: The results highlighted significant performance variances, underscoring the need for a nuanced approach to education. The transition to online learning, especially amid the challenges. of the COVID-19 pandemic, revealed noteworthy disparities among different admission groups. As we navigate an evolving educational landscape, our findings suggest that embracing blended teaching and learning can enhance students' chances of success. In essence, a thoughtful integration of traditional and online methods becomes imperative for optimising educational opportunities and addressing the complexities of contemporary learning environments.

Palabras clave : Academic performance; pharmacy students; online learning; COVID-19; admission categories.

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