A review of the factors affecting virtual higher education after the Covid-19 pandemic in Latin America and the Caribbean

Resumen

Higher education has changed in recent years. An abrupt change came with the COVID-19 pandemic when education had to be entirely virtual. As a result, we now know from practical experience that virtuality has both benefits and drawbacks. After observing the development of undergraduate classes before and after the pandemic, it is evident that it is necessary to know more about the factors that affect student learning achievement in virtual classes. Once the factors have been identified, the next step consists of designing strategies to reduce negative effects and increase positive effects on learning achievement. Thus, this study presents a systematic literature review using the PRISMA method to identify the relevant factors in virtual higher education in Latin America and the Caribbean after the COVID-19 pandemic. The search was carried out on the Web of Science database. Thirty-five publications were found that meet the search requirements. Additionally, the study included 13 publications identified during the analysis. According to studies, factors that positively affect learning achievement include digital literacy, greater provision of virtual education and training from institutions with high prestige, access to greater information, and satisfaction. On the other hand, negative factors included stress, low self-esteem and discipline, economic situation, absence of motivation, and low confidence.