A Preliminary Study on the ICT Facilities and Teachers’ View on Virtual Teaching and Learning for Autistic Students in Malaysia during Pandemic

Abstract

The objective of this study is to examine the use of ICT by autism care centres (ACC) in Malaysia during the pandemic as well as to know the ACC teachers’ view on Virtual Teaching and Learning (VTL) platform. A preliminary study through site visits to four (4) selected care centres were carried out to get visual insight of ICT facilities used by them. An online survey was conducted to get feedback from the teachers on the perceived usefulness and their willingness to adopt the VTL. The site observation results found that all the care centres have basic ICT requirements that can help the teachers to access the internet and do e-filing records, but lack of ICT resources limits the VTL. The survey results reveal that more than 81% of the responding teachers are interested and support the implementation of VTL platform. They are confident that the platform able to aid them in VTL especially during pandemic. It is concluded that the objectives of the preliminary study are achieved and the VTL is very well accepted. Finally, further study on the digital model of teaching-learning that support the development of VTL platform is essential to move forward towards VTL implementation.