A Study of Blended E-Learning Platforms for Continuing Education During the Covid-19 Pandemic in Ghana

This study had the following objectives; 1) to outline the challenges University of Cape Coast students faced with using e-learning platforms during the pandemic; 2) to test whether there is a relationship between ICT training input and the ability to use e-learning platforms effectively for learning 3) to compare students’ scores before and after taking a lesson through a blended e-learning format and 4) assess students’ satisfaction with using the blended e-learning format. Using means, the Chi-Squared Test of Association and the Paired Sample T-Test, the study revealed that students at the University of Cape faced challenges with the cost associated with using e-learning platforms, lack of stable internet connectivity, lack of physical connection with others, and the inability to navigate the platforms effectively. The study also revealed that there is a signi�cant association between having ICT training and the ability to use e-learning platforms effectively. Results from the experiment also revealed that the blended e-learning instruction was highly effective and that the students recorded a high posttest score of 24.73 compared to the pre-test score of 17.7. Finally, the students’ satisfaction questionnaire also revealed that the students were generally very satis�ed with the use of the blended e-learning approach.


Introduction
The use of technologies such as the internet, email, chat, newsgroups, texts, audio, and video conferencing to provide education to learners at their own pace through computer networks is de ned as online learning (Dhull &Sakshi, 2017).Teaching methods have grown and changed greatly throughout time.Until the early twentieth century, students were solely taught through lectures and literature.Before this time, the only alternative option for practical teaching and learning methods was to employ schools and museums (Cockerill, et at., 2015).Students were also taken on informative eld trips to get a personal look at what they were studying in class.The invention of radio transmission and recording in the 1920s and 1930s ushered in a new era in education.At the time, the "audiovisual instruction movement," which included educational videos with sound, was a cutting-edge method of teaching and learning.Instructional television began to play a larger role in classroom education after the formation of public broadcasting stations in the 1950s.Computer-assisted instruction for classroom usage was developed in the 1970s, and education began to focus on "educational technology."By the early 1980s, computers were being used in almost all-American schools for educational purposes (Reiser, 2001).
Today, the Covid-19 pandemic coupled with the busy schedules of most students has led to growing demand in computer-based learning or what is now commonly known as online learning across the globe.
Ghana, a developing country in West Africa, nds itself in a similar situation.Though Formal education in Ghana during the British Colonial administration was to serve a variety of purposes ranging from preaching the gospel to forming an elite group to administer the country, today, education in Ghana is aimed towards training citizens with the necessary skills to meet the demands of industries.Ghanaian education today follows a six-three-three-four (6-3-3-4) framework, with six years of elementary education, three years of junior high school, three years of senior high school, and four years of university education beginning at the age of six (Adu-Gyam et al. 2016).Students who pass the West African Secondary School Certi cate Examination (WASSCE) can go on to universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, nursing training institutes, or other tertiary institutions to further their studies.However, over the years there have been various reforms in Ghana's educational system.
The various improvements to Ghana's education system have only served to aid in the development of a more successful educational model in Ghana (Quist, 2003).However, observing how teaching and learning are carried out in Ghanaian schools is just as important as observing how education should be mirrored in the country.Ghana, like many other countries, must respond to the growing demand for remote or online education as a means of closing the country's education gap, especially during the current pandemic.Researchers in Ghana are paying attention to online learning.While some scholars have concentrated on the advantages of online learning in Ghana, others have emphasized the di culties that this new method of teaching and learning presents (Edwin & Yaw 2016;Narh et al. 2019).
In Ghana, a few academics have looked into students' opinions of online learning (Edwin and Yaw, 2016;Narh et al. 2019).Edwin and Yaw (2016) conducted a study to look into the effectiveness of distance and online education in Ghana.They discovered that distance and online education has improved the quality and accessibility of higher education in Ghana, resulting in signi cant increases in productivity in both the public and private sectors of the economy over time.They further argued that online education programs typically provide access to postsecondary education, convenience, exibility, and better knowledge and staff e ciency.Narh et al. (2019) examined the challenges Ghanaian students face when using virtual platforms or e-learning from the perspectives of students' capacities, institutional perspectives, and external factors such as the environment or context, and found that students face the following challenges when learning on virtual platforms: ineffective orientation of students by service providers, systems failures, and a lack of resources.In terms of Ghanaian students' attitudes about online learning, surveys have revealed that the majority of Ghanaian students have negative attitudes against it (Asunka, 2008 andTagoe, 2012).Asunka (2008) surveyed some university students in Ghana to determine the students' perceptions of online learning and discovered that students have a negative attitude towards online learning especially based on the collaborative and independent learning approach.Tagoe (2012), however, argued that Ghanaian students preferred hybrid learning approaches such as web supplemented courses to fully web-dependent or online courses, according to The impact of COVID-19 on Ghana's educational system has heightened the need to improve online learning in Ghana.According to the United Nations' report on Ghana's response to the impact of COVID-19 on education, shortly after school closures were announced, the Ministry of Education (MOE) and Ghana Education Service (GES) developed the COVID-19 Emergency Support Provision of Distance and Remote Learning Systems Solutions, which was followed by the launch of distance and online learning platforms and the adoption of lessons broadcast on Ghana Learning Television (GLTV) for 1 million students.Though there have been some studies on the use of e-learning in Ghana much of these studies have focused heavily on the challenges associated with this new way of learning (Asunka, 2008;Narh et al., 2012 and Tagoe;2012) with little emphasis on the potential for using e-learning to promote education in Ghana a more serious omission in the extant literature is the use of blended e-learning approaches in Ghana and how this method of teaching and learning can be used to close the educational inequalities in Ghana, especially during the pandemic.This study, therefore, seeks to ll that gap by surveying some Ghanaian students in the University of Cape Coast (UCC) on their experiences with using e-learning platforms in continuing their education during the pandemic, identifying the challenges they faced, and suggesting ways to promote e-learning in Ghanaian universities by testing the effects of using a blended e-learning approach to teaching certain lessons on the learning achievement of students.To this end, the study seeks to achieve the following objectives; to outline the challenges University of Cape Coast students faced with using e-learning platforms during the pandemic; to test whether there is a relationship between ICT training input and the ability to use elearning platforms effectively for learning during the pandemic; to compare students' scores before and after taking a lesson in Public Relations (PR) through a blended e-learning format and assess students' satisfaction with using the blended e-learning format At the end of the study, the following questions will be answered: 1. What challenges did UCC students face with the use of E-learning platforms for continuing education during the COVID-19 pandemic?
2. Is there a relationship between ICT pro ciency and the ability to use eLearning platforms effectively for learning?3. What are the differences in students' scores (Pre-test and post-test) after taking a lesson in PR through a blended e-learning approach?4. What was the level of the students' satisfaction with taking a lesson on PR through the blended elearning format?
The following hypotheses will also be tested at the end of the study: i. H 1 : Students with less ICT training before studying online during the pandemic are likely to face challenges with using eLearning platforms for learning.
ii. H 0 : There is no signi cant statistical association between having prior ICT training and students' ability to study online effectively during the pandemic.
iii.H 2 : Students have a high level of learning achievement after learning a lesson in Public Relations through the blended e-learning approach.This study is signi cant because it aids in determining the e cacy of blended e-learning to improve students' academic achievement in universities in Ghana.The research also contributes to a better understanding of instructional design and encourages teachers to embrace e-learning platforms in the teaching and learning process to improve e ciency.The research also makes a contribution to the body of knowledge on the advantages of e-learning in Ghana's educational system.Finally, the study also serves as a source of reference for future researchers who seek to explore this subject further.In this sense, the ndings will add to the pool of data needed by other educational researchers as they attempt to build interventions to address educational issues such as the challenges associated with learning via digital technologies.processes among students who are familiar with web-based technologies, as well as methods to help these students improve their self-study skills, and discovered that E-learning appears to be a growing trend.They, therefore, argue that the online learning approach is best for everyone because it allows learners to access up-to-date knowledge whenever they want it.
Hoq (2020) also stated that e-learning should be incorporated into the educational system."This integration into education represents a shift in instructors' roles from dispensers of learning materials to catalysts of pupils."(See p. 461).The goal of his research was to look at the concept of e-learning and discuss its importance and scope in education, with an emphasis on how e-learning may help with the disruptions in the education sector caused by the pandemic (COVID-19).The majority of teachers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia had a good attitude toward e-learning, especially as a supplement to traditional face-to-face learning, according to the ndings.Basilaia and Kvavadze (2020) also wanted to investigate Georgia's capacity to continue the education process at schools through online distance learning using online portals, TV School, and Microsoft teams for public schools, as well as alternatives like Zoom.Using a case study in which the Google Meet platform was utilized for online education in a private school with 950 pupils, the researchers discovered that the swift transition to online education was a success and that it may be used as an alternative method of teaching and learning in the future.

The Ghanaian Situation
Ghana's situation is similar to that of other countries that were heavily struck by the COVID-19 pandemic.Ghana, like many other pandemic-affected countries, has turned to online and distant learning initiatives  2020) did a study to investigate the obstacles that students in tertiary institutions have reported in online learning during the coronavirus pandemic.Their study found that accessibility concerns were the most challenging for students studying online.As a result, they argue that using a blended learning method to enable students to nish their courses during the pandemic would be more bene cial.Henaku (2020) also conducted a study on the experiences of some college students in Ghana and found that the college students faced internet access issues, nancial di culties due to the high cost of internet bundles, device issues, and disruption due to the necessity to participate in home activities and concluded students preferred a blended between traditional face-to-face instruction and online learning.
Owusu-Fordjour et al. ( 2020), also argue that some students are unable to study e ciently from home, rendering the online learning system unproductive.They also noted that due to their lack of technical knowledge, parents are unable to assist their children in accessing online learning platforms.During the COVID-19 pandemic, most Ghanaian students had limited access to the internet and lacked technical knowledge of these technology gadgets, which made effective online learning di cult.
To explore the prospects of implementing e-learning in higher learning institutions in Ghana during the pandemic, however, Adzovie et al. ( 2022) conducted a study to assess the future success of e-learning in institutions of higher learning, and also to examine the mediating role of academic innovativeness and technological growth in the successful implementation of this new of learning during the Covid-19 pandemic.Their ndings revealed that the surge in the coronavirus pandemic contributed to academic innovativeness in higher learning institutions in Ghana and, however, there is still the need for management of universities in Ghana as well as educational policymakers to develop more innovativeness ways to ensure continuous education during the pandemic.

Blended Learning
Several academics have de ned blended learning from various perspectives.Laster (2005) describes blended learning as courses that integrate online and traditional face-to-face class activities in a "planned pedagogically valuable manner; and when a portion of face-to-face time is substituted by online activity," This refers to the use of online and o ine modes to give instruction.Blended learning is de ned by Holden & Westfall (2006), as cited in Kaur (2012), as the integration of instructional media into a regular classroom, or into a distance learning environment.It also encompasses any combination of media that aids instruction, regardless of whether the medium is synchronous or asynchronous.Blended learning, according to Lalima and Dangwal (2017), is an innovative approach that incorporates the bene ts of both traditional classroom teaching and ICT-supported learning, including both o ine and online learning.Blended learning, as de ned by these de nitions, is the use of three strategies in the educational process: material, media, and technology.
Blended e-learning, on the other hand, is an educational technique that mixes online educational resources and chances for online interaction with traditional classroom instructions.It necessitates the presence of both the teacher and the student online or on-air, with some components of face-to-face instruction.In this study blended e-learning refers to the mix between several online learning technologies and traditional classroom instruction 3. Methodology

Research Design
In this investigation, a quasi-experiment, as well as a quantitative survey, was employed.To better understand the perspectives of participants on the usage of e-learning platforms for continuing education during the pandemic and the challenges they faced therein, a descriptive survey was undertaken rst with 398 students from the University of Cape Coast.This was followed by a quasi-experimental study of 30 individuals from among the target population to test the effectiveness of a blended e-learning approach on students' learning achievement.Internal and external variables such as students' ICT pro ciency before studying online during the pandemic and the quality of internet accessibility in Ghana and its in uence on students' ability to use e-learning platforms effectively to study during the pandemic were investigated in this study.
The second phase of the research took the form of a quasi-experimental study.It was aimed at testing the effectiveness of learning through a blended e-learning approach and examining the impact of this learning method on students' learning achievement by creating a video lesson on YouTube and evaluating students' achievement from the lesson by comparing the means of their pretest and posttest scores.In this phase, the quasi-experimental one-group pre-test post-test design was adopted.One group was employed in this stage of the research and this group was the experimental group.Individuals who volunteered for participation in this experiment were put together on a WhatsApp group page.The details of the research were explained again to all participants on the group page and participants were given the chance to leave the page if they did not wish to continue participating in the study.First, a link to the pre-test questions which were made up of 10 questions was sent to the participants to assess their prior knowledge on the subject matter to be taught.After all, participants had successfully, submitted their pretest scores, the link to the video clip lesson on YouTube was shared with participants on the group page.
After watching the video clip lesson, participants were then given the link to the post-test questions which were also made up of 10 questions similar to the pre-test questions.Participants then answered the posttest questions and submitted their scores.Participants' scores were then recorded and saved for analysis.This was then followed up with a satisfaction questionnaire to measure participants' satisfaction with learning the lesson through the use of video-based instruction.

Population and Sample
The study's population included all students at the University of Cape Coast.The survey participants were chosen using a simple random technique whereas participants for the experiment were sampled using a purposive sampling approach.The researcher planned to sample roughly 398 students for the survey, which is a gure indicative of the entire population.The sample size calculation was based on the nite population formula as postulated by Yamane (1967).See the gure below.
Given that the population is 74, 720.At 5% MoE, then the sample size will be: having prior ICT skills while studying online can increase students' ability to use e-learning effectively.

Research Instruments
Data was collected directly from participants using Google forms in the rst phase of the study, which took the shape of an online survey.The questionnaire consisted of 20 closed-ended questions designed to elicit responses from students from the University of Cape Coast about their experiences with using elearning during the pandemic.The quasi-experiment part of the study entailed the development of a Video Clip lesson on YouTube and a virtual class on Google Classroom.Participants in the experiment were required to complete a lesson in Public Relations by rst enrolling in the Google Classroom to get access to all study materials and watching the main lesson on YouTube, and data on students' learning achievement were collected using pretest and post-test questions.Finally, the study's nal stage, which included administering a satisfaction test involved the rolling out of a new questionnaire via Google Forms to assess students' level of satisfaction with watching the video clip lesson on YouTube.Due to the coronavirus and safety protocols, both the survey and experiment were conducted online.The link to the initial survey was shared on several UCC students' chat platforms and the students were encouraged to ll the forms out of their own volition.The links to the pre-test, post-test, YouTube video lesson, and satisfaction survey, on the other hand, were only shared with the 30 volunteers for the experiment.To ensure validity, the questionnaire and interview guide were shared with specialists who reviewed them for biases and inaccuracies to ensure that the study is both valid and reliable.In addition, before being used in the main study, both of the questionnaires were piloted for accuracy.Additionally, both the pretest and post-test were based entirely on the lesson taught in the video clip.Pre-test and post-test questions did not include any questions that were not irrelevant to the subject matter that was discussed.

Validity and Reliability of Instruments
The pre-test and post-test questions were also submitted to specialists in the eld of public relations, such as teachers and practitioners, to get their feedback on the questions' validity.Reliability, on the other hand, refers to the level of trust that can be placed in the outcomes and data, which is frequently determined through statistical calculations and subsequent test redesigning.Given this, the study employed the use of sound statistical formulas to test the variables and hypothesis set out at the onset of the study.

Ethical Procedures
Ethics is a eld of philosophy concerned with making decisions and determining what is right and wrong (Fouka & Mantzorou, 2011).Professional codes and legislation have been developed to prevent scienti c abuses of human life during research, according to Fouka and Mantzorou (2011), and the Nuremberg code (1947) which is the main code for all subsequent codes made to protect human rights in research.
To avoid severe ethical concerns when doing research, Fouka and Mantzorou suggested that researchers must follow professional rules such as informed consent, the right to withdraw from studies, and protection from bodily and emotional harm.Given this, participants in the current study were informed of their right to withdraw from the study whenever they see t or feel uncomfortable.Participants were also assured that their privacy will be maintained, which means that no private information about them was to be shared with others without their knowledge or consent.All participants for the study were kept anonymous.

Participants' Demographic Information
The purpose of the rst phase of the study was to get insight from students in the University of Cape Coast on their usage of e-learning platforms for continuing education during the pandemic and the challenges faced therein.Also, the survey brings to bear the challenges students faced with using this alternative platform to study during the pandemic and how to improve the situation.At the end of the survey, a total of 400 participants were recorded, however, only responses from 398 participants were used in the analysis as this gure was considered representative of the entire population.The table below is a summary of the demographic details of the participants (See Table 1)  The objective here was to nd out from students at the University of Cape Coast whether they faced any challenges with using online platforms for learning during the pandemic.From participants' responses, it was realized that the majority of the respondents reported having faced some challenges with using these online learning environments during the pandemic.To further understand the nature of the challenges participants faced in their use of these online resources for learning during the pandemic, participants were made to indicate their level of agreement to some statements about the challenges they might have faced in their online learning experience.Participants' responses to these statements are captured in the table below (See Table 2).
Table 2. Descriptive statistics on the challenges of using e-learning during the pandemic From the table participants with a mean value of 4.05 generally agreed to have faced challenges with studying online during the pandemic.In other words, students at the University of Cape Coast faced some challenges with using e-learning platforms to continue their studies during the pandemic.The main challenges according to participants' responses included the cost associated with using e-learning platforms, lack of stable internet connectivity, lack of physical connection with others, and the inability to navigate the platforms effectively.These challenges could be further categorized into external and internal factors.External factors here refer to those factors that are beyond the control of the participants and affect their ability to use e-learning platforms effectively.These included factors such as Lack of stable internet supply, cost of internet connectivity in the country, and lack of physical human connection whereas internal factors here refer to those factors that reside with the participants which might have contributed to their inability to use e-learning platforms effectively for learning.These include poor IT skills and inexperience with using some e-learning platforms making navigation of the platforms di cult for them.However, it can be seen from participants' responses that external factors that have to do with cost and supply of internet were the major challenges they faced with using e-learning platforms to continue their studies during the pandemic.R.Q.2Is there a relationship between ICT pro ciency and the ability to use eLearning platforms effectively for learning?
Here the objective was to nd whether there was a signi cant statistical association between having prior ICT training before the pandemic and the ability to use e-learning platforms with fewer challenges.
To achieve this the participants were asked whether or not they received ICT training before studying online during the pandemic.Participants' responses revealed though that majority of the 58% reported having received ICT training before studying online during the pandemic whereas 42% indicated that they did not.Participants were also asked whether or not they faced any challenges with navigating e-learning platforms when studying online during the pandemic.Responses revealed that the majority of participants 71% responded "Yes" to the question whereas only about 29% responded "No".An indication that more participants reported having faced challenges with navigating e-learning platforms even though the majority indicated that they had received ICT training before learning online during the pandemic.
To properly understand the relationship between having prior ICT training and the ability to navigate elearning platforms effectively among students of the University of Cape Coast, a Chi-Square Test of association was conducted to test the hypothesis (H 1 and H 0) which are as follows: Students with less ICT training before studying online during the pandemic are likely to face challenges with navigating eLearning platforms for learning.

H0
There is no signi cant statistical association between having prior ICT training and the ability to navigate e-learning platforms effectively.
The Chi-Square test was used to examine the association between the two categorical variables.The results showed that there is a signi cant statistical relationship at a 5% signi cance level between having prior ICT skills and the ability to use e-learning effectively for learning during the pandemic (X 2 = 5.87, df = 1, p = 0.016).Hence, H 1 was supported and H 0 was rejected.
RQ.3.What are the differences in students' scores (Pre-test and post-test) after taking a lesson in Public Relations on an e-learning platform?
This section presents data from the quasi-experiment.Here, the quasi-experimental one-group pre-test post-test design was adopted.Just one group was employed in this stage of the research and this group was the experimental group.Individuals who volunteered for participation in this experiment were put together on a WhatsApp group page and enrolled in a Google Classroom so they could get access to all the learning materials for the lesson.The details of the research were explained to all participants on the WhatsApp group page and participants were given the chance to leave the page if they did not wish to continue participating in the study.Then, a link to the pre-test questions which were made up of 10 questions and had been developed on Google Forms was sent to the participants to assess their prior knowledge on the subject to be taught.After this, the participants were sent a link to the YouTube video lesson which all participants watched.After watching the video lesson, participants were then supplied the link to the post-test questions which were the same as the pretest questions but with different question ordering.At the end of the end experiment, participants' pre and post-test results were recorded and the means were compared to each other by a Paired-Sample T-test analysis, and the results are presented in the table below.(See Table 3)  4 the mean score ranged between 4.83 and 3.90, which was between averages to high levels.The item which had the highest mean score of (4.83) was "The instructional video was not too short nor was it too long for the lesson" and the item that recorded the lowest mean score of (3.90) was "I would like to take more lessons through this medium in the future".The overall average mean of the students' satisfaction reports was 4.41, which showed that students had very high satisfaction with taking a lesson in Public Relations online through blended video-based instruction.

Conclusions And Recommendations
At the of the study, it seen that the University of Cape Coast like several other universities in Ghana employed the use of online learning to ensure the continuation of teaching and learning during the closure of schools in Ghana.However, students at the University of Cape Coast faced some challenges with using e-learning platforms to continue their studies during the pandemic.The main challenges according to participants' responses included the cost associated with using e-learning platforms, lack of stable internet connectivity, lack of physical connection with others, and the inability to navigate the platforms effectively.These ndings are in harmony with previous literature that found that Ghanaian students often faced challenges with internet connectivity and navigation issues when using online learning (Aboagye et al. 2020; Henaku, 2020; Owusu-Fordjour et al. 2020).The challenges students faced with using online learning could be further categorized into external and internal factors.External factors here refer to those factors that are beyond the control of the participants and affect their ability to use elearning platforms effectively.These included factors such as Lack of stable internet supply, cost of internet connectivity in the country, and lack of physical human connection whereas internal factors here refer to those factors that reside with the participants which might have contributed to their inability to use e-learning platforms effectively for learning.These include poor IT skills and inexperience with some using some e-learning platforms making navigation of the platforms di cult for them.However, it can be seen from participants' responses that external factors that have to do with cost and supply of internet were the major challenges they faced with using e-learning platforms to continue their studies during the pandemic.
Additionally, the study also sought to investigate the association between students' having prior ICT training and their ability to use e-learning platforms effectively to learn Using a Chi-Squared Test of Association to investigate this it was seen that there is an association between students having prior ICT training and their ability to use e-learning platforms effectively for learning.Though the majority of the students reported having faced challenges with using e-learning platforms for learning during the pandemic, the Chi-Squared test revealed that the majority of those who faced these challenges had no ICT training before the shift to online studies by the University.Thus, a major factor contributing to their inability to use these platforms effectively to study.
The second phase of the study sought to develop and test the use of online video-based instruction in the form of an experiment on students' learning achievement to be used based on the blended e-learning concept.The development of the video-based instruction was aimed at enhancing the teaching and learning of Public Relations among nal-year undergraduate students at the University of Cape Coasts.
Using pre-test and post-test as a means of assessing students' learning achievement before and after being exposed to the intervention (video-based instruction), it was seen that the mean score on the pretest was 17.7 and the score of standard deviation (S.D.) was 1.76.After applying the video-based instruction in teaching the lesson in Public Relations a substantial improvement in students' achievement was observed which translated into a high post-test mean score of 24.73 and the standard deviation (S.D.) was .583.Showing that there was a signi cant improvement in students' learning achievement after being exposed to the intervention (video-based instruction).Therefore, it can be concluded that the use of video-based instruction can be used as a blended learning approach to teaching some lessons during the pandemic.After watching the online video-based teaching, the participants completed a satisfaction survey, with the results indicating that they were extremely satis ed with their learning experience.This corresponded to the ndings of investigations published in the following works of literature (Dejthongpong, 2002;Duangjai, 2006;Motiwalla & Tello, 2000;Oliver &Omari, 2001 andWaraporn, 2004).In this research, two-thirds of students (2/3) expressed great satisfaction with learning via web-based training.

Recommendation for Teachers
Based on the ndings of these study the following recommendations are suggested to be applied as follows by teachers in universities: 4.1.1Public Relations which was the subject used for the study can be successfully taught using videobased instruction so that the technique should be further studied for the learning and teaching of other related subjects within this eld.
4.1.2Regarding students' different learning styles, they should be offered the opportunity to decide whether they wish to work on their own or in small groups when utilizing video-based instruction.This would prosper cooperative learning skills and peer correction.

Recommendations for Developers and Policy Makers
Based on summary and discussions of the study, the researcher has several suggestions for further developers and educational policymakers:

4.2.2
There should be further studies on applying video-based instruction using other teaching methodologies and learning methodologies such as self-directed learning and collaborative learning.
learning courses, these are partial online learning and fully online learning.Partial online learning, also known as blended learning, combines online learning with certain aspects of traditional classroom learning, whereas full online learning is the practice of conducting an entire class on an online platform.Guri-Rosenblit's (2005) description of e-learning as the use of electronic media for various learning goals, ranging from add-on functions in traditional classrooms to full replacement of face-to-face meetings by online interactions, re ects the partial and full online nature of online courses.s2.2 COVID-19 Pandemic and Online learning Due to the closure of schools during the Coronavirus pandemic, several schools have found other ways to keep students educated during the crisis (Radha et al. 2020; Hoq, 2020; Basilaia and Kvavadze, 2020).According to Radha et al. (2020), E-learning has become increasingly popular among students around the world, notably during the COVID-19 pandemic's lockdown period.Their research looked into the E-learning to ensure that education continues amid the crisis.During the COVID-19 pandemic, a few Ghanaian academics have investigated the use of distant and online learning platforms as a means of continuing education.However, the majority of this research has focused on the di culties that come with using these platforms(Aboagye et al. 2020; Henaku, 2020; Owusu-Fordjour et al. 2020) with a few exploring its prospects such as the work of Adzovie et al. (2022) Aboagye et al. (

Figure 2 .
Figure 2. Finite sample calculation results Validity involves the amount to which the research tests what it is designed to test (Cohen et al., 2007).
Descriptive statistics, Chi-Square Test of Association, and a Paired Sample T-test were used to analyze the quantitative data collected.The initial survey's quantitative data, as well as the satisfaction comments, was coded, and the IBM® Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM SPSS version 22) was used for analysis and interpretation of the results.Statistical summaries mean, and standard deviation as well the Paired Sample T-test was also used to analyze the data from the second and third phases of the study, which entail the administration of the intervention (Video clip lesson on YouTube) and study satisfaction feedback.3Results And Discussions This section reports the descriptive analysis of the responses from the survey and development of videobased instruction based on the blended e-learning approach to enhance the learning of Public Relations among Communication Studies students of the University of Cape Coast.The ndings are presented as follows.

RQ. 1
What challenges did UCC students face with the use of these e-learning platforms for continuing education during the COVID-19 pandemic?

4. 2 . 1
Other subjects within the Humanities in which students are interested should be developed through the use of video-based instruction.

Table 3
presented the e ciency of the development of video-based instruction in enhancing the learning of Public Relations among nal-year undergraduate students at the University of Cape Coasts.Participants' mean score on the pre-test was 17.7 and the score of standard deviation (S.D.) was 1.76.After applying the video-based instruction in teaching the lesson in Public Relations a substantial improvement in students' achievement was observed which translated into a high post-test mean score of 24.73 and the standard deviation (S.D.) was .583.The T-test analysis before and after the treatment was 20.44 with p = .000whichdemonstratedthattherewas a considerable statistical difference between the pretest and posttest scores of the participants at the 0.05 level.The Paired Sample T-test was also conducted to test the hypothesis (H 2) which is as follows: H 2 : Students have a high level of learning achievement after learning a lesson in Public Relations through the blended e-learning approach.Based on the results from the Paired Sample T-test analysis which shows that students recorded high levels of achievement on the post-test then the Pre-test "H 2" can then be accepted.R.Q. 4 What is the level of the students' satisfaction with taking a lesson in PR through the blended elearning format?Following the completion of the quasi-experiment participants in the experiment were asked to ll and submit a satisfaction questionnaire to measure their level of satisfaction with using the online media herein YouTube video lesson in Public Relations.The table below is a summary of participants' responses to statements about their level of satisfaction with the learning media (See Table4below).