Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 31 to 35.

The coronavirus pandemic has increased the necessity of digital and online learning, as most school and college students have spent longer periods at home than in school. Many educationalists and parents have been calling for children to go back to the classroom. There is the perception that no form of digital learning experience can surpass the classroom experience.

A study called “Online Education Platforms Scale College STEM Instruction With Equivalent Outcomes at Lower Cost” has found that students learned just as much in online STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) college courses when compared to traditional classroom settings. The reason for the STEM focus is due to a current shortage of highly skilled professionals in these areas. These are sectors seen as the importance for global recovery.

In making this point for the relative success of e-learning, Cornell University researchers say that online learning can also be delivered at a dfraction of the cost of the traditional school setting (around an 80 percent reduction, on average). Similar savings (albeit only of 20 percent) can be made from a hybrid approach. The study used some 300 students based in Russia. To evaluate the data, scientists the researchers developed a controlled, randomized trial to test if students learned as much in online classes compared with traditional in-person classes. It was found that final exam scores did not differ significantly among the three versions. Another benefit is where activity-based online learning, rather than lecture-based, enhances student creativity.

Despite the equivalency in learning outcomes, there are other aspects of attending school or college that cannot be adequately catered for online. It was discovered that online students were less satisfied with their course experience compared to students in in-person and blended classes.

(source: https://www.digitaljournal.com/)

The word “equivalency” in paragraph 4 mostly means _______.