Prioritizing E-Learning Alternatives for University Students Through an Integrated AHP-TOPSIS Framework

Abstract

The growing reliance on e-learning in education and training has produced multiple instructional alternatives. This study aimed to prioritise five such e-learning alternatives, i.e., Blended Learning, Mobile Learning, Online Distance Learning, Flipped Learning, and Asynchronous Learning for university students using an integrated Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) framework. Data were collected from 132 undergraduate and postgraduate students across five constituent institutes of Banaras Hindu University, who rated each alternative on accessibility, cost, interactivity, ICT availability, and academic quality during 2024-25. AHP was used to derive criteria weights (based on experts' judgments), while TOPSIS ranked the alternatives using these weights from the actual users' (i.e., students) perspectives. Results showed that ICT availability (0.290) and academic quality (0.263) were the most influential criteria. Blended Learning ranked highest for both undergraduate and postgraduate students, while second-ranked preferences diverged, with undergraduates favouring Mobile Learning and postgraduates favouring Flipped Learning. These findings indicate that robust ICT infrastructure and academic quality are foundational to effective e-learning. The blended approaches, tailored with level-appropriate secondary delivery modes, offer the most learner-responsive strategy for institutions designing digital learning environments.