Analysis of emergency remote teaching in formal education: crosschecking three contemporary techno-pedagogical frameworks

During the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak many countries around the world were forced to turn to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) and upscale the use of digital technologies for learning, teaching and assessment. The current study analysed field reports from 89 elementary and secondary Hebrew-speaking and Arabic-speaking information and communication technology schools in Israel, representing the cultural, ethnic, and religious diversity of the education system. The qualitative analysis of the collected data was based on three well established contemporary models of technology integration and Digital Competence of Educators (DigCompEdu): the International Society for Technology in Education, Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge and DigCompEdu. The analysis (n = 872 statements) yielded aspects in the teachers' reports that correspond with the theoretical models, along-side aspects that extend these models to ERT and aspects that were missing from the reports. Finally, based on our findings and previous work we suggested a comprehensive framework for ERT that can be used to design teachers' professional development necessary for effective remote teaching in both emergency and routine times. © 2023, Association for Learning Technology. All rights reserved.

Online University Teaching During COVID-19: The Malaysian Experience

Malaysia, like the rest of the world, was hard hit by SARS-CoV-2, also known as COVID-19. After the first COVID-19 case was detected in Malaysia (on January 25, 2020) and traced back to three Chinese nationals, the country was put under Movement Control Order (MCO), a partial lockdown, initially for two weeks, on 18th March. Among MCO consequences: close major economic sectors and educational institutions. Public universities, which began a new semester under a Ministry of Higher Education ruling, switched to online teaching and learning. This chapter chronicles public university experiences with online teaching and learning during the COVID-19 period. A brief background captures the measures taken by the government;how these steps affected university education is appraised next;and finally, the steps taken by the universities to activate online teaching and learning. What challenges cropped up and how to deal with them are acknowledged before drawing conclusions from the online teaching and learning experiences of Malaysian universities. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2023.

Norms, appropriation, and social affordances in studying in emergency remote teaching: a meta-analysis of student experiences

In March 2020, all Swedish university education went online practically overnight due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This study focuses on how university students experienced emergency remote teaching in the autumn of 2020. This article provides a thematic meta-analysis of 53 student group reports based on a total of 247 interviews with third-year university students. The findings suggest three themes of particular interest regarding what areas the students themselves find important or challenging: awareness of what it means to be a student, technology reframing communication, and the need for explicit guidance. The findings are discussed in relation to norms, appropriation, and social affordances, as important factors to consider in emergency remote teaching. [or as] blended or hybrid courses and that will return to that format once the crisis or emergency has abated” (Hodges et al., 2020, p. 7). The primary objective "is not to re-create a robust educational ecosystem, but rather to provide temporary access to instruction and instructional support in a manner that is quick to set up and is reliably available during an emergency or crisis” (Hodges et al., 2020, p. 7). One important characteristic of ERT is that it is a short-term solution, with the ambition of going back to the format used before ERT. Therefore, ERT's "intent is to create temporary access to instruction and instructional support that is easily implemented and available during [a] crisis” (Rivera et al, 2021, p. 213). Although ERT is a short-term solution without any explicit pedagogical or didactical ambitions, ERT may include qualities that the unique students appre-ciate. In this article, we use ERT as a descriptive framing of the educational situation in the autumn of 2020. Scope and research question Although there is a growing body of primarily quantitative studies on ERT, there is still a limited number of qualitative studies on students' experiences of ERT during the COVID-19 pandemic. An in-depth understanding of students' experiences is essential in order to provide a nuanced picture of the qualities and challenges associated with ERT. The research question for this study is thus: How do university students experience emergency remote teaching (ERT)? The scope of this study is a qualitative analysis of Swedish university students' responses to interview questions regarding their experiences of ERT. The empirical data give a unique insight into how 247 third-year university students experienced ERT during the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022 Patrik Hernwall, Annika Käck & Johan Stymne.

Hands on activities in emergency remote teaching – form and subject content in science and technology education in the primary teacher program during covid-19

Teacher education has a dual mission;to teach specific subject content to student teachers but also to provide them with examples of how this subject content can be taught in a school context. This dual task is particularly important and difficult in relation to technology and science education, where construction activities, laboratory work and excursions are central practices. As covid-19 struck, Swedish universities had to adapt to emergency remote teaching, ERT. In this study, we explore three university teachers' experiences of adapting laboratory work, excursions, and construction tasks to ERT. The analysis shows that both form and subject content were affected by this adaptation in that students' opportunity to practice science and technological practices and procedures decreased, as well as teachers' possibility to gain feedback from their students. In turn, new ways of communicating and supporting students were developed. © 2022 Johanna Frejd & Jonas Hallström.

Online teachers from offline worlds: Lessons learned

This chapter describes the professional development experience implemented at a Colombian university at the onset of COVID-19 to help alleviate concerns resulting from transforming face-to-face to emergency remote courses. After a review of the literature, we implemented a program for faculty that focused on three key points: (1) exploring the types of technology available for each modality and how to successfully integrate them into the teachers' practice;(2) clarifying the concepts around each modality and how they are implemented;and (3) supporting educational and emotional needs to help faculty and their students during this time. Feedback from faculty was positive although some professors felt overwhelmed at the beginning of the process. In addition, many professors took active roles to help their colleagues promoting emergent learning communities. Future implications show that despite having institutional professional development to meet immediate needs in crisis situations, it also could be useful to tap into the knowledge and experiences of the institution's faculty. Furthermore, continuing professional development for online teaching and learning is essential, thus allowing sufficient time for faculty to learn, adopt, and adapt to new technological tools. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021. All rights reserved.

Designing for digital transformation of residency education - a post-pandemic pedagogical response.

BACKGROUND: The forced transition to emergency remote teaching (ERT) during the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted health professions education worldwide. In Sweden, the need for alternative solutions for the training of junior doctors became urgent, as many of the mandatory onsite courses required for residents to qualify as specialists were canceled. The purpose of this study was to understand course leaders' perceptions and experiences of using digital technologies, such as video conferencing, to teach medical residents (ST) during the pandemic and beyond. METHODS: A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews was conducted with seven course leaders responsible for residency courses during the first year of the pandemic to capture their perceptions and experiences. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using thematic analysis, drawing on the technology affordances and constraints theory (TACT) as a framework to explore pedagogical strategies and new teaching practices emerging from the forced use of digital technologies for remote teaching. RESULTS: The data analysis revealed affordances of, as well as constraints to, teaching specialist medical training during the pandemic. The findings show that the use of digital conference technologies for ERT can both enable and inhibit social interactions, the interactive learning environment and the utilization of technological features, depending on the individual course leaders' goals of using the technology and the situated context of the teaching. CONCLUSIONS: The study reflects the course leaders' pedagogical response to the pandemic, as remote teaching became the only way to provide residency education. Initially, the sudden shift was perceived as constraining, but over time they found new affordances through the enforced use of digital technology that helped them not only to cope with the transition but also to innovate their pedagogical methods. After a rapid, forced shift from on-site to digital courses, it is crucial to utilize experiences to create better preconditions for digital technology to facilitate learning in the future.

Rethinking determinants of primary school teachers' technology acceptance during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic forced teachers to suddenly change their teaching mode from face-to-face to emergency remote teaching creating the biggest disruption in the history of education. Despite facing significant challenges such as a lack of proper information technology training, teaching unprepared students, and infrastructural barriers, there is a gap in research on primary school teachers' readiness to integrate technology. This study aims to address this gap by utilizing the technology acceptance model to explore the relationships between primary school teachers' computer self-efficacy beliefs, attitudes, and intentions to incorporate computer-based technology during times of disruption. Participants were N = 144 Greek, primary school teachers, who taught in virtual settings during the pandemic. Findings from structural equation modeling showed that self-efficacy beliefs, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness are strong predictors of teachers' attitudes towards computer use. The study adds to the scarce literature on the crucial role of teachers' self-efficacy beliefs as drivers of their intention to use technology during emergency remote teaching. Additionally, it highlights the need to consider the unique circumstances in which technology is used and provides insights that can inform the design of effective interventions and policies.

Comparative study between delivery modalities in higher education during emergency remote teaching due to COVID-19

Despite the difficulties faced during Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is also true that such a situation has left a series of learnings that educational institutions around the world should capitalize on. Under this scenario, interest arose in studying three delivery modalities (face-to-face, hybrid, and remote) at the university level, aiming to compare the students' learning level and their perceptions of each delivery modality. The present study was developed in a private university in Mexico, following a quantitative methodological approach involving 360 students and 14 professors from various schools and geographical locations. Data were collected through pre- and post-tests and a perception questionnaire for students. Findings suggest that the students' learning level in every modality varies by school and that students positively perceive the three delivery modalities, albeit identifying factors that foster and hinder their learning process in each one. The results of this study contribute to strengthening the research field on teaching during ERT, allowing educational institutions to make better decisions regarding the quality of the educational offer.

Is there anybody out there? Insights into Teachers' Emergency Remote Teaching Experiences*

This study aims to explore the phenomenon of emergency remote teaching (ERT) during the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of teaching practices from the perspective of public high school teachers. This study, as a phenomenology design pattern in the qualitative paradigm, focused on the phenomenon of ERT as experienced by public high school teachers and as it appeared to the teachers from the first-person point of view. Data were collected from five secondary education public high school teachers who were selected through criterion and convenience sampling methods using an individual semi-structured interview form, transcribed by dictation.io, and analyzed through content analysis. This study yielded vivid descriptions through the themes of "shifting practices", "pearls and pitfalls of ERT" and "most challenging aspects of ERT experiences." Personal gains aside, the study can provide decision-makers with insights for considering the effectiveness of the execution of ERT. The findings can be used to improve the status of ERT practices and learning during crises.

Examination of Teacher Experiences Regarding to the Emergency Remote Teaching Process during the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Phenomenological Study

Today, countries force all participants in the educational process to optimize their work through the Internet, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These unexpected online learning applications conducted in extraordinary conditions were discussed differently from routine online learning and named emergency remote teaching. In this context, the educational process continued online in Turkey as well as in the rest of the world. It is thought that the experiences of the stakeholders are significant in these unique online learning practices in terms of creating a consensus. The current study focused on examining the essence of the experiences of the teachers who were assigned to the emergency remote teaching process in Turkey. For this purpose, in the current study, the qualitative research method was employed, and phenomenology was utilized. The study group consisted of 25 teachers who were working in a province center in the Central Black Sea Region of Turkey, in the 2019-2020 academic year. In-depth interviews were held to reveal teachers' experiences, through a semi -structured interview form developed by the researcher. The data were analyzed with the three steps analysis method suggested by Moustakas (1994), which is frequently used in phenomenology studies. The results of the study revealed that, according to the teachers' experiences, the emergency remote teaching process was partially successful. The most common problems that teachers experienced during the synchronous lessons were internet connection problems, teaching management system problems, and low student engagement. Although the majority of the teachers faced many technical, professional ve emotional problems, the synchronous lessons have been a unique and unforgettable professional experience for them.

Innovative Approach to Enhance Active Online Learning: Engagement, Feedback and Classroom Environment

In the community of inquiry (CoI) frameworks, a meaningful learning with technology in higher education requires interaction of social presence, cognitive presence, and teaching presence. However, it is challenging to create a CoI within an online teaching and learning (OTL) environment especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when educators are forced to conduct it. This paper proposes three innovative approaches for such a community to enhance active learning during synchronous OTL, specifically You Talk for engaging students, Resource Pool for facilitating feedback, and Classroom Meet for recreating the classroom environment. The three approaches were implemented by independent instructors for their respective undergraduates in synchronous online class. The treatment groups show significantly better academic performance than the control groups for all the three innovative approaches. The students from the treatment groups strongly agree that these innovative approaches promote active interaction, enhance attainment of the learning contents, deliver the course contents effectively, assure satisfaction and engage students actively during OTL. It suggests that either approach to engaging students, or facilitating feedback, or recreating the classroom environment serves as teaching presence to support the social presence of the students and therefore creates cognitive presence among them. © 2023, Asian Journal of University Education. All Rights Reserved.

Teacher-efficacy as a complex web: Lessons from a qualitative case study on the transition of military faculty to emergency remote teaching during COVID-19

Although scholars have well-established the benefits of higher teacher-efficacy, the lack of literature regarding the sources and influences of these self-beliefs has led to an overly-reductionistic view of the construct. A teacher's sense of efficacy is a multifaceted entity which involves the interplay of various factors individuals leverage to formulate their judgement of their abilities. These influencers include a combination of internal elements such as an individual's previous experiences or social interactions, and external elements such as the environmental context or surroundings. The aim of this study was to explore the intricacies of the teacher-efficacy development process as situated during a crisis event. Crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, are ominous in that they tend to be volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA). With the crisis in mind, this study involved an ecological examination of the teacher efficacy construct concerning a group of professional military education personnel during the transition to emergency remote teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of this study was to illuminate patterns and themes from within the data by comparing (1) the design context, principles, and design team choices to promote efficacy development during the pandemic with (2) how the course graduates perceived their efficacy.The exploratory nature of this single case qualitative study involved a constant comparative analysis of semi-structured interview protocols with seven participants, archived documents of curriculum artifacts and course materials, and analytic memos. The participants consisted of three course design team members, who planned and implemented the professional development (PD) course, and four military faculty course graduates, who completed the PD and taught their first virtual teaching session. The result of using an inductive analytical approach revealed three interconnected themes that facilitated the efficacy-building process. The consistency in the data exposed that the degree to which the participants perceived authenticity in the curriculum, their ability to harness collaborative engagement among colleagues and faculty, and their opportunity to source prior exposures to handling disruptions and change intertwined to influence the developmental effort. The implications of this study counter the dominant narrative in the literature that teacher-efficacy is a linear, simplistic process. Instead, scholars and practitioners might approach efficacy-building using a collection of biological, psychological, and social influencers. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Response to the impact of COVID-19 by health professions education institutions in Africa: a case study on preparedness for remote learning and teaching

BackgroundAfrica, like other parts of the world, continuously strives to deliver quality health professions education. These efforts are influenced to a larger extent by the socio-economic and cultural context of the region, but also by what happens globally. The global disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 necessitated the implementation of emergency remote teaching to continue delivering on the mandate of educating future health professionals. The purpose of this research was to describe the response of selected health professions education institutions in Southern Africa to the impact of COVID-19 and their preparedness for remote learning and teaching.MethodsA case study design was applied using an adapted ADKAR model as a conceptual framework for data interpretation. The purposively selected study population consisted of educators, students, and administrators in undergraduate medical and nursing programmes from six institutions in five countries.ResultsA total of 1307 respondents provided data for the study. Many of the institutions were caught off-guard when most educators and almost all students were required to leave their universities and go home. Stakeholders immediately became aware of the need to adopt online approaches as an emergency measure. In all programmes, educators, students, and administrators agreed that change was desired, and students realised that they had to take charge of their own learning independently. Overall educators reported confidence in the ability to use of standard Microsoft software, while knowledge of learning management systems proved more challenging for both educators and students. Many stakeholders, especially students and administrators, reported uncertainty about their ability to function in the new reality. Conducive family dynamics, a quiet space to study, good connectivity, a reliable electricity supply and appropriate devices were reported to reinforce learning and teaching.ConclusionsThe findings highlight the need for higher education institutions to prepare for alternative modes to face-to-face learning and teaching approaches with the ultimate aim of transitioning to full online learning more expeditiously. This requires scaling up educational infrastructure, prioritising strategic directives driving continuous professional development of educators and fostering co-constructivist approaches towards student centered education.

Understanding Chinese students' online learning experiences with emergency remote teaching: a case study

Despite the growing body of research on college students' online learning experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic, little is known about how individual students perceive and experience emergency remote teaching in China. To fill this gap, this study seeks to explore college students' perceptions of emergency remote teaching as well as the factors deemed favourable and unfavourable to online learning. This study, adopting a photo elicitation method, investigated four college students' online learning experiences in an emergency remote instruction context. Our study revealed that students went through three stages of online learning and their perceptions of emergency remote teaching changed from one stage to another. Additionally, student-content interaction, strong teacher support and a high-level of digital inclusion were three factors that facilitated effective online learning, whereas lack of interaction with teachers and peers and dormitory confinement were two factors perceived as hindrance. The study explored possible explanations of the findings and made pedagogical recommendations to foster online learning success. The study bears significance for teachers and administrators practicing technology-supported teaching activities amid and beyond the pandemic.

Uncovering the Filipino mothers' experiences in teaching young children during uncertain times through reflexive thematic analysis

The present study examined the preparations made by 14 mothers to ensure that their children's education was unhampered during the COVID-19 crisis and ready for face-to-face classes when permitted. The study used a reflexive thematic analysis of the face-to-face interviews with participants belonging to low-income families living in the central Philippines whose children used printed modules as teaching materials provided by the school. The study generated three themes: "realizing the gaps” (realizing that in-person campus-based instruction is better because distant learning is not effective);"filling in the gaps” (taking the lead in teaching the child at home and assisted by family and community members) and "getting back on track” (preparing children for face-to-face classes against the COVID-19). The study showed how Filipino parents particularly mothers kept their children in school despite pandemic-induced uncertainties, economic scarcities and social inequalities. The desire driven by the perceived benefits derived from education brought out the pathways to resourcefulness. This study draws attention to equal opportunities for learning across socio-economic statuses and a more inclusive delivery of instruction during a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2023 by the authors;licensee Asian Online Journal Publishing Group.

The Impact of COVID: Case Study of an Academic English Reading Course at Qassim University

This paper contributes to the burgeoning field of research investigating the educational effects of COVID. A questionnaire with both open and closed questions was administered to female takers of an Academic English Reading course at a Saudi university, eliciting responses about aspects of the quality of delivery of that course before and after the onset of COVID. From this quantitative and qualitative student evaluation of traditional class teaching (TCT) versus emergency remote teaching (ERT), some findings emerged that echoed those in the few comparable studies in the West. For example, certain features like the greater autonomy of the student in ERT than TCT were liked by some students but not others, while features such as the superiority of teacher-student communication in TCT were more uniformly approved. Furthermore, predictions from the literature such as that favouring TCT would be associated with greater self-efficacy, or a greater perceived degree of transactional interaction between student and teacher were not supported in the context of this study. Analysis of suggestions for ERT improvement leads to the conclusion that, at present, it may be that students need training to exploit the existing ERT, rather than that the ERT to be altered. © 2023 Manal Saleh M. Alghannam.

Emergency remote teaching (ERT) during the Covid-19 pandemic: a case study of experiences and challenges of lecturers

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to investigate the lived experiences, challenges and coping mechanisms of lecturers during the emergency remote teaching (ERT) situation induced by the Covid-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approachA case study on lecturers in colleges and universities in Penang, Malaysia is selected. A qualitative research approach is adopted with semi-structured interviews as the data-gathering tool. Purposive sampling is used for diversity in terms of gender, ethnicity, age, subject or discipline taught and teaching experience.FindingsThe findings are composed into four (4) themes - Theme 1: Lecturers down-shift to lower levels of satisfaction and well-being, Theme 2: Wide diversity of experience with various intervening variables, Theme 3: Lecturers accept and adapt toward the situation and Theme 4: Socialization is compromised.Research limitations/implicationsDespite this being a case study on Malaysia, it is postulated that the findings and recommendations have global relevancy as ERT is a worldwide phenomenon.Practical implicationsPractical education management and public-policy implications are evident and recommendations are made based on the emergent themes.Social implicationsThe findings in the form of emergent themes have considerable social implications in terms of social sustainability of education practices and policies.Originality/valueThis research is novel as lecturers' experience of ERT in Malaysia has not been specifically addressed to date. Even though the fieldwork is conducted in Malaysia, the findings and recommendations have global relevancy.

The Role of IoT in Migration to Emergency Remote Teaching During the Confinement of COVID-19

From March 2020, the outbreak of COVID-19 caused university closures all over the world and induced compulsory migration to remote teaching. The transition from one system to another came abruptly and the entire academic community had to react instantaneously to respond to the new circumstances. The potential and diversity of IoT transformed the modes of education by determining the interaction between faculty and students through digital platforms. This chapter discusses the role of IoT adoption in the teaching and learning process and demonstrates the encountered advancements and challenges of the sudden interruption by exploring the case of the Polytechnic University of Madrid. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021.

Using social connection to drive engagement in emergency remote teaching and learning

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced universities worldwide to deliver emergency remote online teaching and learning. This study analyses teaching practices at a globally ranked Australian university. These practices were adopted to develop connection with students in the absence of face-to-face learning. Complex adaptive system theory is applied, and a mixed research method adopted to examine the evolution of the remote classroom and to understand behaviour as a process of self-organisation. We find that social connection is the underlying mechanism by which the classroom evolved to meet the learning outcomes within the remote online teaching and learning environment. In response to initial transition and institutional pressures, educators attempted to replicate online their work in a face-to-face environment, creating surrogate social connectedness. Our study findings not only extend the literature on the continuing impact of the pandemic on higher education but also highlight the need for pedagogy to drive change and the importance of social connectedness.

Portuguese Language Teaching: (Re)Invention of Pedagogical Practice in the Whatsapp App

The research aimed to analyze the curricular practices of literacy in Portuguese language classes adapted for Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) due to the Covid-19 pandemic scenario. It was guided by the questioning: what are the didactic strategies used by a literacy teacher in the Portuguese language teaching-learning processes during the ERT? It was a case study qualitative research. The research locus was a public school in the municipal network of Maceio-Alagoas whose classes were taking place remotely. For the collection of empirical data, the curricular practices developed in a class of the 2nd year of elementary school were observed. The results showed that the literacy teacher used the WhatsApp application as a "virtual classroom," resorted to the Portuguese language textbook and carried out other complementary parallel activities. Regarding the (re)invention of practices, the teacher produced video classes, explanatory audios, sent texts, digitalized activity proposals and photographs, with the pedagogical intention of mediating children's learning.