scholarly journals The COVID-19 Diaries: Identity, Teaching, and Learning at a Crossroads

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lavina Sequeira ◽  
Charity M. Dacey

Despite the fact that American education has at its core strived to provide pathways of opportunity to remedy socio-economic inequalities, as educational institutions transitioned into online virtual classrooms due to the COVID-19 pandemic these inequalities have come into sharper focus for us. During the process of engaging in a larger self-study, we became more aware of the stark socio-economic disparities of our students in a virtual space, specifically amongst students of color, and how these disparities affected learning outcomes and their identity. Juxta positioning the situated in-between spaces of in-class and virtual environments our identities as educators were fluid and intersectional, negotiated in response to student interactions thereby enabling changes in our Dialogical Selves. The sample for this study consisted of 2 faculty members and 40 students. Data sources included reflexive journals, recorded class sessions, students' questionnaires, and artifacts such as student feedback collected through “exit tickets” as well as recorded meetings. Some findings include (1) students' identities were negotiated differently in face to face classrooms vs. virtual classrooms, (2) fluidity in intersectional identity due to intersections of I-positions in the dialogical self, and (3) acknowledging and accepting the presence of COVID-19 created a sense of community in the virtual classroom (4) incorporating self-care and caring pedagogical practices provided an empowering space for students and educators.

2022 ◽  
pp. 175-194
Author(s):  
Annalisa Raffone ◽  
Alonso Mateo Gómez

Sars-CoV-2 suddenly spread in late December 2019, forever changing people's lives all over the world. Consistent advancements have been done, especially at the medical level, to face the virus and slow it down. At the same time, schools, universities, and educational institutions have been facing hard times since the beginning of the pandemic. Teachers had to shift from face-to-face to exclusively online classes overcoming daily challenges and helping students with their subjects. This chapter aims to present the results of a study conducted during the first wave of COVID-19 concerning language teachers' perceptions of ERT in secondary schools, high schools, and universities. QUAN and QUAL data were collected and analyzed through descriptive statistics and CAQCAS. The results showed that, despite the difficulties encountered and teachers and students' frequent inability to use digital technologies, instructors at all levels believed virtual classrooms to be useful as additional support to teaching and learning.


Author(s):  
Elizabeth Madathilathu Samuel

The year 2020 has made a mark in the history of mankind. India, too, was affected by the pandemic. To ensure a curb on the spread of the disease, India adopted a sequence emergency mechanism. It announced the closure of all educational institutions along with all the other establishments as a part of strict social distancing measures. The traditional mode of teaching and learning transitioned into online teaching. Online learning and virtual classrooms became the 'new normal'. The analysis was carried out using the data collected through structured questionnaire from 35 teachers in Kottayam District, Kerala a southern state of India. Data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics. It is evident from the study that the teachers lack in the use of various teaching methods for motivating and encouraging students. Further on, since the teachers were caught off guard, they had not received any formal or professional training to conduct online classes or use the advanced modes of technology.


Author(s):  
Hock C. Chan ◽  
Bernard C.Y. Tan ◽  
Wei-Ping Tan

In a traditional classroom, students learn from the physical delivery of classes, which to a great extent depends on the teaching techniques employed by the instructor. In a virtual classroom, the physical delivery of classes depends not only on the teaching techniques chosen but also very much on the technologies used to deliver the teaching materials (Cyrs, 1994). With the increasing use of virtual classrooms, technologies have become a critical component affecting teaching and learning effectiveness (Alavi, 1994). Advances in information and communication technologies have significantly changed the ways students learn, the ways instructors teach and the means with which both parties access information (Leidner and Jarvenpaa, 1993). Virtual classrooms have been investigated in the context of tele-learning (e.g., Alavi et al., 1995; Wheeler et al., 1995) and video-conferencing (e.g., Kydd and Ferry, 1994; Webster, 1998). While such technologies have allowed an instructor to deliver formal classes to students from another geographical location, these classes can be supplemented by informal computer-mediated interaction among the instructor and students through electronic mail or bulletin boards (Leidner and Jarvenpaa, 1995). Advances in internet technologies have opened up new ways for interaction among the instructor and students. For example, the instructor can now place the course materials on the World Wide Web for students to access.


Author(s):  
Lizbeth Habib-Mireles ◽  
Mónica Zambrano-Garza ◽  
Neydi Gabriela Alfaro-Cázares

The COVID-19 crisis quickly led to the closure of educational institutions at all levels around the world, from one moment to another, millions of children and young people around the world were left without receiving their face-to-face classes, and many of them went through virtual classrooms framed in a phenomenon known as emergency remote teaching (ERT). This research sought to determine that well-designed and planned online learning experiences are significantly different from virtual courses offered online in response to this crisis, in order to identify what were the main areas of opportunity that learning in this emergency brought to teachers, students and educational institutions. A 12-item instrument was applied that was analyzed under a systematic random probability sampling, obtaining a sample of 49% of the population. The results made it possible to show the difficulties that arose, as well as the tools and platforms most used during the crisis in the institution of study in order to take advantage of knowledge to improve the learning experience of students.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 215
Author(s):  
Stella Stefany ◽  
Rijanto Purbojo ◽  
Clarissa Adeline

<p><em>The COVID-19 pandemic emerging in early 2020 has significantly impacted various sectors, including education. The policy of home-based learning (defined as online learning), that is implemented by the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture becomes a challenge for students, teachers, and educational institutions. Online-based learning is still an unfamiliar concept to the world of education in Indonesia. Lack of preparation and planning during the switch to online-based learning leads to bad learning experiences for both students and teachers alike. This event was aimed towards Indonesian educators to discuss essential elements regarding digital literacy competence, namely basic principles of distinguishing face-to-face classes and online classes, deciding on a format, design, and interaction in online classrooms, as well as the cycle of teaching and learning. As many as 454 participants from the five major islands in Indonesia virtually attended this event on May 13th, 2020. This event utilizes the ADDIE training developmental model elaborated in five stages: 1) Analyze, (2) Design, (3) Development, (4) Implementation, and (5) Evaluation. </em></p><p><strong>ABSTRACT (INDONESIAN):</strong> Pandemi COVID-19 yang muncul di awal tahun 2020 memberi dampak signifikan dalam berbagai sektor, termasuk Pendidikan. Kebijakan home-based-learning atau pembelajaran jarak jauh yang ditetapkan oleh Kementrian pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Indonesia menjadi sebuah tantangan bagi peserta didik, tenaga pendidik dan institusi pendidikan. Pembelajaran berbasis daring masih asing bagi dunia pendidikan di Indonesia. Kurangnya persiapan dan perencanaan dalam kegiatan belajar mengajar daring berakibat pada pengalaman belajar-mengajar yang buruk bagi peserta didik maupun tenaga pendidik. Kegiatan ini ditujukan bagi tenaga pendidik di Indonesia untuk membahas beberapa elemen penting dalam kompetensi literasi digital seperti prinsip dasar yang membedakan kelas tatap muka dengan kelas daring, menentukan format, desain dan interaksi kelas daring, serta siklus belajar mengajar berbasis daring. Kegiatan ini diikuti oleh 454 partisipan yang tersebar pada lima pulau terbesar di Indonesia berlangsung secara virtual pada tanggal 13 Mei 2020. Kegiatan ini menggunakan model pengembangan training ADDIE dengan 5 tahapan sebagai berikut: 1) <em>Analyze</em>, (2) <em>Design</em>, (3) <em>Development</em>, (4) <em>Implementation</em> dan (5) <em>Evaluation</em>.</p>


Author(s):  
Dannon Cox ◽  
Jennifer Krause ◽  
Mark Smith

As younger generations become increasingly reliant on technology, higher educational institutions must continually attempt to stay with or ahead of the curve to foster 21st century teaching and learning. College and university physical activity courses (PACs) are encouraged to incorporate technology for effective pedagogical practices. No qualitative research has specifically examined the culture of PACs instructors’ attitudes and experiences with technology as a pedagogical tool. A mini-ethnographic case study explored the use of technology among seven graduate teaching assistants who shared their pedagogical experiences, teaching practices, and perceptions of technology within PACs. Using an interpretive phenomenological analysis, composite narrative accounts were presented to highlight unique characteristics of PAC instructors and develop meaning from their lived experiences. The findings revealed that PAC instructors use varying forms of technology, but all instructors rely on learning management systems as a pedagogical tool, which can be influenced by campus environment, pedagogical experiences, and social support. This pilot study contributes to the current gap in research related to technology in PACs and addresses the need to properly prepare instructors to teach in the digital age.


2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Norma I. Scagnoli ◽  
Lydia P. Buki ◽  
Scott D. Johnson

The integration of online technologies in educational practice is rendering new opportunities for teaching and learning. It is known that instructors who have taught fully online courses have acquired new skills and have had the opportunity to implement novel pedagogical practices in the online environment. However, it is unclear whether direct exposure to fully online teaching facilitates the integration of technology in traditional classrooms. This qualitative investigation examined the transfer of four experienced faculty members’ pedagogical practices from online to face-to-face teaching. Results of this case study show that (a) the instructors’ online teaching experience influenced their perceptions and understanding of online pedagogical strategies, and (b) the transfer of pedagogical strategies back to the classroom is a complex process influenced by the instructors’ teaching style, satisfaction with working in the online environment, and the similarity of content and context between online and face-to-face courses. These findings have the potential to inform innovations in faculty training and development and to promote further research in this area.


2020 ◽  
pp. 147797142094773 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenz S Neuwirth ◽  
Svetlana Jović ◽  
B Runi Mukherji

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has required faculty and students to adapt to an unprecedented challenge and rapidly transition from traditional face-to-face instruction to distance learning formats through virtual classrooms. While most campuses trained faculty to ensure quality and maintenance of the curriculum through virtual classrooms, less consideration has been given to training students, who face equal challenges in adapting to this abrupt change in the delivery of the curriculum. Few approaches have been developed for students to facilitate their involuntary transition to virtual classrooms and maintenance of appropriate online learning behaviours and etiquette. Presented here are a series of propositions to help to maintain and enhance the quality of college student engagement and activity in the virtual classroom. These guidelines are from one example of the State University of New York public educational system perspective, at the pandemic’s epicentre, while serving a diverse student population. Initiating a meaningful dialogue between faculty, who are engaged in efforts to cope and adapt to the pandemic, may prove useful in re-envisioning and re-designing future curriculum. This may facilitate future discussions on creating best practices guidelines for asynchronous/synchronous virtual classrooms post the pandemic. The present rapid communication suggests a framework for faculty to develop such guidelines to address the current gap in the literature.


Author(s):  
Christie Lynn Martin ◽  
Kristin E. Harbour ◽  
Drew Polly

In this chapter, the authors explore the experiences of K-12 teachers as they navigated an abrupt transition from a traditional face-to-face mathematics classroom to virtual learning. The authors used a survey to ask teachers to explain what effective mathematics instruction meant for their classroom. Their responses most closely aligned with four of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) effective practices. The survey continued to prompt teachers to share their concerns for the transition, the most effective virtual tools they implemented, support they received, how their virtual classrooms would influence their return to face, and where they needed more support. The authors offer recommendations for supporting teachers as the virtual classroom currently remains in place for many and for transitioning back to the traditional face-to-face classroom. Technology use and digital competence continues to expand in K-12 education.


Author(s):  
Margaret L. Niess ◽  
Henry Gillow-Wiles

The 2020 worldwide pandemic signaled the COVID-19 crisis as a real threat and forced K-12 schools to move teaching and learning from face-to-face classrooms to online virtual classrooms. Educators searched for a silver lining amid the hardships created by the virtual teaching and learning environments. This chapter answers an important question: How has the knowledge that teachers need for teaching changed as a result of School Lockdown 2020-2021? Analysis of the chapters in this book in addition to extensive qualitative observations of two middle school virtual computer science classrooms over six months identified two important lessons needing consideration when requiring K-12 virtual instruction: (1) teachers' knowledge for teaching requires developing their technological pedagogical content knowledge for teaching in both face-to-face and virtual contexts, and (2) teaching virtually relies on a social presence that assures students' sense of belonging to engage in virtual learning experiences.


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