When Technology Becomes a Student Lifeline: Impacts of a Pandemic on Student Success

Higher education institutions across the US transitioned to remote learning during the spring 2020 semester due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The swift pivot to online instruction prompted institutions and faculty members to reflect on numerous lessons learned. The purpose of this study is to examine fa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Educational research (Orem, Utah) Utah), 2022, Vol.33 (1), p.29
Main Authors: Grotrian, Sheri, Parriott, Lisa, Griffin, Brad, Leininger, Kelsi
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic Achievement
College Faculty
College Students
COVID-19
Distance Education
Electronic Learning
Pandemics
Student Attitudes
Student Experience
Teacher Attitudes
Technology Uses in Education
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Summary:Higher education institutions across the US transitioned to remote learning during the spring 2020 semester due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The swift pivot to online instruction prompted institutions and faculty members to reflect on numerous lessons learned. The purpose of this study is to examine faculty and student experiences regarding the abrupt expectation and requirement of technology use for remote instruction. Additionally, review of anecdotal evidence will provide insight into what types of technological accommodations were made for students for the face-to-face (f2f) classroom when classes reconvened. The authors, comprised of three faculty members and an undergraduate student, examining their experiences and their institutional data lends itself well to the case study approach, naturally due to its particularistic, descriptive, and heuristic nature. Data from the institution was gathered through e-mail communication with the Vice President of Academic Affairs. Anecdotal evidence from one institution and personal experiences demonstrate resilience on behalf of the students and faculty was key to the success of classes continuing. From the organization perspective, the full requirement of online teaching was necessary through the institutional Learning Management System (LMS), Blackboard, and was key to survival of classes, although not all felt the same. The authors found their experiences, in particular, to be less intimidating from a logistical setup as they each already had LMS course shells intact for all classes. Challenges also surfaced for students during this quick transition. Students experienced many technical issues, including a lack of access to technology capable of running required programs and limited access to reliable internet.
ISSN:2637-8965
2637-8965