Student input on the effectiveness of the shift to emergency remote teaching due to the COVID crisis: Structural equation modeling creates a more complete picture

Abstract

A study was conducted to assess student reaction to the shift to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) due to the COVID crisis in March of 2020. Four hundred students were randomly selected from a small private university database in central Alberta, Canada. A 65.5% response rate resulted in a final N of 262. These students responded to a 32-item questionnaire that assessed a number of factors that impacted four criterion variables: professor performance, quality of learning, affect on the final grade, and likelihood of returning in the Fall if their university was online. Results showed that the greatest predictors of the criterion variables were: professor support, professor caring, satisfaction with the final exam format, a relaxed schedule, quality of presentation, emotional response, adequate technological resources, and student input. Structural equation modeling creates a model that sorts out the relative impact of predictors on each criterion variable.

The rapid transition from campus to online teaching – how are students’ perception of learning experiences affected?

“…Chen, Kaczmarek, and Ohyama 2020;Dietrich et al 2020;Tigaa and Sonawane 2020;Asgari et al 2021). Authors like Buttler, George, and Bruggemann (2021) had time to test their questionnaire in a pilot study, but noted that previous literature on emergency remote teaching was not yet available to use as a foundation for their approach. One way to circumvent this challenge is to draw upon an existing conceptual framework related to the problem and use it to inform the design of the instrument (e.g.…”

Suddenly Apart, Yet Still Connected: South African Postgraduate Journalism Students’ Responses to Emergency Remote Teaching and Learning

“…Similar to the summary by Buttler et al (2021), Bozkurt et al (2020, pp. 3–8) highlight various concerns related to the implementation of ERT—ranging from trauma and anxiety and the need for a pedagogy of “care, affection and empathy,” to the impact of the so-called digital divide and the need for “essential (soft) skills and competencies to survive in a time of crisis.” Gelles et al (2020, p. 2) also explain that students were faced with a myriad of problems, ranging from limited access to technology and unsupportive home environments, to a lack of peer interactions and “limited and confusing communication” on the side of university structures.…”

“…Buttler et al (2021) explain that the “topic of distance learning (without the ‘emergency’) has been the subject of an extensive volume of research long before COVID was on the horizon” (p. 1). According to these authors, recent studies around ERT (as necessitated by the pandemic) generally focus on what factors influence student learning—ranging from technology issues; quality of presentation; logistics; support of, caring for, and contact with students; emotional impact; interaction with peers; and the likelihood of returning to university (Buttler et al, 2021, pp. 1–2).…”

“…Our research thus contributes in various ways to the ongoing conversation around higher education pedagogy during Covid-19, which, at the time of writing, include the work of researchers such as Mishra et al (2020) who studied teacher and student perceptions of online learning at an Indian university; Shin and Hickey (2020) who, in a study of student experiences at a public university in the United States, highlighted the need for a “sense of community”; Buttler et al (2021) who, through a survey of students at a private university in Canada, found how important it was to “show you care”; Ramlo (2021) who specifically surveyed students who were anticipating face-to-face learning, but then had to move to ERT; and Gelles et al (2020) who found that ERT created an “inconducive learning environment” for many students, who had to use self-discipline to overcome challenges. It should be noted from the outset, however, that our research takes an exploratory, qualitative approach, instead of relying on surveys or statistical modeling.…”

The inevitable surge of online learning through the lens of English education lecturers during the unprecedented times

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has exerted influence on the world because of its viral speed, and due to this pandemic, educational institutions must be aware of the proliferation of digital technologies (Buttler et al, 2021;Istenič, 2021). Nevertheless, the process of online education during the pandemic is different from what has been conducted in the education field.…”