How COVID-19 Created Opportunities for Teachers and Students
There's no doubt that the pandemic caused incredible upheaval in higher education — but the positive impacts of that disruption are significant. Here's how the shift to online learning will benefit both faculty and students moving forward.
- By Dr. Anthony Lee, Dr. Matthew Hubbs
- 05/05/21
While the global COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally impacted industries around the world – especially in the ways they reacted to the unprecedented upheaval caused by these catastrophic conditions. Yet a number of opportunities in the education sector have been revealed amidst the hardships of what was for many a quick and chaotic transition to a destination well outside their comfort zone.
Educators and learning institutions that have embraced this change as an opportunity for growth and exploration are those who have been able to position themselves to best meet the current and future needs of students. While technological progression in education was always going to happen, the pandemic truly sped up the inevitable – demanding both an acceptance of this requirement and adaptation to digital barriers on a timeline much more expedited that it ever would have normally been.
Online learning has required teachers to embrace technology in ways that they may have never experienced before, just as it has demanded a new degree of focus and effort from students forced to continue their studies in a remote environment. The opportunities presented in the wake of COVID-19 have led to the establishment of this mode of educational instruction as a viable option for far more students than before, and the acceleration of remote learning will have tremendous benefits for both teachers and students in the years to come.
Shifting Faculty Roles
Faculty teaching on platforms such as Zoom are now in direct competition with the internet, instant messaging and social media as students look at them through computer screens. As a result, teachers now have to find ways to maintain students' attention with unlimited potential distractions on their students' laptops, tablets or phones. They have had to adapt their teaching strategies and practices to draw students in, keep them interested and maintain interaction through diverse activities in the online instruction of classes. Challenging the established cookie-cutter approach to curriculum, this requires a broader range of skills and the capacity for adaptation and experimentation while learning is taking place.
Changes in the established methods of interaction between teachers and students require new approaches as classes cannot be facilitated in a videoconference or digital setting in the same way that they have been in a physical, in-person format. Successful faculty in this "new normal" are more than likely those who have adopted technology as a support mechanism for student engagement. By and large, teachers have answered this call, showing interest in learning and trying out new tech tools that have a lasting impact. Utilizing online activities, collaborative discussions, interactive polling and screencasts to connect with students has been essential for sustained engagement throughout this uncertain time.
A wise man once said that in the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity, and the disruption brought on by the pandemic has led to opportunities for teachers to rethink how they perform their roles and to try new approaches to what they may have been doing the same way for years. When forced to do their job differently, faculty in many cases have reinvigorated their passion for the job. This drive toward creativity has sparked a significant shift within the world of education from a pre- and post-pandemic viewpoint, and educators should be prepared for a student body that is now more comfortable with remote learning. The demand for the flexibility that accompanies remote learning is likely to rise, and teachers will need to hone their skills as remote educators to allow their institutions to maintain a competitive advantage in the market.