Through their eyes: Student and instructor experiences building connections during COVID-19 teaching and learning
Concurrent Session 6
Brief Abstract
Our multi-phase mixed methods study spans two semesters at a university during the pandemic, showcasing student voices and instructor experiences building connections in online courses to support learning and motivation. Findings provide insight into practices to support connectedness, deeper understanding of the link between connectedness and anxiety, and teaching implications.
Presenters
Extended Abstract
Overall Focus of the Research
Our research is centered in instructor connectedness and instructor social presence. Research has found that instructor presence relates to student success and satisfaction in online courses (Brinkerhoff & Koroghlanian, 2007), enhances student motivation to learn, and reduces a feeling of isolation (Richardson et al., 2015). Students value instructors who are caring, responsive, and establish a method of communication between themselves and the students (Hodges & Cowan, 2012; Sheridan & Kelly, 2010; Wise et al., 2004; Whiteside, 2015). Instructional practices that support instructor connectedness include posting regularly to the discussion board, timely responses to emails, assignments, and student questions, and modeling good online communication and interactions (Kassinger, 2004; Martin et al., 2018; Palloff & Pratt, 2003; Whiteside et al., 2017). Many researchers have worked to define instructor connectedness and identify practices to build connections in online and blended learning; our study provides voice to students regarding what is successful and illuminates the instructor experience, focusing on building those connections to support learning and motivation.
Overview of Presentation and Plan for Interactivity
Our presentation starts with an interactive Padlet where audience members share examples of course practices successful in helping build connectedness in online and blended learning. Audience ideas springboard the conversation about main takeaways from our research. We share the foundation of our work through a brief discussion of instructor connectedness and instructor social presence, provide an overview of our research, focusing on the voices of the students and instructors, and include time for a guided discussion of specific recommendations. We will utilize the Padlet throughout the presentation by posing questions related to the findings and asking audience members to share their reflection and ideas. The Padlet is a resource-driven space where audience members can return and share additional items even after the presentation has ended.
About the Research Study
The current study utilizes a pragmatic worldview, one that is problem-centered and oriented toward real-world practice (Creswell, 2009). We were seeking to understand higher education student and instructor perceptions of connectedness in classes in order to impact instructional practice within the specific context. Our multi-phase mixed methods research study examines the following:
- What practices did instructors employ during remote teaching to ensure a successful class?
- What aspects of instructor social presence do students respond to most?
- How do students perceive instructor social presence and its impact on their learning?
- How did remote teaching in Spring 2020 impact future teaching practice?
This research project spans spring and fall semesters 2020 at a regional public institution in the mid-South of the United States, which serves approximately 18,000 students. In March 2020, all instruction shifted to remote after an extended spring break. Fall semester 2020 remained primarily remote, with 61% online, 25% hybrid, and 14% modified face-to-face with social distancing requirements.
Phase One: During the initial exploratory phase in Spring 2020, we surveyed a representative sample of students to ask their perceptions on courses where they felt the instructor was successful in keeping them connected to the course, their fellow students, and the instructor when all classes shifted online. The survey instrument contained basic demographics and open-ended questions to reflect the change of instructional method from face-to-face to online. Students were asked to identify a face-to-face course that transitioned to online, provide examples of why they thought the course was successful, and provide additional information they wanted to share. The remainder of the instrument contained thirteen closed-ended questions adopted from Sheridan and Kelly (2010) which tapped students’ perceptions of instructor social presence. Four hundred and eighteen students responded for a 7% response rate.
Phase Two: Although not explicitly asked to do so in our Spring 2020 survey, students identified instructors by name who they felt were successful with the quick shift to remote teaching. In Fall 2020, we conducted instructor interviews with a purposeful sample of 11 instructors named by students in the Spring 2020 survey. A cross-section of instructors was chosen across the primary academic Colleges at the institution: Business, Education, Arts and Sciences, and Health and Human Services. We were seeking to understand connectedness during remote learning from the instructor perspective, as well as how the shift to remote learning in the Spring impacted their teaching, regardless of modality, in the Fall (asynchronous, synchronous via Zoom, Hy-Flex, and socially-distanced face-to-face).
Phase Three: Concurrent to the instructor interviews, undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in 22 classes with the eleven instructors (N=655) were sent an online survey. Researchers gained permission from instructors to contact participants via their online course. The survey instrument was adopted from Creasey and colleagues (2009) - a 36-item Student-Instructor Relationship Scale developed to tap into student-instructor relationship connectedness and anxiety. Eleven items relate directly to instructor connectedness. Eight items relate to student anxiety. One hundred and fifteen students responded for a 17.5% response rate.
Brief Results
Emerging theme – Practices to support connectedness
Six main themes emerged from the student data (Phase one and Phase three) around instructor practices to support connectedness. The themes are Instructor Responsiveness, Communication, Empathic Facilitation, Instructor Approach, Course Organization, and Feedback. They are presented in Table 1 with student examples, potential application, and things for instructors to remember during implementation.
Emerging theme – Shifts in remote learning carried over into the new modality
All eleven instructors interviewed had little or no experience teaching online before the COVID-19 pandemic forced them into remote teaching in Spring 2020. The instructors may have felt forced to explore new technology tools to support their teaching and their students’ learning in the remote semester, but they seem to have all identified one particular tool or methodology that they utilized (e.g., flipped classroom, extensive use of document camera, VoiceThread) in the Fall semester. For example, one instructor mentioned how she was introduced to Slack for group and threaded discussions during the remote semester and, even though she was teaching in a hybrid modality, she continued to use it for most of the student-student and student-instructor conversation and connections.
Emerging theme – Connectedness and anxiety
Often people feel there is a difference of learning and motivation between students who are f2f and online. Students in phase three of our study who identified high levels of connectedness with their instructor also identified low levels of anxiety, regardless of modality. Table 2 details the comparison of means between class modality.
Conclusions
As more courses and programs move to an online format, understanding how students connect to instructors from the student perspective is vital for student learning and satisfaction. Since many of the students in this study were enrolled in face-to-face instruction that was forced online due to COVID-19, their responses provided insight into what students truly value in the online sphere regarding successful online courses and why they valued one aspect over another. In addition, the current study illuminates the immediate impact the shift to remote teaching had on future instructor practice. The results from this research can assist new and seasoned instructors with recommendations for connecting with students in any course modality.