Education Commons^™

Uncovering Insights On Remote Learning Through A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Tweets At The Start Of The Pandemic In The United States, Douglas Wayne Bridges

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the discourses surrounding remote learning during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic through Twitter conversations. Employing a Critical Discourse Analysis informed by Michel Foucault’s theories of discourse and power, this study explores how the pandemic has transformed educational interactions over social media platforms. It particularly focuses on the relationships between language, power, and social structures, highlighting the transformative potentials of remote learning amidst a global crisis.

The research reveals how discourse on Twitter reflects broader societal and cultural dynamics, serving as a microcosm of the shifts within the educational sector. Analysis of Twitter threads, retweets, and …

An Equitable Technology Infrastructure Model: Sustained Technology Practices Implemented During Covid-19 That Address Educational Inequities, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Presentations and Posters

2020 Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the digital divide revealing an expanse of inequity among students who had access to the internet, personal devices, and parental support during remote learning and those who did not. Framed with the theoretical lens of equity literacy, this poster details the results of a survey completed by 56 Minnesota district level technology directors. The survey asked how school districts were addressing the technology inequities experienced by students and families while in hybrid and distance learning models. Results reflected that districts’ efforts to provide students technology devices were efficient and successful. Recommendations for further research …

3 Education Wins Sustained By District Technology Directors Post-Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

Technology directors express optimism about the opportunity to reimagine school as a consequence of the pandemic. They describe three important wins post-pandemic: marked increases in teachers’ technology proficiency and improved digital pedagogy, addressing educational equity barriers through online learning models, and reimagining schools vs. long-held traditional educational models.

Crisis Meets Opportunity: Empowering Faculty When Returning To The Higher Education Classroom​, Nicole Luongo, Michael Finetti, Kimberly Case, Jay Garrels, Renee Evans

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Access the online Pressbooks version of this article here.

This article presents information surrounding how the COVID-19 crisis can lead to opportunities for empowering growth in faculty course development and delivery. The authors show how higher education instructors have implemented remote teaching experiences they used during the pandemic to create engaging learning opportunities for students as they are returning to the higher education classroom. The article explores innovative ideas for communication and instruction, equity issues, and inclusive practices. The authors address the overall changing higher education climate and share their personal experiences transitioning from teaching in a face-to-face setting to …

Full Issue: Journal On Empowering Teaching Excellence, Volume 7, Issue 1, Spring 2023

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

The full-length Spring 2023 issue (Volume 7, Issue 1) of the Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Access the online Pressbooks version (with downloadable EPUB format) here.

The Spring 2023 issue presents research and guidance on topics related to student self-reflection, participatory learning, and returning to the in-person learning following the COVID-19 pandemic. The first article takes a critical approach to understanding pedagogy with adult learners by involving students in the creation of course syllabi as a way to challenge ideologies related the roles of instructor and students. The second article blends research and narrative to explore how the experiences of …

Impact Of The Pandemic On Computer Science Education, Dwight Miller, Guy Trainin

Research and Evaluation in Education, Technology, Art, and Design

This poster examines the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on computer science education in Nebraska. Data collected by Code.org on student and teacher engagement in CS education in Nebraska public and private schools helps paint a picture of the changing landscape.We reveal a significant decrease in rural student participation since the 2019-20 school year, a minimal increase in the number of teachers teaching with Code.org, and a significant drop in participation of girls at the secondary level. By uncovering these trends in engagement, we hope to inform and inspire educators and administrators to take action.

Addressing School Bullying Since The Onset Of Covid-19: A Merc Research And Policy Brief, David Naff, Morgan Meadowes, Kim Dupre, Alicia Gaston, Fatemah A. Khawaji, Christina Tillery, Makeba Lindsay D'Abreu, Lauren Powell, Deanna Fierro

MERC Publications

Among the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic is a shift in the nature and intensity of school bullying, perhaps symptomatic of the rapid changes and stressors that PK-12 students have endured since 2020. In this MERC research and policy brief, we explore how school bullying has changed since the onset of COVID-19 as well as research-based strategies for how educators and division leaders can best respond to it. The brief answers the following questions: 1) What is the nature of school bullying since the onset of COVID-19? 2) Which students have been particularly impacted by bullying since the pandemic? …

A Comparative Exploration Into First Time In College Student Academic Performance In Face-To-Face Versus Remote Learning Environments, Ashley Click

Theses & Dissertations

In spring 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced educational systems to transition into an emergency remote learning modality. This quantitative study compared retention and productive grade rates of two 16-week academic semesters and compared face-to-face (fall 2019) and remote (fall 2020) emergency remote instruction. The study sample was drawn from the core courses of History, English, and Speech at San Antonio College. Those courses were selected in part due to the high proportion of first time in college students who were considered a vulnerable population regarding performance and persistence. Additional variables (i.e., gender, veteran status, first-generation status, and socio-economic status) were …

Making In The Midst Of Pandemic: The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Two Public Library Makerspaces, Stacey Woods

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative research explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on makerspaces in the United States which were subject to public health guidelines and challenged with limited/no access to facilities. This multi-case study examined two public library makerspaces, and addressed these research questions: (1) How did the pandemic affect makerspace operations and access, and the teaching and learning that occurs there? (2) How did makerspace leaders respond to the challenges of the pandemic? (3) How did makerspaces evolve during the COVID-19 pandemic? I developed the Conceptual Framework for Studying the Impact of Pandemic on Public Library Makerspaces which informed the …

Virtual And Viral: Shifts In Signed Language Interpreter Education During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Mark A. Halley, Dawn M. Wessling, Stephanie N. Sargent

Journal of Interpretation

While online education has become more prevalent throughout the years, nothing prepared signed language interpreter educators for the likes of the COVID-19 pandemic. We surveyed educators in the United States and internationally to not only determine if practices had changed to keep up with the demands of the pandemic, but to learn how these practices were implemented. This study delves into the question of how interpreter educators adjusted their pedagogical approaches during the global pandemic. Responses showed a variety of adaptations to meet the needs of students, and a primary theme was the adeptness of educators in overcoming technology frustrations, …

Fostering School-Home Partnerships: Transforming Learning As A Result Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the need for schools to strengthen their relationships with families in order to support remote learning. Framed with the theoretical lens of the traditional partnership model, this paper details the results of a survey completed by 56 Minnesota district level technology directors. The survey asked how school districts were responding to the technology needs of students and families while in hybrid and distance learning models. Three main themes emerged from the survey data: maximizing caregiver support to improve student
learning, increasing attendance and engagement in the online learning environment, and building technology savviness in parents and …

School Leadership Support: Understanding The Experiences Of Elementary-Level Teachers During A Global Health Pandemic, Kathleen M. Crawford, Pamela Wells, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer, Kristen N. Dickens, Katherine Fallon

School Leadership Review

The purpose of this study was to better understand how the current COVID-19 global health pandemic has professionally and emotionally impacted elementary-level teachers. Teachers experienced diverse challenges during this unprecedented time with a rapid shift from in-person to online learning. Two overarching themes emerged based on participant experiences: abandoning best practices and increased stress and emotional pain. Implications for practice included the need for school leaders to evaluate the current level of support being provided to teachers and assess areas of need to support professional and emotional growth with the backdrop of the pandemic. We encourage future research with all …

Photovoice Gives Students A Voice, Lynne Meade

TFSC Publications and Presentations

Students often struggle with ways to turn their experiences into meaningful stories. Photovoice is a way to use photography for positive social change and to help people tell their stories. I used Photovoice to help students process the uncertainty of moving back home when the university switched to remote in Spring 2020. Since I teach public speaking, I used those stories to teach public speaking skills as well.
For example, one prompt I used was “an unexpected use of something.” I showed them a small hand weight that I used as a doorstop. I took creative pictures of the weight …

Editorial: We're Going Remote!?! A University's Tale Of Two Cities, Robert Wagner

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Access the online Pressbooks version of this article here.

The COVID-19 global pandemic created a dichotomous construct for higher education between delivery formats and maintaining quality pedagogy. The variables and obstacles seemed, at times, insurmountable but, Utah State University's team rose to the occasion. In this op-ed, Robert Wagner discusses the resilience and commitment shown by USU's instructors, staff, and students as they navigated, and continue to navigate, this unprecedented event.

Lights, Camera, Action: A Focus Group Study Exploring University Students' Experiences Of Learning Via Zoom, Bill J. Garris, Bethany Novotny, Kwangman Ko

ETSU Faculty Works

In response to the global Covid-19 pandemic, universities across the world moved coursework online and frequently used Zoom videotelephony software to replicate the experience of learning in a classroom. While this platform supported certain aspects of the traditional classroom, such as immediacy of responses and the facilitation of social interactions, learning via Zoom also differed in various ways from the familiar classroom experience. Although there has been considerable research on online learning, most studies focused on an asynchronous design and interaction. Thus, the understanding of learning within synchronous, video-mediated platforms, such as Zoom, is nascent. In this study, the data …

No Family Left Behind: Nontraditional Methods Of Communication As A Tool For Equitable Family Engagement, Robin Ransom

Theses and Dissertations

Legislation outlined in ESSA (2018) pushes schools to address the needs of the diverse populations within the school community as well creating a place for equitable family engagement. This study focuses on the family rather than the parent. Due to changes in family dynamics it is necessary to incorporate not just the parent but all members of a student’s household who contribute to the academic, social, and emotional well-being. In light of the immediate halt to the educational arena as the world was faced with the COVID-19 pandemic, educators and administrators were forced to think of new ways to engage …

Crossing The Digital Divide And The Equity Expanse: Reaching And Teaching All Students During The Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the digital divide revealing an expanse of inequity among students who had access to the internet, personal devices, and parental support during remote learning and those who did not. Framed with the theoretical lens of equity literacy, this paper details the results of a survey completed by 56 Minnesota district level technology directors. The survey asked how school districts were addressing the technology inequities experienced by students and families while in hybrid and distance learning models. Results reflected that districts’ efforts to provide students technology devices were efficient and successful. Of greatest concern for respondents was …

The Lived Experiences Of Selected Choral Directors During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Angela Berna Milliren

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

The shift to online education during the COVID-19 pandemic found secondary choral teachers moving traditional performance-based courses to the online venue. The pedagogical changes needed include implementing technology and disseminating information through learning management systems. Relationships between teachers and students, and teachers and colleagues, were challenged with the physical distance of quarantines in the Spring of 2020. This dissertation research project examined the difficulties six teachers faced concerning technology and relationships. I sat down for semi-structured interviews with six colleagues where I asked about their backgrounds, relationships with students and fellow colleagues, and the changes the pandemic brought to their …

Investigating Cultural Values And Educational Technology Adoption In Central Asia: A Case Study, Randall W. Gwin

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Although the adoption of new tools for communication and learning could reasonably be expected to influence culture, little is known about the relationship between cultural values and the adoption or diffusion of Web 2.0 technologies. This case study examines the way in which the cultural values of 59 teachers in four Central Asian countries influenced and were influenced by Web 2.0 technologies during five to eighteen months of online professional development. Data was collected through self-introductions, Likert-scale and open-ended prompts on initial and final surveys, online forum discussions, and capstone projects. This allows an examination of changes in the participants’ …

Covid Disruption Requires More Than Providing A Device: How Districts Are Engaging Students And Families Online, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

As school districts pivoted to online delivery in the spring of 2020, the urgent need for each student to have a device in hand and internet connectivity was a remarkable challenge. Immediate action was taken, incredible financial investments were made, and creative problem solving peaked to provide students access to the tools needed for online learning. Despite this laudable feat, districts are entering the third school year disrupted by COVID and confronted with the Delta surge, disheartening student learning loss, and an emerging reality that hybrid and online learning models are not going away. Truancy issues, unresponsive home supports, and …

Addressing Student Engagement During Covid-19: Secondary Stem Teachers Attend To The Affective Dimension Of Learner Needs, Tiffany Roman, Laurie Brantley-Dias, Michael Dias, Belinda Edwards

Faculty Articles

This case study examines how a cohort of eleven induction secondary STEM teachers engaged learners during the onset of COVID-19 and their designs for student engagement given an online or blended teaching context in fall 2020. Participants attended a summer professional development workshop guided by trauma-informed teaching practices and learner engagement conceptual frameworks. Through the analysis of teacher artifacts and interviews, we identified dimensions of student engagement that teachers prioritized. Results indicate a marked increase in teachers’ attention to affective and social dimensions of learner engagement. We argue that teacher awareness and action in the affective domain of student engagement …

Impacts Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Business Education: Case For The Aacsb’S Agility Standard, Lucy Ojode, Mulugeta Wolde, June Claiborne

Southwestern Business Administration Journal

We explored an undergraduate business program’s navigation of an unplanned change, response to the Covid-19 pandemic-occasioned move to online learning, and the resilience of its curriculum by following cohorts of students through two consecutive courses from the end of 2019 through 2020 up to summer 2021. The exploration was aimed at the assessment of the impact of the pandemic-induced disruptions, i.e., how the school’s curriculum fared through the pandemic. Premised on the school’s accreditor, AACSB’s agility-cultivating curriculum guideline, the curriculum should adapt and stabilize post-pandemic. To identify the appropriate cohort for observation, we scrutinized the four progressive levels of agility …

Inclusive Ux: Centering Marginalized Users At Cal Poly, Sejal Kargal

Computer Science and Software Engineering

The focus of human-centered design should be on centering all users in an inclusive manner by considering different design considerations, methods, and practices (Shalamova, 2019). Through this project I will research ways in which UX has pushed certain types of people intentionally or unintentionally to the margins and explore potential solutions as design recommendations for inclusive UX focusing primarily on Cal Poly student technology and resources (Lahlou, 2017). The users I will be focusing on are students of color, students with disabilities, first-generation college students, and disadvantaged students. In the context of virtual learning in the …

Inclusive Ux: Centering Marginalized Users At Cal Poly, Sejal Kargal

Computer Science and Software Engineering

The focus of human-centered design should be on centering all users in an inclusive manner by considering different design considerations, methods, and practices (Shalamova, 2019). Through this project I will research ways in which UX has pushed certain types of people intentionally or unintentionally to the margins and explore potential solutions as design recommendations for inclusive UX focusing primarily on Cal Poly student technology and resources (Lahlou, 2017). The users I will be focusing on are students of color, students with disabilities, first-generation college students, and disadvantaged students. In the context of virtual learning amid a …

Lessons Learned: What The Covid-19 Global Pandemic Has Taught Us About Teaching, Technology And Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Jane Roitsch, Robert L. Moore, Annemarie Horn

Communication Disorders & Special Education Faculty Publications

Purpose. This paper examines the impact of the abrupt transition from attending school face-to-face to participating in online learning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic as reported by a parent of a student with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Design/methodology/approach. A phone interview was conducted with the parent of a child with ASD. The semi-structured interview focused on how the child’s family was impacted when classes shifted to virtual from face-to-face learning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Findings. Four themes emerged from the interview. Three of these included adjustments to changes in 1) routines and roles, 2) …

Digital Technologies And The Barriers K-12 Teachers Face: A Phenomenological Study During A Global Pandemic, Alia Kamal Khan

Selected Full Text Dissertations, 2011-

The COVID 19, global pandemic has brought upon many changes in the world we live in today. The educational community has had to accept the drastic changes in teaching and learning through embracing digital technologies more rigorously than ever before. Specifically, in Long Island, New York, once the initial cases of COVID 19 were identified, educational institutions were challenged with enabling instruction remotely. Teachers faced the reality of mandatory implementation of digital technology in the curriculum. This research sought to identify the phenomenon of how teachers have experienced known barriers to using digital technologies during a global pandemic; specifically, when …

The Pursuit Of Equitable Virtual Learning: District Leaders’ Understanding Of The Influences On Designing 100% Virtual Learning Experiences During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Kathleen Wolfe Maxlow

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam required all schools to close their doors from March 13, 2020, through the remainder of the school year, causing districts in the Commonwealth to create distance learning plans for PreK-12 education within a matter of weeks. The continued fluctuation of COVID-19 positive case numbers throughout the spring and summer led to several school districts choosing to open the 2020-2021 school year using a 100% virtual model for all students. This qualitative, grounded theory study sought to determine how superintendents understood the influences on the design of their district’s 100% virtual learning plans. …

The Virtual Teaching Experience With Google Classroom During Covid-19: A Phenomenological Study, Morlena Titanya Robinson

Theses and Dissertations

Technology has been the highlight of the 21st century, and its rapid advancement has undeniably changed the world we live in today. The field has been saturated by digital applications (apps) such as Facetime, WhatsApp, GroupMe, and a plethora of educational apps such as Math Series, The Elements, and History Tools. Additional apps have magnified in popularity since the world moved to virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic which devastated the global economy and shut down in person education systems around the globe. Google Classroom from G-Suite for Education was immediately embraced to facilitate the educational process allowing students and …

The Virtual Teaching Experience With Google Classroom During Covid-19: A Phenomenological Study, Morlena Titanya Robinson

Theses and Dissertations

Technology has been the highlight of the 21st century, and its rapid advancement has undeniably changed the world we live in today. The field has been saturated by digital applications (apps) such as Facetime, WhatsApp, GroupMe, and a plethora of educational apps such as Math Series, The Elements, and History Tools. Additional apps have magnified in popularity since the world moved to virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic which devastated the global economy and shut down in person education systems around the globe. Google Classroom from G-Suite for Education was immediately embraced to facilitate the educational process allowing students and …

Lessons From The Pivot: Higher Education's Response To The Pandemic, Janine S. Davis, Christy Irish

Education Faculty Articles

The intensity of major events often leads us to remember minute details of where we were and what we were doing when they occurred: what we wore as we watched the towers fall on September 11, 2001; the faces of our classmates when the space shuttle Challenger exploded on January 28, 1986; the smell in the air when we lived through a major earthquake, fire, or other personal tragedy. Similarly, faculty, staff, and students will remember the series of moments that led to the closure of their schools and universities as the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic spread throughout the world--the timeline …