COVID-19 Commons^™

The Undergraduate Education And Scientific Literacy: Exploring How College Influences Student Perception Of Covid-19 Events, Peyton Brooking

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Current undergraduate students received much of their education following the events of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these students experienced pandemic events before receiving any or most of their science-based higher education. Exploring their progress through higher education, and how it retroactively influenced their perception of pandemic events, serves as an informative research area. This study explores how undergraduate education in the sciences influences student engagement with complex recent events in science. In addition, this study asked how higher education builds confidence in interpreting this information. Additionally, students were surveyed to understand their scientific literacy baseline at the beginning of …

Food Access And Food Insecurity Among Early Childhood Educators And Staff Prior To And During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Mixed Methods Pilot Study, Rahel Mathews, Leah Pylate, Will Davis, Elizabeth Thorne, Jamila Taylor, Shecoya White, Bennett Pope, Emma Bryant

Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

Emerging research indicates that 40% of early childhood education (ECE) workers experience food insecurity. The purpose of this study was to describe the food insecurity and food access of Head Start teachers and staff in Mississippi before the COVID-19 pandemic and to understand how COVID-19 affected food access. A mixed-methods design was employed using cross-sectional surveys, at two different time points, and three focus groups. Three Head Start centers from the Mississippi Coast participated. Approximately 52% of teacher and staff respondents experienced food insecurity before COVID-19; during the pandemic, their level of food insecurity worsened from low to very low …

Adolescent Students’ Adaptability During The Covid-19 Pandemic Impacting Their Academic Preparedness In College: A Qualitative Exploration Of Resilience In Secondary School Disruptions, Nicole Tyanne Jameson

Dissertations

This study, conducted several years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, takes a unique approach to investigating the long-term effects of the pandemic-induced disruptions on adolescents during secondary schooling and their academic preparedness in college. The study combined a descriptive qualitative analysis of academic routine data with quantifiable resilience scores, providing a comprehensive understanding of the challenges students faced, their adaptability and resilience, and the overall impact on their education journey into college. This comprehensive descriptive qualitative study utilizes triangulation of quantitative data and qualitative approaches to understand the subject matter thoroughly. The quantitative scores meticulously analyzed resiliency and …

The Tree That Would Not Fall: An Educator’S Autoethnographic Journey Of Healing Through Words, Raeanna Marie Carlson

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

To say the world has changed since the 2020 COVID-19 shut down is to minimize the micro and macro social changes that infiltrated the school system. In the wake of it all, we find a landscape marred by a both rising teacher attrition and struggling student motivation. This autoethnographic dissertation explores the deeply personal experience tethered to a deeply problematic system that contributes to not only teacher burnout but what I came to know as teacher demoralization. Personal traumas of teachers profoundly impact their experience in the classroom, and as I examined my own near departure from the classroom, I …

Shifting To A Culture Of Inclusion By Design: Applying A Mixed-Methods Approach To Advance Accessibility Of Public Health Emergency Information & Communication Technology, Jessica L. Franks, Erin Vinoski Thomas

Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) experience inequities in access to timely, accurate, and understandable information and communication technology (ICT), which increases risk for public health emergency (PHE)-related health disparities and impedes opportunities to achieve optimal health. This study assessed federal COVID-19 webpage accessibility levels and explored existing knowledge of and experience with filing accessibility complaints for federal ICT among adults with IDD. Through a mixed-methods approach, we evaluated compliance with accessibility standards for 18 federal agencies’ COVID-19 webpages (study 1) and interviewed 16 adults with IDD about experiences accessing federal webpages and filing accessibility complaints (study 2). We …

Support, School Climate And Teacher Wellbeing In The Wake Of Covid-19: A National Study Using Ntsp Data, Annastashia M. Teepe

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Research indicates a significant number of teachers planned to leave the profession following the COVID-19 pandemic, with national surveys in 2021 revealing about 25% considering departure. Stress, low pay, remote teaching demands, and lack of support contributed to attrition, impacting school climate, which influences productivity, collaboration, and job satisfaction, and is inversely related to turnover. The shift to remote learning also demanded new skills and exposed technological disparities. This quantitative study examined the pandemic's impact on teachers' perceptions of school climate, support, resources, job satisfaction, burnout, and intent to leave using the 2020–2021 National Teacher and Principal Survey. Factor analyses …

Educational Leadership In A Vuca World: The Crisis Management Experiences Of Rural School Superintendents, Lucas J. Grossnicklaus

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The job of both urban and rural superintendents is challenging, but it is the rural school superintendency that comes with unique challenges that aren’t always faced by their urban and suburban counterparts. The COVID-19 Pandemic brought about a number of crises for school superintendents such as school closures, mask mandates, and navigating positions taken by governors, teachers unions, and school boards. While concerns about school closures and mask mandates has dissipated, conflict within school districts has only seemed to grow since the pandemic.

This multi-case study explored the lived experience of rural superintendents in the Midwest who have experienced a …

The Impact Of Long Covid On Language Proficiency Across Different School Levels In Hong Kong, Shebe S. Xu, Yixun Li, Wanyi Li, Catherine M. Capio, Winnie W.Y. Tso, Derwin K.C. Chan

Health Sciences Faculty Publications

Long COVID, where symptoms persist after recovering from COVID-19, can affect cognitive functions like language. However, little is known about its impact on children’s language skills, especially across different school levels. This study investigated the impact of long COVID on language proficiency among 1244 children (Asian; 53.5% boys) from kindergartens (N = 408, Mage = 4.42 ± 1.26 years), primary schools (N = 547, Mage = 9.69 ± 1.96 years), and secondary schools (N = 289, Mage = 14.97 ± 1.85 years) in Hong Kong. Language proficiency was assessed using the Language Experience and Proficiency Questionnaire (LEAP-Q), which measured speaking, …

The Impact Of Covid-19 On The United States Higher Education System, Phoenix Daniel Van Wormer

University Honors Theses

In the spring of 2020, colleges across the United States rapidly transitioned to online/remote learning during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Since then, online and remote learning have evolved into an integral component of higher education. This thesis examines the extent to which COVID-19-mandated remote and online learning impacted students pursuing higher education in the United States. By utilizing research that compares academic structures before and after the pandemic, I demonstrate how the shift to online and remote learning has changed teaching and learning methods. I also evaluate the impact of these changes on student performance and engagement, with particular focus …

The Importance Of Public Health In College Populations: Why Vaccines Are Important, Kashish Poore

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This paper examines the importance of vaccines in college populations, where high-density living environments create unique vulnerabilities to infectious disease outbreaks. Despite vaccine mandates at most institutions, research indicates that many college students possess incomplete understanding of vaccine mechanisms and importance. The paper addresses three interconnected aspects: the biological foundations of vaccine-induced immunity, the significance of vaccination in collegiate settings, and the current state of vaccine literacy among students. Historical outbreaks on campuses, including meningitis at Princeton and mumps across several institutions, highlight the consequences of undervaccination. Social media misinformation has contributed significantly to vaccine hesitancy, particularly since COVID-19. The …

The Learning Crisis In The United States Three Years After Covid-19, Harry Anthony Patrinos, Maciej Jakubowski, Tomasz Gajderowicz

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread disruptions to education, with school closures affecting over one billion children. These closures, aimed at reducing virus transmission, resulted in significant learning losses, particularly in mathematics and science. Using United States data from TIMSS, this study analyzes the impact of school closure on learning outcomes. The losses amount to 0.36 SD for mathematics and 0.16 SD for science. The declines are similar across grades. The average decline in mathematics performance among U.S. students is substantially greater than the global average. n science, the decline observed among U.S. students does not significantly differ from the global …

Covid-19 Taking Aim At The Heart Of Public Education, Jeremy James Pyle

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The COVID-19 pandemic, distinguished by both its duration and widespread impact, stands apart from other crises typically faced by schools, such as natural disasters, school violence, or isolated traumatic incidents. Unlike these shorter-term events, the pandemic fundamentally altered the educational landscape, reshaping both school climate and instructional practices. This non-experimental, descriptive study employed a phenomenological research approach to examine the lived experiences of teachers during and after the pandemic. The central aim was to explore how pandemic-related stressors influenced teachers’ decisions to remain in or leave the profession, as well as to identify the supports educators perceived as necessary for …

A Teacher Preparation Program's Stakeholders' Perceptions Since Campus Closure Due To Covid-19, Laurie J. Mccormick

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

COVID-19 closed colleges and forced faculty and students to learn a new way of teaching and learning. Like most institutions, Marshall University’s College of Education and Professional Development struggled to provide the practicum experience required for teacher preparation when most public schools shifted to remote learning. This qualitative study investigated the reactions of, and ongoing impact on, a university’s college of education’s administrators, faculty, undergraduates, the institution’s instructional designers, and the Counseling Center’s director when the campus closed spring of 2020 due to the pandemic. Initial and ongoing challenges faced, and strategies implemented were categorized by the four themes that …

Why The Museum Matters To Honors, Mimi Killinger

Honors in Practice Online Archive

Using classroom displacement and pandemic pivoting during COVID as a touchstone, author presents ways in which museums complement and reinforce pedagogical goals in honors. Community and campus museums offer immediate and innovative teaching opportunities that require minimal technology, present diverse viewpoints and cultural perspectives, and foster visual and cultural literacies. Demonstrating how teaching within a museum aligns with the educational mission of her home institution, author suggests that these spaces can be creative, collaborative, and engaging learning locations for honors colleges and programs throughout the country. Detailed descriptions of curated collections are provided.

Building Place-Based Experiential Learning Into The Honors Curriculum At Ohio University, Geoffrey L. Buckley, Nicole Finnicum, Michelle O'Malley, Jennifer Bowie, Yolonda Youngs

Honors in Practice Online Archive

Observing the demand for interdisciplinary experiential learning opportunities post-COVID, authors present a place-based curriculum in honors. Workshop-style special topics classes provide students with an immersive and flexible learning environment, energize faculty, and engage alumni and community partners. Coursework, fieldwork, internships, and study abroad opportunities all contribute to the development of an informed and engaged citizenry. Authors address challenges in funding, access, and equity, and they suggest ways these challenges might be met.

Expériences Vécues Et Perceptions De Personnes Étudiantes Internationales Sur Les Mesures Et Les Services Offerts Par Les Universités Québécoises Pendant La Pandémie De Covid-19 = Experiences And Perceptions Of International Students Regarding Measures And Services Offered By Quebec Universities During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Farrah Bérubé, Jessica Dubé, Jorge Frozzini, Daniel Côté

Études primaires

Cet article fait état d’une partie des résultats d’une recherche menée auprès de personnes étudiantes internationales (PÉI) qui fréquentaient des universités québécoises pendant la pandémie de COVID-19. La recherche portait sur les usages sociaux des technologies de l’information et de la communication (TIC) et sur la qualité de vie des PÉI en période de confinement. Les résultats présentés et discutés dans cet article se rapportent plus spécifiquement aux expériences et perceptions des PÉI sur les mesures et les services offerts par les universités en contexte de confinement. Afin de répondre à cet objectif, des entretiens semi-dirigés, menés auprès de 40 …

Taking A Closer Look At Tpack: Examining Teacher Perspectives Of The Knowledge, Competencies, And Context Needed For Improved Remote Education In Grades 4-8, Jennifer Christine Buth Bell

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Though wrought with challenges, the COVID-19 Pandemic, which led to the closure of schools worldwide and forced educators into a rapid transition from traditional to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT), held some promise for furthering the integration of digital technology in schools. But now, years following the crisis, policymakers, administrators, and teachers continue to grapple with how best to incorporate lessons learned and improve the future of teaching and learning in both traditional and remote settings. This mixed-methods study (n = 21; n = 6) followed an explanatory sequential design to collect and analyze data from a sample of 4th-8th …

Predictors Of Belongingness In First-Year College Students: Examining Mental Health And Adjustment, Jordan D. Foreman-Black

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The initial transition to college is a pivotal moment for emerging adults, often influencing whether a student will remain successful. Students face a significant challenge adapting to the new environment that has been compounded by their experiences through the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite these challenges, a sense of belonging for students has been shown to be a key aspect of a successful transition to college. Students are often confronted with increasing levels of mental health challenges throughout the transition, specifically experiencing increasing mental health difficulties or challenges throughout their initial adjustment to college. Moreover, parents have become increasingly involved in students’ …

The Learning Crisis: Three Years After Covid-19, Tomasz Gajderowicz, Maciej Jakubowski, Alec Kennedy, Christian Christrup Kjeldsen, Harry Anthony Patrinos, Rolf Strietholt

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread disruptions to education, with school closures affecting over one billion children. These closures, aimed at reducing virus transmission, resulted in significant learning losses, particularly in mathematics and science. Using data from TIMSS 2023, which assesses fourth and eighth-grade achievements across 71 education systems, this study analyzes the impact of school closure duration on learning outcomes. Mixed-effect models estimate deviations from pre-pandemic trends, adjusting for demographic factors. Results show a global average decline of 0.11 standard deviations (SD) in student achievement, with longer closures linked to more severe losses. The effects on low performers, girls, and …

Their Stories, Our Testimony: A Narrative Inquiry Into The Remote Teaching Experiences Of Community College Clinical Nurse Educators During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Catherine E. Fenner

Doctor of Education Program Dissertations

This narrative inquiry explored the lived experiences of clinical nurse educators who taught at community colleges during the COVID-19 global pandemic, contributing to the growing body of literature about what nurses endured during the pandemic. The pandemic and the ensuing havoc it caused occurred when the profession faced significant staffing shortages. In the early months of 2020, when the virus was spreading rapidly, many states issued stay-at-home orders requiring nursing programs to pivot to remote learning platforms. Teaching hands-on skills, communication techniques, and time management strategies through virtual and remote pedagogy was a time of confusion for nurse educators, who …

Examining Adolescence And Agency In The Midst Of International Crisis: Pandemics, Pandemonium, And Zombie Young Adult Literature, T. Hunter Strickland

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020-22 brought an abundance of changes to secondary education as students transitioned across the country to virtual and hybrid learning contexts. Teachers flexed quickly and frequently to support the learning that students acquired in these new, digital spaces even as school, district, and state demands on teaching increased. The English/Language Arts classroom pivoted along with others as teachers sought out digital reading and writing resources for students to engage in. In the midst of a national crisis, a metaphorical monster that sought to destroy, much like Beowulf ’s dragon did, adolescent readers, despite the discourses of …

The Great Resignation: Narratives Of Mid-Career Teacher Burnout And Attrition, Nicole Burton

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the issues of teacher attrition. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, from January to November 2021, there was a 40% increase in the quit levels of teachers within the state and local education agencies (John, 2022). While prior research has examined early-career teachers leaving the profession, mid-career teachers have largely been left out of the conversation. This narrative inquiry investigates the reasons that mid-career teachers are leaving the profession. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four mid-career teachers hailing from the Midwest region. Interviews focused on understanding how teachers have experienced stress and …

The Impact Of Covid-19 In Reshaping Graduate Medical Education: Harnessing Hybrid Learning And Virtual Training, Abdualla Ben Ammer, Jennifer L Bryan, Ali Abbas Asghar-Ali

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Introduction

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many graduate medical education (GME) programs switched from in-person to virtual training to ensure a safe learning environment. However, the preferences of US residents in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic are largely unknown.

Objective

The authors surveyed PGY-2 psychiatry residents about their perception of the pandemic's impact on their clinical skills, didactics experience, training preferences, and future career perceptions.

Methods

The cross-sectional study was conducted from October 31, 2021, to December 31, 2021. The authors emailed a survey to directors of US general psychiatry residency programs to disseminate to PGY-2 residents. …

Reflections On Channelling Innovation Through Learning Development Support In Business Education In A Pandemic Landscape, Roisin Donnelly

Journal Articles

The pandemic has undoubtedly challenged higher education (HE) in a multitude of ways but bringing lessons forward from that time can enable HE institutions and their staff to not lose sight of what innovative practices emerged that had a positive influence on student learning. Discussed from the perspective of a Head of Learning Development in a Business College which is now located in what is a new Technological University in Ireland, this reflective narrative discusses supporting staff across the diversity of Business disciplines during the impact of, and response to, the pandemic. The focus of the piece is on supporting …

Fostering Udl-Informed Library Instruction Practices Developed From The Covid-19 Pandemic, Niki Fullmer, Katie Strand

Library Faculty Research

Purpose: This case study explores how universal design for learning (UDL)-informed online instruction modules developed during COVID-19 can better support student information literacy outcomes. This study will also examine how hybrid learning lends itself to UDL and may resolve some of the issues within library instruction.

Design/methodology/approach: This case study explores how a team of librarians at Utah State University developed three UDL-informed modules to support library instruction and hybrid learning during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. A survey was sent to composition instructors to understand how they utilized the three new UDL-informed modules and if the modules helped …

How Has The Covid-19 Pandemic Transformed The Relevance Of The Traditional College Experience?, Zachary Schueller

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Over the past three years, the Covid-19 pandemic has fundamentally altered students’ college experience through its location format and delivery. Research and early interviews suggest that students are now less likely to pursue a four-year traditional college experience than they were before the start of the pandemic. Instead, students are increasingly choosing to pursue other options such as not going to college or learning remotely. Even before the start of the pandemic data shows that college enrollment was already declining. While this data shows the short-term effects of Covid-19 on students there are a number of questions about the long-term …

"I Haven’T Really Made Those Connections That Maybe Most Would Their First Year": A Qualitative Study Of The Covid-19 Pandemic And Student Social Capital Among 3 Cohorts Of First-Year Engineering Majors, Patricia Wonch Hill, Lance C. Pérez, Sohrab Asgarpoor, David Jones, Zachary George Short, Jennifer N. Rutt

UNL Office of Research and Innovation, Social/Behavioral Sciences Research Consortium

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the education of students of all ages and challenged teachers and academic support services to make major adaptations to continue to support student learning while also limiting the spread of the virus. Our team received an NSF grant in the Fall of 2018 to broaden participation in engineering by recruiting and retaining students who have been historically marginalized in engineering. We focused our research on first-year students who participated in pathway programs which provided peer and formal mentoring, success coaching, shared classes, and social activities, that would provide a sense of community and shared engineering identity …

Ua3/10 President's Messages - Spring Semester, Wku President's Office - Caboni

WKU Administration Documents

President's Message emails sent by Timothy Caboni to faculty & staff during spring semester, 2022.

• Budget
• Commencement
• Commons at Helm Library
• Compensation Analysis
• COVID-19
• COVID-19 – Masks
• End of Semester
• Enrollment / Recruitment
• Scholarship Celebration
• Semester Kickoff
• Student Retention

Ua25 Covid-19 Communications, Wku Finance & Administration

WKU Administration Documents

Official emails sent to faculty & staff regarding issues involved with Covid-19 Coronavirus from 2020 through 2022.

• WKU COVID-19 Grading Policy, 3/24/2020
• Signage Requests
• Steps to Help Keep Everyone Safe
• Latest Information on Covid-19 Vaccine Distribution, 2/25/2021
• Update on Covid 19 Guidance from Centers for Disease Control, 3/12/2021
• Human Resources / Business Services
• Fraudulent Unemployment Compensation Claims, 3/1/2021
• COVID Vaccines Available on Campus, 4/2021
• COVID 19 Vaccination Update, 7/28/2021
• Fall Semester Covid Message, 8/13/2021
• WKU Covid Vaccination Reporting, 8/20/2021
• Update on Proposed OSHA Rule for Covid 19 Vaccinations in the Workplace, 11/4/2021
• COVID-19, 10/21/2021
• Fall Covid Update, 8/3/2022

Ua3/10 President's Messages - Fall Semester, Wku President's Office - Caboni

WKU Administration Documents

President's Message emails sent by Timothy Caboni to faculty & staff during fall semester, 2021.

• Convocation
• COVID-19 Vaccine
• End of Semester
• Fall Semester – Topper Fest
• Homecoming
• Living Learning Communities
• Margaret Munday
• MASTER Plan – Topper Directions
• National Philanthropy Day – WKU Opportunity Fund
• Parent & Family Weekend
• Summer Reflections/Fall Semester
• Tornado – Student Death
• Tornado Damage
• Tornado Recovery
• Vacation Hours / Salaries
• WKU Emergency Student Assistance Opportunity Fund