Date of Award

4-3-2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Education

First Advisor

Erin Finzer

Abstract

The purpose of this single-site case study was to understand four distinct online learning aspects impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in a mid-sized, urban, four-year institution in the Southern United States: (1) the faculty experience with converting courses and teaching online, (2) the university-provided instructional supports available to faculty throughout the pandemic, (3) the online learning design utilized throughout the pandemic, and (4) the university's preparedness and response to the pandemic. Through an analysis of participant interviews, document analysis, and secondary analysis of an internal COVID-19 faculty and staff survey, the study findings illustrated five distinct areas that influenced teaching and learning during COVID-19: a university facing multiple crises–and both the benefits and challenges this can bring for change and emergency management, the impact of Emergency Remote Teaching on the faculty experience of teaching online, experience with technology and preparedness to teach online as early and constant challenges, the benefit of having an institution that was in progress on improving instructional design and online learning support fwith leadership from administration, and an evolution of professional growth among faculty across the duration of teaching online during the pandemic. Implications for these findings include the importance of institutions remaining both prepared for crises and being willing to leverage internal initiatives in the face of emergent challenges, the value of embracing and building upon incremental change as a way of leveraging institutional momentum, and the importance of supporting technological proficiency in faculty as a way of increasing faculty self-efficacy for online instruction.

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