Mental Health and Coping Strategies among University Staff during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross–Sectional Analysis from Saudi Arabia

This study examined psychological health and coping strategies among faculty and staff at a Saudi Arabian university. A web-based self-administered survey was used to assess probable anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and coping strategies by using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), and Brief-COPE scale, respectively. Of 502 participants (mean age 36.04 ± 10.32 years, male: 66.3%), 24.1% (GAD-7 ≥ 10) had probable anxiety. Anxiety score was significantly higher in females (p < 0.001), those with a history of COVID-19 infection (p = 0.036), and participants with less work experience (p = 0.019). Approximately 40% of participants met the criteria of probable depression, with females (p < 0.001) and participants with less experience having more depressive symptoms. Around one-fourth (27.7%) of study participants indicated probable PTSD (score ≥ 33), with higher symptoms in females (p <0.001), less experienced staff (p < 0.001), and academic staff (p = 0.006). Correlation analysis indicated a significant positive correlation between anxiety and depression (r = 0.844, p < 0.001), anxiety and PTSD (r = 0.650, p < 0.001), and depression and PTSD (r = 0.676, p < 0.001). Active coping, religious/spiritual coping, and acceptance were common coping strategies, while substance use was the least adopted coping method among the study participants. This study indicated a high prevalence of probable psychological ailments among university staff.

Undertanding the Experience of Universities Flexible Learning in the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case for Two Universities in the Philippines

The school system was greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. There is a need to assess the implementation of flexible learning in academic institutions. The study intends to describe the flexible learning as practiced in the highly urbanized University and the countryside University during the COVID-19 pandemic. This survey research aims to explore students' and faculty members' perceptions of the flexible learning modality implemented in the two institutions of higher learning. It also aims to discover the challenges, preferences, and support students and faculty need. Based on the results, learning becomes not workable given reasonable factors: strength of internet connectivity, quality of modules provided, the validity of the assessment, availability of learning devices such as smartphones, availability of budget for net data subscription, conduciveness of respective households for learning, et cetera. There should be standardized, normativized, and effective modules that are produced out of the intervention of various stakeholders. Requirements must be simple, reasonable, and workable given the students' time, resources, and capacity. Assessments should not be traditional and objective but should be authentic assessments. The digital divide should never be promoted directly or indirectly. The default system for all degree programs has to be the modules. The synchronous and/or asynchronous sessions should be made available to students but not mandatory;the University and teachers have to monitor every student's learning progress effectively. © 2022 IEEE.

Does the COVID-19 Pandemic Affect Excellence in Academic Research? a Study of Science and Engineering Faculty Members in China.

Research excellence is one of the key missions of universities and an important engine for socio-economic development. However, the outbreak of COVID-19 has affected academic research in many ways. This study examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the research performance of science and engineering faculty members in China's top research universities. It is found that the pandemic caused a decline in the numbers and quality of published articles, and the effects persisted over time. The negative effect of the pandemic on research excellence was more pronounced in the older faculty groups and departments of science. In addition, the pandemic has harmed international research collaborations among academics, which is likely to obstruct research excellence in the long run. In the end, this paper proposes several policy recommendations to reinvigorate universities' capacity for research innovation in the post-pandemic era.

Teachers' Perception about the Use of QR Code in Education

These days, QR codes are more widely used. Numerous benefits, including quick reading speed, error correction, 360-degree reading, multilingual support, robustness, and a broad range of applications, are offered by QR codes. The education industry is using QR codes on a large scale to make teaching and learning effective. In a few universities and colleges, faculties are using QR code technology in the classroom as well. The use of QR codes dramatically increased during COVID 19. It was the time when the whole world was trying to discover the potential of QR codes in different sectors. Now, QR codes have become an essential part of our lives. Almost every industry uses QR codes, including entertainment, education, sports, FMCG, textiles, restaurants, healthcare, and tourism. The objective of the study is to determine the different ways to use QR code in classroom and to find the factors that develop teachers' perception of use of QR codes in the classroom. The study also determines the role of QR code in making teaching learning effective. The data was collected from 50 faculty members of randomly selected five private universities of Haryana region through an online survey. The study found that in spite of multiple uses of QR codes in teaching, only a limited number of faculty members are using this technology in the classroom. The reason is that many teachers are not aware of different ways of using QR code in classroom. The study comes up with different factors that play an important role in developing teachers' perception of use of QR code in classroom. © 2023 IEEE.

Canadian Faculty Members' Hopes and Anxieties About the Near-Future of Higher Education

Higher education worldwide is facing several challenges spanning from economic, social, technological, demographic, environmental, to political tensions. Calls to rethink, reimagine, and reform higher education to respond to such challenges are ongoing, and need to be informed by a wide variety of stakeholders. To inform such efforts, we interviewed thirty-seven faculty members at Canadian colleges and universities to develop a greater understanding of their hopes and anxieties about the future of higher education as they considered what higher education may look like five years into the future. Results centred on four themes: (1) anxieties and hopes are shaped by supports and resources from various sources, (2) faculty members face anxiety over matters that negatively impact them but are beyond their control, (3) faculty members hope that "good” comes from the COVID-19 pandemic, and (4) faculty members hope for a well-rounded education that will enable students to succeed both within and beyond their careers. Implications for these findings suggest a need to direct research efforts and practices toward more hopeful futures for higher education, especially in the context of online and blended learning. © 2022 George Veletsianos, Nicole Johnson.

Adoption of Human Resource Information Systems by Faculty Members: Qualitative Evidence from Universities in Pakistan

In the digital age of today, a large number of higher education institutions have adopted Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) to improve the overall efficiency of operations. With the exponential growth in education sector of Pakistan and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the role of HRIS has considerably expanded for all stakeholders, particularly faculty members of universities. This study aims to explore the factors that motivate universities to implement HRIS, the role of HRIS in enhancing the productivity of faculty members, and the constraints associated with the use of HRIS. This qualitative study follows the descriptive phenomenology approach to explore the significance of HRIS for faculty members. Non-probability purposeful sampling was used to select 14 faculty members who were interviewed at seven Pakistani universities. The study establishes that HRIS is considered a valuable technology for streamlining HR functions of universities in general and faculty members in particular.

Autoresponder using Chatbot for Educational Services

The Internet of Things (IoT) has had a significant impact on human existence. This branch of study will lead to the creation of technology and concepts that will enable humans to communicate with machines. that is specifically developed it for a specific job. Students and faculty members need to have access to educational service. When learning became fully electronic, during the Corona pandemic, every effort was made to strengthen services such as technical support and access to education materials. Chat bot is the most popular feature on Telegram which allows a third party or user to design bot functionalities based on user requirements. As a result, autoresponder messages can help solve a variety of issues, including searching for educational sources, accessing technical support channels, and FAQs, and easing the heavy burden on technical support that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. By developing this service, you may get reply by essential information to lecturers, students, and the academic community while saving time and handling many requests concurrently. Where the service has been developed to be available 24 hours to provide all data and access links directly without having to search for them. © 2023 IEEE.

Perceptions and readiness of faculty members for digital learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study aimed to: Identify the perceptions of faculty members at King Saud University of the effectiveness of digital learning during the Covid 19 pandemic. identifying the level of readiness of the educational faculty members for digital learning during the Covid-19 pandemic at King Saud University. And to reveal whether there are statistically significant differences in the perceptions and readiness of faculty members for digital learning due to the variable (gender, academic rank, college).The study used the survey method. The study population consisted of all faculty members at King Saud University, whose number is (6763) according to the statistics of faculty members and their equivalents for the academic year 1442. The research sample is (77) faculty members. The study used the questionnaire as a tool to collect the necessary data to achieve the objectives of the study. The results of the study showed that the perceptions of the faculty members at King Saud University of the effectiveness of digital learning during the Covid 19 pandemic came to a moderate degree, and the results revealed that the study sample members agreed with a high degree on the level of readiness of the technical faculty members to use digital learning during the Covid 19 pandemic at King Saud University. The results revealed that there were statistically significant differences in the study sample's responses towards (faculty members' perceptions at King Saud University of the effectiveness of digital education during the Covid 19 pandemic) with the difference of the academic rank variable in favor of the academic rank (assistant professor), and with the difference of the college in favor of the humanitarian faculties, while it showed Results: There were no differences in the study sample's responses towards the study axes due to the gender variable. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Research in Specific Education Fields - J.R.S.E.F is the property of Association of Arab Educators and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

A 360-Degree Evaluation of Faculty Members' Teaching Effectiveness in Larestan Medical Sciences School during Covid -19 Pandemic: A Pilot Study

Background: Faculty members are the main pillars of universities, and their performance has a vital role in the efficiency of universities. In the current era of the Covid-19 pandemic, students' traditional evaluation method is not sufficient, and 360-degree evaluation is recommended, or multi-rater feedback is a means of providing evaluation from various stakeholders. The aim of this study was to compare the evaluation of faculty members' teaching effectiveness in Larestan Medical School by 360 degrees and the evaluation done by the students in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. Methods: This descriptive-analytic study compared the 360 degree evaluation and the students' ratings on faculty members' performance at Larestan University of Medical Sciences during 2020 -2021. The statistical population consisted of all full-time professors (N=28) selected by census method and students (N=280) chosen by random cluster sampling. The materials used were six valid and reliable questionnaires filled out by students, an expert in evaluation, heads of departments, deputies, peers, and self-assessment of faculty members. Data were analyzed through SPSS software (version 23) using the Friedman test (P<0.001). Results: The results showed a significant difference between the 360-degree evaluation and students' ratings (P=0.05). According to the students' attitudes, there was a significant difference between the mean scores of the faculty members' communication skills and instructional skills (P<0.001). In addition, according to the head of departments, peers, an expert in the evaluation and self-assessment of faculty members, there was a positive and significant correlation between these two evaluations. However, there was no correlation between the heads of departments' views and those of the deputies for education (P<0.001). Conclusion: Given the views of different participants in this study and the dimensions of assessment of faculty members, it seems that 360-degree assessment is more realistic and fair to be done in universities. In general, it is suggested that professors, in order to better understand their strengths and weaknesses, should pay more attention to all stakeholders' views in 360-degree evaluation to improve the quantity and quality of education. © 2023 Authors. All rights reserved.

Barriers and challenges of virtual education in faculty of nutritional sciences and food technology during the covid-19 pandemic: An experience from Iran

Background & Objective: Following the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual education was adopted as the only way to prevent the cessation of educational processes. This study aimed to identify the challenges experienced by faculty members and students of the faculty of Nutrition and Food Technology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Tehran, Iran. Materials & Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 218 students from all levels and 31 faculty members participated. Data were collected from February through March 2022, using two separate online questionnaires for students and faculty members to investigate potential problems and challenges in various educational areas. The results of the completed questionnaires were recorded in an Excel file and then transferred to the SPSS software (version 21) for statistical analysis. Results: Students were moderately satisfied with the quality of virtual education (P=0.02). Challenges related to "educational strategies” were the key challenges experienced by the students. Undergraduate students faced the most challenges (P=0.001). From the faculty members' perspective, challenges related to "technical problems of virtual education” were the most important ones. Both faculty members and students viewed the challenges related to "policy-making, planning, and regulations” as the least important obstacles. Conclusion: This study showed that the capacity development of students and faculty members to develop educational strategies and improving infrastructure to overcome technical problems in virtual education is probably the most important factor that needs to be addressed within the educational system. © The Authors.

Acceptance of Artificial Intelligence Application in the Post-Covid Era and Its Impact on Faculty Members' Occupational Well-being and Teaching Self Efficacy: A Path Analysis Using the UTAUT 2 Model

The purpose of the present study was to assess acceptance of Artificial Intelligence Application in the Post-covid Era and its impact of faculty members' occupational well-being and teaching self efficacy using The UTAUT 2 Model. This study used a quantitative, non-experimental survey design to answer the research questions and study the relationships between the independent variables of performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social faculty members' occupational well-being and teaching self efficacy. Faculty members from Umm AL-Qura University were targeted. An online questionnaire was used to collect data via Facebook and WhatsApp groups. I received a total of 350 questionnaire responses. They were 200 males(57.1%), and 150 females(42.9%). In confirmation of the research results, there is a significant positive relationship (p <.001) between occupational well-being (OWB)and teaching self efficacy(TSE) and performance expectancy (PE), effort expectancy (EE), social influence (SI), facilitating conditions (FC), price value (PV), and habit (HB), indicating that faculty members are influenced by the constructs established in the UTAUT2 model in the adoption of AI. © 2023 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Student Activity Monitoring in Online Lectures Using Computer Vision and Internet of Things

Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, education in schools and colleges have been imparted through different online platforms like Zoom, MS teams, skype and more. Students have found ways to avoid attending lectures by manipulating camera angles, putting up recordings of their faces, fiddling with their phones and laptops, joining late during online classes or even napping during lectures. It is impossible for the faculty members to keep an eye on fifty or more students and teach the class at the same time. It is difficult to track record of how much attention each student is paying during classes. Many students waste plenty of time sitting idle in front of the teachers. They and their parents need to be made aware of how much portion of the class their ward is actually attentive and how much they are not. Teachers need to know and keep track of their students' activities during class and monitor their performances. Through this prototype we aim to solve and tackle the aforementioned problems and barriers that teachers and professors face to properly counsel their students during the pandemic or online lectures as a whole. OpenCV face recognition, tracking, eye detection will be used to read facial textures of the students during online classes. Immediate notification will be sent to student's phone via mail if they are not paying attention in class. IFT TT/ SMTP will be used to send messages through cross-devices. A mobile application on the teacher's phone will keep track of students' activities. © 2022 IEEE.

The Impact of Corona Pandemic on the Palestinian Universities' Libraries' Services during the Years (2020-2021) From the Viewpoint of Faculty Members

This study aimed at identifying the impact of Corona pandemic on the information services in Palestinian university libraries during the years 2020-2021 from the viewpoint of the faculty members. A random sample of (500) individuals was selected, and an electronic questionnaire consisting of two fields was distributed to them: the first related to personal information (gender, age, academic rank, and college type: scientific, humanitarian), and the second consisted of 31 items related to sources in terms of: (access, access, use, and satisfaction), from which 304 valid questionnaires were retrieved for statistical analysis. The results indicated that there were statistically significant differences at the significance when (α≤0.05) between the views of faculty members in Palestinian universities for university library services in light of the Corona virus pandemic due to the variable: gender, age, scientific rank, specialization. The researcher recommends: It is the necessity of developing university library portals and reconsidering their digital strategies. © 2020 NSP.

IoT-Based Safe College Management System

The lifestyle of the people has changed completely after the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus has also undergone various mutation and causing scare to human existence. Hence, it is important to monitor the health conditions of the faculty members and students before letting them into the college premises. So, we have introduced a system which implements 3 stage screening process. First, it checks whether the visitor is fully vaccinated or not. Then during the second phase, the health condition of the people is monitored. Finally, people without mask are also prevented from entering into college campus. In addition to it, the system also dispenses the hand sanitizing liquid to the visitors. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

Innovative work behavior scale: development and validation of psychometric properties in higher education in the GCC countries

Purpose: The study aims to develop an innovative work behavior (IWB) scale for the faculty members and faculty leaders of universities in the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries (GCC). This research is intended for assessing the level of IWB in higher education and evaluating its psychometric properties. Design/methodology/approach: The study targets academic staff of universities in the GCC region, and out of 810 questionnaires that were distributed, only 773 valid responses were obtained of which 517 were responses from males and 256 from females whose ages range between 33 and 67 years. Findings: The exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used and confirmed a five-factor structural model (opportunity exploration, idea generation, idea promotion, idea realization and idea sustainability), and the model has a satisfactory fit. The scale consists of 27 items with high Cronbach's alpha value of 0.87, demonstrating good internal consistency. Preliminary results suggest that the IWB scale has adequate convergent and divergent validity. Practical implications: The IWB scale can be a useful tool for evaluating and developing a high level of innovative work behavior that maintains university services' sustainability and increases industries' competitiveness. Originality/value: This research provides insights into the importance of IWB in achieving tangible success to the educational institutions. It provides a new method to confront sudden and unexpected circumstance such as what has happened during COVID-19 pandemic. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited.

Challenges and Strategies for Online Learning: A Rapid Evaluation of Transitioning from Face-to-Face Learning to Online Learning during the COVID-19 Pandemic from the Perspective of Al al-Bayt University Faculty Members

This research work aims to study challenges faced Al al-Bayt University faculty members during the transition from traditional (face-to-face) learning to online learning during the corona pandemic (COVID-19) and highlight successful online learning policies adopted. In this research work, the challenges facing faculty members in their efforts to alleviate the obstacles facing students while learning online are identified using question and solution-based analysis. The successful policies they adopted provide many practical methods for faculty members and leaders to follow for online learning. The research work results are also expected to provide faculty members with a clear and insightful view on how to successfully integrate online learning into traditional learning within the blended learning approach. © 2022 IEEE.

Online education status at dental colleges COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has caused lockdown situation impeding all educational institutions including dental colleges. The circumstance demanded online classes as the alternative strategy for continuation of education. Objective To assess current practice and perception about online education among faculties of dental colleges in Nepal. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted among 208 faculties of all dental colleges in Nepal. Data collection was done through structured online questionnaire comprising demographic information, practice and perception of the respondents towards online education. Descriptive statistics surveyed the frequency distribution and Chi-square test assessed the difference in perception among the faculties of different universities. Result The response rate was 74.3%. Faculties commonly used PowerPoint presentation (96.6%) on Zoom platform (83.3%) using laptop (94.7%) with Wi-Fi connection (91.8%). Majority of faculties had good or satisfactory access to internet (94.8%). The faculties believed that the online class environment was interactive (95.2%);but it was not effective (86.5%) as live classroom. Majority of the faculties (79.4%) felt tracking of students' presence was difficult. There was no significant difference on perception towards online class among the faculties of Kathmandu University, Tribhuvan University and BP Koirala Institute Health Sciences at p <0.05. Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic has paved the way for e-learning in dental education in Nepal. Faculties agree to complete the theory syllabus and conduct sessional exams as an alternative during the lockdown period. However, they show strong reservations in carrying out practical/clinical simulations and university exams online. Training on e-learning and institutional strategy for online education is recommended. Copyright © 2020, Kathmandu University. All rights reserved.

The impact of COVID-19 on students across the disciplines

University faculty are increasingly dealing with more students who are coping with mental health issues, not to mention faculty are experiencing these issues as well due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These issues have caused students and faculty to have to rethink how they approach pedagogy in their classes and approach learning. This paper reviews the experience of three faculty members in the areas of chemistry, communication, and business and explores what they have observed over the last few years in the classroom and on campus. Copyright 2022. © by the International Institute of Informatics and Systemics. All rights reserved.

How Did COVID-19 Change Faculty Members' Use of Technology?

COVID-19 has caused great changes in education. Routines, practices, and especially the technologies used in teaching have differentiated at all levels of education. The purpose of this study is to determine the technologies used by faculty members for instructional purposes before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and their perspectives on the use of these technologies after the end of pandemic. A close-ended questionnaire was used for gathering data in this survey research study. Participants are150 faculty members from different ages and fields. Findings indicate that, although faculty members experienced various issues (e.g., infrastructure problems, access to technology, and lack of experience in technology) while teaching through technological facilities during the pandemic, they are in favor of using tools such as WhatsApp, Google classroom, Zoom Meeting, Facebook, and e-mail after the end of pandemic due to the different facilities they provide.

STEM FACULTY MEMBERS' PERSPECTIVES AND CHALLENGES TOWARDS DISTANCE LEARNING AND VIRTUAL CLASSES DURING COVID-19 OUTBREAK

The study aims at investigating the STEM faculty members' perspectives and challenges towards distance learning and virtual classes during COVID-19 outbreak. The results are compared with those of non-STEM faculty members from the same institution. Data collection was performed at the United Arab Emirates University in view of four demographic independent variables: Faculty Gender, Experience, Academic Rank, and Academic Track. The researchers adopted and implemented a questionnaire where its validity and reliability for collecting data have been verified. Mean, standard deviations, and one-way ANOVA tests were conducted. The results indicate that the overall of faculty members' perspectives towards distance learning and virtual classes and for both tracks (STEM, and humanities and social sciences) are Medium. The results do not show a significant difference at the level (α = 0.05) for the independent variables: gender, and experience. However, we observe significant differences for the academic track and academic rank. We notice some significant differences in favor of full professors and associate professors as compared to lecturers. We also observe some significant differences between STEM and non-STEM tracks in favor of the former one. The results show that the calculated means for the challenges in using distance learning and virtual classes for the STEM, and humanities and social sciences tracks are Weak. This indicates that there are no apparent challenges that hinder the effort in teaching. The results do not show a significant difference at the level (α = 0.05) for all independent variables: faculty gender, experience, academic rank, and academic track. The study concluded with few recommendations. The university should continue supporting the current efforts to provide all the requirements of teaching and learning via distance learning and virtual classes such as suitable infrastructure, internet, smart apps, and technical support. There is always a need for continuous updates of the teaching and learning platforms in line with ongoing development and training for instructors and students. © 2023,Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education.All Rights Reserved.