Rapid and unanticipated change: A phenomenological study of rapidly moving faculty responsibilities online

ABSTRACT

Online instruction is not a new concept in higher education. Schools now exist that are entirely online, and some are slowly moving more options over to the virtual realm. Though this transition is taking place at many schools, it has required institutional planning to update infrastructure and necessary systems, and it has required dedication to training faculty members on the nuance of delivering online courses. The introduction of the COVID-19 pandemic caused schools to rapidly react to the necessity of the moment. Suddenly faculty members who have received no formal training on how to deliver an online course were asked to transition their entire curriculum to that format. Schools that had no online coursework infrastructure had to improvise. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the faculty experience of transitioning their faculty responsibilities online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Interviews were conducted with six full-time faculty members who were faculty at the time of transition necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Though this study did not specify it, there were only female participants. From the data collection and interpretation process, five themes emerged that captured the experiences of faculty members when they had to transition their coursework online. The five themes were Experience with Communication, Distrust and Power, Work and Family Sacrifice, Rapid Change, and A Glimpse Behind the Veil. There were multiple subthemes under each theme.This study has implications for how schools and faculty members can best prepare for future instances of rapid transition to a virtual format. This study helps to establish academic literature that focuses on the faculty experience due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)