Perceptions of regular faculty members on the effectiveness of online classes in the COVID-19 situation: Exploring emerging practices at higher education

Abstract

Purpose: The Covid-19 situation has changed the perceptions and the attitudes of professionals and educationists in the current era. The dynamics and teaching protocols of education have been affected due to Covid-19. The technology is being integrated in the educational institutions of the developed and developing countries for the last few decades. Since the Covid-19 emerged; the demand for the technology has been increased in many of the field especially in education. This situation demanded the regular faculty members who were not trained for online classes to teach using the online platforms for their teaching purposes. The major objective of study was to explore the perceptions of regular faculty members on the effectiveness of online classes in the Covid-19 situation. Methodology: The qualitative research design with a phenomenological approach was used. The population of the study was all the regular faculty members who were teaching on campuses before Covid-19 but after that situation, they went for online classes and sample size was (N=10) faculty members. Convenience sampling was used to choose participants. The semi-structured interviews were conducted and the data was analysed through thematic analysis. Findings: The findings revealed three major themes: a) Effectiveness of online classes b) Facilitating factors and c) Issues and Challenges. Implications of the study are drawn from results that can be important for the sake of increasing the progress of educational institutes. Significance: The study will be helpful for other teachers who are engaged in online classes and universities which are offering online courses such as Allama Iqbal open and virtual university. The study recommends that HEC should provide the equipment and training to develop positive attitudes among teachers. Government should take proactive steps in overcoming barriers and challenges faced by faculty members during conducting online classes.