Leveraging Technology to Support Adjunct Faculty in Effective Online Teaching

Introduction

Higher education in the United States stands as a cornerstone of knowledge dissemination, personal growth, and societal advancement. Within this dynamic setting, adjunct faculty have emerged as a crucial component in academic institutions. In North America, an adjunct professor, also known as an adjunct lecturer or adjunct instructor (collectively, adjunct faculty), is a professor who teaches on a limited-term contract, often for one semester at a time, and who is ineligible for tenure (McKenna, 2015). It is a well-known fact that higher education in US have replaced tenured positions with an army of contingent faculty (Weingarten, et al, 2020). Higher education like any other private sector businesses, nonprofits, and public sector organizations shifted from conventional employment and began hiring freelancers like any other enterprises in US to cut costs to swapping out tenured and full-time teaching jobs for a cheaper option: adjunct and part-time professors (Insider Scholar, n. d.). “The role of the adjunct professor is continually expanding in education due to deflating budgets and the availability of numerous qualified applicants for few positions” (Danaei, 2019, p. 17). Colleges and universities are increasingly relying on contingent faculty to do the bulk of undergraduate instruction, justifying this shift due to shrinking state budgets, even while high-level administrator positions rapidly expand (Weingarten, et al, 2020). These dedicated adjunct faculty, while often holding part-time or temporary positions, play an indispensable role in shaping the educational experience of students, contributing to research endeavors, and maintaining the diversity of academic discourse.

Adjunct faculty bring significant benefits to higher education not just saving financial budget for schools, they change the higher education landscape by offering institutions flexibility in course offerings and contribute to the diversity of faculty representation in higher education. They bring different backgrounds, experiences, and cultural perspectives, elevating the overall learning environment and promoting inclusivity in academia. A research conducted in 2021 on full- versus part-time faculty by Tashchian et al reveals that “student perceive part-time faulty as better able to relate the course material to the real world” (2021). This enables institutions to provide a diverse range of courses and meet the specific needs and interests of students. More importantly, adjunct faculty often maintain active professional connections within their industries. This networking can open doors for students, providing access to internships, job opportunities, and valuable professional contacts.

However, alongside the undeniable benefits adjunct faculty provide, it is essential to address the challenges they face within the current higher education system. These challenges encompass low pay, lack of job security, limited access to benefits, and insufficient opportunities for professional development. Despite their growing numbers, adjuncts are frequently left out of institutional discussions about learning goals, course assignments, textbook selection, professional development, evaluation and feedback - experience institutions seek when hiring full-time tenure-track faculty members (Kezar, Scott, & Yang, 2018). In 2022, Colleen Flaherty published a survey report on adjunct faculty working condition based on 1900 adjunct instructors at two- and four-year institutions fielded from May to August 2020. It reports that nearly a quarter of respondents said they earn less than $25,000 per year, which is below the federal poverty guideline for a family of four. However, this “cheap” labor force of adjunct faculty play a crucial role in higher education institutions. These institutions are absolutely dependent on adjuncts to teach for them, yet the adjuncts are not able to make a living and are dependent on public programs (Flaherty, 2022). Another post-survey result from Young & Townsend indicates that adjunct faculty who rely on college teaching as their primary source of income are likely to suffer from a lack of job security, money, health insurance, or all three (2021).