Abstract
The disruptive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic brought about opportunities for higher education institutions around the world to rethink the planning and delivery of instruction for all learners during and after a pandemic. Faculty were pushed to reexamine their own practices as they made shifts in their instructional practices to meet students' learning needs. This chapter explores three focus questions using a comparative analysis of the research along with the authors' experience and knowledge of successful innovations employed in higher education institutions globally. The chapter illustrates changes in the landscape of higher education practices, problem-solving mechanisms employed, and the lessons learned by higher education middle executives. The authors conclude that middle executives need to move away from a “solo mindset” to one of continuous collaboration aimed at strengthening existing structures created since the pandemic to minimize disruptions in future crises.
TopBackground And Literature Review
With the entry of COVID-19 pandemic, numerous educational institutions around the world closed their doors to face-face instruction, and online learning became the new norm. The pandemic occurred at an unprecedented time and forced “governments around the world to impose social distancing measures, lockdowns, and cessation of personal contact outside immediate households” (Garcia-Morales et al., 2021, p.1). According to Garcia-Morales et al. (2021), the International Association of Universities, under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, reported that more than 100 million learners in higher education institutions were displaced due to the complete closure of higher education institutions in 185 countries around the globe (Garcia-Morales et al., 2021, p.1). The International Association of Universities Global Survey data on the impact of COVID-19 on higher education institutions garnered international global perspectives on the impact of the pandemic on higher education institutions. Further, data from the World Health Organization showed that by April 1, 2020, the COVID-19 virus affected 205 countries around the world. This fast-paced virus forced 3.4 billion or 43% of people around the world, including higher education institutions, into lockdown and social distancing modes (Marinoni et al., 2020). Because of this, mid-level executives of higher education institutions had to activate their best crisis management and decision-making skills by asking many national and international students to leave their institutions and return home or hang out in campus dormitories where this was an option.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Higher Education: A college or university that provide post-secondary education.
Pre-Service Teachers: An individual who is enrolled in a teacher education program before meeting the requirements for teacher certification.
Internship: A period of time that a pre-service teacher spends in a classroom teaching while supported by the classroom teacher and a college professor (intern supervisor).
Digital Divide: The difference between those who have or have access to digital devices and Internet and those who do not.
Synchronous Instruction: Providing instruction in person and online at the same time.