Recommendation 2: Create opportunities for student-instructor communication, especially for first- and second-year students.
According to the research: “During the period of remote instruction, instructors became the primary lifeline between IU and its students. However, 67% of instructors agreed that they felt disconnected from their students, and 74% of students agreed that they’d lost touch with the Indiana University community. Freshmen and sophomores (24%) were more likely than juniors and seniors (19%) to disagree or strongly disagree that their instructors were more available for support. Furthermore, though Canvas tracks student access of online course materials, submission of online assignments, and visits to course sites, only 16% of instructors agreed that it was easier to keep track of how their students were doing. As students’ local support networks dispersed, instructors have played a more central role in student support than they had previously; all the while, they were also occupied with adapting and delivering assignments and assessments.”
Recommendation 3: Facilitate student success and foster a sense of virtual community through student-to-student communication.
According to the research: “One of this study’s most poignant findings notes that many IU students experienced a deep sense of isolation during remote instruction. Many instructors, laudably, rose to the challenge of providing support and encouragement to their students and, as noted above, this should continue. Another important means of facilitating connection to the academic community, improving student engagement, and reducing feelings of isolation, is to provide more opportunities for students to interact with each other.”
Recommendation 4: Collaborate with other members of IU’s vibrant teaching community by sharing materials and successes and providing venues for others to do the same.
According to the research: “With instructors working from home, conversations with colleagues about teaching may have also been curtailed. To their credit, most instructors made strong efforts to develop original materials, and reported great investments in adapting their course materials, largely in isolation. Ninety percent of instructors agreed with the statement ‘I created my own instructional materials,’ and 68% agreed with the statement ‘I was willing to freely share the materials I created with others.’ However, only 29% agreed with the statement ‘I asked others to share their instructional materials with me.’ Importantly, 65% of instructors agreed with the statement ‘It was more difficult to teach.'”
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