TEACHING AT A DISTANCE: LEARNING FROM THE EMERGENCY REMOTE TEACHING EXPERIENCES

Year 2022, Volume: 6 Issue: 1, 12 - 24, 01.01.2022

Abel Jr. Alvarez

Abstract

Indeed, all of us are vulnerable in these trying times. Teachers, like students, are also experiencing various challenges as they face the call for continued learning of stu-dents at the time of emergency remote education. While some literature pointed out that remote teaching and learning is already happening even prior to the pandemic crisis, it is also necessary to understand and investigate the experiences of teachers who were suddenly immersed in teaching at a distance. Hence, a qualitative case study research design was employed to examine the emergency remote teaching experiences of ten higher education facilitators handling National Service Training Program course in one of the top-tier universities in the Philippines. There were three themes revealed in this study: teaching with care and empathy, teaching in a digital divide society, and teaching in an emergency world with pressure and anxiety. Interestingly, while teachers also experience a variety of emotional and behavioral challenges, it is also undeniable that they ensure to have a safe space and a meaningful learning environment even teaching and learning are separated by time and space. Learning from the voices of the teachers is as important as students’ voices. Thus, it is vital to recognize and appreciate the efforts exerted by teachers amidst the pandemic crisis.

Keywords

Distance Teaching, Emergency Remote Education, Online Teaching, Pandemic, Teaching Experiences

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