Abstract
A sustainable education amid a disruptive event (e.g., a pandemic) requires the objective assessment of learning before and during the event and, if necessary, evidence-driven solutions in response to deficiencies. The present action research study illustrates an evidence-based response of educators to the widespread concerns that learning in college students, accustomed to face-to-face courses, might have been damaged during the pandemic by the switch to the online mode. It focuses on general education (GE) courses as they usually enroll students at the beginning of their journey in higher education, and thus, a population that is likely to be particularly sensitive to unforeseen changes. Pass/fail grades in courses taught face-to-face and online synchronously by the same instructors were examined. It was hypothesized that if the switch from face-to-face to online instruction changed the students’ approaches to learning, course performance would differ between the instructional modes. Differences in female and male students’ adaptation responses were expected to be reflected in their course performance. The study found that female students performed better online than face-to-face in Arabic Culture, Natural Science, Math, and Wellness courses. Male students also performed better online in Math and Natural Science courses, whereas they exhibited better performance face-to-face in Arabic Culture, Wellness, and Professional Competency courses. It was concluded that basic indices of uneven performance can guide further analyses into the sources of female and male students’ approaches to instructional modes.
Highlights
Action research in teaching is the practice of disciplined inquiry conducted by educators to inform as well as improve outcomes [1]
In a world where opinions often count more than facts, and facts may be misconstrued to serve particular self-interests, we argue that evidence-based inquiry is the most sensible first response to circulating narratives of damage
We focus on an institution that has mandated the adoption of the synchronous online mode to all educators and ensured preparation through modeling as well as IT
Summary
Action research in teaching is the practice of disciplined inquiry conducted by educators to inform as well as improve outcomes [1]. In contrast to traditional research, whose main goal is to generate valid knowledge, often under controlled conditions, to improve a given field of inquiry, the goal of action research is to generate knowledge that is both valid and impactful (i.e., vital to the wellbeing of the individuals it assesses) [2]. The problem-solving goal of action research is satisfied by an evaluation of the sources of any discrepancies between face-to-face (before the pandemic) and online (during the pandemic) instruction, which can guide a surgical intervention intended to rectify discrepancies. A key aspect of sustainable education is its ability to preserve quality while withstanding unforeseen, potentially disruptive environmental conditions [3,4].
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