Proposed policies in light of procedures adopted by Palestinian universities during emergency

Abstract

Higher education in Palestine, as in other countries, suddenly found itself in the middle of the Covid19 pandemic. It was in March 2020 that the government declared the state of emergency and ordered educational institutions on lockdown, replacing oncampus teaching with online teaching. Within almost two weeks, all universities started teaching in the new modality. This research aims to reveal the procedures Palestinian universities resorted to during the emergency, due to Covid19 pandemic; and to propose future policies for the continuity of teaching and learning in times of emergency. The research used two data collection techniques, a questionnaire and interviews. The questionnaire was distributed online to all faculty members at 10 Palestinian universities in the West Bank. It was able to collect 249 responses. Interviews were conducted with three vice presidents for academic affairs. Results showed a diversity of procedures and actions were executed by universities to assist students continue learning, such as the quick decision to switch to eLearning. In addition, universities managed to keep students safely learning at distance; administrative and support departments managed to keep up with their duties. Results also revealed that universities were not adequately prepared for e-Learning as there were no clear and integrated plans and policies, neither they were able to manage learning within the new modality. This study proposes some future policies for universities to follow when adopting and implementing e-Learning: through e-Learning quality control policy; e-Learning assessment policy; and readiness policy in emergencies for universities.