Social and Academic Impacts of COVID-19 - Related Emergency Remote Teaching on Japanese University Students

Abstract

This study will detail how a university in Western Japan has implemented its English for Academic Purposes (EAP) program during the onset of COVID-19. In the spring semester of 2020, after a 2 week delay, all courses within the school’s EAP program were offered in an online asynchronous format. The course coordinators were tasked with consolidating the materials originally designed for face-to-face,14 week courses, for a 12 week asynchronous online semester, and with uploading the modified course materials to the university’s Learning Management System (LMS). Twenty one students participated in semi-open interviews to determine the social and academic impacts of this COVID-19 Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) approach. The lessons learned from this experience will be discussed in terms of future curriculum design and implementation in a post-COVIDworld. There are a wide variety of lessons that were salient. The role of the classroom as a social institution was very prominent; however, awareness of cognitive burdens and strategies to mitigate them may be more valuable for teachers. The lessons learned during this period of ERT can help teachers moving forward.