We Can't Go Back: Student Perceptions and Remote Learning Protocols

COVID-19 accommodation protocols at The Citadel allowed faculty and students affected by the virus to quickly implement video-based instruction. Extending student access to classroom lecture as recordings on the LMS is just another step toward streaming educational content, as YouTube has made possible for years. Video-based lecture technology also lowers the barriers to education, making connection more physically and financially accessible. After nearly three semesters of implemented video-based teaching protocols in place, students are seeing the value in remote learning contexts when in-person learning is not possible. This paper reports student perceptions of selected effective approaches to hybrid/hyflex learning, comparing student and faculty perceptions regarding its value and effectiveness at a largely residential institution. Faculty who taught remotely during the pandemic underwent continuous professional development at The Citadel in order to ensure successful academic experiences for both faculty and students. Faculty reported feeling significantly burdened with learning about this course delivery mode. Additionally, some faculty struggled with institutional compliance and regionally-approved best practices for instructional design. This paper examines some of the best practices and challenges for building and deploying a set of standards for online instruction, noting that while arduous, high fidelity instructional design creates value for students and faculty, both online and offline, with students appreciating readily accessible course materials and recorded lectures. Best practice recommendations are driven by synthesizing qualitative faculty feedback and Likert-scaled student survey data. Faculty and student survey results show that face-to-face learning is still the 'gold standard' for optimal learning opportunities, however, the pandemic has accelerated the build-out of hyflex course deliveries and created sustainable systems and instructional design standards for online learning. Student perceptions show that they identify and value selected unanticipated benefits to hyflex learning, despite faculty misgivings. This report presents this conflict of perceptions as an opportunity to be seized, and is part of a longer series of studies on student perceptions of learning effectiveness. Validation of results is preliminarily supported by similar protocols adopted at other institutions, and record-setting successes at the Dean, Department Head, and Instructional Design-aid level. Going forward, as the pandemic is brought under control, the authors foresee students' expectations rising: video-recorded lectures and remote connection during live lecture no longer present unsurmountable technological barriers and they aid student learning.