Open AccessImpacts of the COVID‐19 pandemic on field instruction and remote teaching alternatives: Results from a survey of instructors
Author(s) -
Barton Daniel C.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
ecology and evolution
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.17
H-Index - 63
ISSN - 2045-7758
DOI - 10.1002/ece3.6628
Subject(s) - context (archaeology) , field (mathematics) , covid-19 , pandemic , identification (biology) , teaching method , computer science , mathematics education , medical education , psychology , ecology , geography , medicine , biology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , archaeology , mathematics , disease , pathology , pure mathematics
Education in ecology and evolution often utilizes field instruction to teach key learning outcomes. Remote teaching of learning outcomes that have been traditionally taught in the field, necessitated by the COVID‐19 pandemic, presents unique challenges for students, instructors, and institutions. A survey of 117 faculty conducted during spring 2020 revealed substantial reduction of learning outcomes typically taught in the field, and frequent substitutions of less active and more instructor‐centered remote activities for field activities. The survey revealed generally negative instructor views on many remote teaching substitutions, yet also showed several approaches that instructors regarded as more effective, despite potential challenges with equitably teaching them. I suggest several models of remote substitutions for traditional field teaching of identification, field techniques, data collection, and study design in the context of the results of this survey.