{"id":{"repo_id":"vt","oai_identifier":"oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/139921"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/vt/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/139921","repository":{"repo_id":"vt","name":"Virginia Tech","base_url":"https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"The Perspective of University Instructors About COVID Pandemic-Related Changes in Instructional Delivery Methods","abstract":"The Perspective of University Instructors About COVID Pandemic-Related Changes in Instructional Delivery Methods Shannan M. Roark Abstract In March of 2020, colleges and universities closed their doors due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of this unexpected event, approximately 200 million students worldwide were transitioned from traditional face-to-face lectures to online courses (Salmi, 2020). On the college and university levels, numerous instructors were unprepared to convert long-standing lecture courses into viable synchronous and asynchronous classes (Pavlidou, 2021; Salmi, 2020). This action prompted instructors to redefine their courses and the way instruction was presented. This qualitative research study examined how instructors addressed the sudden transition to online teaching, what they gained from the experience, and how this knowledge influenced their subsequent teaching styles. As revealed in the study, after the pandemic, instructors were more willing to incorporate elements of online learning into their courses, including, but not limited to, learning software used in conjunction with classes notated as blended/hybrid or courses completely online in a full asynchronous format. Due to the increase in online and digital instruction, the study revealed a dramatic rise in the number of higher education instructors attending professional development workshops and participating in training on technological innovations. These changes have also compelled colleges and universities to adjust policies, adapt course offerings, and provide incentives to encourage the development of courses with a stronger technological focus. This shift involves greater reliance on learning management systems and the transition of course offerings from traditional formats to various learning modalities, including synchronous, asynchronous, and hybrid/blended learning formats","abstract_html":"The Perspective of University Instructors About COVID Pandemic-Related Changes in Instructional Delivery Methods Shannan M. Roark Abstract In March of 2020, colleges and universities closed their doors due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of this unexpected event, approximately 200 million students worldwide were transitioned from traditional face-to-face lectures to online courses (Salmi, 2020). On the college and university levels, numerous instructors were unprepared to convert long-standing lecture courses into viable synchronous and asynchronous classes (Pavlidou, 2021; Salmi, 2020). This action prompted instructors to redefine their courses and the way instruction was presented. This qualitative research study examined how instructors addressed the sudden transition to online teaching, what they gained from the experience, and how this knowledge influenced their subsequent teaching styles. As revealed in the study, after the pandemic, instructors were more willing to incorporate elements of online learning into their courses, including, but not limited to, learning software used in conjunction with classes notated as blended/hybrid or courses completely online in a full asynchronous format. Due to the increase in online and digital instruction, the study revealed a dramatic rise in the number of higher education instructors attending professional development workshops and participating in training on technological innovations. These changes have also compelled colleges and universities to adjust policies, adapt course offerings, and provide incentives to encourage the development of courses with a stronger technological focus. This shift involves greater reliance on learning management systems and the transition of course offerings from traditional formats to various learning modalities, including synchronous, asynchronous, and hybrid/blended learning formats","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Roark, Shannan Marie"],"institution":"Virginia Tech","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy","degree_level":"doctoral","degree_discipline":"Educational Leadership and Policy Studies","degree_department":"Educational Leadership and Policy Studies","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":["Alexander, Michael D."],"committee_members":["Cash, Carol S.","Weaver-Hightower, Marcus Bennett","Brinkmann, Jodie Lynn"],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-12-12","date_published":"2025-12-12","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:07Z","subjects":["COVID Pandemic","Hybrid","Asychronous","Synchronous","Blended Learning"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["In Copyright"],"rights_urls":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:44712"],"render_values":[{"text":"vt_gsexam:44712","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/10919/139921","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.committeechair","label":"Committee Chair","values":["Alexander, Michael D."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Cash, Carol S.","Weaver-Hightower, Marcus Bennett","Brinkmann, Jodie Lynn"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["Educational Leadership and Policy Studies"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Roark, Shannan Marie"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2025-12-13T09:00:11Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2025-12-13T09:00:11Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2025-12-12"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Virginia Tech"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Educational Leadership and Policy Studies"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["doctoral"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["COVID Pandemic","Hybrid","Asychronous","Synchronous","Blended Learning"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["vt_gsexam:44712"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/139921"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The Perspective of University Instructors About COVID Pandemic-Related Changes in Instructional Delivery Methods Shannan M. Roark Abstract In March of 2020, colleges and universities closed their doors due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of this unexpected event, approximately 200 million students worldwide were transitioned from traditional face-to-face lectures to online courses (Salmi, 2020). On the college and university levels, numerous instructors were unprepared to convert long-standing lecture courses into viable synchronous and asynchronous classes (Pavlidou, 2021; Salmi, 2020). This action prompted instructors to redefine their courses and the way instruction was presented. This qualitative research study examined how instructors addressed the sudden transition to online teaching, what they gained from the experience, and how this knowledge influenced their subsequent teaching styles. As revealed in the study, after the pandemic, instructors were more willing to incorporate elements of online learning into their courses, including, but not limited to, learning software used in conjunction with classes notated as blended/hybrid or courses completely online in a full asynchronous format. Due to the increase in online and digital instruction, the study revealed a dramatic rise in the number of higher education instructors attending professional development workshops and participating in training on technological innovations. These changes have also compelled colleges and universities to adjust policies, adapt course offerings, and provide incentives to encourage the development of courses with a stronger technological focus. This shift involves greater reliance on learning management systems and the transition of course offerings from traditional formats to various learning modalities, including synchronous, asynchronous, and hybrid/blended learning formats"]},{"key":"dc:description.abstractgeneral","label":"General Abstract","values":["The Perspective of University Instructors About COVID-19 Pandemic-Related Changes in Instructional Delivery Methods Shannan M. Roark General Audience Abstract In March of 2020, colleges and universities closed their doors due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of this unexpected event, approximately 200 million students worldwide were transitioned from traditional face-to-face lectures to online courses (Salmi, 2020). On the college and university levels, numerous instructors were unprepared to convert long-standing lecture courses into viable synchronous and asynchronous classes (Pavlidou, 2021; Salmi, 2020). This action left instructors redefining their courses and how instruction was presented. This qualitative research study examined how instructors addressed the sudden transition to online teaching, what they gained from the experience, and how this knowledge influenced their subsequent teaching styles. As revealed in the study, after the pandemic, instructors were more willing to incorporate elements of online learning into their courses, including, but not limited to, learning software used in conjunction with classes notated as blended/hybrid or courses completely online in a full asynchronous format. The study also revealed an increase in the willingness to attend professional development workshops or participate in training regarding technological innovations. Nayar and Koul (2020), who focused their research on the concept that the present generation of learners is more technologically driven and digitally advanced, suggested that teaching in the 21st century is a constant state of reevaluation. Instructors in a post-pandemic world, therefore, need to modify traditional teaching methodologies to become more relevant in today's teaching environment, which, in turn, requires constant vigilance on emerging technologies and teaching methods (pp. 1357-1358). Due to the increase in online and digital instruction, the study revealed a dramatic rise in the number of higher education instructors attending professional development workshops and participating in training on technological innovations. These changes have also compelled colleges and universities to adjust policies, adapt course offerings, and provide incentives to encourage the development of courses with a stronger technological focus. This shift involves a greater reliance on learning management systems and the transition of course offerings from traditional formats to various learning modalities, including synchronous, asynchronous, and hybrid/blended learning formats."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"dc:format.medium","label":"Dc Format Medium","values":["ETD"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Perspective of University Instructors About COVID Pandemic-Related Changes in Instructional Delivery Methods"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.committeechair":["Alexander, Michael D."],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Cash, Carol S.","Weaver-Hightower, Marcus Bennett","Brinkmann, Jodie Lynn"],"dc:contributor.department":["Educational Leadership and Policy Studies"],"dc:creator":["Roark, Shannan Marie"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2025-12-13T09:00:11Z"],"dc:date.available":["2025-12-13T09:00:11Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2025-12-12"],"dc:description.abstract":["The Perspective of University Instructors About COVID Pandemic-Related Changes in Instructional Delivery Methods Shannan M. Roark Abstract In March of 2020, colleges and universities closed their doors due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of this unexpected event, approximately 200 million students worldwide were transitioned from traditional face-to-face lectures to online courses (Salmi, 2020). On the college and university levels, numerous instructors were unprepared to convert long-standing lecture courses into viable synchronous and asynchronous classes (Pavlidou, 2021; Salmi, 2020). This action prompted instructors to redefine their courses and the way instruction was presented. This qualitative research study examined how instructors addressed the sudden transition to online teaching, what they gained from the experience, and how this knowledge influenced their subsequent teaching styles. As revealed in the study, after the pandemic, instructors were more willing to incorporate elements of online learning into their courses, including, but not limited to, learning software used in conjunction with classes notated as blended/hybrid or courses completely online in a full asynchronous format. Due to the increase in online and digital instruction, the study revealed a dramatic rise in the number of higher education instructors attending professional development workshops and participating in training on technological innovations. These changes have also compelled colleges and universities to adjust policies, adapt course offerings, and provide incentives to encourage the development of courses with a stronger technological focus. 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This qualitative research study examined how instructors addressed the sudden transition to online teaching, what they gained from the experience, and how this knowledge influenced their subsequent teaching styles. As revealed in the study, after the pandemic, instructors were more willing to incorporate elements of online learning into their courses, including, but not limited to, learning software used in conjunction with classes notated as blended/hybrid or courses completely online in a full asynchronous format. The study also revealed an increase in the willingness to attend professional development workshops or participate in training regarding technological innovations. Nayar and Koul (2020), who focused their research on the concept that the present generation of learners is more technologically driven and digitally advanced, suggested that teaching in the 21st century is a constant state of reevaluation. Instructors in a post-pandemic world, therefore, need to modify traditional teaching methodologies to become more relevant in today's teaching environment, which, in turn, requires constant vigilance on emerging technologies and teaching methods (pp. 1357-1358). Due to the increase in online and digital instruction, the study revealed a dramatic rise in the number of higher education instructors attending professional development workshops and participating in training on technological innovations. These changes have also compelled colleges and universities to adjust policies, adapt course offerings, and provide incentives to encourage the development of courses with a stronger technological focus. This shift involves a greater reliance on learning management systems and the transition of course offerings from traditional formats to various learning modalities, including synchronous, asynchronous, and hybrid/blended learning formats."],"dc:description.degree":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"dc:format.medium":["ETD"],"dc:identifier.other":["vt_gsexam:44712"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/10919/139921"],"dc:language.iso":["en"],"dc:publisher":["Virginia Tech"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright"],"dc:rights.uri":["http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/"],"dc:subject":["COVID Pandemic","Hybrid","Asychronous","Synchronous","Blended Learning"],"dc:title":["The Perspective of University Instructors About COVID Pandemic-Related Changes in Instructional Delivery Methods"],"dc:type":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Educational Leadership and Policy Studies"],"thesis:degree_level":["doctoral"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"thesis:institution_name":["Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:07Z"}