Virtual Faculty Strategies for Supporting Motivation of Online Doctoral Students

Our study focused on online faculty members and their perceptions of the strategies and activities they use to promote progress for and motivation in their online graduate students, particularly at the dissertation/doctoral study phase of the program. Results show high-achieving faculty members vary their strategies according to each students’ needs. High-achieving faculty members reach out to students often, offer encouragement throughout the process, and establish realistic goals.

Online Faculty Development in low- and middle-income countries for Health Professions Educators: A rapid realist review

Background Health professions educators require support to develop teaching and learning, research, educational leadership, and administrative skills to strengthen their higher education role through faculty development initiatives. Where administration has pursued face-to-face and online faculty development initiatives, results have positively influenced health professions educators. There is limited evidence demonstrating how online faculty development works for health professions educators in low- and middle-income countries who engage in online health professions education (HPE) faculty development. Methods A Conjecture Map for online HPE faculty development courses identified candidate theories for a rapid realist review. The Conjecture Map and candidate theories, Community of Inquiry and the Conversational Framework guided the development of search terms and analysis for this review. Three searches using EbscoHost databases yielded 1 030 abstracts. A primary and secondary research team participated in a multi-reviewer blinded process in assessing abstracts, selecting full-text articles, and data extraction. The primary research team analysed eight articles for this rapid realist review to answer the research question: How do online HPE faculty development courses work, or not work, in low- and middle-income countries? Data were analysed and mapped to the initial Conjecture Map and the research question. Results The research references US-based organisations forming partnerships with low- and middle-income countries, and who provide funding for online HPE faculty development initiatives. These initiatives design courses that facilitate learning through engagement from which participants report beneficial outcomes of professional and career development. The review does not clarify if the reported outcomes are generalisable for facilitators from low-and middle-income countries. The findings of this review demonstrate the role of a community of practice as the dominant mechanism through which the outcomes are achieved, based on a design that incorporates six triggering events. The design aligns the triggering events with the three categories of the Community of Inquiry—a theory for designing online learning environments. Conclusion Health professions educators in low- and middle-income countries can develop professional and interpersonal skills through a well-designed, specifically constructed online community that prioritises active discussion.

Short versus long video-based lectures as a tool for faculty development during COVID-19 pandemic

With emerge of the COVID-19 pandemic, video-based lectures (VBLs) was widely used as an effective online faculty development tool. VBLs varies from short videos (5-minute) to the long one (1-2 hours). So, the current study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of long VBLs versus short VBLs. A total of 21 short (9) and long (12) VBLs were produced, in 2020, by the authors. The metadata for all of VBLs was downloaded from YouTube [VBLs overview data, audiences’ engagement data, and audience retention (AR) report]. The viewership data included the number of views (4800), watch time by hours (173.6), males to females’ ratio (79/21), the number of the subscribers (157), the video length (2.9±1.2 minutes), number of viewers (241.1±157.8), and the watch time (5.1±3.3 hours). The audience retention is presented as average view duration (1.1±0.4 hours) and average percentage view (42.8±7.9%). Lastly, audience engagement is represented by the number of subscribers (6.4±7.4), likes (9.7±8.0), and dislikes (0.3±0.7). The comparison of the mean audience retention and engagement between short and long VBLs showed that short VBLs had significantly higher number of subscribers and likes as well as the average percentage views in comparison to long VBLs. We could conclude that short VBLs are more effective and efficient as a regard audience retention and engagement. Moreover, the more use of advanced technology for video development makes it more engaging.

A Qualitative Study Examining Home as Faculty Workplace During COVID-19 Self-Isolation

Objectives: Using the lens of the virtual workplace model, the current basic qualitative study examined how COVID-19 self-isolation affected both online and land-based faculty (working online as an emergency due to COVID-19) workspaces and work processes. Method: A total of 20 online and six land-based faculty completed e-mail interviews both one month and 3 months post self-isolation. Results: Online faculty were more satisfied with their home workplace, but both groups felt more negative about their online work, as they felt a loss of freedom and independence due to the isolation. Conclusions: Findings indicated that both land-based and online faculty showed indications of stress due to self-isolation, which in turn affected their feelings about work. Gaining a sense of control seems to be essential to reducing stress over time. Implication for theory and/or practice: Future researchers may wish to examine the relationship of feelings of employee burnout to the stress of the pandemic. How working from home interacts with burnout is not yet known, particularly for online faculty. Both employers and virtual workers may wish to utilize the study’s findings in recognizing a need for control in virtual workers.

Computer to Community

The convenience factor of studying online can be diminished by the lack of interaction with faculty and peers, and students often express feelings of isolation as influencing online engagement. When students can actively participate throughout a program, students feel satisfied with the learning program. Building positive and organized connections in online communities enhances academic success and retention rates and fosters a sense of community. Therefore, the presence of online faculty is vital for building interaction and connectedness between faculty and student, and student and student. There are a variety of ways to achieve this, including facilitating connections between discussions, assignments, and live interactions; merging conceptual learning to pragmatic application; connecting cohorts of students; and leveraging synchronous tools to manage an interactive atmosphere.

Transformational Educational Leadership and the Innovative Strategies Engaging Online Faculty for the Excellent Teaching Performance in the United States

This research paper summarizes the arguments and counterarguments within the scientific discussion on the transformational educational leadership and the innovative strategies engaging online faculty for the excellent teaching performance in the United States. There are various leadership traits of academic leadership to assess engagement amongst online adjunct faculty in the online platform of higher education. This research study focuses on the lived experiences of academic leaders to aid online adjunct faculty in trying to increase the sense of inclusion, engagement, and support. Applying the lived experiences of academic leader could retrieve elements within online adjunct faculty so they can have a positive contribution towards the institution. Support is needed to improve engagement, to assist adequate academic leadership. Systematization of the literary sources and approaches for solving the problem the academic leadership indicates that incorporate individualized strategies when the leader recognizes the value online adjunct faculty bring to their institutions. The relevance of this scientific problem decision is that the themes within this article breakdown the vital impact leaders have with their online adjunct faculty. The wide-ranging factors discussed in this article were categorized to demonstrate the critical components that leadership strategies if implemented effectively, could aid in an engagement component and inclusion for online adjunct faculty. Factors that are vital for academic leadership could be the use of leadership strategies to promote engagement and inclusion within the online environment outlined in this scientific article. The research paper presents the results of an empirical analysis all strategies incorporated in finding the material, history of online education, remote learning environment, leadership traits, leadership support for remote, adjunct faculty, leadership characteristic inactive online adjunct faculty engagement, leadership challenges, authentic relationship, benefits of engagement, communication obstacles on the virtual platforms, and theories within leadership presented a more in-depth understanding on the topic of online adjunct faculty engagement and inclusion. The results of the research can be useful by all academic leaders from all undergraduate, graduate, post-graduate level around the world.