During “La Semaine de la Francophonie Scientifique” conference, held in Bucarest (September 21-24, 2021) organized by l’Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF), Dr. Patricia Eid, Associate Professor of Psychology at NDU and Dr. Dany Azzi, Assistant Director for e-learning at the Office of IT, presented their research project titled: Instructors Psychological Dispositions Toward Pedagogical Innovations.
Their project aims to present specific solutions to address the difficulties that faculty members face as they migrate to online teaching methodologies. With the Covid-19 pandemic, educational institutions rushed to shift to online teaching, which required faculty members to accommodate efficiently to the new nature of teaching. This shift also brought a change in instructional culture and professional identity that faculty might not be prepared for. For example, an instructor who enjoys online classes will create a learning environment that is more favorable for learning than an instructor who feels constrained by the format.
Dr. Eid stated, “Addressing instructors’ dispositions about online teaching is essential in order to have more confident instructors and more satisfied learners.”
It is therefore crucial to continue delivering training to instructors on how to use technology, but also to address the questions of identity and cultural discontinuity and reframe traditional thinking on teaching.
From his end, Dr. Azzi, explained that the project discusses the personal, cultural, and technological obstacles that faculty experience as they transition to online teaching and offers practical and feasible solutions to overcome them.