Teachers’ Experiences of Emergency Remote Schooling During the Pandemic: Drivers for Student and Teacher Wellbeing

Abstract

This article discusses findings from a recent survey ( n = 297) of teachers’ views of both their own and their students’ experiences during the 2021 enforced emergency remote schooling period occurring in New South Wales Australia, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The quantitative analysis reported here explores teachers’ views regarding teaching and learning during this challenging period. It identifies three latent constructs, learning, assessment, and interaction, and then uses structural equation modelling to identify the perceived impact of these constructs on student and teacher wellbeing. The remote schooling period had a significant negative impact for teachers and their students across a range of elements of teaching and learning, as well as wellbeing. Student learning experiences and their peer interactions were found to be strong predictors of students’ wellbeing outcomes. Assessment design and teachers’ feedback to students were significant in predicting levels of teacher wellbeing. Future research directions are also provided.