Educators' experiences of teaching and learning in radiography during COVID-19: A single-site South African study

Abstract

Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the educational landscape. Perhaps the most noticeable shift has been the rapid and unprecedented adoption worldwide of online teaching and learning. While this study aimed to understand radiography educators' teaching and learning experiences through COVID-19, the literature reveals that educators across all disciplines were required to adapt rapidly and transform how they facilitated education.

Methods

A qualitative study was conducted in two phases at a single higher education institution's medical imaging and radiation sciences department. During the first phase in May and June 2020, data were collected from radiography educators in the department via an asynchronous opened-ended online questionnaire, which produced nine responses. February and March 2022 marked the second phase, entailing the collection of data from nine individual in-depth interviews.

Results

Responses from both phases underwent thematic analysis, which revealed two themes: (1) the sudden transition to online teaching and learning was initially overwhelming, but educators became increasingly adept over time; (2) transitioning to online teaching and learning was challenging but provided an opportunity for growth.

Conclusion

The challenges of transitioning to online teaching and learning notwithstanding, organisational support allowed educators to develop new technological skills and student engagement strategies, empowering them after returning to face-to-face lectures in 2022 to become even better educators. Although support strategies did not cater to their multifaceted roles and personal time, educators were encouraged that the change in their teaching methods had fostered more critical thinking among students.