Abstract:

In March 2020 the Covid-19 pandemic was declared a National Disaster in South Africa and universities were mandatorily closed. This resulted in a sudden shift and urgency by leaders to develop learning environments for the remote provision of teaching, learning and assessment. The aim of this study was to identify how this shift effected the impact of leadership that ensured sustainable support for remote teaching, learning and assessment of students.

There existed a need for research of this nature as it added value to our institutions Center for Innovative Education and Communication Technology’s (CIECT) effectiveness in providing critical analysis of leader support services. In addition, this research provided us with new insights with regards to how other leaders across the campus community, in collaboration with CIECT, impacted the perception of the success of remote teaching and learning approaches. In this study we established that the role of leadership within faculties and other professional structures impacted the perception of successful implementation and support of remote teaching, learning and assessment; and that effective leadership contributed to the discourse of staff development and student success within remote teaching and learning settings.

A qualitative research approach was applied and a research questionnaire was delivered online. The questionnaire was sent to academics and academic professional support staff across campus. In addition, interviews were conducted with leaders across faculties and leaders in professional support structures. The overall design of this research was a qualitative approach and exploratory. The exploratory research approach we used to investigate research questions that had not previously been studied in depth. We conducted the following techniques as a subsequent part of our investigation, namely, asking respondents fixed-response questions via interviews and data gathered from structured online questionnaires. This data we used to observe/evaluate the academics’ engagement with students and staff; and if leaders’ perspectives were aligned to effective and sustainable support for students and staff.

The research sample comprised of Deans, Deputy-Deans, HODs, Directors, Coordinators, Teaching and Learning Specialists and academics across all faculties. This sample was chosen to observe leadership styles in creating innovative ways of leading, supporting and teaching during lockdown, and taking initiative to create online environments to accommodate staff and students.

To conclude, this study highlighted the importance of collective leadership in the successful implementation of sustainable remote teaching, learning and assessment. We noted that the pandemic called for a collective and decisive leadership style. This study confirmed that in an environment caused by a pandemic where leadership was supposed to thrive leaders often found themselves feeling frustrated, incompetent, and discouraged. The researchers conclude that the success of the sustainable implementation of remote teaching and learning demands that HEI leaders continuously review the alignment of processes, technology and the student-centricity of their institutions.

Keywords:

Student success, access, emergency remote teaching and learning, transformation, innovation.