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Article
Publication date: 19 December 2024

Jess Smith and Nicholas R. Werse

March 2020 signaled school closures and moves online for many institutions, but an online EdD program at a midsize, Christian university featured fewer than-expected programmatic…

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Abstract

Purpose

March 2020 signaled school closures and moves online for many institutions, but an online EdD program at a midsize, Christian university featured fewer than-expected programmatic changes. Because of its modality, program operations continued with relatively few changes. Although COVID-19-related campus closures did not interrupt these students’ scheduled courses, they substantively impacted their personal and professional lives. As a result, the authors in the program-specific writing center serving these students found themselves helping them navigate not only stresses related to the already-strenuous task of writing a dissertation but also personal and professional anxieties related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this study is to explore and reflect on the strategies employed by a program‐specific writing center to support doctoral students during the COVID‐19 pandemic, focusing on relaxed scheduling policies, emotional support beyond writing, and fostering deeper interpersonal connections to address the unique challenges students faced during this period.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted an autoethnographic exploration of their experiences to consider and examine effective strategies for supporting students in times of stress. The authors guided this inquiry by reviewing logs, notes and video recordings of sessions held or rescheduled in Spring 2020.

Findings

The authors identified three major themes in how they adjusted their approach to considering the pandemic: relaxed scheduling policies, emotional support beyond the writing process by permitting students to set the writing aside while they focused on the more immediate concerns emerging from the rapid onset of pandemic life and intentionally using the opportunity to form deeper interpersonal connections with students in their home environments.

Originality/value

As institutions reflect on lessons learned during pandemic stresses, closures and mandates, intentional exploration and reflection allow for a greater understanding of what improvements the authors can make to future practice. This uniquely positioned study offers a valuable perspective on supporting students through crisis.

Details

Information and Learning Sciences, vol. 126 no. 3/4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-5348

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Book part
Publication date: 7 October 2019

Leanete Thomas Dotta, Amélia Lopes and Carlinda Leite

Technological advancement and the expansion of resources are key propellers of methodological innovations in scientific research. The virtual field is gradually occupying a larger…

Abstract

Technological advancement and the expansion of resources are key propellers of methodological innovations in scientific research. The virtual field is gradually occupying a larger space in scientific research, particularly regarding qualitative research. There are numerous tools that help in accessing the field of study, collecting data, recruiting of subjects, and providing support in processing and analyzing data. Low cost, time saving and access to otherwise inaccessible groups are the main potentialities pointed out in the literature. This chapter aims to enrich methodological discussions regarding information and communication technologies (ICTs), as well as to improve data collection methods mediated by ICTs used in qualitative research. Through a review of the body of literature on internet mediated research (IMR), production on the topic was characterized. The most widely used data collection methods are identified and discussed. Discussions originated from the review were broadened and deepened through contributions emerging from a study carried out by the authors. The results reinforce the contributions pointed out by the analyzed body of work and highlight the contextual, relational, and data validity dimensions. In an interconnected way, these dimensions allow for the production/obtaining data with specificities deriving from a new relation of individuals with time and space. Finally, attention is drawn to the idea that the background for methodological discussions about IMR is the same as the one for methodological discussions regarding science in its most different approaches – the demand for strong methodological, epistemological and ontological coherence.

Details

Theory and Method in Higher Education Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83867-842-5

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