The Effects of the COVID-19 Lockdown on Teaching and Engagement in UK Business Schools

Abstract

The global outbreak of COVID-19 led to a rapid shift to Working from Home (WFH). In Universities and other of the education sector, on-line teaching and assessment becoming mandatory. We use research from a representative large-scale (n=2,287) survey of business, management and economics academics in the UK to examine how prior on-line experience, learning during the ‘lockdown’, and work engagement, impacted their perceptions of on-line education. Results show that: (1)experience of on-line activity prior to the lockdown was substantially positively related to perceptions of working virtually, though perceptions differed by seniority; (2) While experience of working on-line during lockdown did not enhance academic’s views of on-line delivery or any bias against on-line delivery, it did increase positive attitudes towards on-line marking; (3) Those able to maintain mental resilience and energy are considerably more likely to perceive on-line activity positively; but being more ‘dedicated’ or more ‘ensconced in work’ did not play a role. We explore the implications of these findings for the future of on-line work.

Keywords: Higher education, global lockdown, on-line teaching and assessment, work engagement, job insecurity