Investigating factors associated with faculty perspectives on changes in teaching modalities within health professions education programs

Educators in higher education institutions swiftly transitioned from face-to-face to online and remote classes to mitigate physical contact risks and ensure student and faculty safety during the pandemic. However, this abrupt shift presented both personal and institutional challenges in redefining the expectations and roles of instructors and learners in online teaching and learning activities. Despite the critical importance of understanding faculty perspectives on these teaching modality changes, limited research exists on the factors associated with faculty perspectives on transitioning from face-to-face to online teaching, particularly with a diverse sample. This study aims to address this gap by exploring factors associated with faculty perspectives on teaching modality changes in health professions education programs, utilizing a novel self-reported instrument. An online survey was distributed to assess various aspects, including teaching, social, and cognitive presence, self-efficacy, transition experience, and favorability towards online teaching. Data were collected from 117 faculty members across six U.S. institutions in 2021. Exploratory factor analysis revealed four distinct underlying factors: Community of Inquiry (CoI), self-efficacy, commitment, and favorability of online teaching. Results from multiple linear regression models indicated that previous online teaching experience was statistically significantly associated with the CoI score. The findings underscore the importance of professional development initiatives and the establishment of best practices in online teaching to support faculty in navigating and succeeding in the post-pandemic online teaching environment.