Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic required the restructuring of educational models, including the rapid transition from face-to-face to remote education. The aim of this qualitative research was to understand the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on undergraduate professors’ work and health at a public university in the state of São Paulo. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 undergraduate faculty of humanities, biological and exact sciences form August to September 2020. The interviews were recorded and transcribed. From the content analysis, four thematic categories emerged: (1) changes in the work routine and their impacts, including adjustment to remote work and the difficulties in establishing boundaries between work and their personal life; (2) changes in the dynamics between faculty and students and the possibility of rethinking teaching practice; (3) the relationship between faculty and the university with emphasis on the decision-making process, support for the transition to remote teaching, and concerns about the quality of teaching; and (4) anguish and fears related to the pandemic that added to the set of work-related stressors. Our findings showed that actions towards the communicational dynamics, as well as actions towards faculties’ mental health should be implemented.

Key words:
COVID-19; Faculty; Learning; Online learning

Introduction

The complexities of teaching activities include multiple teaching actions, research and university outreach. Each activity requires a unique specific knowledge and skills and generates various demands that can lead to overwork and stress¹1 Ferigato SH, Teixeira RR, Frageli MCB. A universidade e a atividade docente: desafios em uma experiência pandêmica. Rev Doc Ensi Sup 2020; 10:1-17.. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, work-related stress in the teaching profession was already a major concern for managers of higher education institutions (HEIs)²2 Leite AF, Nogueira JAD. Fatores condicionantes de saúde relacionados ao trabalho de professores universitários da área da saúde: uma revisão integrativa. Rev Bras Saude Ocup 2017; 42:e6., with an array of studies highlighting both physical and mental health problems among university teachers. A study in a public university in Brazil found that 24.2% of teachers showed physical and/or psychological signs of stress³3 Oliveira MGM, Cardoso CL. Stress e trabalho docente na área de saúde. Estud Psicol 2011; 28(2):135-141.. Factors associated with stress include overwork, problems with interpersonal relationships⁴4 Campos TC, Véras RM, Araújo TM. Transtornos mentais comuns em docentes do ensino superior: evidências de aspectos sociodemográficos e do trabalho. Avaliação 2020; 25(3):745-768., repetitive work⁵5 Servilha EAM, Arbach MP. Queixas de sau´de em professores universita´rios e sua relac¸a~o com fatores de risco presentes na organizac¸a~o do trabalho. Disturb Comum 2011; 23(2):181-191., poor working terms and conditions, and lack of recognition⁶6 Coutinho MC, Magro MLPD, Budde C. Entre o prazer e o sofrimento: um estudo sobre os sentidos do trabalho para professores universitários. Psicol Teor Prat 2011; 13(2):154-167..

In response to the health emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and consequent changes in working practices, such as the introduction of physical distancing measures, HEIs were required to implement online teaching and learning models⁷7 Organização das Nações Unidas para a Educação, a Ciência e a Cultura (UNESCO). Avaliação do desenvolvimento da Internet no Brasil: usando os indicadores de universalidade da internet DAAM-X. Brasília: UNESCO; 2021. in an incredibly short space of time. This resulted in significant changes in everyday academic life and teaching activities¹1 Ferigato SH, Teixeira RR, Frageli MCB. A universidade e a atividade docente: desafios em uma experiência pandêmica. Rev Doc Ensi Sup 2020; 10:1-17.^,88 Quattrone F, Borghini A, Emdin M, Nuti S. Protecting higher education institutions from COVID-19: insights from an Italian experience. J Am Coll Health 2022; 70(5):1354-1355.due to the high number of people sharing the same environment, and complex to protect, because of the multiple functions present (e.g. teaching rooms, research facilities, dormitories, leading to overwork, stress, mental distress, and increased job dissatisfaction⁹9 Metcalfe AS. Visualizing the COVID-19 pandemic response in Canadian higher education: an extended photo essay. Stud High Educ 2020; 46(1):5-18.^,1010 Peloso RM, Cotrin P, Oliveira RCG, Oliveira RC, Camacho DP, Pelloso SM, Freitas KMS. Impact of COVID-19 on healthcare graduation courses: students and professors' perspective. Res Soc Dev 2020; 9(9):e893998099.. These changes have been described in studies conducted mainly in high-income countries. However, research on the impacts of the pandemic on teachers’ work and changes in the teaching and learning process remains scarce in low- and medium-income countries like Brazil.

Stressors related to changes in the dynamics of work combine with those arising from the pandemic itself, which has stirred up feelings of anguish and fear, having a marked effect on mental health¹¹11 Silva AF, Estrela FM, Lima NS, Tibúrcio C, Abreu A. Saúde mental de docentes universitários em tempos de pandemia. Physis 2020; 30(2):e300216.^,1212 Monteiro BMM, Souza JC. Mental health and university teaching working conditions in the COVID 19 pandemic. Res Soc Dev 2020; 9(9):e468997660.. In Brazil, despite the efforts of health workers, researchers and teachers to support evidence-based action to tackle the pandemic, the country’s health authorities developed actions with no scientific basis and made systematic attacks against public universities and researchers¹³13 Castro MC, Kim S, Barberia L, Ribeiro AF, Gurzenda S, Ribeiro KB, Abbott E, Blossom J, Rache B, Singer BH. Spatiotemporal pattern of COVID-19 spread in Brazil. Science 2021; 372(6544):821-826.^,1414 Ferigato S, Fernandez M, Amorim M, Ambrogi I, Fernandes LMM, Pacheco R. The Brazilian Government's mistakes in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Lancet 2020; 396(10263):1636.. It was against this backdrop that changes in the daily work of teachers in Brazil took place.

Understanding the effects of changes in work in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic is fundamental for proposing actions to mitigate their consequences for teachers, students and HEIs, especially in low- and middle-income countries, where the impacts of the pandemic are more pronounced than in high-income countries. In this respect, the transactional perspective of stress proposed by Lazarus and Folkman¹⁵15 Lazarus RS, Folkman S. Stress, Appraisal and Coping. New York: Spinger; 1984.^,1616 Lazarus R. Psychological stress in the workplace. In: Crandall R, Perrewé PL, organizadores. Occupational Stress: a handbook. Washington D.C.: Tayloe & Francis; 1995. p. 3-14., in which stress is the product of the interplay between an individual and his/her environment, addresses the object of study, given the complexity of teachers’ work, the historical moment the first months of the pandemic represent, and the social, health and pedagogical consequences experienced by higher education teachers.

In light of the above, this study aimed to understand perceptions of the effects of changes in work brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic on work routines and teachers’ health among teachers at a public university in the state of São Paulo, one of the states with the highest number of COVID-19 deaths in Brazil. The study was conducted between August and September 2020, at which time 190,910 cases and 4,451 deaths had been confirmed¹⁷17 World Health Organization (WHO). Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19). Dashboard With Vaccination Data [Internet]. [cited 2022 jul 26]. Available from: https://covid19.who.int/region/amro/country/br.
https://covid19.who.int/region/amro/coun... . The results of the present study can provide valuable insights into the impacts of the pandemic and prompt reflection on the development of institutional actions, education policy, and planning for future adverse events.

Methodology

This study is part of the qualitative component of the mixed-methods sequential explanatory study ProMental¹⁸18 Matias AB. Características do trabalho e saúde mental de docentes de uma universidade pública: um estudo de métodos mistos [tese]. São Paulo: Universidade de São Paulo; 2021., which investigated factors associated with the mental health of teachers from a public university in the state of São Paulo. The aim of the qualitative component was to broaden the understanding of the findings of the quantitative cross-sectional study¹⁹19 Creswell JW, Plano Clark VL. Designing and conducting mixed methods research. 3ª ed. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc.; 2017. (n=316) conducted before the pandemic (second semester of 2019). The qualitative study was carried out at the beginning of the pandemic and included questions about changes in work brought about by the pandemic and their impact on everyday working practices and teachers’ health.

The data were collected using semi-structured interviews, allowing the interviewers to explore other questions depending on the remarks and reactions of the interviewee with the aim of understanding perceptions of lived experiences and obtaining a collective perspective of the social and historic context from the accounts of individuals²⁰20 Minayo MCS. Análise qualitativa: Teoria, passos e fidedignidade. Cien Saude Colet 2012; 17(3):621-626.. Guiding questions were used to explore topics such as changes in work routines imposed by the health crisis, institutional support for adapting to the new reality of work, and teacher-student and teacher-institution relationships.

This article was drafted using the Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research (SRQR)²¹21 O'Brian BC, Harris IB, Beckman TJ, Reed DA, Cook DA. Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research: A Synthesis of Recommendations. Academic Med 2014; 89(9):1245-1251..

Participants

The participants of the qualitative phase were from a group of teachers who took part in the quantitative phase of the ProMental study using convenience sampling¹⁸18 Matias AB. Características do trabalho e saúde mental de docentes de uma universidade pública: um estudo de métodos mistos [tese]. São Paulo: Universidade de São Paulo; 2021., following the recommendations made by Creswell and Clark¹⁹19 Creswell JW, Plano Clark VL. Designing and conducting mixed methods research. 3ª ed. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc.; 2017.. The inclusion criterion was teachers who participated in the quantitative phase and the exclusion criterion was teachers on leave for any reason. This method was used to obtain a diverse sample of individuals considering academic departments, sex, age group, sexual orientation, self-declared color, length of time at the university, and course. The initial number of participants was defined a priori to meet the diversity criterion. We selected and invited four representatives of each of the eight academic departments (32 teachers), accounting for possible refusals or non-responses. The saturation criterion was used to attain enough meanings and representations from the informants’ accounts to establish interpretations²²22 Fontanella BJB, Ricas J, Turato ER. Amostragem por saturação em pesquisas qualitativas em saúde: contribuições teóricas Saturation sampling in qualitative health research: theoretical contributions. Cad Saude Publica 2008; 24(1):17-27., resulting in 17 interviews, including at least one member from each academic department.

Data collection

Due to the pandemic, online synchronous interviews were conducted in August and September 2020 by the same researcher, who has no previous relationship with the participants. The interviews were scheduled via email or telephone and conducted individually following the guide and with the cameras turned on the whole time. Each interview lasted for an average of 50 minutes.

Data analysis

Data analysis and interpretation was performed using dialectical hermeneutics as a theoretical framework, based on the observation of the facts that emerged during investigation, the individual narratives of the informants, subjective aspects, conduct, and senses and meanings assigned by the participants²³23 Minayo MCS. O desafio do conhecimento: pesquisa qualitativa em saúde. 14ª ed. São Paulo: Hucitec; 2014.. Content analysis was performed, involving the following stages: in-depth examination of the narratives; definition of core themes based on convergences and divergences in the accounts; synthesis of the main findings; comparison of the findings with those in the literature²⁰20 Minayo MCS. Análise qualitativa: Teoria, passos e fidedignidade. Cien Saude Colet 2012; 17(3):621-626..

The interviews were recorded and transcribed, safeguarding the confidentiality of the information and identity of the participants and HEI. The interview transcripts were read and reread by two independent researchers to identify and group units of meaning and create thematic categories. The interviewers discussed any differences of interpretation to arrive at a consensus. The software ATLAS.ti® was also used to organize the analysis of the material, highlighting and grouping excerpts of the interviews in each thematic category. The recordings were carefully revised to identify fragments that may not have been captured in the categories.

Ethical considerations

The study was undertaken in accordance with the ethical principles set out in the World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the ethics committees of the proponent’s institution and the institution where the study was conducted (reference numbers 2.967.891 and 2.882.359). An amendment to the study protocol was forwarded to the ethics committees requesting an extension of the investigation to include the experiences of teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The interviewees signed an informed consent form after reading the purpose and procedures of the study and ethical guarantees. The excerpts from the interviews are identified using the letter “E” for the interviewee’s name followed by a number to protect their identity.

Results and discussion

Participant characteristics

Of the 32 teachers invited for interviews, three refused to participate and eight failed to reply. Seventeen interviews were conducted (nine men and eight women, including at least one representative from each academic department) until saturation. Additional invites were not sent to other teachers.

Three of the teachers taught on exact sciences courses and six each on human sciences and biological science courses. Most of the participants were adjunct lecturers and self-declared as white and heterosexual. Average age was 46.9 years (SD=7.7 years) and the participants had been at the institution for an average of eight years (SD=5.8 years) (Chart 1).

While belonging to different academic departments and campuses located in different cities, the teachers were from the same university community and similarities were observed in the experiences and challenges faced by the academics.

Four thematic categories emerged from the analysis of the interview transcripts: (1) changes in teachers’ work routine and the impacts of these changes; (2) teacher-student relationships and the need to rethink teachers’ work; (3) teacher-university relationship in the context of the pandemic; and (4) anguish and fears related to the pandemic.

Changes in work routines and the impacts of these changes

The abrupt cancellation of face-to-face university activities in March 2020 led to major changes in teaching routines, demanding changes and adaptations for remote learning and teaching. This process had a number of impacts on university teachers, with participants highlighting four main dimensions related to changes in work: increased workload; adaptation to remote working; difficulty setting boundaries between work and personal routines; and dedication to research activities.

An excessive increase in workload in the remote mode compared to face-to-face work before the pandemic was a recurring theme in the interviewees’ accounts:

This perception was highlighted especially by the teachers from human sciences courses, who, apart from their normal teaching activities, felt the need to provide psychosocial support to the students:

The need to shift from face-to-face to remote teaching required teachers to make structural changes in work processes. Activities quickly moved from face-to-face to remote teaching using online platforms that teachers previously had little or no experience with, forcing them to learn to use new tools in a short space of time and adapt routine teaching activities, redesigning classes and courses for remote learning and creating new evaluation processes. In this regard, difficulties related to the use of information and communication technologies can increase work overload and, consequently, occupational stress¹⁵15 Lazarus RS, Folkman S. Stress, Appraisal and Coping. New York: Spinger; 1984.^,1616 Lazarus R. Psychological stress in the workplace. In: Crandall R, Perrewé PL, organizadores. Occupational Stress: a handbook. Washington D.C.: Tayloe & Francis; 1995. p. 3-14.. Overwork is described as one of the main risk factors for ill health in teachers²⁴24 Neme GGS, Limongi JE. O trabalho docente e a saúde do professor universitário: uma revisão sistemática. Rev Bras Geograf Med Saude 2020; 16:1-10.. Unforeseeable situations like the pandemic and its repercussions may be seen as highly demanding stressors¹⁵15 Lazarus RS, Folkman S. Stress, Appraisal and Coping. New York: Spinger; 1984.. The overload of stressful events disturbs homeostasis and releases hormones, which can weaken resistance, resulting in physical and mental health problems²⁵25 Lipp MEN. O modelo quadrifásico do stress. In: Lipp MEN, organizador. Mecanismos neuropsicofisiológicos do stress: teorias e aplicações clínicas. Campinas: Casa do Psicólogo; 2010. p. 17-20.:

At times of radical change in work during situations like pandemics, institutions tend to manifest one of two forces: those that contribute to maintaining the institution as it is, so-called instituted forces, and instituting forces, those capable of triggering processes that enable the creation and establishment of the new²⁶26 Lourau R. A análise institucional. 2ª ed. Petrópolis: Vozes; 1996.. It is possible that, within the context of changes in teaching activities during the COVID-19 pandemic, the manifestation of these forces has strained everyday activities and teacher-student, teacher-teacher, and teacher-university relationships, resulting in an increase in work overload and stress.

In addition to having to adapt to new teaching routines, the interviewees made frequent mention of the need to reconcile the new routine with domestic tasks and the restrictions imposed by physical isolation, giving rise to new difficulties and challenges:

On the other hand, the participants mentioned that having the time previously used to commute to and from work helped reduce strain and stress:

In this regard, the institution needs to discuss the possibility of maintaining remote and/or hybrid activities, especially administrative activities or those that require travel to urban centers. These measures could alleviate the effects of these stressors on teachers.

Another aspect highlighted by the interviewees related to stress reduction was having more time available for research:

This perception differs from others found in previous studies that reported a significant fall in academic productivity - especially among female academics²⁷27 King MM, Frederickson M. The Pandemic Penalty: The gendered effects of COVID-19 on scientific productivity. Socius 2021; 7:1-24., since women scientists are responsible for the majority of childcare responsibilities in the home - and the maintenance of non-COVID-19 publication productivity in countries with a stable scientific infrastructure²⁸28 Müller SM, Mueller GF, Navarini AA, Brandt O. National Publication Productivity during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Preliminary Exploratory Analysis of the 30 Countries Most Affected. Biology 2020; 9(9):271..

The perception of increased productivity has not always been associated with balance and well-being. Remote working has combined with the difficulty to set and recognize the boundaries between work and everyday life routines and the challenge of setting aside time for rest:

Excessive work demands and difficulties setting boundaries between work and leisure/rest were important aspects highlighted by the teachers. Reconciling work with domestic tasks has become a major source of stress²⁹29 Gomes NP, Carvalho MRS, Silva AF, Moita CE, Santos JRL, Couto TM, Carvalho LC, Almeida LCG. Saúde mental de docentes universitários em tempos de covid-19. Saude Soc 2021; 30(2):e200605. in the working from home model, blurring hitherto clear boundaries and merging work with the tasks of everyday life. The need to meet targets, work overload and increased demands can lead to a reduction in rest and leisure time, as teachers feel impelled to be constantly available and avoid idle time³⁰30 Losekann RGCB, Mourão HC. Desafios do teletrabalho na pandemia COVID-19: quando o home vira office. CAdm 2020; 28(0):71-75., which can lead to feelings of anguish and guilt, ultimately contributing to stress.

Teacher-student relationships and the need to rethink teachers’ work

The participants highlighted changes in teacher-student relationships from several perspectives. Some teachers, especially those from biological sciences courses, reported difficulties due to reduced student-teacher interaction in online teaching, especially considering that many students keep their camera turned off, making it difficult for teachers to see their reactions and hampering learning and teaching dynamics. A study with medical teachers and students at a university in India corroborates our findings, showing that both teachers and students felt a lack of interactive teaching, teachers struggled to use technology, students found it difficult to concentrate, and learning was jeopardized due to the lack of practical activities, especially in health sciences classes³¹31 Verma A, Verma S, Garg P, Godara R. Online Teaching During COVID-19: Perception of Medical Undergraduate Students. Indian J Surg 2020; 82(3):299-300..

On the other hand, some teachers, especially those from human sciences courses, felt that they had become closer to the students through the creation of groups and individual teacher-student protected spaces of interaction where students could talk about the difficulties they were facing during the pandemic. It was noted that the perceptions arising from these interactions influenced how these teachers personally coped with the pandemic:

Perceptions of teacher-student relationships also varied according to teachers’ priorities. While some were more concerned with quality of information and teaching, others were worried about the emotional balance of their students. Studies show that many teachers have put their students’ emotional needs over and above academic needs during the current health crisis³²32 Ramos-Huenteo V, García-Vásquez H, Olea-González C, Lobos-Peña K, Sáez-Delgado F. Percepción docente respecto al trabajo pedagógico durante la COVID-19. CienciAmérica 2020; 9(2):334-353.. Besides learning, teacher-student relationships involve affectivity and socialization and, given the grave effects of the pandemic, some teachers have felt impelled to embrace their students’ emotional demands. However, studies highlight that without proper training this can generate emotional and work overload, anguish, and anxiety³³33 Dantas ESO. Saúde mental dos profissionais de saúde no Brasil no contexto da pandemia por Covid-19. Interface (Botucatu) 2021; 25(Supl. 1):1-9..

Some participants also highlighted the possibility and need to rethink teachers’ work and forms of evaluation:

The opportunity to rethink teaching practices and forms of evaluation have been described by other studies, which highlight that it is important that teachers reflect on practices and tailor teaching to the given reality³⁴34 Belotti SHA, Faria MA. Relação Professor/Aluno. Rev Eletr Saberes Educ 2010; 1(1):1-12.. The changes triggered by COVID-19 have made this demand even clearer and more urgent, especially when it comes to alternative forms of evaluation. In this sense, it is essential that educators ensure that the implementation of remote learning is not oppressive, promoting quality, relevant, and inclusive access, regardless of the pandemic³⁵35 Sali AHA. Rethinking Distance Education In Covid-19 Pandemic: Perspectives On Education Equity In The 'New Normal'. In: Dewi KAP, organizador. New Normal: Idealism and Implemantation in Indonesia and the Philippines. Jayapangus Press Books; 2020. p. 33-55.^,3636 Antunes Neto JMF. Sobre ensino, aprendizagem e a sociedade da tecnologia: por que se refletir em tempo de pandemia? Prospectus 2020; 2(1):28-38..

Teacher-university relationships during the pandemic

This thematic category encompasses the decision-making process, training, and support for the shift to remote teaching, and concerns with the adverse pedagogical effects of this mode of teaching.

Although most of the interviewees welcome the possibility of participating in decision-making regarding the measures and attitudes that should be adopted in response to the pandemic, the suspension of face-to-face classes, and returning to online teaching, the participants highlighted excessive discussion and delays in defining concrete actions to address these issues:

Studies have highlighted that low- and middle-income countries have faced greater difficulties in providing quality teaching during the pandemic due to, among other factors, underfunding and absence of or slow internet at home, especially among students. In contrast, in developed countries it was possible to take swifter action to implement remote teaching³⁷37 Silva FT. Currículo de transição: uma saída para a educação pós-pandemia. Educamazônia 2020; 13(1):70-77.. In addition, the dispute surrounding distance learning has become increasingly heated during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil, with groups of teachers and managers who defend this type of education on one side and those who are against it on the other¹1 Ferigato SH, Teixeira RR, Frageli MCB. A universidade e a atividade docente: desafios em uma experiência pandêmica. Rev Doc Ensi Sup 2020; 10:1-17..

A study analyzing Ministry of Education guidance on public higher education showed that publications used generic terms and provided few recommendations for education managers concerning pedagogical practices³⁸38 Lima BGT, Schneider EM, Tomazini Neto BC, Castro LPV. Educação Superior em tempos de Pandemia Versus a (Des) orientação dos Documentos Oficiais. Res Soc Dev 2020; 9(8):e100985193.. The authors suggest that this may have led to the need for long, drawn-out discussions and delays in decision-making. Long meetings, excessive discussion, and limited effectiveness were associated with disinterest, demotivation, and tiredness, causing a feeling of not being genuinely heard. Excessive bureaucracy and long, drawn-out meetings have been highlighted as important occupational stressors for teachers³⁹39 Lipp MEN. O Stress do Professor de Pós-graduação. In: Lipp MEN, organizador. Stress do Professor. 5ª ed. São Paulo: Papirus; 2002. p. 55-62..

A new challenge was posed after the decision to return to remote activities. Besides lacking remote teaching skills, some teachers perceived a lack of preparedness and/or lack of support from the university during the transition:

In tune with our findings, other studies have highlighted difficulties concerning enabling conditions for remote teaching. A study in Colombia found that the most underdeveloped competencies were digital content creation and security, with few teachers acquiring satisfactory levels in these areas⁴⁰40 Martínez-Garcés J, Garcés-Fuenmayor J. Competencias digitales docentes y el reto de la educación virtual derivado de la covid-19. Rev Educ Humani 2020; 22(39):1-16.. Research in Germany and Chile also showed that teachers experienced difficulties using digital tools and lacked adequate training⁴¹41 König J, Jäger-Biela DJ, Glutsch N. Adapting to online teaching during COVID-19 school closure: teacher education and teacher competence effects among early career teachers in Germany. Eur J Teach Educ 2020; 43(4):608-622.^,4242 Nogales-Delgado S, Román Suero S, Martín JME. COVID-19 Outbreak: Insights about Teaching Tasks in a Chemical Engineering Laboratory. Educ Sci 2020; 10(9):226..

The lack of preparedness and/or lack of support from the university during the transition to online teaching, especially the delay in planning actions by the university managers, had a relevant impact on teachers’ mental health. Studies in Chile and Uruguay have also highlighted institutional sluggishness³²32 Ramos-Huenteo V, García-Vásquez H, Olea-González C, Lobos-Peña K, Sáez-Delgado F. Percepción docente respecto al trabajo pedagógico durante la COVID-19. CienciAmérica 2020; 9(2):334-353.^,4343 Failache E, Katzkowicz N, Machado A. La Educación en Tiempos de Pandemia y el Día Después: El Caso de Uruguay. Rev Int Educ Justicia Soc 2020; 9(3):1-9.. In this regard, the more unexpected an uncontrollable the situation, the more likely that it will be perceived as stessful¹⁵15 Lazarus RS, Folkman S. Stress, Appraisal and Coping. New York: Spinger; 1984.. The process of preparing for an event can help reduce its harmful effects. Experiences of coping with the present situation caused by the pandemic can help teachers and managers cope with future transitions.

In addition to concerns with their capacity to give classes and use digital tools, the participants highlighted the potentially adverse pedagogical effects of the transition to remote teaching, regardless of the course. These concerns were also expressed by teachers of theory classes, who stressed the impacts of lack of student-teacher-student interaction on teaching and learning process, reservations about students’ learning capacity, and the increasing need for teachers to identify the specific needs of each student:

Apprehension was also reported by a study in India⁴⁴44 Mishra L, Gupta T, Shree A. Online Teaching-Learning in Higher Education during Lockdown Period of COVID-19 Pandemic. Int J Educ Res Open 2020; 1:100012., which showed that teacher motivation for remote teaching was related to how convinced they were about the advantages of the online method of teaching.

Concerns with pedagogical effects of online teaching also caused negative feelings in relation to self-esteem and work. If endured for long periods, these feelings lead to the depersonalization of work and low personal accomplishment⁴⁵45 García Padilla AA, Escorcia Bonivento CV, Perez Suarez BS. Burnout Syndrome and Self-Efficacy Beliefs in Professors. Propositos Representaciones 2017; 5(2):65-126.:

Anguish and fears related to the pandemic

None of the interviewees reported that they, family members, close friends, or students had been infected by the virus. This may be partially due to the fact that the teachers had been remote working and socially isolating from the moment that these measures were introduced. However, fear and anxiety associated with the pandemic combine with new stressors adding to those already experienced by the teachers⁸8 Quattrone F, Borghini A, Emdin M, Nuti S. Protecting higher education institutions from COVID-19: insights from an Italian experience. J Am Coll Health 2022; 70(5):1354-1355.

9 Metcalfe AS. Visualizing the COVID-19 pandemic response in Canadian higher education: an extended photo essay. Stud High Educ 2020; 46(1):5-18.^-1010 Peloso RM, Cotrin P, Oliveira RCG, Oliveira RC, Camacho DP, Pelloso SM, Freitas KMS. Impact of COVID-19 on healthcare graduation courses: students and professors' perspective. Res Soc Dev 2020; 9(9):e893998099.due to the high number of people sharing the same environment, and complex to protect, because of the multiple functions present (e.g. teaching rooms, research facilities, dormitories. Factors such as physical isolation, poor home working conditions, lack of training and guidance on remote teaching, difficulty reconciling working at home and normal everyday tasks, and the uncertainty and unpredictability of the pandemic were stressors experienced by these teachers, giving rise to physical and mental health consequences such as stress and anxiety¹⁵15 Lazarus RS, Folkman S. Stress, Appraisal and Coping. New York: Spinger; 1984.:

The advent of COVID-19, a new and highly contagious disease responsible for a huge number of deaths, is a stressful event affecting the whole of society. In the case of higher education teachers, this event was aggravated by new stressors, meaning that there is an urgent need to identify sources of stress and their impacts in order to formulate and implement actions to address these factors and ameliorate the consequence for teachers, students and HEIs. The identification of these stressors can also help develop strategies to respond to future sudden changes in teachers’ work routines.

Study strengths and limitations

Limitations include the fact that the teachers interviewed in this study are civil servants means that they have job security. Thus, potential stress caused by the threat of reduced working hours or fear of redundancy during the pandemic experienced in private HEIs did not appear during the interviews, limiting our findings to the public sector. Second, although the researchers and teachers did not know each other before the interviews, the fact that they work in the same university may have influenced certain answers as interviewees may have tended to provide socially acceptable responses. One of the strengths of this work is that it is one of the few studies to have investigated changes in teachers’ work and their impacts during the COVID-19 pandemic in low- and middle-income countries. In addition, our sample included teachers from various types of courses (human, biological, and exact sciences) in different campuses located in cities with different socioeconomic realities, allowing us to explore the perspectives of teachers in different settings and not limiting the investigation to the perceptions of teachers from one particular area.

Final considerations

The teachers’ perceptions of the changes in work routines imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic included overwork, high levels of stress linked to the need to acquire new skills for remote teaching, problems related to teacher-student, teacher-teacher, and teacher-university relationships, difficulty in setting boundaries between work and rest, and fear and anxiety associated with the pandemic.

These findings have several implications both for teachers and HEIs, highlighting the need to develop specific actions to: (1) improve communication; (2) promote the mental health of the university community, encouraging care seeking behaviors, reducing stigma, and creating spaces for reflection on how to mitigate stress in the university environment; and (3) develop institutional planning tools to evaluate the impacts and sustainability of these actions.

References

Publication Dates

History