A survey research for e-learning readiness of faculty members during the COVID-19 pandemic: Technological, Pedagogical, and Content Knowledge Solution for e-Learning improvement from the viewpoint of faculty members

This study aimed to evaluate the e-readiness of faculty members during the pandemic COVID-19. It also identified the technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge solutions influencing the success of e-learning in medical education from the viewpoint of faculty members. Hundred faculty members working at Abadan University of Medical Sciences, Abadan, Iran participated in a mixed- method study including quantitative and qualitative phases. In the quantitative arm, the Likert-based Archambault & Crippen questionnaire was applied to measure the e-readiness of faculty members. In the qualitative arm, participants answered the 4 online open-ended questions consisting of three domains (pedagogical, technical, and content), and several themes were constructed from the gathered qualitative data. In quantitative analysis the Friedman test revealed that the knowledge of faculty members in the field of content knowledge was the most and in the field of technological knowledge was the least (p=0.001). Besides, in the subjective interpretation of qualitative data, leadership and educational management were the most frequent themes. Moreover, regarding the pedagogical solutions, the focus principally was on the teaching-learning domain followed by revising curriculum planning. In addition, considering the content solution, the concentration predominantly was on the domain of the development of educational resources. From the viewpoint of faculty members, the challenge of the shift to e-learning and pedagogical, technological, and content solutions for e-readiness of faculty members can be resolved through planning and performing professional development programs and this cannot be achieved without effective leadership.