Online Instruction in Higher Education: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of Instructors’ Experiences

Over the past few decades online learning has continually evolved to become a popular pathway to higher education. The COVID-19 pandemic produced an unprecedented shift toward online learning through Emergency Remote Teaching. Recent literature has increasingly represented online learning environments through the negative experiences of students and instructors as they navigate such a difficult transition. However, comparatively little attention has been given to the experiences of instructors in established online programs. This article presents idiographic findings from a qualitative study that used interpretative phenomenological analysis of interviews with five college-level online instructors. These findings describe the emphasis online instructors place on maximizing student engagement, facilitating the student’s translation of learning to their own lives, belief in online learning as an equal-but-different pathway to higher education, sense of purpose from providing accessible education to a diverse student body, and the unique challenges faced in course preparation and student connection.