Opinions of class teachers working in private schools on distance education during the pandemic process

This study was conducted to determine the opinions of classroom teachers working in private schools about distance education, which they had to use during the Covid-19 pandemic. An explanatory case study, one of the qualitative research designs, was used in the study. The study group of the research consists of 20 classroom teachers from 5 schools, working in private education institutions in four central districts of Antalya in the 2020-2021 academic year during the Covid-19 pandemic period and determined by the maximum diversity sampling method. A semi-structured interview form was used as a data collection tool in the research. Descriptive analysis was performed on the data obtained from the interviews. The analysis of the research data is explained under the dimensions of school management, classroom management, technology, sociological/psychological, course content and course evaluation, which are divided into themes in order to determine the views of classroom teachers working in private schools during the distance education process. In the tables related to each dimension, it is seen that the participant teachers expressed their opinions on which theme in the dimension. Each theme within the dimensions is also explained with separate titles and tables and is explained by separating them as positive and negative in line with the opinions of the participants. In this context, it is seen that there is no significant problem regarding the theme of resource support and lesson planning in the dimension of school management. When we look at the theme of job security, even though it is seen that teachers do not have more than normal concerns about the current process, it has been found that there is anxiety about job security due to the uncertainty in the future. Behavior control appears to be at the forefront of the problems seen in the classroom management dimension. Problems in student-teacher communication established through computers, the problem of students with low self-control not being able to attend the lesson, and distractions in the home environment that make it difficult to focus on the lesson are among the problems in behavior management. It is seen that the communication theme in the classroom management dimension is directly related to the behavior management theme. It has been stated that from time to time, misconceptions are seen in student-teacher communication established through the computer, the limitations of not being able to intervene immediately, and the effect of the home environment are among the factors that make classroom management difficult. Considering the problems related to the technology dimension, the inadequacy of the necessary trainings on the use of the program was emphasized rather than the programs used. It has been observed that older teachers have more difficulties with the technology dimension than younger teachers. In line with the school management and personal initiative, it has been stated that the teacher's competence will be increased with the education received about technology and the cooperation between the teachers. While it was stated that the students' proficiency in technology was at a high level, it was also mentioned that using their digital freedoms sabotaged the lessons in some cases. Considering the problems related to sociological and psychological dimensions, it can be said that teachers' well-being is damaged. In addition to psychological problems such as depression, boredom, the effects of the feeling of loneliness caused by staying at home, physical problems such as eye disorders, posture disorders, head and neck pain caused by being exposed to the computer and being in front of the screen are among the problems experienced in the theme of well-being. In addition to the fact that the parent factor accompanies the teacher-student communication in the distance education process, it is also stated that there are problems such as parents' interference in the lessons due to the thinning of the line between the teacher and the parent. Teachers pointed out the deterioration in work-life balance by expressing that their professional responsibilities strain their private lives and that being at home causes more intensity, fatigue and stress in their daily work in distance education as in face-to-face education. Some of the participants who stated that sincere relations among colleagues declined to the professional level in distance education, expressed their pride in being a teacher, but stated that they questioned their professional satisfaction in the distance education process. Teachers, who said that they did not see any problem in terms of gaining learning outcomes in the evaluation of the courses, expressed their concerns about permanence. In addition, teachers who expressed their concerns about giving fair grades at grade levels that had to take online exams stated that they had to make more efforts to ensure a healthy assessment by taking additional measures such as class participation, activity status in the lesson and instant control of homework in order to evaluate their students, not just the exam grades.