Transition to online education in Sri Lanka during COVID-19: A descriptive phenomenological study

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) that originated in China was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020. To limit the spread of the disease, the Sri Lankan government announced the closure of all educational institutes. The school closure encouraged the use of home-based learning, and this transition was a critical period for both teachers and students. Because most Sri Lankan children reside in rural areas, our study examined how teachers in rural schools experienced the lockdown in relation to their teaching role during the pandemic.  We used a descriptive phenomenological study design with purposive sampling until we achieved the saturation point. In-depth interviews were conducted via the Zoom platform, using a validated guideline that was piloted before the study and analyzed based on the thematic analysis approach. We identified five major themes: (1) adjustment to the online teaching/learning process; (2) experience of challenges; (3) experience of new opportunities; (4) impact of parental involvement; and (5) impact of teachers’ and children’s physical, psycho-social well-being. The study identified lack of access to technology and lack of proper guidance from the family as challenges during home-based learning. Parental involvement during teaching sessions decreased teachers’ autonomy. Inadequate and inaccurate evaluation of the students disrupts the learning process. Teachers perceived that children’s distance from classroom learning and their peer groups will affect the children’s development.