Assessing Teacher’s Readiness for Online Learning – Insights from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University

Abstract

Online Education is the future and the readiness of teachers to handle the challenges of online education has to be understood. Under this the paper has a two-fold purpose. The first purpose of the research is to clarify the concept of “readiness of teachers of higher education institutions to use online learning Technologies”, to determine the components and indicators of teachers’ readiness to use online learning technologies. The second purpose is the reporting of the study results based on the first purpose. The article is based on literature review on Teachers’ readiness/preparedness to online education and results of the authors’ COVID-19 Teachers’ Questionnaire with 49 faculty members of major higher education institutions of  Tamil Nadu Agricultural University .It  proves that the effectiveness of online learning depends on subjective (teachers’ and students’ preparedness for online education) and objective factors (material and technical base of higher education institutions). Components of teacher’s readiness for online learning and their indicators are summarized: motivational, cognitive, operational, technological, creative, personal. The outcomes of the questionnaire have identified that most respondents lack theoretical knowledge and practical skills Necessary for the implementation of online learning and encounter difficulties in teaching during quarantine.