A Study of Faculty's Role in a Virtual Environment in Iran

Abstract

"Faculty" is one element of virtual education curricula that facilitates the learning process. However, the lack of physical presence has led to a need to redefine the faculty role. This qualitative study considered the changing roles of faculty in virtual environments in universities in Iran. The main question was What role(s) do faculty in a virtual environment in Iran play? A phenomenological approach was employed and nine faculty members were selected using purposeful sampling. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews and analyzed using phenomenological analysis. Findings were coded into three categories of cognitive, affective and managerial roles. Results showed that in their cognitive role, faculty behaved as offline content editor and one-way speaker to the online class. In an affective role, there were some features of students-faculty, student-students, faculty-faculty and faculty-university relationships. In a managerial role, faculty played various roles as student management, as well as lesson, class and self management.Keywords: Faculty, Virtual Education, Curriculum, Qualitative Study, Phenomenology, Iran.