Disrupting interruptions: navigating the transition to university life in Bolivia during and beyond a pandemic

Brian McCommons

doi:10.17918/00001291

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted education systems globally which resulted in swift shifts to online and remote education. In Bolivia, it was recognized that large populations of the country would not be able to effectively implement virtual education. Rather than moving forward with only a portion of the country having access to virtual education during the pandemic, the government issued a 'pass by decree' measure where, despite having only completed two months of the school year, all K-12 students automatically passed onto the next grade level. This of course meant one group of students had their final year of high school suddenly cut short, and many of them entered university the following year in an unfamiliar remote education environment. Bolivia, like many developing countries, invests heavily to provide free or subsidized higher education to their citizens. With such a large investment, it is necessary to ensure that their students are persisting to graduation despite the effects of such interruptions. The events of the pandemic were unique in their longevity, but interruptions to education are relatively common in Latin America due to civic strikes. Regardless of the reason, these interruptions result in large groups of students suddenly going days or weeks without school. After a global shift to virtual education during the pandemic, governments will utilize these measures during future interruptions. Emergency interrupted education deserves attention at all grade levels. This study, however, examines how students transition to higher education after periods of interrupted education while in a remote learning environment. This study uses student integration theory to ground the unique transition of first year students to a Bolivian public university. The study examines how students experienced and navigated the academic and social transition to a remote campus after a period of interrupted education. Related to interruptions, classroom observations and interviews with first year students showed that students experienced stressors related to inconsistent pacing, difficulty managing self-regulated learning, and development of career maturity. Related to the transition to remote education, the study showed that students do not prioritize peer relationships in a remote environment though professors can play a key role in facilitating these relationships. This study extends current research on student integration to the context of interrupted education in remote environments.

Disrupting interruptions: navigating the transition to university life in Bolivia during and beyond a pandemic

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Disrupting interruptions: navigating the transition to university life in Bolivia during and beyond a pandemic

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