University students’ perceptions of an ideal English teacher before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: A study

Abstract

This survey study examines how online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic affected the students’ perception of an ideal English teacher. A close-ended questionnaire prepared in light of the students’ short descriptive views on the characteristics of an ideal English teacher was used to collect data about personal, social, and professional aspects of an ideal English teacher before the Covd-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, the survey was repeated. The present article compares and contrasts the calculated percentage of the data collected prior to and during the pandemic to conclude how the circumstances created by the global crises changed the students’ perceptions of an ideal English teacher. Based on comparative analysis, this research is a quantitative, descriptive study with some interesting results. The results reveal that, with the change of circumstances, some aspects of an ideal teacher remained irrelevant (e.g. age, gender, etc.); some others remained considerably compelling (e.g. the teacher’s interaction with the students, reading skills, listening skills, and punctuality); some became more important (e.g. show concern); some became less important (e.g. dress sense and physical features). The article touches on the Indian value system to interpret the results.