Obstacles to Distance Teaching and Learning in the State of Kuwait’s Public Education During the Outbreak of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic from the Viewpoint of Faculty Members at Kuwait University: An Analytical Exploratory Study

This study aimed to identify the obstacles that prevented governmental educational institutions in the State of Kuwait in the precautionary period - during the crisis of the outbreak of the emerging Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the country - to be able to continue to provide/facilitate basic educational services to its beneficiaries in the virtual environment according to distance teaching/learning strategy; through the employment of e-teaching/learning and/or online teaching/learning and/or mobile teaching/learning approaches; by using information and communication technology (ICT) tools, apps, services, resources, and networks; from the viewpoint of faculty members at Kuwait University. To achieve the objectives of the study, a questionnaire was designed identifying the obstacles in three domains/dimensions: logistical, academic, and administrative, and then indicating the degree of influence of each. The study also attempted to determine whether some independent/factor variables (e.g., gender, nationality, type of major, type of college, and teaching experience) contribute in statistically significant differences at the 0.05 level (α ≤ 0.05) between the average scores of the faculty members’ responses. A stratified sample of 495 faculty members at Kuwait University willingly participated in the study. The data were collected in the spring semester of the 2019/2020 academic year. A set of descriptive and inferential statistics were employed to analyze the data. The results indicated that the three domains of obstacles showed a “large” degree of influence (M = 3.37, SD = 0.75, RII = 0.67); where the faculty members expressed a “medium-high” approval of all influencing factors listed in the three domains. Administrative obstacles attained the highest mean scores with a “very large” effect degree (M = 4.04, SD = 0.81, RII = 0.81), followed by academic obstacles with a “large” effect rate (M = 3.23, SD = 0.92, RII = 0.65), then the logistical obstacles with a “moderate” effect size (M = 2.84, SD = 1.03, RII = 0.57). The findings also revealed several statistically significant differences among the constituents regarding some independent/factor variables (i.e., gender, nationality, type of major, and type of college). The study concluded with a few recommendations.