Emergency Remote Education (ERE) during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Identifying Educational Capabilities and Teaching Expectations of Brazilian Professors

With the outbreak of the pandemic associated with COVID-19 (New Coronavirus), various measures to mitigate and suppress the spread of the disease had been taken around the world, especially social distancing. Emergency remote teaching replaced the in-person education in academic institutions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to identify conditions, expectations, and capabilities of professors from face-to-face courses (technical and higher education) to carry out remote teaching activities mediated by digital technologies due social distancing measures, in the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Exploratory research was developed, with a convenience sample of 588 Brazilian professors. Participants were invited by social networks to voluntarily complete an online questionnaire, between June 19 and 30, 2020. Findings demonstrate that most of the professors had a propensity for and interest in conducting remote teaching activities, in addition to meeting the technical requirements for internet connection and usage as well as digital and computational equipment. Despite this, school institutions needed to pay attention to the factors associated with the home environment, such as domestic, individual and family demands that became barriers to the effective development of Emergency Remote Education. This chapter contributes to the actions of school management in Brazil regarding the resumption of teaching activities during the social distancing period.