Distance learning in Ukraine in COVID-19 emergency

The global outbreak of COVID-19, subsequent lockdown of universities, and suspension of on-campus learning have caught many higher educational institutions off-guard, challenging their ability to adapt to a new delivery system. Distance learning has come under the spotlight as the only option to avoid the disruption of the teaching-learning process irreversibly. The present study outlines the problems facing Ukrainian universities after the quarantine imposition due to the COVID-19 emergency. The research reveals that the emergency transition of Ukrainian universities to distance learning has not been smooth; both professor-tutors and students have been put at an unfair disadvantage. Additionally, the study intends to analyse the specifics of distance learning in the system of higher education of Ukraine in the emergency and activities of Ukrainian universities concerning the problems of transition to distance learning and utilisation of educational online platforms. An internet survey was conducted among Ukrainian university professor-tutors and students to explore the changes to the teaching-learning process under the COVID-19 emergency quarantine. Interviews with senior officials of leading Ukrainian universities were held to explore how they addressed the issue of the disruption of the education process due to the COVID-19 quarantine.