The Role of Virtual Education in Internet Addiction and its Relationship with Elementary Teachers’ Eye Fatigue in Covid-19 Epidemic

The Covid-19 epidemic and the need to use virtual Internet networks to educate students have been associated with many problems. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of virtual education in internet addiction and its relationship with elementary teachers’ eye fatigue in Covid-19 epidemic. The statistical population included teachers of Ardakan city from among whom 317 people were selected as the sample of the study using voluntary method. Participants answered the Habibi et al. (2012) Eye Fatigue and Young (1996) Internet Addiction Questionnaires, which were designed online. 286 questionnaires were analyzed using Pearson correlation method at the level of 0.05 and using SPSS statistical package version 24. The results showed that virtual education has been effective in increasing Internet addiction and eye fatigue in teachers. The results also showed that there is a significant positive relationship between Internet addiction and ocular fatigue and its dimensions, i.e. ocular strain, visual impairment, ocular surface disorder and ocular disturbance (p<0.001). According to the results, e-learning can increase the risk of Internet addiction and eye fatigue in teachers and lead to many eye problems. It is recommended to prevent the negative consequences of the Covid-19 epidemic by providing training programs.