Contrary to expectation, students overachieved in a course in academic literacy during pandemic lockdown fall semester 2020. The pass rate surged from 51% years 2016-2019 to 77% year 2020. This article presents an investigation into the possible reasons behind this unanticipated outcome. Students were asked to fill out a survey, asking them to list best practice on part of the teacher, the student-to-student behavior and the individual student. The material was processed using qualitative content analysis. It was coded and organized into categories. The results were subsequently interpreted and discussed in the light of previous research and the teachers’ experience of giving the course. 

In students’ answers regarding teachers’ best practice, comments about flipped classroom and peer reviewed process writing were most numerous. The peer review practice resurfaced in answers about student-to-student behavior. Most student mentioned topics related to social cohesion as a success factor, and many saw the collaborative work with peers’ drafts as a support for this cohesion. Finally, when reflecting on the individual behavior, topics related to engagement were in the majority. When interpreted together with the teachers’ experience, these results point in the direction of two possible reasons behind student success: 1) crisis awareness among both teachers and students allowed both parties to make the most of the available learning activities. Students took advantage of the peer review process to forge social bonds, which supported their learning process. 2) The remote teaching freed time and the flipped classroom created flexibility for students, allowing them to combine studies with acclimatizing to the new study environment, and possible with work and family duties.