The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted higher education institutions worldwide, prompting a rapid shift towards online learning environments. This study aims to assess the e-readiness of first-year students in using the Learning Management System (LMS) in the context of COVID-19. The researchers used the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM)…

Micro-credentials can provide easily accessible and transparent evidence of skills or knowledge that have been certified by an authority, based on small units of learning. The recognition and transfer of credits is becoming essential, as an increasing number of students are studying at different institutions, often at the same time, online or in…

In higher education in the United Kingdom (UK), students from ethnic minorities get lower grades than White students. This study focused on the experiences of Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic (BAME) students completing an undergraduate psychology dissertation module. Self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000) and intersectionality…

The purpose of this research is to report the protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of the construct of social presence. Protocols for systematic reviews and meta-analysis are desirable as they offer a more knowledgeable and transparent conceptualization of a study so methods can be appraised and suggestions for modifications…

Extensive research supports the claim that student-instructor interaction is an essential element of successful online teaching. It is less clear, however, whether teaching presence is discipline-specific, or how it may be affected by the personal and professional background of individual instructors. This article describes the quantitative…

In response to the COVID pandemic, university classes across the world were forced online. The literature on online learning has traditionally focused on students who choose online learning. In light of recent shifts in education, online learning continues to increase its prevalence in the education of all students, including those who would not…

Distance learning is becoming increasingly prevalent. If education is a community affair, how do we digitally design the conditions for learning at a distance for our students? This research examines a distance learning environment within a Master's Degree course created using online discussion forums, based upon the Community of Inquiry model…

Online school leadership (OSL) is of particular interest given the growing number of online education opportunities. As school districts develop more online and blended learning programs, particularly for secondary students, the need to examine leadership in these programs is paramount. The literature suggests that while there are many studies…

This paper sought to establish the extent to which users' legitimate rights are safeguarded in Learning Management Systems (LMS); specifically, on the Blackboard system used for teaching at Sorbonne University, Abu Dhabi (SUAD). First, the users' legitimate rights that required protection were identified. Second, the security and privacy…

This case study used screen-capture technology and a cued retrospective think aloud called the "virtual revisit think aloud" to understand teachers' self-directed online learning (SDOL) experiences. Three elementary teachers were involved in a series of in-depth, one-on-one SDOL sessions where they informally used the Internet for their…

Using Giorgi's descriptive phenomenological psychological method and a social work disciplinary lens, this Canadian study explores how women in online learning contexts experience and recover from depression. The primary research question guiding the study was, "What are the lived experiences of women in online learning who have lived with…

In early March 2020, the United States was first faced with the COVID-19 virus, which became a pandemic affecting 216 countries across the globe (Worldometers.info, 2020). This pandemic impacted approximately 1.5 billion learners globally by schools' closures and revised practices (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization…

Recent media stories have reported that online webcam-based exam proctoring have wrongly flagged students for cheating, causing tremendous anxiety and frustration, and thus disadvantaging students. This study assesses if online webcam-based exam proctoring in the age of COVID-19 disadvantages students (particularly those who are non-white and with…