This study attempted to examine whether academic performance of pre-service teachers (PST) in virtual field experiences was the same as that of their peers in the previous semester who had regular face-to-face field experiences. Data for this study included PST' scores in three course sections in the Spring 2020 semester at a mid-size public…

Recognizing that higher education settings vary considerably, librarians at Gettysburg College sought to better understand textbook spending behaviors and the effects of costs on our students. We adapted the Florida Virtual Campus 2016 Student Textbook and Course Materials Survey to suit the context of our small, private, liberal arts college.…

This study uses a case study approach to examine the development of a massive open online course (MOOC) on intervention and implementation research in infectious diseases of poverty for learners in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Implementation research (IR) seeks to understand and address barriers to effective implementation of health…

Recently, the University of South Africa widened access to academic facilities and services at one of its study centres. Although this is laudable and demonstrates a commitment by the university towards its students, it raises these three concerns (1) What is the occupancy rate of the facilities? (2) To what extent are these improved facilities…

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted education in ways that academic institutions, scholars, administrators, educators, and students will strive to fully comprehend for years to come. The global spread of SARS-CoV2 in early 2020 prompted social distancing as the primary countermeasure against contracting and spreading the novel coronavirus, which in…

Cognisant of the wide range of cooperation between China and Africa and the existing strong Sino-African relationship, this article explores the international cooperation between Africa and China in the higher education domain, especially in the field of Open Distance Learning (ODL). The study employed data triangulation relying on both secondary…

Effective student support is key in stemming the dropout in distance education. This article reports on the student support provision in a hybrid teacher education programme. Altogether 160 participants were purposively selected; 126 completed a survey, 33 (30 students and 3 administrative staff) took part in six focus group discussions; and one…

The rapid transition to online teaching because of the global disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic exclaimed all the educators on finding the most efficient ways to teach in the presence of all rampant limitations caused in both social and academic lives. Facebook, as one of the favorite social networks, having hundreds of millions of users,…

Students acting as co-creators of academic material is growing in popularity as a pedagogical approach in higher education. With student engagement and persistence consistently being emphasized for student and institution well-being, educational praxis must foster engaged, high-retention student cohorts. This exploratory research uses a…

Student mental health is a growing concern for universities; increasing numbers of students are experiencing wellbeing issues, and distance learners are particularly at risk. Evidence indicates that triggers for mental health difficulties can reside within higher education environments, systems and study practices, implying that a proactive,…

Micro-credentialing is rapidly growing globally as learning that is both life-long and lifewide and this has only accelerated due to COVID-19. To understand what this means for higher education, The Australasian Council on Open, Distance and eLearning has conducted two surveys on the implementation and practice of micro-credentialing in the…

This study investigated the problems faced by teachers enrolling in a distance teacher education programme offered by India's Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). Instead of review of literature, the study began with the examination of learners' complaints about various aspects of the programme. Analysis of data extracted from the…

This study purposes to examine the emergency transition to distance education during the COVID-19 pandemic from the perspective of university students. Based on this purpose, university students were asked open-ended questions about their distance education experience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Transactional Distance Theory was used as the…

In providing effective online education, it is crucial that the instructors have the competence to teach online. The aim of this study is to develop a valid and reliable online teaching competency scale for online instructors. The data were collected from 392 instructors working in a big state university in Turkey (Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa).…

Learners in MOOCs often experience challenges that can be identified as barriers to learning. These barriers may be MOOC- or not MOOC-related. By knowing about potential barriers learners would be better prepared and more likely to handle and overcome them. Therefore, the aim of this study was to advance insight and knowledge about barriers to…