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While some may perceive technology as disruptive in higher education, this chapter makes a case that video technology can be used to increase collaboration and engagement in learning and teaching. It is argued that digital storytelling can be integrated as part of the assessment in graduate-level courses without compromising expectations related to academic rigor. Rather, digital storytelling advances multimedia literacy for the individual and supports the generation of bounded learning communities, specifically in online and blended programmes. Covering social presence, teaching presence and cognitive presence, the chapter draws on two examples of digital storytelling used in the MA in Conflict Analysis and Management and the MA in Global Leadership at Royal Roads University, Canada. Overall, the chapter makes a contribution to the conversation of how assessment formats can be updated to match the shift from traditional, lecture formats and brick-and-mortar institutions to applied, collaborative programmes that are often delivered in blended and online formats. Thus, as the field of higher education continues to evolve and adapt alongside technological innovations, the chapter suggests that digital storytelling can be one way to complement and update assessment formats to match the evolution of the twenty-first century.

In the last two decades, online computer-marked assignments (CMAs) have been widely used in accounting education. Although there is a growing body of research on this form of online assessment, most of the previous studies relied on small samples of respondents or focused on student self-report using survey methods. This exploratory mixed-method study aims to combine a quantitative analysis of learners’ academic performance on an online Financial Accounting course with a more in-depth exploration of learner experiences using qualitative methods. The quantitative findings suggest that student previous educational qualifications, age and experience of studying a similar subject are strongly associated with CMA completion, which is also linked to scores on other pieces of assessed work. The qualitative results show that from the learners’ perspective, diversifying assessment methods, introducing low-stakes assessment activities and creating opportunities for situational interest are viewed as key aspects of online CMA design. This paper concludes with discussing the implications of the study for designing and delivering online courses in accounting, particularly in the light of the growing popularity of massive open online courses (MOOCs).

A pandemic causes abrupt and unanticipated disruptions in many facets of society. A lot of authorities have quickly turned to online teaching methods. The best methods for online teaching have become a hot topic of discussion due to this urgent fast transmission. It was difficult to teach physiology to medical and paramedical students online because of concerns about how to give the students an effective interactive online teaching practice and how to guarantee successful outcomes. Therefore, three approaches have been individually applied to medical and nursing students for the first time in the physiology department of the Faculty of Medicine in Rabigh, King Abdulaziz University. Through online lectures and assignments, the strategies attempted to capture the students’ interest and interaction. The second-year nursing students were given a mind map project to complete after the lecture. The third-year medical students used a crossword puzzle game to test the students’ understanding. The third-year medical students were presented with short stories to better comprehend the physiological processes covered in the lectures. Overall, the three instructional strategies received positive feedback from the students. Incorporating such cutting-edge and imaginative educational approaches, in conclusion, could significantly aid in managing the pressures that arise during pandemics.

In higher education, the usual assessment methods are oral or written exams, multiple-choice questions, and individual or group written essays. However, in a distance learning context, it is often necessary to offer students more support, including formative assessment and self-assessment strategies. International reports have shown that teachers have adapted their learning assessment strategies during the Covid-19 pandemic. How did educators adapt their assessment strategies recently during the pandemic? What are the intentions underlying their decision-making? Our objective is to understand the decision-making process of teacher educators and university teachers in adapting their methodology for assessing student learning during the pandemic. To answer these questions, we adopted a qualitative research approach. We collected data from 29 different countries via: (1) open-ended questionnaires, (2) personal accounts, (3) unstructured interviews, and (4) a specific questionnaire about assessment. Four main categories emerged from our data: (1) challenges, (2) assessment practices, (3) changes in teachers' perceptions and practices, and (4) reflection on assessment. The findings suggest that (1) uses of technology for assessment have developed strongly; (2) careful coordination among colleagues is very important; (3) educators developed formative assessment strategies; and (4) educators' reflections have focused on many challenges: ethical, technical, and pedagogical.

It is estimated that nearly 2 billion world population is now living in countries affected by extreme forms of violence, war, and criminal activities (World Bank, 2016). Apart from being affected by war and having higher poverty rates, millions are affected by climate-related disasters, pandemics which have destroyed livelihoods and lives. In 2011 and 2012 alone, more than 450 million individuals faced environmental crises (Blankespoor et al., 2010; Laframboise & Loko, 2012). Human rights advocates that every individual has the right to live with dignity and respect. International agencies are trying their best to ensure that everyone, and mainly the vulnerable communities, gets assistance in a manner that is consistent with human rights and includes the right to participation and non-discrimination. One such right is the right to education, a right which has been articulated in numerous conventions and documents and has been a part of policy maker’s debate. In emergency situations, whether man-made or a natural disaster, students face an acute crisis of accessing higher education, even when the country is limping back to normalcy. The book Higher Education in Emergencies: International Case Studies discusses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on teaching and learning practice in higher education in different countries and highlights the cultural transformation of policy and practice. In addition, the authors propose future directions on how to be prepared and address the challenges of emergencies and draw implications of their findings beyond the national context.

This chapter highlights the creation of a STEM Center of Excellence for Active Learning (SCEAL) at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. The overarching goal of the STEM Center is to transform pedagogy and institutional teaching and learning in order to significantly increase the production of high-achieving students who will pursue careers and increase diversity in the STEM workforce. Some of the STEM Center’s efforts to reach its goals included supporting active learning classroom and course redesign efforts along with providing professional development workshops and opportunities to garner funding to cultivate student success projects through the development of an Innovation Ventures Fund. Outcomes from this Center have led to several publications and external grant funding awards to continue implementation, assessment, and refinement of active learning innovations and interventions for STEM student success for years to come.

American teens are using online social networks more than ever before. According to a 2010 Pew Internet Project study, close to 75% of teens use social media sites and wireless connections (cell phones, game consoles, and portable gaming devices) to access the Internet (Lenhart, Purcell, Smith, & Zickuhr, 2010). These constant connections and ties to the Internet are fascinating to some scholars who see a tremendous value to the communities found and made online. Yet, this ability to be in constant connection is troubling to other scholars who believe that this constant ability to contact and connect is changing society for worst, not the better [Putnam, R. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. New York: Simon & Schuster; Bugeja, 2005]. This chapter outlines a social media class experiment undertaken by the lead author to provide students with an opportunity to understand their reliance on the new media or media in general and add to the scholastic literature on teaching and technology in the classroom. In the Spring 2010 classes, the majority of students agreed to disconnect from all communication technology and social media for 36hours. The assignment was worth 65 points. As they started to withdraw from the media, the class assignment provided students with insights into their constant connectivity and how they manage information through various mediated channels. After the assignments students were required to complete an 800-word blog or paper. To receive full credit for the assignment, students needed to complete the written component. All the students who participated completed the written requirement. The majority of the students completed their assignments on their blogs but about half of the students both turned in a written paper and posted the assignment on their blogs. The students that provided written permissions were selected for inclusion in this chapter. We were careful to make sure that the students in this chapter were representative of the entire population, including male and female, students who were bothered by the disconnect and those who were intrigued by the possibility of being disconnected, traditional and non-traditional students, and students who worked, had no outside employment, and students with other non-academic obligations. Our insight into students' issues of connectivity was drawn from these stories. This chapter further offers ideas on how to integrate such an experiment in other settings and provides pedagogical rationales for this type of assignment. The names of the students in this experiment were changed to safeguard student anonymity and personal privacy.

As teacher education moves online, there is an increasing need for teacher educators who subscribe to relational stances that attend to and enact liberating pedagogies with preservice teachers preparing to teach and inservice teachers who come to online courses for professional development.

This chapter explores common frameworks for interactive relational models of teaching from John Dewey, Lev Vygotsky, and Paulo Friere and then proposes, using examples from the author’s practice, how these models translate into online contexts.

Diversity in education calls for increased awareness of individuals using a relational stance. This stance should apply both to schoolchildren as well as the teacher candidates and teachers in development that are coming to teacher education to build and improve their practice.

More research on relationality in online learning is necessary. This research should take shape through using theories that are complex enough to provide insights that marry the pedagogical with the relational aspects of teaching as part of a comprehensive teacher education experience.

This chapter makes a valuable contribution to research in teaching online through its thorough inquiry into theories of learning and teaching and they apply – or do not – online.

This study examines the relative efficacy of groups in both virtual and traditional face-to-face courses, as well as differences in group dynamics between the two delivery methods. We surveyed students in online and traditional classroom sections of the same intermediate-level cost accounting course about their perceptions of group processes, general satisfaction with group work, learning outcomes, and group communications. Traditional classroom students were more positive about their group processes and learning outcomes than were online students. They also were more likely to agree that the learning benefits of group work outweighed the costs, (e.g., uneven and inefficient work distribution.) Our findings suggest that instructors who use groups in online courses should specifically consider the potentially negative effects of such factors as workload imbalances when designing group learning activities so that learning objectives are not adversely affected.