Considering the acceleration of the Indian Higher Education sector’s digitalization due to the recent Covid-19 pandemic, this book entitled “Digital Transformation of Higher Education in India” aims to help academicians as well as library and information science professionals at all levels in India and globally to survive and thrive in the 21st century. ‘All levels’ include those in careers spread across all sectors of library and information work (such as local government, private or ‘special’ and academic libraries) and electronic information related posts such as webmasters and knowledge managers, Information Scientist.

This edited volume discusses digital transformation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the widespread lockdown policies that followed, digital technologies were touted as an effective means towards ensuring continuity and minimal interruption of day-to-day operations for businesses and other institutions. Digital transformation, however, is an inherently complex process and the pressure of short adoption times may further increase complexities for organizations looking to foster digital technologies. This volume comprises original research contributions on theoretical foundations and empirical studies of digital transformations in the pandemic era. Written by academics and practitioners from diverse disciplines and industries, the chapters cover topics such as psychological and technical implications of pandemic situations, the economic, organizational, social, and legal implications of digital adoption, and case studies for digital transformation in different industries. This book will be useful for academics, technology professionals, business policy makers, NGO managers, and governments looking to optimize their digital transformation processes to better prepare their organizations in the presence of pandemic situations.

Written during the COVID pandemic, this book offers a unique, timely insight into the acceleration of digitalization in higher education.

Higher education is dynamic, constantly adapting to meet the requirements of students and industry. Transforming Higher Education Through Digitalization: Insights, Tools, and Techniques provides insights from experienced academicians on the digitalization of education and its appropriateness for enhancing the quality of teaching in institutions of higher education. The book also provides insights on technologies used in digital education, the competencies and skills required by teachers and students, managing quality of education through online modes, MOOCs (Massive, Open, Online Courses), and methods to support teachers and instructors in online education. The book also enables teachers and instructors to help students develop the knowledge and skills they need in a digital age and enable them to build collaborative learning that will bring them success. Written for educators, students, and policy makers of higher education, this book demonstrates how to transform traditional education to digital education and to continue their activities without the requirement of students and teachers meeting each other on campus.

Digital technologies are transforming economies and societies around the world. As such, markets demand new types of skills and competences that students must learn in order to be successful. IT and emerging technologies can be integrated into educational institutions to improve teaching methods and academic results as well as digital literacy. IT and the Development of Digital Skills and Competences in Education compiles critical research into one comprehensive reference source that explores the new demands of labor markets in the digital economy, how educational institutions can respond to these new opportunities and threats, the development of new teaching and learning methods, and the development of digital skills and competences. Through new theories, research findings, and case studies, the book seeks to incite new perspectives to understandings of the challenges and opportunities of the utilization of IT in the education sector around the world. Due to innovative topics that include digital competence, disruptive technologies, and digital transformation, this book is an ideal reference for academicians, directors of schools, vice-chancellors, education and IT experts, CEOs, policymakers in the field of education and IT, researchers, and students.

Digitalization of Higher Education using Cloud Computing: Implications, Risk, and Challenges provides an insight into the latest technology and tools being used to explore learning in Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs). Cloud computing, being an up-and-coming technology, integrates with academia and industry, thereby enhancing the quality of education. The opportunities and challenges faced by HEIs in recent times due to technological disruptions have forced both academia and industry to realign their strategies for survival and growth. With the acceleration of cloud computing in higher education, it has now become imperative for educators to constantly upskill and reskill in order to meet the requirements of the future of work, particularly in the digital age. Technological advancement is an unstoppable wave and the lack of relevant skills to handle the disruptions in higher education will become a huge challenge if not addressed promptly. This is the new phase of Education 4.0 where HEIs are aligning themselves using cloud computing implications, and thus are preparing both faculties and students to embrace the changes happening in the teaching and learning processes. This book focuses on multi-faceted strategies to be adopted by HEIs to deal with the emerging issues related to teaching–learning processes using cloud computing, technological interventions, curriculum overhaul, experiential learning, multi-disciplinary approaches, and continuous innovations and digitalization. The book offers comprehensive coverage of many academic areas, with the most essential topics including: • Pedagogies in digital education using a cloud environment • Risks and challenges in cloud platforms for teaching and learning • Collaborative and group learning in a cloud environment • Enhancing quality of education using e-learning methodologies The sections in this book are "Cloud Enabled Digitalization of Higher Education" and "Innovations and Applications of Digitalization of Higher Education: A Cloud Perspective". The book will be useful for undergraduates, graduates, academicians, scholars, and policy makers. It will help readers acquire skills for a smooth transition from face-to-face teaching to cloud-based teaching.

This book chronicles a 10-year introduction of blended learning into the delivery at a leading technological university, with a longstanding tradition of technology-enabled teaching and learning, and state-of-the-art infrastructure. Hence, both teachers and students were familiar with the idea of online courses. Despite this, the longitudinal experiment did not proceed as expected. Though few technical problems, it required behavioural changes from teachers and learners, thus unearthing a host of socio-technical issues, challenges, and conundrums. With the undercurrent of design ideals such as “tech for good”, any industrial sector must examine whether digital platforms are credible substitutes or at best complementary. In this era of Industry 4.0, higher education, like any other industry, should not be about the creative destruction of what we value in universities, but their digital transformation. The book concludes with an agenda for large, repeatable Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) to validate digital platforms that could fulfil the aspirations of the key stakeholder groups – students, faculty, and regulators as well as delving into the role of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) as surrogates for “fees-free” higher education and whether the design of such a HiEd 4.0 platform is even a credible proposition. Specifically, the book examines the data-driven evidence within a design-based research methodology to present outcomes of two alternative instructional designs evaluated – traditional lecturing and blended learning. Based on the research findings and statistical analysis, it concludes that the inexorable shift to online delivery of education must be guided by informed educational management and innovation.