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Public health was the immediate concern when the Covid-19 pandemic struck in Asia, then in Europe and other parts of the world. The response of our education systems is no less vital. Higher education has played a major role in responding to the pandemic and it must help shape a better, more equitable and just post-Covid-19 world. This book explores the various responses of higher education to the pandemic across Europe and North America, with contributions also from Africa, Asia and South America. The contributors write from the perspective of higher education leaders with institutional responsibility, as well as from that of public authorities or specialists in specific aspects of higher education policy and practice. Some contributions analyze how specific higher education institutions reacted, while others reflect on the impact of Covid-19 on key issues such as internationalization, finance, academic freedom and institutional autonomy, inclusion and equality and public responsibility.The book describes the various ways in which higher education is facing the Covid-19pandemic. It is designed to help universities, specifically their staff and students as well as their partners, contribute to a more sustainable and democratic future.

This timely volume documents the immediate, global impacts of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) on teaching and learning in higher education. Focusing on student and faculty experiences of online and distance education, the text provides reflections on novel initiatives, unexpected challenges, and lessons learned. Responding to the urgent need to better understand online teaching and learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, this book investigates how the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) impacted students, faculty, and staff experiences during the COVID-19 lockdown. Chapters initially look at the challenges faced by universities and educators in their attempts to overcome the practical difficulties involved in developing effective online programming and pedagogy. The text then builds on these insights to highlight student experiences and consider issues of social connection and inequality. Finally, the volume looks forward to asking what lessons COVID-19 can offer for the future development of online and distance learning in higher education. This engaging volume will benefit researchers, academics, and educators with an interest in online teaching and eLearning, curriculum design, and more, specifically those involved with the digitalization of higher education. The text will also support further discussion and reflection around pedagogical transformation, international teaching and learning, and educational policy more broadly.

Higher Education Implications for Teaching and Learning during COVID-19 provides different perspectives regarding the impact of COVID-19 on college teaching and learning and on students, both collectively and individually. Contributors argue that the pandemic forced a higher education reckoning as institutions around the world were forced to shut their physical doors and open up their online platforms in a wider capacity. While these concerns are linked to a certain point in time, there is much we can learn from collective institutional responses to the pandemic-induced pivots to virtual teaching and learning. Scholars of higher education, organizational communication, and crisis communication will find this book particularly useful.

Based on twenty case studies of universities worldwide, and on a survey administered to leaders in 101 universities, this open access book shows that, amidst the significant challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, universities found ways to engage with schools to support them in sustaining educational opportunity. In doing so, they generated considerable innovation, which reinforced the integration of the research and outreach functions of the university. The evidence suggests that universities are indeed open systems, in interaction with their environment, able to discover changes that can influence them and to change in response to those changes. They are also able, in the success of their efforts to mitigate the educational impact of the pandemic, to create better futures, as the result of the innovations they can generate. This challenges the view of universities as "ivory towers" being isolated from the surrounding environment and detached from local problems. As they reached out to schools, universities not only generated clear and valuable innovations to sustain educational opportunity and to improve it, this process also contributed to transform internal university processes in ways that enhanced their own ability to deliver on the third mission of outreach

This book is to explores a variety of facets of online learning environments to understand how learning occurs and succeeds in digital contexts and what teaching strategies and technologies are most suited to this format. Business, health, government and education are some of the core sectors of society which have been experiencing deep transformations due to a generalized digitalization. While these changes are not novel, the swift progress of technology and the rising complexity of digital environments place a focus on the need for further research and novel strategies. In the context of education, the promise of increased flexibility and broader access to educational resources is impelling much of higher education’s course offerings to online environments. The 21st century learner requires an education that can be pursued anytime and anywhere and that is more aligned with the demands of a digital society. Online education not only assists students to success-fully integrate a workforce that is increasingly digital, but it helps them to become more comfortable with the use of technology in general and, hence, more prepared to be prolific digital citizens. The variety of settings portrayed in this volume attest to the unlimited opportunities afforded by online learning and serve as valuable evidence of its benefit for students’ educational experience. Moreover, these research efforts assist a more comprehensive reflection about the delivery of higher education in the context of online settings.

Higher education is undergoing radical changes with the arrival of emerging technology that can facilitate better teaching and learning experiences. However, with a lack of technical awareness, technophobia, and security and trust issues, there are several barriers to the uptake of emerging technologies. As a result, many of these new technologies have been overlooked or underutilized. In the information systems and higher education domains, there exists a need to explore underutilized technologies in higher education that can foster communication and learning. Fostering Communication and Learning With Underutilized Technologies in Higher Education is a critical reference source that provides contemporary theories in the area of technology-driven communication and learning in higher education. The book offers new knowledge about educational technologies and explores such themes as artificial intelligence, digital learning platforms, gamification tools, and interactive exhibits. The target audience includes researchers, academicians, practitioners, and students who are working or have a keen interest in information systems, learning technologies, and technology-led teaching and learning. Moreover, the book provides an understanding and support to higher education practitioners, faculty, educational board members, technology vendors and firms, and the Ministry of Education.