Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced much education to move into a distance learning (DL) model. The problem addressed in the paper is related to the increased necessity for the capacity of data, secure infrastructure, Wi-Fi possibilities, and equipment, learning resources which are needed when students connect to systems managed by institutional, national, and international organizations. Meanwhile, there have been cases when learners were not able to use technology in a secure manner, since they were requested to connect to external learning objects or systems. The research aims to develop a sustainable strategy based on a security concept model that consists of three main components: (1) security assurance; (2) users, including administration, teachers, and learners; and (3) DL organizational processes. The security concept model can be implemented at different levels of security. We modelled all the possible levels of security. To implement the security concept model, we introduce a framework that consists of the following activities: plan, implement, review, and improve. These activities were performed in a never-ending loop. We provided the technical measures required to implement the appropriate security level of DL infrastructure. The technical measures were provided at the level of a system administrator. We enriched the framework by joining technical measures into appropriate activities within the framework. The models were validated by 10 experts from different higher education institutions. The feasibility of the data collection instrument was determined by a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient that was above 0.9.
Highlights
The disruption of learning processes disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic has involved a radical transformation of education and training, and one of the sectors undergoing dramatic digital transformation globally is higher education [1]
The technical measures to ensure cybersecurity may be selected for the domains that will be protected or that are of higher priority and subject to the proposed distance learning (DL) infrastructure framework matrix (Table 3)
The experts were the distance learning process coordinators in their organizations, having a possibility to compare the use of IT infrastructure before and during the pandemic, as they first identified the challenges of the pandemic and had to assure a successful and secure study process
Summary
The disruption of learning processes disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic has involved a radical transformation of education and training, and one of the sectors undergoing dramatic digital transformation globally is higher education [1]. The sudden forced closure of face-to-face teaching activities has led many academics and many students into “unfamiliar terrain” due to the need to adapt swiftly to total distance learning (DL) settings [2] This sudden change has required universities to evolve toward DL in record time, implementing and adapting the technological resources available and involving professors and researchers who lack innate technological capacities for DL. The importance of technical skills, effective time management, individual differences, and support is fostered by the technology infrastructure of the DL environment [6]. The problem addressed in the paper is related to the increased necessity for the capacity of the data, secure infrastructure, Wi-Fi possibilities, and equipment, which are needed learning resources when students connect to systems managed by institutional, national, and international organizations.
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