Digital Learning Tools Research Articles

Creation of Anatomically Correct and Optimized for 3D Printing Human Bones Models

Educational institutions in several countries state that the education sector should be modernized to ensure a contemporary, individualized, and more open learning process by introducing and developing advance digital solutions and learning tools. Visualization along with 3D printing have already found their implementation in different medical fields in Pauls Stradiņš Clinical University Hospital, and Rīga Stradiņš University, where models are being used for prosthetic manufacturing, surgery planning, simulation of procedures, and student education. The study aimed to develop a detailed methodology for the creation of anatomically correct and optimized models for 3D printing from radiological data using only free and widely available software. In this study, only free and cross-platform software from widely available internet sources has been used—“Meshmixer”, “3D Slicer”, and “Meshlab”. For 3D printing, the Ultimaker 5S 3D printer along with PLA material was used. In its turn, radiological data have been obtained from the “New Mexico Decedent Image Database”. In total, 28 models have been optimized and printed. The developed methodology can be used to create new models from scratch, which can be used will find implementation in different medical and scientific fields—simulation processes, anthropology, 3D printing, bioprinting, and education.

Bridging skill gaps and creating future ready accounting and finance graduates: an exploratory study.

Background: Changing trends in the use of technology have become an impelling force to be reckoned with for the accounting and finance profession. The curriculum offered in higher learning institutions must be quickly revamped so that students who complete a bachelor's degree are digitally competent upon graduation. With US$55.3 billion invested in FinTech in 2019 alone and more than 72% of accounting jobs being automated, graduates must be trained on digital skills to be future proof. Accounting and finance graduates must be made competent in skills that are related to digital content such as blockchain technology, information assets and autonomous peer to peer systems, to name a few. Methods: We used a three-phase approach: 1) careful mapping of digital topics taught within the course structure offered at these institutions; 2) review of current best practices and digital learning tools for digital inclusion which was ascertained from literature; and 3) 80 experts in a think tank group were interviewed on antecedents, awareness and problems in relation to digital inclusion within the curriculum to validate our research objective. Results: Eleven key tools for inclusion in the curriculum were discussed with experts and then mapped to current curriculum offered at institutions. We discovered that less than 5% of these were being taught. In total, 78% of experts agreed that digital content is inevitable, 90% agreed that digital inclusion based on tools that were discussed will yield great benefits for students, and lastly 75% agreed that giving digital exposure to students must be standard practice. Conclusions: The response from experts confirms that digital inclusion is imperative, but instructors themselves lacked the know-how of emerging technologies. Only the curriculum of institutions with approved bachelor's programs were included in this research. In our future work we hope to include all institutions and professional bodies as well.

Undergraduate Awareness and Perception on the Use of Digital Collaborative Tools in Facilitating Learning in Selected Universities within the Ilorin Metropolis

The study identified the Digital Collaborative Tools used for learning among undergraduates; (i) determined undergraduates’ awareness on the use of these tools for learning; (ii) ascertained undergraduates’ perception of their use for learning; (iii) identified challenges faced on the use of Digital Collaborative Tools for learning; (iv) ascertained coping strategies of integrating these tools for learning in Ilorin metropolis; and (v) examined the influence of gender on undergraduates’ awareness of Digital Collaborative Tools for learning in Ilorin metropolis. The research adopted a descriptive research design of the survey type. The population is comprised of all undergraduate students in the Ilorin metropolis. A stratified random sampling technique was used to select 200 students and a researcher-designed questionnaire was used to elicit objective responses from the subjects. Frequency counts, percentages, and mean scores were used to analyze the research questions while t-test and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were employed in testing the hypotheses. The findings of this study were that Digital Collaborative Tools were used for learning among undergraduates. The study recommended that male and female teachers are to redirect their focus on the utilization of digital collaborative tools for learning.

Features of “Inverted” Educational Resources for Distance Learning of Pupils

Purpose of research. The purpose of the paper is to describe the features of the “inverted” educational resources intended for the implementation of additional subject training of schoolchildren in a distance mode, which are created on the basis of the concepts of the problem-solving approach and micro-learning. Distance learning technologies, widely introduced into educational practice, require a high level of self-organization and internal motivation from the student to work independently, which necessitates the search for new approaches to the development of educational resources that would help maintain the interest and attention of students until the end of training. Features of the generation of modern schoolchildren, such as a low level of concentration, the prevalence of “clip way of thinking” and the visual channel of information perception, the search for the most comfortable conditions for the implementation of educational activities necessitate a revision of the form and content of educational information, taking into account the possibilities of its development along an individual trajectory. Materials and methods. Based on a theoretical analysis of psychological, pedagogical, methodological literature on the topic of research and modern statistical data demonstrating the level of readiness and motivation of students for independent distance learning, the paper describes the features of the structure and content of “inverted” educational resources, built taking into account the cognitive and psychosocial characteristics of modern “digital” generation. The necessity of compressing and structuring educational material and presentation in a question-and-task, visualized format is substantiated. Results. As the results of the research, the paper describes the concept and features of “inverted” educational resources. An inverted learning resource is understood as a complex digital learning tool, the content of which is presented in the form of a hierarchical tree or a semantic network of questions, each of which is supplied with brief visualized theoretical information and explanatory practical examples that implement inductive-deductive connections (concretization-generalization). The main idea behind the development of such tools is that the “inverted” learning resources, on the one hand, implement a non-linear approach to the implementation of learning activities in accordance with the individual characteristics of a particular student (the current level of training, knowledge gaps, specific interests and difficulties), with the other - they create conditions for the initial systematization and complex internalization of the acquired knowledge and methods of action, contain a “cognitive challenge” aimed at increasing educational motivation through the implementation of mechanisms of formative self-control at the initial stage. Based on these features, the authors see a special effect of using such resources in the field of additional training. Having already a certain baggage of knowledge and experience in the subject area being mastered, the student can begin the study by identifying deficiencies and possible difficulties, their reflection, and only then proceed to a more conscious formation of new knowledge and specific methods of action. Conclusion. In conclusion, the paper summarizes the features of “inverted” resources for distance learning of schoolchildren, provides further plans for the development of the project, and also identifies the possible areas to use the results. The materials of the article may be of interest to developers of digital learning resources, researchers of educational learning models, teachers wishing to use digital cognitive and mental learning technologies.

The role of user preferences in engagement with online learning

Digital technology in education has become a staple of many contemporary classrooms. Educational technology offers many benefits, including access to knowledge, mobility, multiple means of engagement, accessibility, distance learning, as well as the ability to connect in unprecedented ways. There is a growing body of research that examines digital learning tools, online classroom environments, learning management systems and other technologies that are integrated into the learning process. Such research extends to analysing the positive impacts of online and blended learning; however, few studies explore the user preferences of the learners. Without assessment of the user preference, the benefits of learning through technology are often lessened. This research explores and analyses how user media preferences influence engagement and motivation in online learning. One hundred twenty-two KS3 (13-year-olds) secondary school were provided voluntary access to a purpose-built online learning resource that augmented their in-class Holocaust history curriculum with learning materials in audio, video and e-text. Data were collected through web analytics and user feedback forms. The analytical tools provided detailed quantitative data on user activity on the site, while the feedback forms yielded qualitative data on usefulness and enjoyment. Results provided insights on the usage trends and user preferences that influence engagement. These behavioural patterns reflect user motivation and learning preferences and can be utilised to personalise digital content delivery to increase engagement with online learning materials.

Learning ‘in the hive’: social character and student wellbeing in the age of psychometric data

ABSTRACT Growing societal concern about a crisis in the wellbeing of young people has prompted a range of responses from governments and corporations, predicated on an ideal of the resilient, self-reliant individual. Behavioural economists, data scientists and educational technology companies now offer a variety of psychological interventions based on psychometric data, aimed at ‘equipping’ individual students with the necessary skills and character to enable them to withstand the pressures of contemporary life. As a consequence, the critical importance of mutually supportive interpersonal relationships continues to be neglected in mainstream approaches to Social and Emotional Learning (SEL). This article draws on Fromm’s theory of social character and Zuboff’s analysis of ‘life in the hive’ to challenge the assumptions about human behaviour underpinning data science and its application in digital tools for social and emotional learning and self-managed wellbeing. To improve students’ wellbeing, we need to begin with an understanding of why they are more likely to thrive within a network of mutually supportive social relationships than a digital ‘hive’.

Attitudes Towards using Digital Technologies in Education as an Important Factor in Developing Digital Competence: The Case of Slovenian Student Teachers

The purpose of the study was to determine what attitudes specifically Slove-nian student teachers hold towards using digital technologies in education, their self-reported proficiency in using digital technologies in education and to what extent their attitudes towards using digital technologies in education predict their self-reported proficiency in using digital technologies. We measured the attitudes towards using digital technologies in education through four dimensions: Teaching and learning, Assessment and critical thinking, Empowering learners and Facilitating learner’s digital competence. Self-reported proficiency in using digital technology was measured on four groups of digital technologies: Digital resources, Communication tools, Digi-tal tools and Online learning tools. The results show that Slovenian student teachers predominantly hold positive attitudes towards using digital technol-ogies in education, but they assess themselves as low-level users. Also, the student teachers’ attitudes towards using digital technologies in education were proved as an important predictor of their level of proficiency in using digital technologies.

Digital Learning in Speech-Language Pathology, Phoniatrics, and Otolaryngology: Interdisciplinary and Exploratory Analysis of Content, Organizing Structures, and Formats.

BackgroundThe digital revolution is rapidly transforming health care and clinical teaching and learning. Relative to other medical fields, the interdisciplinary fields of speech-language pathology (SLP), phoniatrics, and otolaryngology have been slower to take up digital tools for therapeutic, teaching, and learning purposes—a process that was recently expedited by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although many current teaching and learning tools have restricted or institution-only access, there are many openly accessible tools that have gone largely unexplored. To find, use, and evaluate such resources, it is important to be familiar with the structures, concepts, and formats of existing digital tools.ObjectiveThis descriptive study aims to investigate digital learning tools and resources in SLP, phoniatrics, and otolaryngology. Differences in content, learning goals, and digital formats between academic-level learners and clinical-professional learners are explored.MethodsA systematic search of generic and academic search engines (eg, Google and PubMed); the App Store; Google Play Store; and websites of established SLP, phoniatrics, and otolaryngology organizations was conducted. By using specific search terms and detailed inclusion and exclusion criteria, relevant digital resources were identified. These were organized and analyzed according to learner groups, content matter, learning goals and architectures, and digital formats.ResultsWithin- and between-learner group differences among 125 identified tools were investigated. In terms of content, the largest proportion of tools for academic-level learners pertained to anatomy and physiology (60/214, 28%), and that for clinical-professional learners pertained to diagnostic evaluation (47/185, 25.4%). Between groups, the largest differences were observed for anatomy and physiology (academic-level learners: 60/86, 70%; clinical-professional learners: 26/86, 30%) and professional issues (8/28, 29% vs 20/28, 71%). With regard to learning goals, most tools for academic-level learners targeted the performance of procedural skills (50/98, 51%), and those for clinical-professional learners targeted receptive information acquisition (44/62, 71%). Academic-level learners had more tools for supporting higher-level learning goals than clinical-professional learners, specifically tools for performing procedural skills (50/66, 76% vs 16/66, 24%) and strategic skills (8/10, 80% vs 2/10, 20%). Visual formats (eg, pictures or diagrams) were dominant across both learner groups. The greatest between-group differences were observed for interactive formats (45/66, 68% vs 21/66, 32%).ConclusionsThis investigation provides initial insights into openly accessible tools across SLP, phoniatrics, and otolaryngology and their organizing structures. Digital tools in these fields addressed diverse content, although the tools for academic-level learners were greater in number, targeted higher-level learning goals, and had more interactive formats than those for clinical-professional learners. The crucial next steps include investigating the actual use of such tools in practice and students’ and professionals’ attitudes to better improve upon such tools and incorporate them into current and future learning milieus.

Remote Learning: Fostering Learning of 21st Century Skills through Digital Learning Tools

The shift from in-person to remote learning has have led to crisis management. Teachers find it more challenging as content designing and presentation have to undergo drastic change. Though many face-to-face methodologies could be adapted in the online context, Yet, “one size fits all approach” cannot be standardized in remote learning setups. The critical challenge in this ‘new era’ is to make the learners motivated, productive, and responsible. The study aims to find the impact of four digital tools: Discussion Forums, Kahoot, Padlet, and FlipGrid in fostering 21st-century skills and identify the existing gaps between Remote Learning and instructional activities in the EFL context. The study adopts a quantitative approach. First, it tries to examine the utilization of the digital learning tools under Blackboard by the faculty at the Department of English at Prince Sattam University and find out the impact of digital tools in fostering 21st-century skills on the undergraduate students pursuing level six. From the results of the study, it is evident that digital learning tools empower learners. The study recommends significant changes in the pedagogies. Finally, the study suggests rubrics be taken into consideration while choosing digital tools to foster 21 st century skills.

Improving Students' Questioning Skills Level through Inquiry Training Learning Using Digital Learning Tools

Background: One of the important student abilities is questioning. The observations of SMPN 2 Kadudampit students showed low student questioning ability. Thus, this research aims to find out the usefulness of digital learning tools for blended learning with an inquiry training model to improving students' questioning skills. Method: pre-experimental design. The subject of the study was a grade 8A student at SMPN 2 Kadudampit. To collect data on this study, questioning levels observation sheets, observation sheets of student activities in learning, and interview sheets of students. The data is analyzed quantifiably using T-Test and described. Result: Learning inquiry training assisted by digital learning tools can be carried out with the highest percentage of student activities at the highest learning by 70%. The average ability to ask students at synthetic levels is 36% of the total student questions. Conclusion: From the results of the study can be concluded that through learning inquiry training assisted digital tools can improve the ability to ask students at a higher level than before.

IMPLEMENTING THE FLIPPED CLASSROOM: A CASE STUDY OF TEACHING ESP TO THE BACHELORS IN AUTOMATION AND COMPUTER-INTEGRATED TECHNOLOGIES

The paper describes the experience of flipped classroom application in teaching ESP. The study was held at the National Aviation University and involved 46 undergraduate students majoring in “Automation and Computer-Integrated Technologies”. In-class learning was organized according to the university schedule and out-of-class activities were conducted by using Google Classroom and a set of digital learning tools. Our observations during teaching with their further analysis and a designed questionnaire were used to reveal the benefits and drawbacks of the flipped classroom. The analysis of the students’ responses has shown that it allows students to study at their own pace, meet their needs, develop their organizational, communication and time management skills and increase their independence and creativity. The paper specifies three main phases of the flipped classroom and determines what skills are developed at each of them. Remembering and understanding are developed at the first phase and the freed classroom time is devoted to developing the skills of applying and analyzing. The higher-order thinking skills of evaluating and creating can be formed both in the classroom and during the post-class phase. The authors have selected digital learning tools which can be recommended for learning ESP in order to facilitate students’ out-of-class activities. Their use can help to shift the emphasis from the teacher to the student, increase students’ engagement in learning and make the course versatile and appropriate to students’ needs. A student survey was conducted at the end of the academic year, and the analysis of students’ responses revealed that they had a positive attitude to implementing the flipped classroom in teaching ESP. As shown by the results of the study, the use of the flipped classroom for teaching ESP is effective as it saves much in-class time for communicative tasks enhancing the development of higher-order thinking skills, unites in-class and out-of-class learning, controls students’ achievement not only in the classroom but outside it and makes the learning process more engaging.

Bridging the digital divide: the smart TV as a platform for digital literacy among the elderly

ABSTRACT More and more countries have become greying societies along with the burgeoning of digital devices. The older generation suffers from a sharp digital divide. Although the information infrastructure is fully developed, the elderly, not having grown up with it, tend to lack digital literacy and hold less intention to learn to use digital technologies. In the past, it was cable TV which pervaded the market and because of its long history of development became indispensable in the lives of the elderly. Recently, the maturity of Smart TV, provides us with an appropriate digital learning tool to assist seniors in Taiwan to improve their digital literacy. This is done utilising a digital remote control, designed to be a mixture of new and old technologies that offers seniors a high degree of familiarity. The study explore the effects of technology anxiety, digital feedback, and familiar technological skills on the adoption of digital devices by the elderly. In addition, a learning strategy compatible with the existing living environment of the elderly is proposed. The findings and recommendations for an effective approach to this problem are discussed as well as limitations and future research directions.

MoleculARweb: A Web Site for Chemistry and Structural Biology Education through Interactive Augmented Reality out of the Box in Commodity Devices

Augmented/virtual realities (ARs/VRs) promise to revolutionize STEM education. However, most easy-to-use tools are limited to static visualizations, which limits the approachable content, whereas more interactive and dynamic alternatives require costly hardware, preventing large-scale use and evaluation of pedagogical effects. Here, we introduce https://MoleculARweb.epfl.ch, a free, open-source web site with interactive AR webpage-based apps that work out-of-the-box in laptops, tablets, and smartphones, where students and teachers can naturally handle virtual objects to explore molecular structure, reactivity, dynamics, and interactions, covering topics from inorganic, organic, and biological chemistry. With these web apps, teachers and science communicators can develop interactive material for their lessons and hands-on activities for their students and target public, in person or online, as we exemplify. Thousands of accesses to moleculARweb attest to the ease of use; teacher feedback attests to the utility in online teaching and homework during a pandemic; and in-class plus online surveys show that users find AR engaging and useful for teaching and learning chemistry. These observations support the potential of AR in future education and show the large impact that modern web technologies have in democratizing access to digital learning tools, providing the possibility to mass-test the pedagogical effect of these technologies in STEM education.

Development and Application of an Interactive Neuropathology iBook as a Complementary Learning Tool for Veterinary Medicine Students.

Neuropathology is a challenging subject for most medical students. Delivering a gamified learning tool on this topic may motivate students and increase knowledge in the discipline. We report the development of such a tool in iBook format for the systemic pathology course delivered at Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine. Composed of 10 chapters (cases), this Neuropathology iBook (NP-iB) reviews basic clinical manifestations, neuropathology, and pathogenesis of common non-neoplastic conditions that cause brain disease in domestic animals. The goal of each chapter is to reach a diagnosis by interactively answering specific questions after reviewing relevant medical history, clinical pathology, and autopsy findings. Our hypothesis: the NP-iB improves students' ability to recognize these diseases, reflected in higher test scores. Using a post-test only control group design, data were gathered from all students enrolled in the course in two different semesters, fall 2017 and spring 2018 (n = 300). NP-iB users (n = 51, 17%) and usage time were identified by answers to multiple-choice questions embedded in the course assessments. Ninety percent of users had a positive perception although no statistically significant differences were found in median test scores between users and non-users. Statistically significant test score differences were found across how much time students used the NP-iB (p = .005); the lowest test score median values were found for neuropathology questions not related to the NP-iB, in students who used it for more than 3 hours. Unexpectedly, a low number of students preferred this digital learning tool, and its use did not improve their learning outcomes.

Usable and Useful Help in Literature Database Search? A Pedagogical Implementation and the Evaluation of an Interactive Screencast for Iraqi University Students

While university students in developing countries welcome digital learning tools, they frequently lack Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills which enable them to successfully carry out activities linked to information and communication technologies. This, in turn, means that they struggle to meet practical academic and professional requirements. This study pursues two goals. First, it suggests how this problem can be encountered, presenting the process of pedagogically developing and implementing an interactive screencast teaching ICT skills for literature search with the PubMed database. Secondly, it evaluates the acceptance of the screencast among M.A. students in Iraq, focusing on the questions of how easily the screencast can be used (usability) and how helpful the screencast is for the students ‘ to meet academic requirements (usefulness). The evaluation design is based on the Technology Acceptance Model and LORI. An online-questionnaire using a Likert Scale was used to collect data. Data (n = 29) was analyzed through a quantitative approach and descriptive statistics. Overall, usefulness was rated higher than usability. Findings suggest that easiness of use is increased particularly through a clear overview of the topics covered in the screencast and through a targeted selection of the topics. With regards to the usefulness of the screencast, students appreciate the use of an authentic way of how skills can be acquired and practiced. Additionally, students experienced control over their learning process, refering to screencast features which allow them control over learning pace. Future studies should make use of inferential statistics and qualitative approaches to reveal details about the causality between different factors.

Examining the use of Kahoot to support digital game-based formative assessments in UAE higher education

Attempts to sustain economic growth and diversification within the Middle East have seen governments invested in various educational initiatives. In alignment with this ethos, the United Arab Emirates offers citizens, free education in government-funded higher educational institutes, and bursaries linked to grade point average scores.It is believed that incentivised learning environments provide a powerful motivation to stimulate academic excellence in summative assessments⁠—linked to grade point average scores. An unfortunate outcome of these environments may, however, be that non-grade point reliant tasks are not prioritised by learners. Thus, identifying pedagogical tools which engage student agency towards such tasks, is of obvious interest to educators working within these settings.One such tool which may engage student agency towards formative assessments, is the digital game-based learning platform Kahoot. Kahoot is known to have permeated many educational domains due to its claimed ability to transform classrooms into fun, competitive environments, where students are engaged and motivated to learn. There is, however, a sparsity of literature evidencing the effects that contextual or demographic influences may have upon this and other digital game-based learning tools effectiveness. As such, an explanatory case-based study situated in the United Arab Emirates incentivised learning environment, was undertaken to evaluate female students’ perceptions of Kahoot, as a formative assessment tool. To achieve this Mwanza's eight-step model for translating data into activity theory components was utilised to develop semi-structured interview questions (Mwanza, 2002). These questions permitted analyses of the social, the individual, and socio-economic structures influencing user engagement with this technology.Upon introduction of Kahoot as a formative assessment tool, into the incentivised learning context of the UAE, students described contradictions between classroom and institutional rules, community expectations and the divisions of labour. The transformed classroom environments resultant from resolution of these contradictions produced, greater learner collaboration, superior knowledge retention, reduced test anxiety, and increased levels of student satisfaction.In contrast with other contexts, this study evidenced that digital game-based learning did not predominantly influence student’s motivation to study outside of the classroom for formative assessments. Instead, conventional paper-based assessments provided the greater impetus to engage in out of class learning. This finding may have resulted from the socio-economic and socio-cultural perceptions of the students within this specific learning context.This study, therefore, urges researchers and educators to undertake shifts in their consciousness to acknowledge socio-cultural and intersubjective factors, which may impact upon the effectiveness of digital game-based learning as a formative assessment tool. This is in recognition of this study’s findings that such technologies, may be heavily dependent upon both contextual and demographic influences of those utilising them.Keywords: digital game-based learning; Kahoot; formative assessments; Mwanza’s eight-step model; student motivation; United Arab EmiratesPart of the Special Issue Technology enhanced learning in the MENA region

Parents’ Perspectives on Remote Learning in the Pandemic Context

In the spring of 2020, when the entire education system worldwide switched to distance learning, parents became key learning agents, helping students to understand how to continue learning, how to use digital solutions and how to support students in this process. This article summarizes parents’ views on the distance learning process and the challenges they faced. This is part of a larger study carried out within the project “Life with COVID-19: Evaluation of the overcoming coronavirus crisis in Latvia and recommendations for social resilience in the future” (CoLife), which was launched in Latvia in the summer of 2020 and analyzed what digital learning tools schools can use to support students in their learning. Parents’ views on 738 school-age children (313 responses about 1st–4th graders; 362 responses for 5th–9th graders and 63 responses for 10th–12th graders) were obtained, and the main conclusions were that after parents became learning agents, they would have liked more support from educators to understand how to support their children in the learning process. Parents would also have liked schools to be interested in how their children are doing and whether everything necessary is available. Overall, it can be concluded that in this crisis, parents tried to support their children, and in most cases, it was the mothers of the students who provided this support, but it was primarily based on the need to use digital technologies, which means that children whose parents do not use digital technologies may be more exposed to the danger of falling into a risk group with larger educational gaps.

Impact of Digital Technology on Preschoolers : A Review

This paper shows how the advent of digital technologies is driving a reconceptualization of the underlying assumptions of innovation policy. There is conclusive evidence that digital equipment, tools and resources can, where effectively used, raise the speed and depth of learning for preschoolers. There is indicative evidence that the same can be said for some aspects of literacy, especially writing and comprehension. Digital technologies and electronic media devices appear to be appropriate means to improve basic literacy and social skills, especially in primary settings. The level of impact is generally similar to other changes to pedagogies which are effective in raising attainment although the use of digital learning has other benefits. Additionally, the extent of the effect may be influenced by the level of capability of teachers to use digital learning tools and resources effectively to achieve improved learning outcomes.

Testing the METUX Model in Higher Education: Interface and Task Need-Satisfaction Predict Engagement, Learning, and Well-Being.

The main aim of this study is to test the validity of the Motivation, Engagement, and Thriving in User Experience (METUX) model (Peters et al., 2018) in higher education. We propose a process model in which we investigate how the need-satisfaction of digital learning tools within the interface sphere and task sphere accounts for engagement, learning, and well-being. A total of 426 higher education students drawn from two subsamples participated in this cross-sectional study. A structural equation model shows that interface autonomy and competence satisfaction positively predict task autonomy and competence. Task competence, in turn, negatively predicts focused attention and positively predicts perceived usability and well-being. Task autonomy positively predicts perceived usability and reward. Based on our results, we provide some initial support for the METUX model in higher education. However, more validation work is needed to improve the scale that measures need-satisfaction in the interface and task spheres. Moreover, we find no support for the effect of task sphere on learning. Further investigations are needed into how METUX can be used in domain- and situation-specific contexts to account for increases in engagement, learning, and well-being. Finally, future studies need to include all aspects of the METUX model in order to fully test its validity.

Exploring Challenges of Online Education in COVID Times

This work is an attempt to explore aspects of online teaching and its related impact from the perspective of stakeholders in education. The paper outlines faculty experience and effectiveness in the online teaching environment, perspective requisition of students, and the support and resource building called for from academic leaders. We use observations, viewpoints, practical steps taken or needed by higher education institutions and universities in India. The primary and secondary data are content analysed and are further informed by literature. We state that academic leadership, collaborative peer learning, know-how of digital technology and online learning tools, training of faculty, dean review, readiness of students and discourse are important to create an ecosystem for effective online teaching. The article highlights the need of long-term perspective from academic leaders and the significance of blended teaching for faculty, in response to readiness in uncertain times. This paper reflects on the need for educational institutes to respond to the pandemic by building resources and factors and taking actions that result in an effective learning environment. They need to ensure training of all stakeholders and availability of technology and related resources, along with building a community for peer learning.