COVID-19 and the quality of mathematics education teaching and learning in a first-year course [Scholarly Article - South African Journal of Higher Education, 2022]

Title:

COVID-19 and the quality of mathematics education teaching and learning in a first-year course

 

Authors:

H. Mbhiza, University of South Africa, Pretoria 

&

D. Muthelo, University of Limpopo, Polokwane

 

Published:

South African Journal of Higher Education, Volume 36, Number 2, 21 May 2022

https://www.journals.ac.za/index.php/sajhe/article/view/4676

 

Abstract:

This article is vested on the need for higher education educators to be reflective on their practices in order to configure effective ways to interact with the students and knowledge for specific courses. It is uncontested that education systems globally are under constant pressure to respond to the changing needs of societies. The outbreak of COVID-19 has reminded us that the complexity of education needs responsive practices to facilitate effective teaching and learning across all levels of schooling globally. All over the world, the normative ways of teaching and learning evolved drastically in the first quarter of the 2020 academic year when teachers and students found online offerings to be the dominant option available as a sequel to the pandemic conditions. In South Africa specifically, students and teachers were thrust into virtual teaching and learning situations with the majority of them having no preparation for this shift. This article presents an auto-ethnographical account of the knowledge gaps in the teaching and learning of mathematics education in a first-year education course in an online space. We used auto-ethnography to discuss our experiences of teaching limits and continuity. We argue that teaching the topic on an online platform constrain student teachers’ procedural thinking, conceptual development, and demonstration of their thought processes during mathematics learning and assessment. We also discuss our experiences of developing assessment tasks for the topic and how students identified cheating mechanisms to answer questions in assessments. 

 

How should HE respond to the new geopolitical dynamics? [University World News, February 2022]

Title:   

How should HE respond to the new geopolitical dynamics?  

 

Author: 

Catherine Saracco   

 

Published:    

University World News, 8 February 2022 

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20220208142502416  

 

From the article: 

Over the past decade, the global geopolitical balance has undergone considerable upheaval. Will global competition between the United States, China and Europe continue to be the benchmark for student mobility flows? Will the Anglo-Saxon model of higher education be able to resist these challenges? Looking at four major trends.

 

Why education systems should build environmental ethics into every subject [The Conversation, January 2022]

Title:

Why education systems should build environmental ethics into every subject

 

Author:

Bellarmine Nneji PhD 

Department of Educational Foundations & Lecturer in Philosophy of Education, Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education

 

Published:

The Conversation, 21 January 2022

https://theconversation.com/why-education-systems-should-build-environmental-ethics-into-every-subject-173078

 

From the article:

 One of the goals most of the world has agreed on is education for sustainable development. This means development that considers present concerns without compromising the interests of future generations. Nations develop through education that takes care of the present and the future.  

 

As I have argued in a paper on environmental ethics in education, I believe that the principles and ideas of sustainable development and consumption should be embedded in all aspects of education. Every course or subject in the school curriculum should contain these ideas. Education should give future leaders the critical thinking tools they will need in a dynamic society faced with serious climate change challenges. Almost every profession and livelihood has an impact on the environment.

 

A Pedagogy for Precarious Times: Religious Education and Vulnerability [Scholarly Article - Religious Education, 2021]

Title:

A Pedagogy for Precarious Times: Religious Education and Vulnerability

 

Author:

Jennifer R. Ayres, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Published:

Religious Education, Volume 116, 1 June 2021

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00344087.2021.1933345

Abstract:

To live is to be vulnerable. The fact of our fragility has been laid bare in some of the crises we face in public life in the United States: an uncontained pandemic, relentless racist violence, and persistent and worsening ecological loss. This essay argues that although education has sometimes promised (even obliquely) an economic, political, or even spiritual escape from vulnerability, religious education should instead nurture loving awareness of vulnerability and, in light of that knowledge, the resilience and courage to love the world.

Reversing the colonial warp in education: a decolonial encounter with Muhammad Iqbal [Scholarly Article - Higher Education, October 2021]

Title:

Reversing the colonial warp in education: a decolonial encounter with Muhammad Iqbal

 

Author:

Shoaib Ul-Haq

Sejong University, Seoul, South Korea

Published:

Higher Education, 6 October 2021

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10734-021-00773-w

 

Abstract:

In this paper, I study management and business education in Pakistan to evaluate their suitability for the local context and their compatibility with Islamic philosophy of education. I use decolonial theory and Iqbalian poetry to craft an evaluative lens for management education and to generate an alternative critical discourse grounded in theology. I found that utilitarianism and managerialism taught in the business schools is creating “captive minds” and is not compatible with traditional Pakistani norms and values. I use decolonial theorists’ idea of pluriversality to offer an alternative. In this manner, I contribute to the critical educational philosophy by showing its parochial character. I argue that addressing the legacy of colonialism is important to develop an emancipatory and new way of thinking about education.

 

Mission education left an uneven legacy: an analysis of 26 African countries [The Conversation, August 2021]

Title:

Mission education left an uneven legacy: an analysis of 26 African countries

Author:

Bastian Becker 

Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Bremen, Research Center on Inequality and Social Policy (SOCIUM), Universität Bremen

Published:

The Conversation, 24 August 2021

https://theconversation.com/mission-education-left-an-uneven-legacy-an-analysis-of-26-african-countries-166315

From the article:

Christian missionaries were the first to introduce European-style education in sub-Saharan Africa. Mission societies often expanded into territories before colonial powers did, and providing education only cost them a little more.  

 

Missionaries continued to be the main providers of education even after colonial powers established control during the so-called Scramble for Africa which occurred between 1884-1914.

 

Dubai announces Ramadan COVID-19 precautionary measures & education: next academic year [Arab News, 2021]

Title:

Dubai announces Ramadan COVID-19 precautionary measures

Published:

Arab News, 19 March 2021

https://www.arabnews.com/node/1828026/middle-east

From the article:

* Tarawih prayers can be performed in mosques on the condition that precautionary measures are applied 

 

* The country’s education ministry has not yet decided on the learning method of the next academic year

Association between educational level and smoking cessation in an 11-year follow-up study of a national health survey [Scholarly Article - Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, 2021]

Title:

Association between educational level and smoking cessation in an 11-year follow-up study of a national health survey 

 

Authors:

Otto Ruokolainen, Tommi Härkänen, Jouni Lahti, Ari Haukkala, Markku Heliövaara & Ossi Rahkonen

 

Published:

Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, 1 March 2021

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1403494821993721

 

Abstract:

Aims: 

There is a lack of longitudinal, population-based studies on the association between education and smoking cessation. A more thorough examination of this association is needed to address inequalities in smoking. 

 

Methods: 

The longitudinal Health 2000 Survey and Health 2011 Survey, representing the Finnish population aged ⩾30 years, were analysed. Of the 1352 baseline daily smokers, 945 (70%) provided a smoking status at the follow-up. The analytic sample size was 884 (excluding the follow-up occasional smokers). Self-reported questionnaire data and measurements (e.g. plasma cotinine) from the baseline were utilised. The outcome variable was smoking cessation at the follow-up, and the main explanatory variable was education. Logistic regression was the main method for statistical analyses. All of the analyses accounted for the sampling design. 

 

Results: 

At the follow-up, 28% of the baseline daily smokers had quit smoking. An adjusted regression model showed that highly educated respondents had a higher likelihood of quitting smoking compared with those with basic education. Controlling for demographic and health-related variables had a modest effect on this association. Higher scores for plasma cotinine, symptoms of depression and heavy alcohol use were associated with a lower likelihood of quitting smoking. The association between education and smoking cessation was weaker for women than it was for men. 

 

Conclusions: 

High education is associated with smoking cessation among the general adult population, especially among men. A higher plasma cotinine level is strongly associated with continued smoking among both sexes. Background variables only modestly affected the association between education and smoking cessation.

The Shift to Online Education Paradigm due to COVID-19: A Study of Student’s Behavior in UAE Universities Environment [Scholarly Article - International Journal of Information and Education Technology, 2021]

Title:

The Shift to Online Education Paradigm due to COVID-19: A Study of Student’s Behavior in UAE Universities Environment

 

Author:

Liaqat Ali

Department of Information Technology, College of Engineering and Information Technology, University of Science and Technology of Fujairah, Fujairah, United Arab Emirates

 

Published:

International Journal of Information and Education Technology, Volume 11, Number 3, pp. 131-136, 2021

http://www.ijiet.org/show-151-1752-1.html

Abstract:

The shift to an online education paradigm has been dramatically seen in educational systems and universities due to COVID-19 across the world, especially in United Arab Emirates. The emergence of COVID-19 forced educational institutions to divert all strategies from physical to online platforms for the safety of students, instructors and all the other staff members. However, this is not the case in educational institutions only because other governmental and non-governmental institutions are affected in the same way around the world. The objective of this research is to understand the behavior of students due to a sudden shift towards an online education experience in university environment and gauge their preference either on physical or online education system for the future. The research collected data through an online questionnaire from 210 undergraduate university students which further helped the researcher to draw the discussion and conclusion. The research proves that a high majority of students are willing to change from physical education to an online platforms and they believe that they can perform well by the adoption of this new platform of online education system. The research recommendations are helpful for the educational policy developers.   

This is how countries can rebuild competitive economies for people and planet [World Economic Forum, 16 December 2020]

Title:

This is how countries can rebuild competitive economies for people and planet 

Author:

Saadia Zahidi

Published:

World Economic Forum, 16 December 2020

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/12/how-countries-can-rebuild-competitive-economies-for-people-and-planet/

From the article:

According to the Global Competitiveness Report Special Edition 2020, which analysed 37 countries for their readiness for economic transformation, growth and productivity alone are not enough.

University of Cambridge - Spill-over effects show prioritizing education of very poorest improves attainment of all [Science Daily, 20 November 2020]

Title:

Spill-over effects show prioritizing education of very poorest improves attainment of all

 

Source:

University of Cambridge

 

Published:

Science Daily, 20 November 2020

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201120091149.htm

Summary:

International development projects that target the education of the world's very poorest children also significantly improve other young people's attainment, research indicates. The findings are based on a study of a program targeting marginalized girls in Tanzania, which showed the attainment of other boys and girls at these pupils' schools significantly improved through 'spill-over' effects. For every $100 spent per girl, all students made the equivalent of two years of learning gains.

How Online Learning will Change the Education System post Covid-19 (by David Michigan, CEO of Michigan Academy in Entrepreneur, 27 May 2020)

Title:
How Online Learning will Change the Education System post Covid-19

Author:
David Michigan, CEO of Michigan Academy

Published:
Entrepreneur, 27 May 2020
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/351137

From the article:
"Since the pandemic, going to schools and colleges has never been the same. The COVID-19 has resulted in schools shut all across the world. Globally, over 1.2 billion children are out of the classroom, in their home right now. But this crisis shall not stop the learning and studies. Schools, colleges, and institutes have started finding their way out of this."

The Conversation, 24 May 2020 - Education post-COVID-19: customised blended learning is urgently needed

Title:
Education post-COVID-19: customised blended learning is urgently needed

Author:
Werner Olivier, Nelson Mandela University

Published:
The Conversation, 24 May 2020
https://theconversation.com/education-post-covid-19-customised-blended-learning-is-urgently-needed-138647

From the article:
"Many well meaning education benefactors and commentators in South Africa have expressed that in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic online self-guided learning could solve some of the current teaching problems and address the educational backlog. What learners need, the reasoning goes, is to get free internet access to educational support materials on offer online.  

Nothing could be further from the truth."

The Conversation, 5 May 2020 - Impact of school closures on education outcomes in South Africa

Title:
Impact of school closures on education outcomes in South Africa

Authors:
Vijay Reddy, Crain Soudien & lolita Desiree Winnaar

Published:
The Conversation, 5 May 2020

From the article:
"By mid April about 1.725 billion students globally had been affected by the closure of school and higher education institutions in response to the coronavirus pandemic. According to the UNESCO Monitoring Report, 192 countries have implemented nationwide closures, affecting about 99% of the world’s student population.  

This is unprecedented. The scale and complexity of what’s happening is entirely new territory."

To read this article:
https://theconversation.com/impact-of-school-closures-on-education-outcomes-in-south-africa-136889

The Conversation, 29 April 2020 - How South Africa can address digital inequalities in e-learning

Title:
How South Africa can address digital inequalities in e-learning

Author:
Mmaki Jantjies

Published:
The Conversation, 29 April 2020

From the article:
"The ongoing effects of the virus have kept pupils and teachers at home. This has necessitated a move to e-learning. In theory, this could be an important step towards a fairer education system. Digital platforms enable equitable access for learners to digital books, simulated science labs and related innovative learning resources."

To read this article:
https://theconversation.com/how-south-africa-can-address-digital-inequalities-in-e-learning-137086

UNESCO Online Event (22 April 2020) - Gender, Education, and Climate Change: Reconfiguring the human-planet relationship through gender transformative education (Webinar)

Title of webinar:
Gender, Education, and Climate Change: Reconfiguring the human-planet relationship through gender transformative education

Organised by:
The Brookings Institution

Date:
Wednesday, 22 April 2020 - 09:00 am in Eastern Time (US & Canada)

Description:
"In this webinar, panelists will attempt to unpack the challenges preventing gender-equitable relations by exploring the empirical relationships between gender, education, and climate change from a high level to implementation level. It is premised on the notion that we can reconfigure the human-planet relationship through the achievement not just of gender equality in education, but through a gender-transformative education."

To register for this webinar:
https://brookings.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_vrBmHj7xRM-aPe6tvYGhoA

Short Article - Naspers has $8bn for deals, targets online education

Title:
Naspers has $8bn for deals, targets online education

Author:
Loni Prinsloo

Published:
fin24, 10 April 2020

From the article:
"Naspers Group remains on the lookout for acquisitions even as economies around the world grind to a halt in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, with online education proving a hit as schools close and lockdowns keep people at home."

To read this article:
https://www.fin24.com/Companies/naspers-has-8bn-for-deals-targets-online-education-20200410

Short Article - Blockchain uses in education, a tough lesson with Covid-19

Title:
Blockchain uses in education, a tough lesson with Covid-19

Author:
Mitch Rankin

Published:
Cryptopolitan, 19 March 2020

From the article:
How will education change for the better - or the worse - in the long term?

To read this article:
https://www.cryptopolitan.com/blockchain-uses-in-education-covid-19-lesson/

Scholarly Article (February 2020) - Education for Innovation (E4I): Exploring the Developmental Process of a Canadian Curriculum Resource

Title:
Education for Innovation (E4I): Exploring the Developmental Process of a Canadian Curriculum Resource

Authors:
Daniel Jarvis, Glenda L. Black & Maria T. Cantalini-Williams

Published:
Alberta Journal of Educational Research, volume 66, number 1, 2020.

Available: 
https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/ajer/article/view/68169

From the abstract:
The Rideau Hall Foundation (RHF) in Ottawa, Canada selected the Schulich School of Education (SSoE) at Nipissing University to create educational resources to correspond with the release of two 2017 publications (Innovation Nation written for emergent readers; and Ingenious written for older readers. Both books were co-authored by The Right Honourable David Johnston (former Governor General of Canada) and Tom Jenkins as part of the Canada 150 sesquicentennial celebrations. The SSoE organized school teacher writing teams in summer 2017 and produced three cross-curricular Education for Innovation (E4I) resources (Early Learning; Grades 1-8; Grades 7-12) each of which included an Innovation Cycle model, sample key innovation learning experiences, and suggestions for culminating Innovation Celebrations. Teacher candidates from participating SSoE faculty classes also created curriculum-specific Innovation units which were subsequently revised by teacher teams and then implemented and reviewed by teachers from different educational contexts (e.g., public schools, private schools, homeschools). The E4I project collaboration involved university faculty, teachers, teacher candidates, and community partners. Based on participant survey data, researchers identified reported benefits and challenges relating to the overall developmental process. 

Short Article - Malaysia PM splits schools and universities as nationalism rises

Title:
Malaysia PM splits schools and universities as nationalism rises

Author:
John Ross

Published:
Times Higher Education, 10 March 2020

From the article:
"Education portfolio demerged and ethnic tensions set to be inflamed as Muhyiddin announces cabinet."

To read this article:
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/malaysian-pm-splits-schools-universities