Embracing Online Learning as a Response to COVID

### **Chapter 12**

Reconceptualizing Curriculum Design and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in an ODeL Institution: The Introduction of Technology-Enhanced Learning

*Malebo Matlala*

#### **Abstract**

The introduction of technology-enhanced learning has made higher education more accessible, especially in Africa, where the cost of higher education on its own can be a barrier to education. Technology introduced virtual classrooms and has allowed students from remote areas, access to education. Although the use of technologyenhanced learning in South African Higher Education was significantly low, the imposed lockdown as a result of Covid-19 catapulted the use of technology to unprecedented heights in a very short space of time. This chapter studies the impact of Covid-19 on teaching and learning in Higher education as presented in one of Africa's largest ODeL institutions. The results of the study show that the introduction of remote online assessments presented ideal opportunities for academic dishonesty among students and that in order to protect the integrity of our qualifications, the curriculum should be designed in a manner that encourages active participation from students. This includes active learning through the integration of discussion forums, peer reviews, and group activities, and by taking cognizance of the student's existing knowledge through reflective learning and their application of newly acquired knowledge.

**Keywords:** technology enhanced learning, open distance and electronic learning, curriculum design, scholarship of teaching and learning, comprehensive open distance and electronic learning

#### **1. Introduction**

Formerly referred to as distance education/correspondence education, Open Distance learning (ODL) has been around for ages, principally desired by the working-class, who were balancing work-studies and family life. This, however, has changed over the years owing to the introduction of technology. The profile of students today differs from that of students who were enrolled in distance education over 20 years ago. Open Distance Learning (ODL) combines distance education with open learning; it refers not only to access to education that is limited to distance/ geographical location between the teacher and the learner but also to access that is open to everyone, irrespective of their race, age, gender, physical abilities/disabilities, as well as social or financial status. Traditionally, this kind of learning environment was preferred by the working-class, more mature students with families; however, in recent years, the student profile has changed, especially in South Africa, demonstrating an increase in the number of unemployed, straight-out-of-high-school scholars enrolling for the first time in higher education. Although costly for the student, the introduction of technology-based teaching and learning methods has also made distance learning more desirable to the younger techno-savvy cohort of students. In addition, technology-enhanced teaching and learning practices have also addressed the biggest obstacle to distance education-communication.

The success of education lies in effective communication, and in distance education, communication was traditionally non-existent, (students were limited to individually interacting with their study material in their remote locations). According to Berge [1], the most important barriers to communication in distance education include issues such as cognitive distance/conceptual understanding, language/ cultural/social barriers, and aspects of emotional, psychological, and pedagogical distance as well as spatial and temporal distance. The introduction of technologyenhanced teaching and learning can therefore effectively eliminate temporal and physical/spatial barriers to communication between instructors and students, as well as between and among the students themselves. Issues of cognitive, cultural, emotional, linguistic, pedagogical, as well as psychological and social distance (not limited to distance learning) require additional efforts from all participants (instructors as well as learners) both in the more traditional residential institutions as well as in distance learning institutions. With pedagogical transformation, however, distance education (which placed greater responsibility on the instructor to educate) evolved into distance learning (encouraging students to actively participate in their own learning experiences, thus shifting much of the responsibility to the learner), thus reducing cognitive/conceptual distance between the instructor and the learner, and with learners actively participating in their own studies, issues of conceptual development and understanding are reduced.

Higher education has brought about social and economic transformation since the first industrial revolution. Nonetheless, with every industrial revolution, the transformation of higher education has lagged behind. The current Digital Industrial Revolution (DIR) has changed the way students learn, which subsequently necessitates changes in the way we teach. As a result, transformation of pedagogies in higher education can no longer take the back seat, and the growing interest in online qualifications makes it almost impossible to continue with traditional ways of teaching. Furthermore, virtual classrooms have become even more attractive for the technologically insightful learners, compelling the advancement of pedagogies in higher education. As a result, the transformation of distance learning to Open Distance E-Learning (ODeL), which focuses on expanding student access to higher education, as well as the integration of technology to enhance teaching and learning, has minimized issues of cultural, emotional, linguistic, pedagogical, as well as psychological and social distance by opening higher education to everyone who meets the minimum requirements.

Access to technology brings a plethora of information, and online qualifications have become appealing not only to the working mom who studies when her kids go to sleep but also to the post-secondary-school learners who find it cost effective to study with the best institutions without having to worry about exorbitant accommodation

#### *Reconceptualizing Curriculum Design and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109901*

fees. Moreover, technology offers a multitude of benefits, allowing learners to study in the comfort of their own homes, to be actively involved in their learning, and to ask questions without fear of sounding ignorant to fellow classmates. Technology makes room for one-on-one communication possible and allows for discussions and group activities amongst learners through virtual classrooms. It provides access for a multitude of students from all over the world, necessitating a curriculum that is reflective of global concerns and yet sensitive to local issues. Technology incorporates the diversity in cultures, traditions, and beliefs and links local issues on a global scale, making inter-continental collaboration a possibility. The introduction of technology-enhanced learning (TEL) has, however, introduced a new barrier to distance learning—technological distance, where the lack of technological skills (of both the instructor and the learner) becomes a hindrance in technology-based teaching and learning.

Institutions of ODL in South Africa were slowly "testing the waters" of an e-learning environment; however, the imposed country-wide lockdown due to Covid-19 necessitated significant changes; institutions of higher learning were forced to abruptly implement online learning in all qualifications in an effort to save the academic year. This led to the implementation of "mystery" alternative remote online summative assessments, at least for the first remote online assessments (between May and July 2020), where online tools were implemented without being understood by both the students and the instructors. Instructors/academics had to design and develop online summative assessments that would accommodate all students, and students needed to have access to all the relevant tools that would allow them to successfully complete their assessments.

As mentioned earlier, distance teaching methods shift much of the responsibility to the student. The student must be disciplined and make time to study; the onus here is more on the student than in traditional face-to face teaching where the student's responsibility is to attend lectures. With the onus on the student, much of the responsibility of the instructor is on assessments. The instructor has to ensure that an assessment for learning (formative assessment) affords the student an opportunity to learn and understand concepts (through constructive feedback) and that an assessment of learning (summative assessment) presents an opportunity to evaluate the student's learning and application of knowledge. This, however, becomes more difficult in a developing country where majority of the students lack the requisite technological skills. Moreover, students are faced with unstable internet connections coupled with exorbitant data prices. As a result, the introduction of online summative assessments resulted in increased anxiety among students who could not afford data as well as those who did not have access to the very technology needed to complete the summative assessments. Coupled with the country's unreliable electricity systems, network problems, and poor internet connectivity, students were facing an increasing list of things that could go wrong, which made online summative assessments more stressful for students. The first online summative assessments written in 2020 were imposed on all parties involved, forcing the more technologically disadvantaged students to either "*lose*" the academic year or find "*alternative ways*" of completing the academic year, where students found themselves confronted with opportunities of participating in academic dishonesty. These assessments were implemented without any form of proctoring, a condition that students were well aware of, thus presenting more "*secure*" environments and opportunities for students to participate in acts of academic dishonesty.

Academic dishonesty in higher education has been around for decades [2–15]; it includes cheating in assessments through the use of hidden notes and texts written on concealed parts of the body, on clothes, and on permissible stationery such as rulers [3–5, 7–9, 12]. Academic dishonesty also includes collaboration with other students (sometimes exchanging or even sharing work), acts of plagiarism, as well as paying someone to do the assessment for you. It is, however, not a new phenomenon restricted to e-learning. Students have always engaged in academic dishonesty; however, the introduction of technology-based learning has made cheating even more accessible. Although online teaching and learning has been gradually introduced in ODL in higher education in South Africa, due to its nature, the use of technologybased learning methods was reserved for formative assessments, whereas summative assessments still employed the use of the more stringent, traditional venue-based exams. However, as mentioned earlier, this was apprehensively changed due to the imposed lockdown as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The aim of this study is to determine the impact of TEL on teaching and learning (particularly curriculum design and student success) in a postgraduate module offered at an ODeL institution of higher education in South Africa. The study evaluated changes in curriculum design coupled with student success rates over a period of 10 years, from 2011 to 2022. The study follows the progressive evolution of the mode of delivery of an honors module in Environmental Management from distance education, through distance learning, to the current technology-enhanced online learning.

#### **2. Materials and methods**

The study evaluated the decadal progression of student success in one postgraduate module offered at an institution of ODeL in South Africa. The evaluation of student success rates was monitored from 2011 to 2022. Over 3000 students have enrolled for the postgraduate module in Environmental Management (at an average of 300 students each year) in the past ten years. The academic year for the postgraduate qualification runs for 11 months from April to February, with students writing their summative assessments in February each year. Thus, the study analyzed the results of the 2011 students who wrote their summative assessment in 2012 through to the 2021 students who wrote their summative assessment in February 2022.

Over the past 10 years, the module has evolved from an offline module (2011–2013) to a blended module (2014–2019) to now a fully online module (2020 to date). For the purpose of this study, an *offline module* is a module that is paper-based, where students receive hard copies of their study material (tutorial letters, study guides, and formative assessment administered through the postal service); a *blended module* is one where the study material is available both in hard copies as well as online and where the students still have the option of submitting hand-written or typed assessments in hard copies.

In both the offline and blended module offering types, the final summative assessment was a "traditional, pen and paper venue-based examination." A fully *online module*, on the other hand, is a module offered only online, where all assessments (both formative and summative) are completed online.

Through the evolution of the module's mode of delivery, the design of the module also had to evolve, and the students also needed to adapt to the changes.

#### **2.1 Offline mode of delivery**

Between 2011 and 2013, students received hard copies of the study material, and they also submitted hard copies of all assessments. During these years, students received copies of the tutorial letter that informed them of all relevant information such as the name and contact details of the module lecturer.

*Reconceptualizing Curriculum Design and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109901*

In addition to the assessment plan, as well as the summative assessments, the tutorial letter provided a list of contact details of all relevant academic departments such as the library, assignment, as well as the examination departments. A study guide was also provided, and the module also included copies of case studies and reading material that were provided to students. Due to the institution's high number of print production (for all qualifications), study material was prepared and finalized 6 months in advance, which meant there was no room to "*add on*" or alter the study material once it was finalized, meaning that the module content could only be altered for the next academic year. The offline mode of delivery administered two formative assessments which contributed 30% (15% each) to the year mark as well as a final venue-based examination, which contributed 70% to the final mark. In order to pass the module, the student needed to pass the examination with a minimum of 50%.

#### **2.2 Blended mode of delivery**

The blended mode of delivery was implemented from 2014 to 2019. During this period, students received only the tutorial letter in hard copy, and all other study materials were available on the module site. During the first 2 years of this period (2014–2015), this mode of delivery was also referred to as "*paper behind glass,*" simply because the study material was migrated to online. The period however presented an important milestone in distance learning. During this period, extensive adaptations were implemented, and this period also presented an opportunity to design and adapt the module to complement the cohort of enrolled students. During 2016–2019, the module was 85% online, with less than 5% of the students submitting written assessments and with the summative assessment being the only "*traditional-venue-basedpen and paper assessment,*" which was still administered offline.

During the blended mode of delivery, one group activity (with a weighting of 20%) was introduced into the module, increasing the total number of formative assessments to three (all contributing 30% to the year mark), and similar to the offline period, the exam mark still contributed 70% toward the final mark (with a minimum of 50% required to pass the examination).

#### **2.3 Online mode of delivery**

The implementation of TEL in South African higher education was significantly low and took place at a relatively slow pace, however, the imposed lockdown in 2020 as a result of Covid-19 catapulted the use of technology to unprecedented heights in a very short space of time. During this time (2020 to date), the mode of delivery has become strictly online.

The introduction of technology-enhanced teaching and learning in 2014 meant that the transition of the module to being fully online in 2020 was manageable. During this time, only the exams were "transitioning," and as a result, the final venuebased exams became remote/take-home/online exams.

#### *2.3.1 Continuous assessment*

As of April 2022, continuous assessment was implemented in the module. The number of assessments were increased to 8, spread out throughout the duration of the course. The assessments had different weightings based on the type of assessment (multiple choice, peer assessment, group activity, essay type) as well as the level of

involvement. The final assessment (assessment 08), with a weighting of 30% to the final mark, was in the form of a portfolio of evidence that was submitted in December 2022.

#### **2.4 Summative assessments**

The final summative assessments of the module were administered during the university's January/February examination cycle, meaning that the academic year ran from April through to March of the following year when the final results were released. Summative assessments were administered throughout the world with the assistance of invigilators employed by the institution. Examination venues were available throughout South Africa, as well as in other cities internationally. Over the past 10 years, international students enrolled for the module were located in Botswana, Congo, eSwatini, Germany, Lesotho, Namibia, Qatar, as well as the United States of America. Although a majority of international students in the US, Germany, and Qatar were originally South African students living abroad, other international students were natives of their countries. Moreover, the module also accommodated incarcerated students who also completed their summative assessments at their primary locations, with the warders administering the proctoring of the assessments.

To ensure adequate evaluation of each cohort of students, the study evaluated the throughput of the 2011 students, who wrote their summative assessment in the 2012 January/February exam period, and that of the 2012–2021 students, who wrote their summative assessment during the January/February exam period of the next year. In both the offline as well as the blended-delivery period, summative assessments were conducted in a traditional pen-and-paper, venue-based exam setting, where invigilators were employed to monitor students during the examination process. However, in February 2021, summative assessments were in the form of a timed take-home exam, where the students only had their conscience as an invigilator for the duration of the exam. Due to inevitable limitations that could occur at any given time in South Africa (such as load shedding, where electricity can be shut down for a limited time in a specific area, poor internet connections in most parts of the country, and unreliable network), coupled with the poor technological skills of the majority of students enrolled for the module, as well as the general anxiety of students regarding online examinations, the instructor of the module implemented an "*open, technology-based summative assessment*" in the form of a timed portfolio of evidence where students were given 72 hours to complete the assessments. The aim of implementing an *open, technology-based summative assessment* was to ensure that "no student is left behind" (that students had enough time to complete the assessment without stressing about load shedding and connectivity issues); they were also allowed to write their assessments by hand and scan and upload their submissions online. As part of the online examination induction process during the 2020 academic year, students were made aware of different types of academic dishonesty. Students were informed of the university policy on academic dishonesty, which explicitly/unequivocally stated that "*any form of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated by the university, and that students who are found to have contravened the policy will face disciplinary action.*"

In addition, students were informed that due to the nature of the assessments, acts of academic dishonesty would not be tolerated. Furthermore, the question paper included a declaration form that each student had to complete, sign, and submit together with their answer scripts, stating that they were aware of the university policy on academic integrity as well as the consequences thereof. The study therefore, focused on the act of plagiarism as a form of academic dishonesty. The submitted

#### *Reconceptualizing Curriculum Design and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109901*

scripts were automatically submitted to an internet-based plagiarism detection platform to evaluate or identify any similarities with other published documents.

The study identified assessments where:


During the 2022 January/February examination period, however, the final summative assessment was changed to an online 3 hour-examination, which administered a proctoring tool and was also ran through an internet-based plagiarism detection platform and for the 2022 continuous assessment cohort, the students submitted their final portfolio of evidence in December 2022.

The study analyzed the performance of students in the 2021 "open, technologybased summative assessment" as well as the performance of students in the 2022, 3 hour-online summative assessment who were enrolled for a postgraduate module in Environmental Management at an institution of ODeL in South Africa. The results were compared to the results of previous venue-based summative assessments (2011–2019) for the same postgraduate module. Since the academic year for the postgraduate qualification runs from April to February, with students writing their summative assessments in January/February each year, the study analyzed the results of the 2011 students, who wrote their summative examination in the 2012 January/ February exam period through to those of the 2021 students, who wrote their summative assessment in the 2022 January/February examination period.

This study incorporates the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) together with the concept of learner-centered learning, in an effort to enhance the ODeL pedagogy. The SoTL introduces a paradigm shift in higher education. It can be described as a pedagogical revolution, which connects research and one's personal learning and teaching practices with the ultimate purpose of enhancing student learning. In an effort to improve teaching and learning, as well as the overall experience and success of students, one has to evaluate their own teaching and systematically examine student learning by critically evaluating and moderating formative and summative assessments with the view of identifying areas that learners might find difficult.

#### **3. Results and discussion**

As mentioned earlier, during the first 8 years of the study (2011–2019), summative assessments for the postgraduate module were administered by invigilators present at examination venues across the world. During this time, there was only one reported incident of a student who was caught cheating during the examination. The student's script was confiscated, and the student subsequently failed the summative assessment (**Table 1**), thus failing the module.

When evaluating these exam scripts over the years, the instructor was confident that students used their knowledge and also applied their own understanding when answering the exam questions. In the 2021 examination, however, it was clear that students simply copied and pasted their answers from other online sources, as well


**Table 1.**

*Higher Education – Reflections from the Field – Volume 1*

*Reconceptualizing Curriculum Design and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109901*

as from their own formative assessments. During the marking of the exam scripts, certain signs of cheating were identified from the answer scripts submitted by the students. The students with the lower similarity percentages tend to try and hide their cheating by presenting the answers as though it is the application of their own understanding. Some of the give-away signs that a student had engaged in academic dishonesty that were observed during the marking of the exam scripts included:


Over the past 10 years, over 3000 students have written the summative assessment of the honors module in environmental management, with an overall pass rate of 92% (**Table 1**). The 2012–2013 exam results represent the performance of distanceeducation students who completed the course fully offline. The 2014–2020 results represent the performance of students who completed the module in a blended mode of delivery. All honors modules for the Environmental Management Qualification moved partially online (blended) in the 2013 academic year. The transition to blended learning meant that students had to assume much of the responsibility in order to ensure their success. The study material was now only available online, which meant that the students had the responsibility of finding their study material (as opposed to receiving study material through the postal service) and thus had to spend time online in order to engage with the study material.

In addition to the blended migration, a group activity was introduced in the course, thus introducing interaction among the students and reducing the lonely journey experienced by distance learners. A student assessment at the end of the academic year revealed students' perception regarding the introduced group activity (majority of the students were grateful for the opportunity to interact with other students).

The 2021 and 2022 results represent the performance of online students. Over 300 students wrote and submitted their summative assessments during the 2021 January/ February examination period. Out of the 302 scripts, 46 students were found to have contravened the university policy on academic dishonesty (**Table 1**), resulting in an 18% reduction in the pass rate.

The **Figure 1** below gives a graphical representation of the extent of cheating/ academic dishonesty during the 2021 January/February summative assessments in the postgraduate module.

Although the majority of the students copied less than 60% of their exam, the overall number of students who engaged in this activity when compared to only one reported incident in previous years shows that cheating in an online assessment is more accessible to students.

Unlike undergraduate students, postgraduate students are expected to have a better understanding of academic dishonesty and thus are not expected to engage in cheating; however, a study by Josien and Broderick [15] rejects that notion and states that most postgraduate students who engage in academic dishonesty have

**Figure 1.**

*A graphical representation of the extent of cheating carried out by 46 students who were enrolled for a postgraduate module at a South African ODL university during the 2021 January/February examination period.*

most probably had more "practice" during their undergraduate studies. This could be agreed with to an extent because the majority of these students who engaged in academic dishonesty in the 72-hour online portfolio assessment were found to have continued with these activities in two other modules where the examination conditions were similar to the traditional venue-based exams (the students wrote a 2-hour timed exam on an online platform). Although it is possible that the students have had practice in undergraduate years, the author of this paper believes that the introduction of remote online assessments has given even the most timid of students an opportunity that they would otherwise not have engaged in.

Based on the number of reported and unreported cases in a department that has previously reported less than ten cases of academic dishonesty per annum, the combined number of students who engaged in academic dishonesty (in other modules too) in the 2020 academic year is at least a hundred times more. Furthermore, the ease with which information is available in this digital era coupled with the discretion afforded by remote assessments, makes it easy for students to solicit information/ answers during an online assessment.

According to Connors [16], access to the internet has made information more readily accessible, and students now have access to pre-written essays, making the sharing and recycling of assessments very easily attainable. Moreover, unrestricted access to information, as well as the level of techno-literacy, also plays a role in the increase in the number of students who commit such acts. **Figure 2** below is a presentation of the age distribution of the 46 students who participated in acts of plagiarism during their remote online summative assessment.

Over 50% of the students who participated in academic dishonesty were between the ages of 24 and 30, whereas the rest of the students were between 31 and 50 years

*Reconceptualizing Curriculum Design and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109901*

#### **Figure 2.**

*A graphical representation of the age distribution among the group of students who participated in academic dishonesty during the 2021 January/February examination period.*

of age. The results indicate that the younger, more techno-savvy students find it easier to engage in academic dishonesty, a case that was also observed by other authors [4, 6, 16–18]. Technology is here to stay, and the traditional pencil-and-paper type of assessment might just be a thing of the past; therefore, institutions of higher education must put measures in place to reduce or even prevent students from participating in acts of academic dishonesty during online assessments.

Some of the measures that can be put in place include the use of random question sequencing function, which will ensure that students do not work on the same question simultaneously (thus reducing collaboration among students); this, however, becomes difficult in larger classes where the number of students is a hundred times more than the number of available questions.

Other measures that can be implemented include the replication of traditional venue-based timed examinations through the use of proctoring software that allows for real-time face recognition and the use of video conferencing platforms during the assessment. Although these proctoring methods may have other inherent issues (such as lack of access to such tools for the poorer students, exorbitant data consumption during video conferencing, as well as issues of privacy, especially for remote assessments), these measures will reduce the number of students committing acts of academic dishonesty and will increase fairness as well as ensure the protection of the integrity of not only the qualification but also the institution.

During the 2022 January/February examination period, the summative assessment of the postgraduate module was changed from a 72-hour *open, technology-based summative assessment* to a 3 hour online summative assessment, which was administered through the use of a proctoring application. Students were informed of the importance of the proctoring software, which had to be downloaded before the administration of the online assessment at no charge to the student. The proctoring system monitored students' conduct during the assessment, where:

<sup>•</sup> *random, automatic voice recordings during the 3 hour. examination period were made;*


As shown in **Table 1**, out of the 309 students who wrote the summative assessment in 2022, only 6 students were identified to have contravened the university policy on academic dishonesty. In addition to evaluating each student's plagiarism report, the proctoring reports of all students were also scrutinized, and the students who were flagged were found to have spent a considerable amount of time "out of the app" as well as did not take photos of the examination scripts when prompted to do so. A total of 18 students were flagged by the proctoring app, and out of the 18 students, a total of 12 students did not submit their final scripts at the end of the 3 hour examination period, and these students stated network/connectivity issues as the reason for not submitting their final exam scripts for evaluation; as a result, the students were recorded as absent from exam. The plagiarism report of the remaining six students who were flagged by the proctoring app also showed high similarities with published material, indicating that the students simply copied and pasted from other sources (**Figure 3**).

When compared to the 2021 percentage similarity (**Figure 1**), the results presented in **Figure 3** indicates that students tend to "supplement" their written examination with borrowed material presented as their own. Although there was only one case of academic dishonesty reported for the venue-based summative assessment over the past 10 years, this showed that students were able to conceal academic dishonesty (not that it did not take place). Moreover, the integration of proctoring software

#### **Figure 3.**

*A graphical representation of the extent of cheating carried out by six students who were enrolled for a postgraduate module at a South African ODL university during the 2022 January/February examination period.*

#### *Reconceptualizing Curriculum Design and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109901*

as well as similarity checking software has made it easier for instructors to identify incidents where students indulge in academic dishonesty.

Changing the assessment design in 2022 has resulted in an overall reduction of reported cases of academic dishonesty in the module. Reported cases declined from 46 during the 2021 take-home exams to 6 during the 2022 online proctored examination. An assessment of the two assessment periods showed that the 72 hour take-home exam presented ample time for students to cheat and to also try and conceal the cheating. It can also be argued that the students simply left the exam to the last hour, at which they became overwhelmed and resorted to cheating. The students who were found guilty of misconduct were given an option to be awarded a zero mark and enroll for the module in the next academic year or undergo disciplinary hearing where they would be given an opportunity to present their case to the institutional student disciplinary committee. All 52 students (46 students in the 2021 exams and 6 students in the 2022 exams) opted for the 0 mark and to repeat the module in the next academic year.

Thus, to meet the university's decision to do away with venue-based exams post the Covid-19 imposed lockdown and to protect the integrity of assessments at higher education institutions, online courses must be designed in a manner that encourages active participation from students and, thus, moves away from the traditional "paper behind glass" course development, which results in passive learning. TEL presents a plethora of opportunities to redesign learning from passive learning (where the learners consume content provided by their teachers in the form of recorded lectures, preselected readings, automated assessments, and artificial discussions) to active learning, which incorporates learning activities that guide the student's construction of knowledge through activities and application of previous knowledge, allowing the student to apply their knowledge beyond the virtual classroom, as well as the integration of student reflections [19]. The reflective process allows students to be aware of their strengths and weaknesses during their learning journey, assisting students to assess and determine their capabilities in a particular course, thus allowing students to be active participants in their own studies. As of April 2022, the development of the postgraduate module assessed in the study has incorporated continuous assessments.

Continuous assessments, as the name suggests, are assessments that are administered at a much more continuous scale. The module design was moved from a module with two essay-type formative assessments (which contributed 30% to the student's final mark) and one summative assessment (weight of 70%) at the end of the academic year. The module now has integrated a total of eight assessments, each with different weightings contributing to the student's final mark. The assessments are spread out throughout the duration of the course. Students actively participate in their learning journey through the completion of multiple-choice assessments, discussion forums, peer reviews, group activities, as well as individual assessments.

In a continuous assessment module, learners cannot afford to miss one or two assessments, as this will have a negative impact on their overall final score; hence, they have to constantly engage with the study material to ensure their success. Moreover, the group activities and peer reviews administered as part of continuous assessments assist students with their own self reflections, allowing students to be aware of their own strengths and weaknesses [20]. Continuous assessments help students to achieve their learning outcomes and develop autonomy, allowing them to be active participants in their studies and also derive learning strategies that are informed by their own competencies. The assessments completed by the students relied on the student's application of previous as well as new knowledge, also incorporating opportunities for them to demonstrate their strengths, skills, and expertise. Although the results of the 2022 academic year are not available at this period, the preliminary results indicate an improvement in the overall performance of the students.

Even though the study has assessed the performance of different students over a period of 10 years, the module has maintained an average pass rate of 92%, indicating the consistency in the module design and development as well as the assessment criteria.

Furthermore, the constant pursuit to improving the learner's engagement with the study material has also translated to improved throughput rates. Thus, the introduction of TEL, coupled with continuous assessments and adequate student support, presents a unique opportunity for the next cohort of students to actively engage in their own learning journeys, shaping their cognitive development while reflecting on their own academic expansion as they apply their existing and newly acquired knowledge, not only in the classroom but also in all spheres of their personal lives and their communities.

#### **4. Conclusions**

TEL is still in its infancy in Southern Africa, and as a result, institutions of higher learning are still faced with a myriad of challenges regarding the use of technology to enhance teaching and learning, particularly in an ODeL institution. In order to take advantage of the benefits of integrating technology into teaching and learning in institutions of higher education, it is important to first tackle the issue of access to technology, as well as issues of stable and reliable Internet connection. It is also imperative to ensure that academics have the requisite skills to excel in designing and developing curricula that integrates the use of technology in their teaching, and to also ensure that students have the required basic skills to take advantage of all the opportunities that TEL provides.

#### **Acknowledgements**

The author would like to thank colleagues who have taken the time to review this manuscript.

#### **Conflict of interest**

The author declares no conflict of interest.

*Reconceptualizing Curriculum Design and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109901*

#### **Author details**

Malebo Matlala University of South Africa, Florida Science Campus, South Africa

\*Address all correspondence to: matlamd1@unisa.ac.za

© 2023 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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[12] Nonis S, Swift CO. An examination of the relationship between academic dishonesty and workplace dishonesty: a multicampus investigation. Journal of Education for Business. 2001;**77**(2):69- 76. DOI: 10.1080/08832320109599052

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#### **Chapter 13**

## Lessons Learned during the Transition to Online Learning in a University Nutrition and Exercise Department

*Angela S. Anderson, Heather Cox, Renee Eaton, Nicolin Girmes-Grieco, Michelle S. Rockwell and Deborah J. Good*

#### **Abstract**

In the spring semester of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic led to an unprecedented shift from face-to-face learning to an instantaneous online learning environment. At the time, the department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise (HNFE) at Virginia Tech had few online class offerings. Twenty-nine Spring 2020 HNFE classes were transitioned from traditional face-to-face offerings to online delivery models. Many members of the HNFE faculty have strong pedagogical training, but the immediate pedagogical shift in the middle of the semester gave little time for adequate course design geared toward online learning. As such, the purpose of this study was to evaluate student perceptions of the transition to online learning. A departmental survey employing quantitative and qualitative questions was used to assess students' learning experiences in the spring of 2020 and then re-employed at the conclusion of the Fall 2020 semester to re-assess students' online course experience and identify if the department was improving in online course delivery. An additional component of the survey specifically evaluated students' self-perceived motivation for learning. Examples of educational and logistical strategies in online learning environments implemented by instructors and findings of students' experiences from both surveys will be shared.

**Keywords:** synchronous learning, virtual environment, virtual learning, MUSIC model, dietetics, STEM

#### **1. Introduction**

The pandemic caused by the outbreak of the severe acute respiratory virus coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, will be remembered as a major event in our world history, and its impacts were also felt in higher education. In the spring semester of 2020, in consultation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local health

agencies, many institutions of higher education initially extended spring breaks and rapidly shifted to an online learning environment for the remainder of the semester. It is important to differentiate this hurried shift into an online environment, compared to a situation in which instructors could develop a well-planned, and intentional online course. In the case of the department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise (HNFE) at Virginia Tech, there was only one undergraduate online class taught out of 29 courses (3.4%) offered in the Spring 2020 prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, although five online offerings (62.5% of courses) were available during the 2019 Summer semesters. Colleges and universities around the world transitioned to online environments for all courses, rather than the alternative of discontinuing the spring semester. At Virginia Tech, a large research 1 (R1) university with approximately 30,000 undergraduates, this decision came through an email to faculty, staff, and students on March 11, 2020 from President Tim Sands [1]. Spring break was extended by one week to give instructors the time to make the transition from face-to-face teaching to a 100% online environment. Students were not allowed to return to campus except in special circumstances. Some had left books and other notes behind in their dorm rooms or campus apartments. Others were stranded overseas or dealing with situations not conducive to online learning. Similar to other reports published on student mental health at that time (i.e., [2, 3]), a survey from Hokie Wellness (a health-promotion service of Student Affairs) indicated that approximately 65% of students at Virginia Tech reported increased stress, anxiety, and mental health concerns compared to the semester prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (personal communication).

Instructors in each Virginia Tech college were recruited to serve as "Continuity Partners" and held webinars and online help sessions to quickly train colleagues in transitioning their courses online, and to troubleshoot issues for instructors and students in this transition. These instructors generally had previous experience and training in online teaching and learning but were also transitioning their own courses. While these trainings undoubtedly helped Virginia Tech instructors get courses ready, they did not compensate for the abrupt shift in the delivery of content for courses, ranging from small classes of 5–25 students to large lectures of greater than 200 students. Lab courses presented additional barriers in content delivery due to the need for specialized equipment and space.

A number of published studies have examined the use of planned digital learning platforms. A meta-analysis of 25 online courses in Nutrition and Dietetics programs over a 30-year period, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, described barriers to online learning even for students who were technologically and emotionally prepared for the experience. The authors noted that student access to the internet, as well as lack of instructor training in the delivery of online platforms, resulted in differences in equity and access to education during the pandemic [4]. Subsequent studies have analyzed the impact of this switch from face-to-face to online courses. For example, 62% of 526 students surveyed in a study published by Dietetics instructors from the University of New Mexico, felt that the COVID-19 pandemic had negatively impacted their learning, with 48.5% indicating that they felt they learned less material during the COVID-19 pandemic than before [2]. These data point to a supposition that many instructors did not have the training for delivery of online courses prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Singh and Thurman reviewed the different platforms and methodologies available from 1988 to 2018 and published a report in 2019 that came to the conclusion that online education is an umbrella term encompassing both online learning and online teaching [5]. For the purpose of this study, we used the most common term, online learning, as defined by Singh and Thurman, as this term covers both synchronous and *Lessons Learned during the Transition to Online Learning in a University Nutrition and Exercise… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.110380*

asynchronous platforms and is synonymous with distance education. This term also focuses on the learning component of the platform, which we were interested in for this analysis.

We assessed the transition to online learning platforms in the HNFE department, which prepares students for careers in healthcare, nutrition, dietetics, and exercise science, with a survey that went out to more than 900 HNFE undergraduates. The goal of this study was to survey the change in attitudes toward online learning, assess positive and negative outcomes of the transition, determine valuable tools for students and instructors, and barriers to online learning that could be identified. Both the Spring 2020 and Fall 2020 surveys used the MUSIC model of academic motivation [6], as well as general survey questions and open-ended text responses.

#### **2. Data gathering**

Several HNFE instructors had participated in professional development courses in online learning, but no amount of training adequately prepared the instructors for the complete and sudden pivot to online learning that took place in March 2020. Recognizing the need to learn from this abrupt delivery shift, the authors administered a survey at the end of Spring 2020 to assess the transition to online learning. After data collection and analysis, the survey was refined and sent to students at the end of Fall 2020 to again assess student perceptions of online learning. The text of the surveys can be found in the supplemental appendix materials.

Survey outcomes included student demographics, attitudes about online learning, interactions with the online learning environment, positive and negative outcomes of the transition to online learning, valuable tools for online learning, barriers to online learning, and student motivation per each HNFE class taken, as measured by the MUSIC model [6]. The Institutional Review Board at Virginia Tech considered this survey study exempt from human subjects review. Surveys were distributed using the Qualtrics survey software platform (Qualtrics XM, Provo, UT, USA). Students who completed the survey were entered into a random drawing for one of 20, \$25 gift cards to Amazon. The drawing was performed two times, once in the Summer of 2020 and once in the Winter of 2021.

#### **2.1 Demographics of students completing the surveys**

Demographics of the students that completed the survey were collected (**Table 1**). The first survey was given in June 2020 and 302 students completed the survey. The second survey was given in January 2021 and 229 students completed the survey. For the spring 2020 survey question on demographics regarding academic standing, students were instructed to provide the academic year that they just finished at the end of spring 2020.

#### **2.2 Lessons learned from spring 2020**

Managing online course delivery proved to be a steep learning curve for many students. As shown in **Figure 1**, only 30.6% had taken an online class before and only another 6% had participated in a hybrid (50% face-to-face and 50% online) class, leaving 64.4% of students who had never participated in online learning. Of the 152 students who responded to the open-ended question comparing how they felt at the end of spring 2020 compared to when they first transitioned in March, 52.6%


*Students who completed the surveys in the Summer of 2020, n = 302 (Spring) or students who completed the second survey in the Winter of 2021, n = 229 (Fall).*

#### **Table 1.**

*Demographics.*

**Figure 1.**

*Previous experience with online courses. Students in Spring 2020 who had previous taken an online or hybrid course.*

reported that the shift in class format was stressful until they got used to the new format, 16.4% mentioned that they needed to work on time management to adapt to the switch, but they had more autonomy, 13.8% mentioned that they preferred face-to-face classes, 11.2% preferred the online classes, and 4.6% mentioned that the switch led to the class being harder or having more class work. Overall, the theme was that the transition was bumpy for many students and that some instructors did not transition as smoothly (or as seamlessly) as others.

*Lessons Learned during the Transition to Online Learning in a University Nutrition and Exercise… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.110380*

Several course instructors moved their classes to asynchronous learning, the only model of online learning many knew. Other instructors continued to meet during class time synchronously and lectured over Zoom. The biggest barriers students had to asynchronous learning were:


Synchronous learners mentioned the same barriers, except they added a barrier about confusion on how to use the video conference software or technology application for class, and did not rate as high that sharing technology with family or others was a barrier to participating in class synchronously.

The question remained whether, despite barriers, the students enjoyed the new online learning environment. When students were asked what mode of delivery for a class they preferred, 67.4% said face-to-face, citing that face-to-face learning:


On the other hand, 18.1% thrived in the online learning environment citing that online learning:


A total of 14.5% of students preferred a hybrid model citing that:


Another factor in whether online learning was successful was access to the internet and the student's location. In the spring of 2020 when the campus closed for the most part, 65.2% of students returned to their family's homes to complete their online learning. Most of the remaining students stayed in town (31.1%). This was in contrast to fall 2020, where 29% of students were on-campus, 67% off-campus but in town, and only 3.1% remained at their family's home. The location of online learning was important when it came to accessing the internet. In the spring of 2020, 92.5% "always" (57.2%) or "usually" (35.3%) had access to reliable internet. This changed as students moved back to town where 85.8% identified as "always" (17.8%) or "usually" (67%) had access to reliable internet.

Many tools are available to facilitate online environments, including learning management software (LMS), polling apps, video conferencing, video recording and playback, breakout rooms for discussions, and discussion forums. We assessed which tools were perceived by students to be most helpful during the transition to online learning. As shown in **Figure 2**, students rated the LMS as the most effective tool. At our university, this is the Canvas™ platform (Instructure Inc., Salt Lake City, UT). Voice over videos which students could re-watch were given the next highest rating, followed by synchronous videos, likely created via the university-supported video conferencing (Zoom, Zoom Video Communications, San Jose, CA) environment. In comparing effective tools used in the online environment from spring to fall 2020, there was little change (**Figure 2**) with the LMS and pre-recorded voice over videos given the highest scores.

*Lessons Learned during the Transition to Online Learning in a University Nutrition and Exercise… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.110380*

#### **Figure 2.**

*Student perception of effective tools in Spring 2020 (blue) and Fall 2020 (orange). Likert scale on which tools were useful with 1 (strongly disagree/not useful) and 5 (strongly agree/useful).*

Lastly, we wanted to know whether students felt motivated to learn in this new environment. Using the MUSIC model for student perception of motivation to learn, we assessed in each HNFE class, their eMpowerment, Usefulness, Success, Interest, and Caring (**Figure 3**). The MUSIC model of academic motivation (https://www.themusicmodel.com) is a validated survey [7–9] that can guide instructors to identify areas to improve student motivation [6]. eMpowerment measures whether students perceive that they have control in their learning environment. Usefulness measures whether students perceive that the coursework is useful to their future. Success measures whether students perceive that they can succeed at the coursework. Interest measures

#### **Figure 3.**

*Comparison of MUSIC Model for Academic Motivation scores Spring 2020 (blue) and Fall 2020 (orange). Likert scale scoring is used on which tools were useful with 1 (strongly disagree/not important) and 5 (strongly agree/ important).*

whether students perceive that the instructional methods and coursework are interesting and enjoyable. Caring measures whether students perceive the instructor cares about whether they succeed in the coursework and about their well-being. The question remained: Were these five dimensions of classroom design being met in this new online environment? **Figure 3** outlines the aggregated results from all HNFE classes.

Overall students rated Usefulness and Success as the highest variables, indicating that the coursework was useful to their future careers, and they felt they could be successful. They rated eMpowerment and Interest as the next highest variables, still in the "somewhat agree" category, that they felt mostly in control of their learning environment and that the coursework was interesting. Of concern was the Caring rating at a "somewhat agree" to "somewhat disagree." This was one of the biggest takeaways from the survey, namely that the online environment did not provide the same level of feeling cared for as a face-to-face environment. A limitation of the responses to the Caring measurement, was that it was the section with the lowest percentage of student responses, as students may have suffered from survey fatigue.

#### **2.3 Lessons learned from fall 2020**

After an entire semester of almost exclusive online learning, we administered a follow-up survey to assess how students' perceptions had changed and if we, as instructors, were doing a better job at teaching online. Compared to the second half of the Spring 2020 semester, more instructors were teaching synchronously during scheduled class periods with 46.6% of HNFE classes taught synchronously, 44.6% taught asynchronously, with the remaining courses delivered in blended formats. Synchronous instruction was mediated through Zoom (Zoom Video Communications, San Jose, CA, USA). So how did students interact in this synchronous Zoom classroom? A total of 18.6% of students indicated that they joined via Zoom but did not participate. When a student needed to ask the professor a question, 20.9% indicated that they would ask through audio, while 43.3% only asked questions using the chat. For those instructors that used Breakout Rooms through Zoom, 93.1% of students indicated that they participated in the breakout rooms, while 6.9% indicated that they left the Zoom if Breakout Rooms were used. In general, instructors desired for students to have their cameras on during the Zoom to increase the sense of community. Students, on the other hand, for the most participated with their cameras off (32.2% participated in Zoom with their cameras on, 67.8% with their cameras off). There were 97 comments given by the students for not turning on their cameras.

These comments were organized into the following themes (unranked order):


*Lessons Learned during the Transition to Online Learning in a University Nutrition and Exercise… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.110380*


We wanted to access whether students still felt there were barriers to both synchronous and asynchronous learning and whether these barriers changed as they gained more experience with online learning. For synchronous learning, many of the same barriers still existed with distractions from friends, classmates, family, pets, etc. during class as the greatest barrier, followed by a lack of a quiet or private place to attend class, and reliable/stable internet connection. Issues related to taking tests (i.e., proctoring, time on tests) were mentioned by a greater number of students, as was having a requirement to have their video on during class, and attending class meetings as scheduled due to family or others needing to use shared technology increased as a barrier (**Table A1**). There were fewer comments about instructors having unclear communications or expectations about attending class. There was less confusion about how to use the video conference software or other technology applications for class.

For asynchronous classes, distractions from friends, classmates, family, pets, etc. were still the biggest barrier and access to reliable/stable internet connection stayed as the 3rd most frequent barrier. For the asynchronous classes, there was an increased barrier to unclear communications or expectations from instructors, and issues related to taking tests (i.e., proctoring, time on tests) (**Table A2**). Barriers that decreased for asynchronous classes included a lack of a quiet or private place to participate in class and attending class meetings as scheduled due to family or others needing to use shared technology.

Students were asked about their perception of rigor for online learning in both surveys (**Figure 4**). Compared to Spring 2020, students' perception that online classes should be easier increased by Fall 2020, with 62% compared to only 37% in the spring agreeing that online learning should be easier than traditional face-to-face learning (**Figure 4**). Fewer individuals were neutral in Spring 2020 (12%) versus Fall 2020 (22%), while those that agreed that online classes should have the same rigor went down to 16% in the Fall compared to 47% in the Spring (**Figure 4**). Therefore,

from Spring 2020 to Fall 2020, there was a shift toward the belief that online courses should be less rigorous than face-to-face courses. Some of the reasons that students cited for this perception included that due to increased self-learning, it is harder to understand the material, harder to focus, and harder to get help, so the expectations cannot be the same. Others mentioned that there was a perception that some instructors added more work or increased the rigor because they thought students had more time. Others mentioned the barriers of internet reliability issues and mental health issues got in the way of learning, so rigor should be reduced. And overall, students felt that assignments should be better adapted for one type of learning or the other, rather than just transferred as is to an online environment.

Students were again surveyed to assess their motivation for learning and for instructors to see in which areas they were improving and in which areas they needed to focus on. The MUSIC model results were surprising, as the results mirrored the spring 2020 results (**Figure 3**). Again, the highest variables for student motivation for learning were in Usefulness and Success with a "somewhat agree" to "agree" rating, followed by eMpowerment and Interest with "somewhat agree," and again Caring was rated at a "somewhat agree" to "somewhat disagree."

The survey also asked students to reflect on how their perceptions of online learning had changed from Spring 2020 to the end of Fall 2020. The positives most frequently mentioned about online learning included (unranked order):


Many students still felt that the online learning environment included negatives such as (unranked order):


A smaller number of students mentioned that they felt that it was harder to learn, they felt isolated from other students, having poor internet connectivity reduced their learning, still felt that there were unclear expectations from some instructors, it was

*Lessons Learned during the Transition to Online Learning in a University Nutrition and Exercise… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.110380*

hard to ask questions, and they had poor motivation in an online learning environment. Lastly, the students identified the biggest challenges they had when comparing their current online learning to that of Spring 2020. The most frequent challenges were that they felt burned out, struggling with the demand of self-teaching, setting a learning schedule and deadlines, and having less autonomy than during the spring.

#### **2.4 General reflections from the surveys**

Although students stated that they preferred face-to-face instruction, they enjoyed the autonomy that online learning allowed, albeit struggling with the discipline and motivation needed for online learning. Consistently, students mentioned that the distractions from friends, classmates, family, pets, etc. during class were the biggest challenge for both synchronous & asynchronous learning. The students preferred having access to lecture material via posted videos to watch or re-watch to enhance their learning. Overall, many indicated that a blended model of synchronous and asynchronous learning would meet the desire for flexibility and enough structure to stay on track.

Overall, these data gave the instructors of HNFE tangible ways to improve student learning from the lessons learned from the surveys. Ways to improve included being thoughtful about the workload assigned because self-learning takes more time, having clearer assignment instructions since students are not always present in real-time to ask questions, and increasing ways that students feel "cared" for throughout the semester since students at times felt isolated and missed the interactions with other students.

#### **3. Conclusions**

The current study used survey-based research to assess the abrupt transition to online learning that occurred in March 2020 in a nutrition and exercise department at a large research 1 (R1) university. The subsequent Fall 2020 semester when instructors had more time to develop online courses was also assessed and the results were compared between the two semesters. With the initial transition to online learning in March 2020, students encountered barriers to their learning which were different than when they were back on campus in the fall. Specifically, a distraction from friends, family, and pets during class time was a significant issue. Additionally, sharing technology with others in the home seemed to affect reliable internet connections for coursework. Students also reported unclear communications and expectations from instructors about class, likely brought on by the quick transition and lack of online course training by instructors for online learning modalities. These findings of unclear communication from instructors were consistent with another study on STEM students' perception of the COVID-19 transition to online learning [10]. Students perceived that online learning environments had improved by Fall 2020 in terms of clarity of expectations and their own knowledge of using online tools. However, even with only 3% of students still working from their family home (96% on campus or in off-campus housing; 1% mixed location), distraction during class time, and sharing the internet were still major factors that students perceived to affect their learning.

An interesting finding when comparing the surveys from both semesters was that by Fall 2020, students perceived that online courses should be easier/less rigorous than face-to-face courses. A 2021 study found that during the COVID-19 transition to online learning, students in STEM disciplines stated that they perceived an increased difficulty and workload for online courses, compared to what they expected had the class been face-to-face [10]. To date, and to our knowledge, no other studies have asked about perceived rigor for an online versus face-to-face course, so further study of this finding may be an important avenue for investigation, especially as more online courses become available.

This study employed the MUSIC model of academic motivation [6], which has been employed in both undergraduate and graduate/medical student groups as an assessment of student motivation to learn [6, 7, 11–14]. We found that the Usefulness of the course to their future and the ability to Succeed in the course were the highest indicators for academic motivation in both the spring and fall semesters. Of concern from the MUSIC model data, was that the Caring dimension of the MUSIC model revealed the lowest score for both semesters indicating a need to be more intentional in an online learning environment to make students feel cared for. A recent study of students in online courses found that students perceived being cared for by instructors who made clear acknowledgments about mental health and provided resources on mental health in course materials [15]. Additionally, students in this same study reported an exacerbation of depression when courses did not provide both formal and informal interaction time between students and the professor, due to increased feelings of isolation [15]. More research should be done to investigate ways to increase caring and connectedness in online environments. Our study appears to be the first to employ the MUSIC model of academic motivation to learn in assessing online courses.

Most universities have moved back to having the majority of their courses in a face-to-face environment as the educational changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic have diminished. However, the online learning environment has not been completely left behind and lessons learned during the pandemic can inform future online learning environments for students. These lessons include the understanding that nothing takes the place of being present and accessible to students. This seems to be more challenging in an online learning environment. Instructors should consider adding time and online spaces for interaction in their online courses. For face-to-face classes, there are ways to incorporate some of the benefits of online learning. Examples include making lecture videos available to students, using Zoom for office hours and review sessions as needed, pivoting to online learning when the professor becomes unavailable, and finding ways to allow students to increase their autonomy, while still providing formal and informal interactions in the online environment.

#### **Acknowledgements**

We would like to acknowledge the help in the thematic analysis of some of the qualitative data done by Dr. Daniel Jaskowak, a graduate student in HNFE at the time of survey distribution.

This research received no external funding.

#### **Conflict of interest**

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

*Lessons Learned during the Transition to Online Learning in a University Nutrition and Exercise… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.110380*

### **A. Appendix**


#### **Table A1.**

*Concerns for synchronous learning. Concerns are listed in ranked order from highest to lowest number of students citing the barrier in Spring 2020. Relative ranking for Fall is provided.*



#### **Table A2.**

*Concerns for Asynchronous Learning. Concerns are listed in ranked order from highest to lowest number of students citing the barrier in Spring 2020. Relative ranking for Fall is provided.*

#### **Author details**

Angela S. Anderson, Heather Cox, Renee Eaton, Nicolin Girmes-Grieco, Michelle S. Rockwell and Deborah J. Good\* Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA

\*Address all correspondence to: goodd@vt.edu

© 2023 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

*Lessons Learned during the Transition to Online Learning in a University Nutrition and Exercise… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.110380*

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#### **Chapter 14**

## Reshaping Blended Learning after the COVID-19 Period in Higher Education

*Tamás Köpeczi-Bócz*

#### **Abstract**

The tragic situation caused by the COVID-19 epidemic also became the biggest experiment in higher education. We sought the answer to the challenges arising at University of Tokaj with a higher education pedagogical experiment. The experiment was based on the practice-oriented design of cooperative learning, which was implemented through the joint project work of groups of different ages. The research question at the center of the experiment was whether the learning effectiveness of the groups participating in the experiment changed as a result of the completely on-line training during the COVID period. Based on deductive logic, the conclusion can be drawn that students active in the COVID period can be effectively educated within the "blended learning" methodology with an online-dominant training organization of up to 80%. The so-called COVID groups do not belong to a uniform age group, but to a group of students with the same history. In higher education, it is advisable to use the effect of the "spontaneous experiment" caused by the global tragedy of COVID as soon as possible, so that within the "blended-learning" method, the ratio of contact (classroom) and online training is between 20% and 80% we approximate to.

**Keywords:** blended learning, University of Tokaj, cooperative learning, intergenerational training, community service learning, learning effectiveness, Bloom's taxonomy, deductive reasoning

#### **1. Introduction**

In Hungary, one of the consequences of the COVID-19 epidemic was that in March 2020, each university's Epidemiological Operational Coordinating Board issued a message to the staff. The content of this was to slow down the spread of the new coronavirus epidemic by radically reducing the number of personal meetings. Therefore, in the work of the universities, the conditions for online education were simultaneously created and the personal presence of operational processes was reduced to a minimum. At that time, more than 200,000 students were studying full-time courses at higher education institutions in Hungary. More than 80,000 students chose the part-time and online education forms of higher education, of which only 4000 studied the online education form. These conditions lasted until May 2021, but even then

there was only a hybrid organization of education in the country that kept physical presence to a minimum.

This tragic situation also turned out to be the biggest experiment in higher education [1], since the teachers and students communicated with each other only on electronic educational platforms.

On August 1, 2021, the University of Tokaj was founded as a new university in Sárospatak, Hungary, which defined itself as an agricultural and economic-oriented university on a 150-year-old educational science-oriented university campus. The University's vision is to become a knowledge provider platform for the region that utilizes cutting-edge knowledge locally, while developing and making the region's results accessible at the domestic and international levels, thus contributing to the development of the region's ecosystem. These goals are also formulated in the university's Institutional Development Plan (IDP). Along with the expanding educational offer of the newly founded university, it also faced several higher education pedagogic challenges.

In the year of its founding, the University of Tokaj focused on the following two challenges:


In this chapter, we show how a new university, which organized its educational activities after the shock caused by the COVID-19 period, answered the two challenges with an experimental method. The experiment is a practice-oriented new approach to cooperative learning [2], which was realized through the joint project work of groups of different ages. The learning effectiveness of the groups participating in the experiment changed as a result of the completely online training during the COVID period. The experiment also laid the foundation for our further developments related to intergenerational education according to the first challenge.

The different age characteristics also induced a new innovative approach to the organization of the university's educational services. The higher education institutions of small towns the size of Sárospatak perform important community service learning (CSL) tasks [3], which is why the campus community is more important here. Within the framework of intergenerational higher education [4], older students can more effectively and better compensate for the shortcomings of their IT and language skills, while younger generations can get to know the work organization solutions and work culture of their chosen field more directly. The best field for intergenerational training experiments is company training, which we studied to organize individual student groups [5]. The intergenerational approach results in an improvement in the quality of education for students (of any age) and an increase in the efficiency of the university. In the experiment, mostly young students participating in higher education vocational training, as members of the project groups, and older students participating in master's programs with wider life and work experience, as project group leaders, formed study groups. The evaluation and further experiments are planned and implemented based on the results also included in the chapter.

#### **2. Scientific background of the educational experiment**

The basis of our educational experiment is to be found in countless educational methodological innovations. Our first starting point was the development of ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) tools. This technological innovation has been used in education for more than 20 years, the primary goal of which was to make access to information faster and more colorful. Later, this goal gradually changed, while at the beginning it was limited to performing the tasks of school administration support systems (managing data sheets, records) and educational organization databases (diaries, curriculum, timetables, etc.), by now it has already wormed its way into many classrooms. In the beginning, it prepared the lesson preparation, then it served to make the illustration and education more colorful, and it serves to this day [6]. Equipping the classrooms with VCRs and televisions significantly improved the visualization of course content, and later computers, projectors, and interactive whiteboards enhanced the learning experience.

We can say that the development of ICT brought a breakthrough in the methodological renewal of education. In recent decades, the strategic goal system of higher education has developed together with the technological and methodological innovations of the education sector. Today, the main goal of using ICT tools in higher education is to use technology to make the learning process in increasingly heterogeneous groups more successful [7]. Primarily by supporting differentiated teaching, increasing students' attention, increasing their endurance, and maintaining their motivation, and secondly by supporting their academic progress with various databased services [8]. So technology is just a tool that provides new opportunities. During the COVID period, access to technical literature in electronic format and the appearance of video teaching materials increased perceptibly.

The experiment was based on experiences gained at another, former university (Corvinus University of Budapest) by my research group. These experiences were gathered during the COVID period, from which new phenomena were discovered, but of course, no general research findings could be made. One of our findings was that the COVID period has seen a greater emphasis on video-based educational solutions. In designing our pedagogical experiment, we investigated the relationship between the pedagogical preparation of the lecturers and the video-based teaching method used.

The row numbers in the six columns of **Table 1** show the individual teaching competencies and the rows with four letters represent the instructional video methods used by the lecturers during the COVID period. Where the teaching competency is found, 1 point is given for the video method. We defined the assessed teaching competencies based on common elements that can be identified in the practice of 10 countries [9], as follows:

1.getting to know some of the students;


5.evaluation of the pedagogical process;

6.communication, relationship with the participants of the pedagogical process.

The video is below in terms of execution we found categories during the period under COVID:

A. full lesson video recording or streaming,

B. short production of instructional and presentation videos,

C. presentation by voiceover,

D.other: classic classroom, practical example solved on the blackboard.

The study shows that the production of short instructional videos required the most pedagogical work, but none of the video methods was suitable for getting to know individual students. To achieve this, it was necessary to use support systems that are available in the university environment. Practically, we chose from platforms that are already proven in correspondence education, in particular Coedu, CoSpace, Google Classroom, Microsoft Teams, and Moodle.

The choice of platform was based on the theory of programmed education. Skinner formulated in his 1954 work "The Science of Learning and the Art of Teaching" that an activity that is reinforced is much more likely to occur in the future than one that is not followed by reinforcement. He developed his linear programming technique by validating this psychological principle. We also built our methodological experiment on the principles of programmed education. These principles are as follows: assigning tasks in small logical steps, activating students, as learning is most effective when students are actively engaged, constant feedback, which also serves to maintain motivation, and practice, which helps to ensure that the studied material is long-lasting [10].

The flexible frameworks developed by IT professionals made the practical utilization of these theoretical results widely available. The implementers of the nearly 70-year-old "programmed educational theories" have received a new and effective tool. Based on our judgment and experience, Moodle is the platform that best meets the needs of a higher education institution.

With Moodle, we can get a technological background with which we can create a unique curriculum and use cooperative and adaptive tools.


**Table 1.**

*Cross-evaluation of six teaching competencies and four video production methods (own editing).*

#### *Reshaping Blended Learning after the COVID-19 Period in Higher Education DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111480*

The use of ICT tools is closely linked to blended learning (BL). Blended learning's educational history goes back more than half a century. As BL developed, it became clear that these systems are suitable for educational organization tasks, so they became an integral part of education. Previous studies have shown that the classroom experience can be enhanced by using ICT tools, so this model has been used in higher education together with various ICT-based tools, including Moodle, for more than 10 years. Blended learning strategies combine the best elements of online and offline education, increase student engagement and also learning, and online activities improve efficiency, which over time lectures read to a reduction in face-to-face education [11]. As we wrote, BL combines the advantages of online and classroom education; however, the literature does not address the exact ratio of this.

We have observed that before 2019, the proportion of classroom-based instruction and online individual preparation was typically around 80–20%. However, during the coronavirus epidemic, higher education completely "moved" to the online space. From the second half of 2021, the COVID restriction on higher education in Hungary was lifted, allowing education to return to the university campus. COVID gave a big boost to those higher education institutions where BL already existed, as these students had a competitive advantage and were not new to "home office learning." The majority of experts [11] also see BL as the direction that will determine the future of education. This assertion is supported by the Horizon Report 2022, which points out that hybrid forms of education will become more widespread and replace traditional forms of education, not because of necessity, as during the epidemic of the coronavirus, but because it will be the new trend [12].

On this basis, we organized the educational experiment in such a way that 20% of the activities were classroom activities, which were primarily limited to organizing knowledge and clarifying practical questions related to the implementation of the group project. The other 80% were online activities such as planning, knowledge acquisition, group and task organization, control, evaluation, and reflection that were documented in the Moodle system.

#### **3. Presentation of experimental education**

#### **3.1 The participants**

The "educational experiment" took place at the Department of Entrepreneurship Development of the University of Tokaj-Hegyalja, with the involvement of students studying at three different levels of education: students participating in the higher education vocational training (HEVT) in viticulture and enology (11 students), in the bachelor's degree in viticulture and enology engineering (3 students), and in the master's program in business development (5 students). The education covered a total of five subjects: R + D + I Basics, Business Innovation, Project Management, Tender and Project Management, and Applied Research Methodology. Students in the Entrepreneurship Development master's program (MSC) studied innovation, project management, and research methodology subjects. The subjects were taught by two lecturers. The individual subjects and training groups are shown in **Table 2**. The increased class loads and the teaching of many subjects with similar content at different levels provided the starting point for the experiment. In the essential part of the experiment, in which cooperation and teamwork were also evaluated, a total of 16 students, who studied in master's programs and higher education vocational


**Table 2.**

*Student participation in subjects (edited by myself).*

programs, took part. The students participating in the bachelor's program were only affected by the reflected classroom part of the education.

#### **3.2 Applied teaching methods**

As a preliminary adjustment, the students received online course material for each course on the Moodle interface of the department, which helped all students learn the basics of the subjects. In the case of the innovation and management subjects, the preparatory materials ended with an online test, the minimum score of 70% was the condition for the students to be able to participate in the lessons. In the case of the research methodology course, the students received weekly and biweekly online lessons and assignments before the contact class.

To improve understanding, the contact hour part of the blended learning method was followed by online learning, during which lecturers and students deepened their knowledge together using cooperative learning methods. During the contact hours, groups were formed to work together on a joint research project. In total, three groups of six students were formed, each group consisting of two MSC students and four HEVT students, mixed male, and female. The groups were managed by MSC students within the framework of the project management subject. The innovation subject provided the content of their joint project, thus becoming a research management project, the purpose of which was to investigate a realized innovation. The students also received support for managing and implementing the task with the help of the BL method and Moodle within the scope of the research methodology subject.

Based on the programmed education theory, the task implementation was divided into three different elements, control points, during which the students received feedback and suggestions regarding the sub-tasks and results that had been implemented up to that point. Furthermore, each student had to keep an activity log of his weekly activities in Moodle.

The students received grades for the projects, differentiated, and in the case of innovation and project management subjects, an online exam followed, which was also included in the evaluation. The exam questions did not ask about the students' lexical knowledge, but about their practical knowledge. The number and difficulty of the questions differed for the different training levels. For the exam, the students could rely on the shared basic knowledge uploaded in advance, what was said in class, *Reshaping Blended Learning after the COVID-19 Period in Higher Education DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111480*

and the differentiated curriculum for each training level uploaded after the personal meeting.

We examined the success of the students' cooperation and group work with a questionnaire. The cognitive skills model of Davier and Halpin [13] and the interpersonal trust model of McAllister [14] and the cooperative research of Mátyás Bánhegyi and Balázs Fajt [15] helped in formulating the questions. At the beginning of the semester, we filled out an input questionnaire consisting of classic Likert scale-type questions (15 questions in total) with the students, which examined the students' attitude toward group work, taking a role in joint work, and joint problem-solving. These 15 questions were included in the final questionnaire at the end of the semester in the same way, which was supplemented with additional questions related to the use of the department's Moodle system. We asked students in what way did this system help them to cooperate and achieve the tasks, and how much keeping the activity diary encouraged them to complete the tasks. The final questionnaire was supplemented with three open questions requiring long answers, which asked about intra-group communication, group efficiency, and value creation. Finally, the investigation concluded with an in-depth interview with the two MSC leaders of the three groups, in which both the project implementation and the group work were evaluated.

#### **3.3 Cooperation between students**

The students implemented their research management project in groups of six. Each group consisted of two students participating in the master's degree in business development and four in the higher education vocational training in viticulture and enology. A total of three groups worked on one project each, which examined a realized winemaking innovation. Students with different attitudes and knowledge participated in the groups. It was necessary to create a minimum knowledge base for the group participants, since if they do not have adequate background information, their participation in the group work may differ in that case [16]. This was the purpose of the course material uploaded to Moodle, the related knowledge test, and the contact course. The advantage of learning in mixed groups is that the division of work between students starts. The participants had different skills and knowledge. In the present project, the viticulturist and oenologist students represented the specialized expertise related to viticulture and oenological innovation, while the MSC students in business development were in charge of the economic competencies. Previous studies have shown that teamwork is most successful when everyone focuses on exploiting their strengths during implementation. During group work, the participants move out of their comfort zone, while at the beginning the individuals feel confused or lost, as a result of the knowledge sharing, they feel smarter and more suitable for the task, so in the end they forge into a well-functioning team [16]. Knowledge sharing and communication within the group started increasingly during the work, which mostly took place through the forum created in Moodle, but the students also used other channels, such as Messenger groups, Skype meetings, telephones, and e-mails. The initially weak interpersonal and cognitive trust also began to strengthen. Cooperation was essential for successful work, as the students were faced with an open-ended problem, the solution of which was unfeasible on their own. It became clear from the student answers that during the group work the HEVT and MSC students felt equal and were helpful to each other. The willingness of the students to cooperate increased more and more, they began to trust each other's

knowledge more and more, and the group leaders were more courageous in entrusting tasks to the other participants.

The HEVT students also revealed that the MSC students helped them understand the innovation topic, and some also considered the MSC students as mentors.

Although based on the answers to the questionnaire, the group work worked well, it became clear during the interviews with the group leaders that the groups of six proved to be large. In the majority of the groups (in the case of two groups), there were one or two people who behaved recklessly. To eliminate this, it is recommended to reduce the group size to four people.

The most delicate part of group work is always the evaluation. How should lecturers evaluate students? Should each member of the group receive the same grade, or should there be differentiation based on something? During our investigation, it was particularly difficult to develop the student evaluation, since students at several training levels had to be evaluated in several subjects. We did not want all group members to receive the same grade for several reasons. On the one hand, we wanted to filter out stowaways, and the students' responsibility and knowledge requirements were not the same. MSC students had to get grades in three subjects, while HEVT students only had to get grades in one. In the case of the project management and innovation subjects, both active participation in class and the end-of-semester exam are included in the final evaluation. Furthermore, a large part of the grade was given by the research assignment to be submitted. In the case of the applied research methodology subject, active class participation, Moodle lessons, and tasks belonging to the lessons, as well as the submitted thesis, were the subject of the evaluation, which was evaluated separately in terms of the three subjects (project management, innovation, and research methodology). In addition, the student groups also reflected on the completed research, and each group prepared a short evaluation of the completed work of another group, which was an additional help in preparing the evaluations. In addition to the activity diaries, the in-depth interviews with the project managers helped to assess the work of the group members.

#### **3.4 Moodle system efficiency**

The most important platform for teaching and learning activities was Moodle. Through this, the students received the preliminary study materials and lessons, the knowledge verification tests, and the end-of-semester exams. Furthermore, most of the cooperation took place on this interface, the submission of partial and final tasks of the project, and the lecturer's feedback took place here. The interface was also used to document the entire semester's student work and lecturer feedback and evaluations. Moodle has proven in many cases that it effectively supports the creation of individual curriculum, and cooperative and adaptive learning. So we can say that an educational framework with many possibilities effectively supports learning and serves as a collaboration interface, and last but not least, it makes it easy to monitor and measure the evaluation of learning activities. Previous studies [17] also prove the effectiveness of Moodle as a learning management system. A system that increases student motivation also serves to develop skills that do not belong to the given course or subject (e.g., collaboration, text writing) and improves the general performance of students [17]. Moodle has several incentives and disadvantages, from both the teacher's and the student's side, which are reviewed in **Figure 1**. Among these, we would like to present those that were supported by our investigation.

*Reshaping Blended Learning after the COVID-19 Period in Higher Education DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111480*

**Figure 1.** *Advantages and disadvantages of the Moodle system (source: [13] based on own editing).*

From the student's perspective, keeping the forum and the activity diary clearly enhanced independent and group work, and study materials, assignments, and tests were easily accessible to them. Some technical problems arose for students who had not previously used any content-sharing system, but this was always resolved in time by the quick support of lecturers and fellow students. However, the students experienced the continuous fulfillment of deadlines as an additional burden. During the in-depth interviews, it became clear that if the deadlines for the tasks had not been so tight, the groups would have tended to procrastinate the tasks. With the help of the partial tasks and their submission, the students were able to schedule the tasks better and did not leave the entire task solution until the end of the semester.

Moodle system also had many advantages from the teaching point of view. The teaching materials did not have to be shared with the students one by one, and they were always available to the students after uploading them. The design of the tests was a lengthy process, as we did not want the question bank of the system to contain only true-false or multiple-choice questions, but questions that would allow us to actually measure the students' knowledge based on their mastery of the practical benefits of the subject. However, after preparing a sufficient number of questions, the system essentially generated individual tests for the number of each student, which was corrected immediately, so that the students also received immediate feedback and the lecturers could see the results achieved. The Moodle system made it possible to modify the course and the assignment during the semester in accordance with the student's needs.

#### **4. Results of the educational experiment**

By combining the evaluation of the subjects, the students had to carry out a joint large-scale research project in group work. The age of group members was between 21 and 55 years. The cooperation readiness of the students also improved a lot within the unknown intergenerational group, and group cohesion was formed by the end of the task. The students' answers at the end of the semester revealed that they show a greater inclination toward group work than at the beginning of the semester, although many would prefer individual work instead of group work at the end of the semester. However, by the end of the task, the students clearly saw that during group work, the best results are achieved if everyone does their part to the best of their ability during tasks. The answers to the questionnaire at the end of the semester and the interviews showed that apart from one or two stowaways the communication within the group was good and clearly increased as the deadline for the final submission of the assignment approached.

In addition to improving the cooperation skills of the students, the "educational experiment" also brought multiple results. In the field of innovation, both MSC and HEVT students gained theoretical knowledge and practical experience. However, the MSC students needed to share their knowledge and experience with the HEVT students, so according to Bloom's taxonomy pyramid, which can be seen in **Figure 2**, both HEVT and MSC students reached a higher level of knowledge development.

During the semester, the master's degree students in business development acquired the appropriate theoretical knowledge related to the innovation course, which knowledge they had to apply in practice during the project task. However, in addition to practical application and theoretical knowledge, knowledge was also transferred during the mentoring of HEVT students. The HEVT students acquired theoretical knowledge during the course, which they understood with the help of the

**Figure 2.** *Students' learning results based on Bloom's taxonomy (source: [18]).*

#### *Reshaping Blended Learning after the COVID-19 Period in Higher Education DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111480*

course materials, class consultation, and the MSC students, and were also able to apply it in practice during the project assignment.

It is also clear from the student answers that the project task clearly helped the understanding and practical application of the R&D innovation subject. Among the student comments regarding the organization of the training at the end of the semester, in not a single case was there a critical formulation of the online environment that would have been related to the lack of classroom education. The students described the organization of education in this form (20% classroom, 80% online) as flexible and effective.

In the case of project management and applied research methodology, the master's degree students in business development could test the knowledge acquired and mastered during the research project in the form of independent research, thereby reaching a higher level in the Bloom taxonomy pyramid.

With our deductive reasoning, we can draw a conclusion (K) based on the premises (P) below.

Based on the experiment, the premise (P1) can be stated that students who have learning or working experience in an online environment can be effectively taught within the blended learning methodology with an online dominant training delivery rate of up to 80%.

The clear premise of the 2021/2022 academic year (P2) is that during the COVID period, all active students have learning or work experience in an online environment.

Based on the deductive logic, it can therefore be concluded (K) that students active in the COVID period can be effectively trained within the "blended learning" methodology with an online dominant training delivery rate of up to 80%.

It can also be concluded that the fully online-based training during the COVID period improved the learning outcomes of the groups participating in the experiment, as evidenced by the fact that in all age groups and training objectives, students acquired higher competencies than those set out in the training and outcome requirements of the given training.

#### **5. Conclusions and recommendations**

During the "educational experiment," it was revealed that with our method certain subject knowledge was transferred more effectively to different target groups and a higher level of knowledge integration was achieved based on the Bloom taxonomy. This improvement was thanks to Moodle, which provided us with effective support. On the one hand, it served as a venue for project work, where students could cooperate and share knowledge with each other. On the other hand, during the exam tasks and tests measuring knowledge before the contact class, it made it possible to create tasks that, based on Bloom, did not help the lexical, but practical use, so the students can apply and pass on the acquired knowledge.

Furthermore, it can be said that the cooperation skills have strengthened among the group participants. In one group, the cooperation within the group worked very well from the beginning to the end, in the other two groups, the project leaders complained about one student each because of rude behavior, but the communication within the group showed a developing trend in them as well.

The study clearly showed that the six-person groups proved to be large, and in the following, it is necessary to maximize the number of groups to four. In this case, more tasks would be assigned to each student, but it would also significantly reduce truant

behavior. It takes a whole semester to complete the project assignment, so the assignments must be handed out during the first third of the semester, and contact hours must be held during the first third of the semester. Due to the longer time interval, however, it is necessary to introduce more sub-tasks and checkpoints, as it was also revealed from the student responses that they would tend to procrastinate.

For the students to feel at home in similar projects and group tasks, it is necessary to involve several subjects and lecturers. With the help of this, the students could have a similar task every semester. If we look at the higher-volume project tasks at the training level, the students can also prepare a portfolio-type final thesis for completing the given course, so completing a project task serves a much more serious purpose than obtaining a semester grade in a given subject. For these higher-level training and subject revisions, the university must have an organization that provides professional assistance to the given lecturer and specialists.

The so-called COVID groups are not a single age group, but a group of students with the same history. In higher education, the impact of the "spontaneous experiment" caused by the COVID world tragedy should be exploited as soon as possible by bringing the proportion of contact (classroom) and online training within the blended learning method closer to 20–80%.

#### **Author details**

Tamás Köpeczi-Bócz University of Tokaj, Sárospatak, Hungary

\*Address all correspondence to: kopeczi.bocz.tamas@unithe.hu

© 2023 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

*Reshaping Blended Learning after the COVID-19 Period in Higher Education DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111480*

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[18] Available from: tips.uark.edu

### **Chapter 15**

Perspective Chapter: Organizational Ecology – Evolving Realities in Higher Education from Cholera to Covid – A Michigan State University Planning and Design Case Study

*Bin Wen, Jing Zhou, Lijun Hao and Jon Bryan Burley*

#### **Abstract**

This manuscript is a narrative concerning the evolution of Michigan State University (MSU), the first American Land-grant school and the development of planning and design instruction and research at MSU from the 1860s until the present time, including adaptations in the post-Covid era. Covid is not the first epidemic to influence higher education at MSU, as the school had to adapt to Cholera (1832–1866), Scarlet Fever (1858), Typhoid Fever (1906–1907), H1N1 Flu (1918), Diphtheria (1921– 1925), Polio (1916–1955), H2N2 Flu (1957), Second Measles Outbreak (1981–1991), H1M1 Flu (1991), Meningitis (1997 to present), Whooping Cough (2010, 2014), HIV and Aids (1980 to present), and Covid (2020 to present). The narrative presents a depiction of the changing organizational structure/network over time, illustrating the transformations in the sciences, arts, funding, and publication demands with comments, observations, and insights offered by Dr. Burley, FASLA, a now retired MSU landscape architecture faculty member with questions posed by the coauthors. The paper is in the form of traditional historic criticism essays meant to interpret events and activities. To critique does not have negative intent, but rather to bring understanding. The paper illustrates the transition from a German academic model to a diversified free-form education model.

**Keywords:** landscape architecture, public health, higher education, organizational ecology, environmental design

#### **1. Introduction**

Many universities in the United States such as Michigan State University (MSU) have a relatively long history and association with landscape architecture and thus campus planning and design [1]. Over this time period, students and the educational institution have experienced a number of public health adversities, including: Cholera (1832–1866), Scarlet Fever (1858), Typhoid Fever (1906–1907), H1N1 Flu (1918), Diphtheria (1921–1925), Polio (1916–1955), H2N2 Flu (1957), Second Measles Outbreak (1981–1991), H1M1 Flu (1991), Meningitis (1997 to present), Whooping Cough (2010, 2014), HIV and Aids (1980 to present), and Covid-19 (2020 to present). While the educational setting evolved, the response to these public health situations remained similar until the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic may have facilitated a change in the business of higher education from a place-based organization to an evolving distributed pattern. This book chapter describes this evolution from initial beginnings landscape architecture education at the Michigan State campus to the present condition.

#### **2. Beginnings**

MSU is widely known as teaching the first full-term semester course in higher education addressing the design of the exterior environment, found in either Europe or North America, taught by Albert N. Prentiss (1836–1896) sometime starting between 1863 and 1865 and was required by all students attending the university [1–3]. Albert Prentiss was a member of the first graduating class at MSU in 1861 and eventually went on to teach and do research at Cornell University. Kansas State University began offering a course concerning the design of the exterior environment in about 1876, and over time, many more schools initiated such coursework [4]. Comparatively, Europe's first university course was taught at Versailles in 1878 [5]. By 1898, a complete undergraduate curriculum at MSU was offered in landscape architecture or landscape gardening as O.C. Simonds (1855–1931) preferred to call the profession at the turn of the century. At the time, the thoughts, opinions, and preferences of O.C. Simonds, a founding member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), had great persuasion and influence in the Midwest [2, 6]. The offering of the landscape degree granting program at MSU is older than the ASLA (1899) and older than the first graduate-level program in landscape architecture at Harvard University (1900) [2]. The curriculum and degree were offered through the Department of Horticulture, with the first graduation of a student occurring in 1902, the same time as the first landscape graduation at Harvard. Many of the students in the MSU program, Harvard, and eventually other schools became campus planners and designers as part of their professional practice, such as the first MSU graduate T. Glenn Phillips (1877–1945), who developed a campus plan for MSU [7, 8]. During these formative beginnings, it was a time when the profession was defining itself with several competing visions and approaches. But today, the term landscape architecture has been widely adopted over landscape gardening or landscape engineering and has carved its place within the planning and design professions, addressing any issue where the natural and built environment require thoughtful physical planning, design, and management. Landscape architecture is now being taught in many great universities around the world.

As with any institution, student, staff, and faculty health at an academic institution are of a constant concern. In response to the growing numbers in the student body as enrollment grew, health services were first initiated with in the university's president's home, eventually moving by 1894 into a seven-room home located where the Student Union is now standing [7]. Finally, in 1939, the Olin Memorial Hospital (now the Olin Memorial Health Center) with 60 beds served the campus,

*Perspective Chapter: Organizational Ecology – Evolving Realities in Higher Education... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109596*

with additions and remodels in 1956 and 1969 [7]. **Figure 1** represents the graphical relationship of the institution's health services and landscape architectural education during the Charles Parker Halligan and Harold Lautner years (1907–1972) as defined by Burley and colleagues [2, 9].

Students worked under the direct supervision of a faculty member at a studio desk within an open classroom environment. This was the classic German model of institutional higher education, where the professor speaks and the students listen, guided by academic freedom, and the arts and sciences, known as the Humboldtian model [10]. Design projects were typically off the campus, comprising parks, residential, commercial, and transportation settings. Faculty, student, and staff health services were in a nearby building on campus.

#### **3. Campus setting as a research laboratory: from design projects to research projects**

While most projects were from outside the bounds of the campus, for landscape architects, the campus itself could become a lesson and opportunity to study planning, design, and construction concerning people and environment meaning the university, places, and people that inhabit it. This was the hope and aspiration of MSU when it was founded that students and faculty would engage the world in a scholarly manor to build new knowledge to assist the human condition [2, 11]. When MSU was established, scholarly contributions were seen as unnecessary and impractical by many Michigan residents—the conflict almost closed the school [1]. But over time, the importance of knowledge-building became more broadly accepted and adopted. Building new knowledge in agriculture, biology, and chemistry at MSU was quickly embraced. But it took time for some subject areas such as landscape architecture to become truly a knowledge-building contributor too as the founders of MSU had envisioned. The American Society of Landscape Architects present documentation on the types and extent of research being conducted during the time period 1971–1972 by American-accredited landscape architectural programs; while it shows some activity, it is easy to interpret by the titles, the profession had much to learn about the nature of research, the types of questions that can be asked, and how to analyze data [12]. "I admire the struggles within landscape

#### **Figure 1.**

*This graphic illustrates the general organizational structure concerning public health and planning and design projects and for education during much of the twentieth century at Michigan State University.*

programs to present a scholarly face, but it is clear from the report, there was a lack of depth and some attempts of showing more than really exists. I am sure that the scientific community at each campus could see right through this." observed Dr. Burley. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, MSU almost lost its patience with landscape architecture. While the program had a highly regarded reputation for professional education, its scholarship production was quite low. After urging and prodding with little progress, MSU considered eliminating landscape architecture from its mission. "I can understand why." stated Dr. Burley. "Back in 1978, I was a student at the University of Minnesota. I published an insignificant two-page article as an undergraduate [13]. It was more than the total scholarly output of the MSU landscape architecture faculty in 1978 [14]. At best, the total output from the MSU landscape architecture faculty (other than extension materials) was one letter to the editor of Landscape Architecture Magazine. It is not good when a lowly unknown undergraduate from Minnesota "out-publishes" a whole group of landscape faculty at a major Tier I research institution." noted Dr. Burley. The Urban Planning faculty at MSU were fairing much better in their publication rate [14].

To illustrate the expectations of a Tier I research university, the example provided by George J. Wallace on the MSU campus is an interesting tale. It is not a landscape architecture planning and design story, but it typifies what can be accomplished. It is one of the classic narratives, but often an untold story outside the MSU campus. The research story took place right in the sacred open space circle of the MSU campus, a space identified and protected in a campus 1906 masterplan by Ossian Cole Simonds [2]. The campus had English landscape school settings as an environment to enrich and nurture students (**Figure 2**). But back in the 1950s,

#### **Figure 2.**

*A view of circle drive near the time period of the work by O.C. Simonds and then T. Glenn Phillips with the sacred space on the right. In the background are a cluster of buildings where landscape gardening (landscape architecture) was first taught at the university level and then begun as a full university curriculum as a continuous program (1898 to the present). The current School of Planning, Design, and Construction resides to the left of the image in a renovated Home Economics Building, now known as the Human Ecology Building. Because of the efforts of George J. Wallace, this landscape has influenced lives around the world (Dr. Burley personal archives, used by permission).*

#### *Perspective Chapter: Organizational Ecology – Evolving Realities in Higher Education... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109596*

George J. Wallace, a Michigan State ornithologist conducted his famous study on American robins (*Turdus migratorius* L. 1766) in a landscape that was intended to be passive recreational and intellectually nurturing. Instead it was a research site. He reported upon the devastating effects of DDT (Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane). His work was described in a 2008 Emmy winning documentary *Dying to be Heard* by professor Lou D'Aria and his students in MSU's Knight Center for Environmental Journalism and first told in an editorial article by [15]. Wallace's research was one of the featured studies reported by Rachel Carson in her book Silent Spring [16]. Without the research efforts of individuals such as Wallace, Carson would have had little evidence to illustrate her position. Carson's book has been described as one of the top 25 most influential books concerning science of all time [17]. The connection to a campus landscape and research upon that landscape is an interesting story. The campus itself is a place to discover and learn. No longer does one just learn the ideas and thoughts of scholars from far-away places and times, but the new discoveries occur right on campus.

Similar ideas about the education setting being a place of knowledge building and learning addressing the environment were presented by Honeyman and Honeyman [18]. Their planning and design setting as an elementary school in Washington, D.C. Thus the transformation was occurring in some educational settings for elementary kids and was to occur at MSU too.

To initiate the change at MSU, Dr. Jo Westphal was hired in the 1980s. And times have changed, now the MSU faculty are in the top 10 in scholarly citations for landscape architecture programs in the USA and in the top 20 in the world, a real transformation. "And this transformation has happened at many Big Ten, PAC 12, and land-grant universities with landscape architecture programs in the United States and across the globe from Indonesia, Taiwan, P.R. of China, Thailand, Philippines, S. Korea, and Japan to the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Iceland, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Portugal, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Italy, Estonia, Finland, Austria, Turkey, and Canada, plus many other locations," observed Dr. Burley. "Schools like Texas A&M University, Rutgers University, University California Davis, University of Guelph, University of Maryland, Michigan State University, Arizona State University, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, and Utah State University are the leading North American universities in landscape research. It is a very different list than the respondent perception surveys reported by DesignIntelligence. The perception of individuals in the profession responding to perception surveys have not kept pace the changes and realities in academia," advised Dr. Burley [19].

Michigan State University campus became an environment for planners and designers to study and to generate new knowledge in planning and design. The following passages and pages describe research and projects in this new organizational model. Because it is relatively new to the profession, it may be worth some time exploring a few pertinent examples.

Recently, Rachel Wilke, a landscape architecture student at MSU earning her master's of environmental design, studied an open space near the International Center, along the Red Cedar River with remote cameras to investigate open-lawn chair use (**Figure 3**) and placement by students [20]. The study was reminiscent of the effort by William Whyte studying urban plazas in New York City with celluloid film [21]; but today, visual data can be collected remotely and entered into a computer for further analysis. It is a very useful tool and can be widely applied in spatial studies, especially in the social sciences. Dr. Linda Nubani, a past president of the Environmental Design

#### **Figure 3.**

*An image of Rachel Wilke's study area from a remote camera with an overlaying study grid (copyright © 2019 Rachel Wilke, all rights reserved, used by permission).*

Research Association (EDRA), MSU Interior Design, School of Planning, Design, and Construction faculty member, and Rachel's major committee member stated, "I have enjoyed how Rachel Wilke based her research on William Whyte's methods of the use of time-lapse photography in analyzing human behavior around nomadic chairs on one of our campus's plazas." Dr. Burley further noted, "I had met William Whyte at the University of Minnesota in about 1977 or 1978 when he showed his films of people in plazas. Today the general methodological premise is the same, but the tools have advanced."

Like many great universities with talented and ambitious landscape architecture students, the students and faculty at MSU participate in many kinds of planning and design competitions and projects. Amada Wakefield, another MSU landscape architect earning her master's of environmental design, participated in a team that won first place in the 2019 National Association of Home Builders Student Competition in Las Vegas, Nevada, for a site in Oklahoma. The team comprised a landscape architect, an interior designer, and construction management students, led by construction management, School of Planning, Design, and Construction faculty member Dr. George Berghorn. "Having an integrated NAHB student competition team comprised of both construction and design students not only embodies the principles of the School of Planning, Design & Construction (SPDC), but strengthens the connections among our students and among our faculty. This experience gives our students the opportunity to see how integrated design and construction planning happen in the real world and adds a real strength to our programs," stated Dr. Berghorn. Another project that Dr. Berghorn was involved with was Sparty's Cabin (**Figure 4**), a minihome/tiny house initiated by an MSU interior design student, Tiffany Pupa, and involved many students in SPDC. Schools with planning and design faculty and students are very busy in many engaging ways. Academia is much more than lectures and *Perspective Chapter: Organizational Ecology – Evolving Realities in Higher Education... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109596*

**Figure 4.** *Sparty's cabin in the MSU Breslin center (copyright © 2016, Dr. Jon Bryan Burley, all rights reserved, used by permission).*

studios with students biding their time until they can enter the profession, although there is an abundance of lectures and studio projects too.

The campus is often a setting for students to develop their professional skills in planning and design in other ways too. Na Li and Yiwen Xu, both landscape architecture students and who also each earned a master's in environmental design, headed an interdisciplinary team to develop spaces for students and to manage water. The effort earned second place in the Environmental Protection Agency's campus stormwater storm water challenge in 2013 (**Figure 5**). Dr. Burley was the campus advisor for the competition. "It is always a pleasure to work with such great, talented, and motivated students," notes Dr. Burley. Na Li is an excellent artist and conducted an ordination of designer, artists, and instructor principles to create landscapes, drawings, and paintings [22]. Her ordination discovered the drawing instructors emphasize line, landscape designers emphasize composition, and painters emphasize color. Yiwen Xu investigated an ordination of traditional Chinese landscapes and modern Chinese landscapes. She reported that traditional Chinese landscapes are tightly grouped around a common point, attempting to create similar environments, while the modern designers are all widely dispersed creating individually unique environments ranging from softscapes to hardscapes [23]. Yiwen's research won an award by the Michigan Chapter American Society of Landscape Architects. Na Li and Yiwen Xu teamed with Hongwei Tian and others to study design alternatives associated with the MSU medical campus in Grand Rapids, Michigan [24]. This study also earned a Michigan Chapter ASLA award. Studying the campus involves more than just landscape architects. Kristy Kellom, an interior design Ph.D. Student and instructor, in the School of Planning Design and Construction, is studying safety related to active shooters and has won two Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA)

#### **Figure 5.**

*A virtual image of a portion of the entry by an MSU for the Environmental Protection Agency's campus stormwater challenge in 2013 (copyright © 2013 Brock downs, Na Li, and Yiwen Xu, all rights reserved and used by permission).*

posters in the student competition (**Figure 6**). Recent high-profile incidents have spurred increased discussion surrounding preparedness against active shooter impact. The purpose of this research is to evaluate an existing educational facility regarding preparedness against active shooter impact and to propose safety improvements. Dr. Nubani notes, "Kristy Kellom's research is aligned very well with the development of the most recent NFPA3000 standards that address the need for preparedness against active shooter incidents. Kellom's research offered a behavioral analysis of students on a normal day and what design features may help them respond quickly to these incidents and what design features need to be modified." Dr. Burley adds, "Scholarship in planning and design has certainly been transformed at places like MSU. The visions of the school's founders is certainly unfolding in a very positive manner."

The scholarly nature of the MSU setting allows students to study both conditions on the campus landscape as well as environments around the world. Another awardwinning Chinese student, Haoxuan Xu studied and compared cemeteries in Michigan and China by ordinating the characteristics of these cemeteries [25]. An interesting award winning social science study was conducted by Ellen Daniels, but not on the campus. She studied queue lines at a theme park in Florida [26]. She believed that the efforts by the theme park to entertain visitors in long lines waiting for a theme park ride coped better while in line through the efforts of entertaining the visitors; however, she discovered that these efforts only accounted for 20% of the variance.; instead, she discovered that fatigue throughout the day was a better predictor of visitor's experience waiting in line. As the day "wore-on," the visitors experienced fatigue. The study revealed the importance of recovery environments to relax (play miniature golf, swim, eat food, enjoy an event, walking in gardens, converse with family and friends) were important features in the total experience, maybe more important than entertaining visitors during their time waiting in line. "Being a good investigator means letting the data reveal the results. Ellen discovered something she did not expect when she conducted the study," explained Dr. Burley. "She learned about how to conduct research at MSU and did her analysis at MSU, but her study area was beyond the campus. Her study area and the campus are linked together through

*Perspective Chapter: Organizational Ecology – Evolving Realities in Higher Education... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109596*

#### **Figure 6.**

*A poster by Kellom, K., with advisors Kim, J., and Nubani, L. (2019, may 25). A design-oriented approach of preparedness against active shooters: A case of evaluating a university student lounge. In sustainable urban environments EDRA50. Brooklyn, NY. Environmental design research association (copyright © 2019, K. Kellom, all rights reserved, used by permission).*

her investigation. It is an example of how the campus is connected to other parts of the world," added Dr. Burley.

In another award-winning study, Mengwen Feng, an MSU landscape architectural student and who earned her master's in environmental design, coming from the Sichuan Province in the P.R. of China, where the deadly Wenchuan earthquake took place in 2008, studied how the composition of the built environment influenced survivor safety. Forty percent of deaths from an earthquake occur after the earthquake. The spatial patterns and conditions of the urban landscape influence survivorship. She studied spatial treatments to improve survivorship [27]. Kathleen Barry, a graduate of the MSU landscape architecture program and a graduate of the environmental design graduate program, studied visual quality in Aspen, Colorado, and determined that visual quality was improved if each location in the town contained at least a partial view of the mountains [28]. Her study earned a Michigan Chapter ASLA award. Wesley Landon, an MSU landscape architecture student studied the paintings of Thomas Moran and how these paintings influenced the establishment of Yellowstone

National Park [29]. The paper won an award together with a French professor, presented by the Michigan Chapter of ASLA. "These students publish their research in conference proceedings and journals earning awards and recognitions. I am very proud of these students. It is a common occurrence," acknowledged Dr. Burley.

Wade Lehman was a landscape architecture student and a graduate of the MSU environmental design master's program. He was the first person in the world to develop a validated and replicated multi-species vegetation reclamation plan based upon multi-species fractal patterns [30]. "Wade measured forest stands in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to develop his multi-species fractal patterns," commented Dr., Burley. "I though his work was brilliant, but seems to go unrecognized. Until Wade had done his investigation, no one had developed a science based tree pattern for multiple species, as everyone was just guessing and doing the work heuristically. The jury for his research seemed not to grasp the importance of his work. It seems sometimes investigators have results for questions that practitioners do not yet have. I know this because the late Stanley Hart White (1891-1979) from the University of Illinois invented/developed green walls (Botanical Bricks). It was only after his death that the idea had finally become popular in urban design," observed Dr. Burley.

Landscape architecture students at MSU participate in a 7–8-week study abroad experience. Based upon this experience, students write and publish papers about the places they visit. Jeremy Monsma (Monsma, Miller and Burley 2011) wrote about Stourhead in the United Kingdom, Eric, Kopinski wrote about his visit to Giverny, France, (Kopinski and Burley 2013) and Villa Lante in Italy (Burley and Kopinski 2014), and Juilie Casault wrote about Versailles, outside Paris, France (Casault and Burley 2010) [31–34]. Their efforts contributed to an award-winning landscape history book titled, From Eye to Heart: Exterior Spaces Explored and Explained, edited by Dr. Burley and Dr. Trisha Machemer, [35]. Xiao Hou (Mike) was so intrigued during his visit to Paris France, he studied social media and spatial artiailization suggesting that there were two types of spaces within historic Paris [36]. His research also earned a Michigan Chapter ASLA award. "At MSU, I am so impressed how our students engage themselves in study abroad. Some people imagine that the time is just an extended vacation, but in reality students employ their time wisely to learn and grow on the way to becoming professional planners and designers," suggests Dr. Burley.

In a final example, Stephanie Onwenu, another MSU undergraduate student and environmental design master's student, won first place design competition in the City of Detroit "Give a Park, Get a Park" with teammates Monique Bassey and Sam Lindquist (**Figure 7**). This project provides a unique approach, through a combined community engagement and innovative design process, to help improve neighborhoods around Detroit. The city will "give a park" to neighborhood residents—a mid-block, decommissioned mini-park will be sold to adjacent community residents, allowing them to increase their stake in their neighborhood. Then, the same neighborhood will "get a park"—a larger park comprised of vacant, city-owned corner lots less than a mile from the former park. Since winning, the team has the opportunity to move forward with implementation of their plan in the Morningside neighborhood. One can learn more about this project here through GAPGAP promo video: https://youtu.be/wzR\_B\_2zDBI. Stephanie was the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources Outstanding Student Leadership Award winner and delivered the graduation speech at the College Commencement Ceremony. Stephanie's masters work focused upon "Way-finding Signage and Visual Attentiveness in Detroit Urban Spaces." Her research study addressed two urban spaces: Grand Circus Park and

*Perspective Chapter: Organizational Ecology – Evolving Realities in Higher Education... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109596*

**Figure 7.**

*City of Detroit "Give a Park, Get a Park" competition board (copyright © 2018, Stephanie Onwenu, Monique Bassey and Sam Lindquist all rights reserved, used by permission).*

Philip A. Hart Plaza both located in Downtown Detroit, MI. The study analyzed the visual attentive processing of existing Detroit signage to determine what way-finding signage types (i.e. trail, lamp post, and pavement) within Detroit urban spaces (both open and enclosed layout designed spaces) are visual attentive in winter and summer seasons. Findings from this research study showed both similarities and differences between the visual attentiveness of the way-finding signage types, the urban space layout designs, and temporal structures within urban spaces in the environment. "Stephanie is a wonderful person, dedicated, thoughtful, and imaginative. I am so proud of her. American universities are a much different place than just going to class, training to be a landscape architect. Working at an American university is extremely rewarding. Times have certainly changed since the days of professor Halligan and professor Lautner," reflected Dr. Burley. **Figure 8** illustrates how the organizational structure had changed.

### **4. Covid-19 and the restructuring of the educational setting**

"In late December 2019, I had family members returning from China, reporting to me that there was a new bird-flu-like/swine-flue-like disease in Wuhan, Hubei, where

#### **Figure 8.**

*This graphic illustrates the revised general organizational structure concerning public health and planning and design projects and for education during much of the late twentieth and early twenty-first century at Michigan State University.*

they had been visiting friends. These friends were well connected to the pulse of the city. Before the New Year, I was already preparing plans for my research and courses in anticipation of a potential worldwide pandemic event. I mentioned it to a few colleagues working over the holiday break and their response was that I seemed alarmist. Still, I was unshaken in my impression that this could be serious. As it unfolded the outbreak changed most people's lives," recalls Dr. Burley. "By mid-March, MSU had initiated an on-line response with remote learning for most courses; and during January and February I had begun a research study modeling human behavior in recreation settings with a colleague in China, resulting in a publication," described Dr. Burley [37]. Online courses would continue for the next academic year.

"I had had discussions with colleagues in professional practice concerning what they were doing for communications in their businesses. They told me that video technology was cumbersome and to be avoided. They indicated that the mobile phone with face-to-face interactions was quicker and more flexible," noted Dr. Burley. "I thought this made a lot of sense. It was immediate and I could draw/edit upon images students would send me and send right back to them. It was like I could be on call almost twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, avoiding proclaiming specific office hours and tiresome video conferencing meetings—call anytime. There was so much negative feedback from video conferencing meetings, and the technology required a good internet connection. I lived in the countryside, where often my internet was down because I had to rely upon a tower and dish to receive a quite weak and slow signal. Rain, wind, snow, and leaves would result in a disconnected signal. I spent my own money extending the receiving line 150 feet in a conduit to get a stronger signal from the tower, still any form of wind or precipitation would render the signal down—it was a nightmare. But my local mobile phone signal provider had upgraded their signal and if I was in the right place in my yard, I could connect 'fairly-well.' However, if I tied the phone to my computer in my house, the result was also poor, as I lived with a hill blocking the sight of the tower, so the phone would not improve my internet connection to my computer. Consequently, I was prepared to use a variety offered software: WhatsApp, WeChat, and FaceTime, to talk personally

#### *Perspective Chapter: Organizational Ecology – Evolving Realities in Higher Education... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109596*

and immediately to any student, many of whom were in Asia, at home engaging the university long distance," explained Dr. Burley. "I started my day at 3 AM, as uploading large course files and reading e-mail was more reliable from 3 AM until 8 AM, after that, often I could not send or receive any e-mail until after 7 to 8 PM. I loved living in the restorative countryside, with a large garden by a lake, as landscape is very important to me (flowers, trees, insects, songbirds, small mammals, clean air, sounds of nature, and great visibility for viewing stars), but during my career, I relied on my university office for technology. MSU was very well wired for technology. Yet, now, I was not there anymore in my university office. Since the internet was unreliable after 8 AM, I would write papers and do research from 8 AM until Noon or 2 PM, putting in nine to eleven hour days, seven days a week. In the afternoon, I would have lunch, tend the garden, eat dinner, watch the news and be asleep by 8 PM. It was a good schedule for me," recounted Dr. Burley.

"This schedule enlightened me to the possibilities of higher education in the future," explained Dr. Burley. "Higher education was facing issues and problems. To maintain its standing/ranking as an institution, publications and research dollars were driving many academic institutions, as that was how they were measured. In the late 1990s, MSU began moving towards a Stanford model of higher education, with tenure stream faculty doing research and teaching graduate students, and instructors who at the time were not even considered faculty teaching undergraduates [38]. Academic programs that did not generate money were disbanded. MSU was redirecting funds to develop a medical campus and investing in big science, activities that would improve and maintain the school's ranking. MSU eliminated some top ranked world academic programs because they did not 'bring-in' enough money. I cannot fault the leaders of the school, they were 'looking-out' for the 'long-term' health of the institution. But it did mean a different direction for the school. Before the school was known to have professors in the undergraduate classroom. But as the changes occurred, many senior professors agreed that the quality of education at the institution was diminishing and student tuition was being directed to facilitating the new 'money-making' prestigious activities. This change was typical of what was happening in many institutions of higher education. Curriculums were being 'stream-lined' and the number course offerings greatly reduced. It became difficult for students to find electives," delineated Dr. Burley.

"These changes have influenced the perceptions about higher education by those who depended recently graduating students to enter their profession." observed Dr. Burley [39]. "There is much thought given to what these changes might mean. In landscape architecture, the loss of curriculum in physical geography, soils, surveying, ecology, environmental psychology, and other basics means the landscape architecture may know less about the environment than previous students. In addition, the price of education continues to rise faster than the rate of inflation. Thoughtful leaders are considering abandoning academic institutions and forming new high quality on-line institutions to properly train professionals at a greatly reduced cost to the student. The Stanford model may not be benefitting planning and design professions. Certainly, such considerations are raising tensions between academic administrations and the needs of professions," commented Dr. Burley.

"The Covid-19 pandemic and now even more recent highly contagious diseases my mean the brick and mortal place-based higher education may see a decline. Certain academic tracks may withdraw from the traditional high education model, something like in **Figure 9**. I must admit that the traditional academic model of paper

#### **Figure 9.**

*This graphic illustrates a potential new vision for the education of trained professionals.*

writing and grant supported research has been a continuing nightmare for planning and design professions. The academic treadmill has been disastrous. Many retiring and resigning academics have very little positive to say about their former institution. Academia is like a 'never-ending' hungry child demanding more work hours, restrictions in other employment opportunities, only modest pay, more rules and paperwork, more published research papers, and more research dollars in their quest to maintain standing and ranking. It is sad but quite true. I have been in higher education for 45 years and it is a constant, observed phenomena," relayed Dr. Burley [38].

If numerous professions follow this model (**Figure 9**), the impacts would be substantial for institutions of higher learning and on students. No longer would universities be a place to be away from home for young adults, no homecoming, no sports teams to support, no gathering at bon fires and the local pub with friends. The focus would be upon flexible academics from home at the reasonable price. Socialization activities would have to find new approaches. This would not sit well with the expectations of some. For others it would be ideal.

#### **5. Concluding remarks**

Changes in higher education have been dramatic. Individuals are considering new models for higher education (**Figure 9**). The unexpected impacts of Covid-19 may have hastened this change and exposed the realities and problems in higher education. The change many not be immediate, but at least now, there is serious consideration in response to the evolution of higher education for many places around the world. The future of higher education brick and mortar settings may become more similar to **Figure 10**, an image of a physics collider facility at MSU, conducting big science. A place where there was once many students studying the arts, sciences, and professions may be lost to only a few high-quality professors and their graduate students. The need for a campus as a restorative environment may be lost. The restorative environments may become the residential settings where people live and study. It is indeed a drastic change in the organizational structure of higher education.

*Perspective Chapter: Organizational Ecology – Evolving Realities in Higher Education... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109596*

#### **Figure 10.**

*The new and emerging look of the Michigan State University campus, very different from the savanna-like campus it used to be.*

#### **Conflict of interest**

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

#### **Author details**

Bin Wen1 , Jing Zhou2 , Lijun Hao3 and Jon Bryan Burley2 \*

1 Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, P.R. China

2 Michigan State University, E. Lansing, Michigan, USA

3 North China University Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou, P.R. China

\*Address all correspondence to: burleyj@msu.edu

© 2023 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

### **References**

[1] Widder KR. Michigan Agricultural College: The Evolution of a Land-Grant Philosophy 1855-1925. E. Lansing, Michigan: Michigan State University Press; 2005

[2] Burley JB. Charles Parker Halligan's Impact on the MSU Landscape Architecture Program. LandTEXTURE. E. Lansing, Michigan: Michigan State University Extension; 2020

[3] Landscape Architecture Program. Brief Historical Summary of Development of Landscape Architecture M.S.U. E. Lansing, Michigan: Landscape Architecture Program, Michigan State University; Undated

[4] American Society of Landscape Architects. History of Schools of Landscape Architecture. Vol. 3. Washington, D.C.: Council of Education, ASLA; Undated

[5] Burley JB, Pasquier P. From beaux arts to post post-modernism: The parallel educational evolution of two landscape programs from MSU and Institut national d'Horticulture-Paysage. In: Innovation and Development of Landscape Education: Proceedings of the 1st International Landscape Studies Education Symposium, 28-29 October 2005, Tongji University, Shanghai, China. Shanghai: Tongji University; 2006. pp. 266-277

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**Chapter 16**

## Sustainable Pathways for SLP Provisioning amid a National Health Crisis: A Newspaper Review

*Darrell Edwin De Klerk, Monica June Palmer and Alfred Motalenyane Modise*

#### **Abstract**

Limited studies provide an analytical lens of students' experiences of access to digital technology in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) as portrayed by newspapers, particularly during times of a global pandemic, particularly COVID-19. This chapter addressed the question: *What sustainable pathways for short learning programme (SLP) provisioning can be suggested to address access inequalities amid a national health crisis as reflected in South African newspapers?* To avert the potentially devastating effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, whilst still retorting to students' needs, HEIs must consider a kaleidoscope of approaches and implement strategies to effectively deliver online teaching and learning using digital technology. Having applied discourse analysis to articles that appeared in an array of South African newspapers, the findings revealed that access to digital technology and competence in digital literacy might afford HEIs an opportunity to address challenges experienced by SLP students. The findings reveal further that a consideration of such pathways may increase students' access, confidence and performance in online learning activities.

**Keywords:** access, digital technology, conceptual analysis, sustainable pathways, short learning programmes, COVID-19

#### **1. Introduction**

Historically, HEIs were regarded as institutions with immediately available knowledge, conveying it from reasonably elite spheres of information construction to student masses [1]. The goal of HEIs was large to ensure a reasonably precise replication of thoughts formally categorized as knowledge in classroom settings. Democratic societies in the twenty-first century, however, required that HEIs become centres of teaching and learning for self-directed and capable learning for knowledge producers across the entire social continuum. The objective of preparing students to become independent knowledge creators and thus more relevant social actors required a shift from general classroom teaching and learning to a more social educational platform referred to as distance teaching, particularly through the provisioning of short learning programmes (SLP), amongst others [1]. In this context, the shift from learning

in class and learning through online platforms allowed HEIs to bridge the gap in how education can be provided to people [2, 3].

SLP offers prospects for individuals to engage in continuing learning because it considers the notion of situated pedagogy as it has a sturdy bond with real-world connections and with social and specialized [4]. Such connections create connections to prevailing working practices and are aimed at dynamic interventions by participants. Moreover, it is in congruence with workplace settings because trainees bring an affluence of knowledge to the education setting, which may be combined with knowledge from their courses [1].

Digital technology use enhances students' SLP experiences by accessing learning opportunities and instructional approaches they could benefit from. For example, teaching and learning can be customized in terms of content and speed, cooperative and problem-based learning models, and encouraging discussions on their workbased experiences [5]. Furthermore, in HEIs globally, digital connective technology permits students in SLPs to extend learning beyond universities through comfortable and augmented learning experiences using online communities on platforms such as social media and other social platforms [6]. As such, print books and encyclopaedias in the conventional sense are no longer the solitary holders of information, but the information is now spread through the network of linked digital technologies that are intended to provide access ubiquitously, at any time and wherever such networks are probable [7, 8].

Although information and communication technology (ICT) allows several SLP participants to maintain successful and fulfilling lives, countless students in South Africa and worldwide, experience limited access to digital technologies [9]. Differences in exposure to and use of ICT have contributed to the multifaceted, unsolidified concept, the so-called digital divide, often associated with prevailing social disparities [10]. The digital divide has significant concerns: whilst a poorer group of SLP participants may have these experiences, there is a second digital gap in how students from different socio-economic backgrounds use technology [11, 12]. Additional dimensions of digital inequalities include the availability of apparatus, freedom of use, skills, social support, stimulus, commitment and approaches [11, 12].

Similarly, the outbreak and spread of the novel COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to more educational inequities in HEIs globally, forcing universities to institute lockdown measures by closing their doors to contain the spread of the virus. The lockdown process, according to South African newspaper reports, emphasized the existing digital divide within the SAHEIs [13–18]: access to ICT; differences in HEIs within the same country; differences in resources; and differences between students participating in SLP in the same HEIs (those who live in towns and those in rural areas; access to the Internet, when and if it is available). It seems as if access to digital technology has become imperative to ensure the successful provisioning of SLPs, for both providers and students.

#### **2. Digital technologies for SLP provisioning in the twenty-first century**

The twenty-first century, described as the Age of Information and digital technology including Google, Microsoft, Apple, eBay and Amazon, amongst others, are just a few examples of how technologies have changed our way of life, communication, thought and social skills [19, 20]. Aside from shifting the actions of individuals, emerging innovations such as computers, smartphones, video games and Internet

*Sustainable Pathways for SLP Provisioning amid a National Health Crisis: A Newspaper Review DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111570*

search engines are reshaping knowledge construction in that learning, unlearning and re-learning have become the slogan of modern-day education [21]. Digital technology-based teaching and learning strategies, for example, may open opportunities to design new curricula and assessment methods to meet the didactic goals of HEIs [22].

In a study on the relevance of learning with digital technologies in HEIs in Nigeria, Ibrahim [23] found that ICT provides countless benefits whilst enriching the magnitude of the teaching and learning process in HEIs. In another study, Young's [24] research showed that students appreciate the opportunity to pursue education anywhere using education technologies. This versatility has increased learning opportunities for many students who had previous experience disparities in access to digital technology for learning. Finally, the study by Paul and Lal [25] explored the adoption of new technology in education and its impact on students in and around Delhi, India. The results indicated that there is a positive correlation between the strength of digital technology use in SLP programmes and its effect on knowledge generation, learning confidence and performance amongst students [25].

#### **3. Disproportions of access arising from the increasing use of online learning**

In an initial use of the word, the digital divide denoted "the gap between those who do and those who do not have access to new forms of information technology" ([26], p. 221–222). Inopportunely, policy-makers tend to describe the divide by a particular characteristic, generally access, which provides a twisted depiction of the issue. Irrespective of how constricted the gap may seem, technology and its influence on world citizens' lives are increasing, resulting in serious consequences due to the intensification of the digital divide [27, 28]. For the purposes of this chapter, discussions of inequities arising from the increasing use of online learning will be centred on the issue of the digital divide based on access and digital literacy.

#### **3.1 Inequities in access during participation in SLP**

Albeit a compendium of research on the inequity of access to digital technology, we draw on Goedhart et al. [29], whose study showcases three points of the digital divide in terms of access and which can be regarded relevant to individuals' level of participation in SLP in HEIs. Firstly, there is a difference between individuals who have and those experiencing challenges regarding access to digital technology. Notably, the gap pertaining to the digital divide seems to be declining. A growing proportion of individuals have gained access to ICT in the last decade, be it in the office, at home, in educational institutions, public libraries or public centres. Secondly, the digital divide emphasizes that ICT use is not guaranteed although access to digital technology might be possible. Research into the second-level digital divide also clarifies the inadequate use of ICT as a result of fundamental public disparities [9, 30, 31]. Individuals' revenue, schooling, literateness and gender are considerably (indirectly or directly) related to physical access, ICT abilities and usage variety [31, 32]. Thirdly, not only are the reasons for ICT use considered, but the consequences related to ICT use are also considered [10, 33, 34].

The afore-going explication is useful in considering the interrelatedness of digital and social inequities in terms of access [29]. For instance, inequalities to access in terms of barriers to digital technology use are associated with issues such as affordability, linguistics [35, 36], poor ICT literacy [35], lack of awareness [37], time constraints [37] and cultural dissimilarities [36].

#### **3.2 Challenges of digital literacy in higher education**

Few scholars agree that digital literacy in HEIs should include a critical understanding of the context of information, media and knowledge production including not only the limitations and constraints imposed by the design of digital tools, but also the social, legal, political, economic and cultural constraints of the media [38, 39].

Students who develop digital literacy as an integral part of their learning achieve academically in terms of the benefits afforded by digital literacy and are more employable on graduation. Students who are digitally confident can combine numerous inventive educational practices such as flipped learning, digital curation, m-learning techniques and open scholastic resources to their maximum advantage [40]. However, given the propensity that digital literacy requires particular skills, students may experience challenges due to a lack of understanding underlying structures of how information is organized on the Internet [41].

Another challenge may be a lack of understanding information across multiple perspectives and assessing the validity of digital sources [42, 43]. Experiencing such challenges may lead to students creating a particular mindset regarding digital literacy competence in SLP, as they may not value the role of thinking as a component of technology use. Students may also not appreciate that learning with technology is grounded in an ongoing process of inquiry and one's ability to create a pathway for personal learning by searching, assessing and curating information in a complex and often overwhelming digital environment [44, 45].

In the South African context, challenges with and access to digital literacy may signify inequalities within cultural groups, between urban and urban spaces and differences in income which can further intimidate the already marginalized class of individuals [46, 47]. Inescapably, digital marginalization leads to a division of knowledge and limits opportunities for intercultural communication, understanding and networking [48]. Given the undesirable effects of the digital divide on economically deprived and other ostracized groups [47, 48], the gap in digital access and digital literacy should be viewed as critical issues that have consequences for SLP teaching and learning.

#### **4. Implications for teaching and learning in SLP**

With its uneven access to electronic tools and abilities, the digital divide implies that hastening to proliferate the provisioning of SLP online would only broaden current inequities. It becomes important to recognize the challenges distance and online learning present to lecturers and course providers. The COVID-19 pandemic has upturned course programmes and online presence, disturbed learning and teaching, exasperated assessment and formal and informal examinations, postponed endorsement of qualifications and will probably affect the careers of many students registered for SLPs. As such, organizing financial and financial resources during times of crises is vital to guarantee complete access to digital technologies and contemporary education tools in the HE domain [49]. Furthermore, managers, learners, programme planners and lecturers must be trained to ensure their willingness to be involved in

*Sustainable Pathways for SLP Provisioning amid a National Health Crisis: A Newspaper Review DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111570*

expanding digital knowledge. As such, SLP providers need to revisit teaching and learning models to make the best use of digital resources and tools to benefit SLP participants [50]. Two kinds of divide, namely the *socio-economic divide* and *access and the use of ICT,* have implications for SLP in HEIs.

#### **4.1 Implications for SLP provisioning from the socio-economic divide**

The use of digital technology is rooted in a socio-cultural context, and as such, students already enter HEIs with a socio-economic deficit [51–53]. This fact is supported by public press opinions in South African newspapers, denoting:

*"the socio-economic dimension of the student body needs to be expounded" ([15], p. 1); and "disparities among their students from different socio-economic backgrounds, who struggle to access the digital world" ([13], p. 2).*

These perceptions confirm the existence of the socio-economic divide, which may be resultant of the uneven distribution of benefits of ICT, which in turn derives from the use, investment and infrastructure of information technology, amongst others [20, 54, 55]. In countries such as Finland and the United States, the socioeconomic divide is correlated with demographic variables such as education, gender and age, as well as computer experience and micro-computer use training at the individual level [54].

Some implications for teaching and learning in SLP provisioning may be derived from the socio-economic divide indicated in South African newspapers. The socioeconomic divide suggests that students with less resources and inadequate external help face restricted options and decreased capacity to make successful educational decisions [56, 57]. As a result, socio-economic contexts shape the academic experience of students and how they comprehend themselves and the opportunities accessible to them [58, 59]. In the same way, socio-economic contexts may direct students' thought in systemic ways with implications for educational objectives. In particular, students' experiences with access to more socio-economic resources may indicate that they will have access to increased opportunities for development and growth than students' familiarities in environments with less socio-economic assets [60, 61].

#### **4.2 Implications for SLPs derived from access and the use of ITC**

The second kind of digital divide in this chapter is understood as the variances in the construction of ICT use and access, keeping in mind how long-standing social inequities influence perceptions and prospects about educational opportunities [62, 63]. This notion is supported by phrases in South African newspapers that portray the seriousness of digital inequalities:

*"poor internet connection" ([14], p. 1); "no capacity to guarantee" ([15], p. 1); "frustrating internet delays" ([16], p. 1); and "limited or no connectivity access" ([17], p. 1).*

First, students from disadvantaged populations are similarly deprived of the Internet, with limited access to technology, limited opportunities for use and a lack of important digital skills [64–66]. Second, apparatus inequity recounts conflicting levels of technical and physical proprietorship and access based on the existence

and appropriateness of connectivity, software and hardware [67, 68]. Third, spatial inequalities include dissimilarities in digital exposure and involvement between people from rural and urban areas [69]. As a result, students from marginalized population groups do not benefit from teaching and learning opportunities to the equal degree as more advantaged groups [10, 70].

#### **5. Towards initiatives to address SLP provisioning challenges**

SLP provisioning typically has the following characteristics: a partnership between learners who are working in an organization outside the boundaries of HEIs; a programme for learning resultant from the wishes of students relevant to their jobs; students involved in a practice of acknowledgement of their present competencies, skills and knowledge; learning that takes place as an incorporated portion of responsibilities finalized in the workplace; and learning that is assessed by an HEI [71–73]. As such, whilst SLP providers should support students beyond the original distribution of academic material, HEIs with current or synchronized industrialized experience should provide pathways to ensure the continuous delivery of SLP amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The role of supporting students through complicated and difficult situations (such as COVID-19) has often fallen to faculty and staff. Staff members of HEIs have been on the front lines of responding to the broad array of student needs. Considering the future, and even if a situation that resembles a pre-pandemic higher education is plausible, it is likely that HEIs will have a sharpened appreciation and knowledge of the obstacles and learning challenges that their students face. Therefore, our suggestions, for sustainable pathways to ensure ongoing delivery of SLP amid a national crisis, derived from a conceptual analysis of views in South African newspapers in the beginning of the country's lockdown period. The views in the newspapers are relevant to the aim of this study.

#### **6. Research methodology**

In answer to the research question, a conceptual analysis was conducted in which concepts terms, definitions and theories relevant to the research question were explored. A conceptual analysis assists in clarifying the essential features of thoughts and has the potential to elucidate concept design and find explanation regarding the meaning and analysis thereof. As such, concept analysis can be explained as the clarification of the significance of any concept in appreciating meanings about the world and ourselves in relation to a system of additional concepts or learning of what the concept signifies [74, 75].

Whilst conceptual analysis seems to search for reasonably necessary situations in line with the use of concepts, it is also crucial to note that the meaning of other concepts, in relation to concepts to be analyzed, should be bored in mind ([76]; Pirttimäki, 2007 as cited in [77]). We argue that scrutinizing a concept should not be considered similar as describing a word. Analysis aligns with exploring ideas and comprehending concepts rather than only trying to provide delineations of concepts [76, 78]. In research on conceptual analysis of institutional culture, Van Wyk [79] states that a dissimilar but associated manner of explicating a concept is to construct constitutive meanings.

*Sustainable Pathways for SLP Provisioning amid a National Health Crisis: A Newspaper Review DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111570*

Thus, "*when a concept is analysed, the researcher tries to absorb or get inside the viewpoint it represents as a whole and then develop a deep understanding of how its parts relate to the whole*" ([80], p. 68). Therefore, the constitutive denotation of a concept cannot be regarded as obvious or simple. Constitutive meanings, therefore, seem to be uncomplicated notions regarding the analysis of concepts to construct meaning. With the latter in mind and taking a hint from Taylor [81], the use of concepts, as derived from views in South African newspapers, can be considered relevant to this study because we intend to put forward suggestions to address SLP provisioning challenges experienced by coordinators and developers amid COVID-19 and beyond.

Fundamentally, conceptual analysis is an effort to acquire knowledge about the uncomplicated tools of understanding concepts, ideas and terms [78]. To gain profound knowledge of what concepts may denote, scholars should distance themselves from the language in texts and not attempt to look accurately at whatever they think is referred to by concepts. Academics, therefore, need to: "bend their focus away from the object of analysis and back onto their own thinking processes in order to become self-consciously aware of the apparently transparent or neutral tools of thinking, understanding and grasping the world that, understands the key concepts of the research field" ([78], p. 425). Du Toit's [78] observation regarding concept analysis has a dual interpretation. First, "the meaning of a concept that emerges from the analysis of its actual use is potentially very rich and multifaceted" ([78], p. 428). Second, we argue that a conceptual analysis may be beginning to expose manifold meanings of concepts used in this study.

#### **6.1 Sustainable pathways for SLP provisioning**

Whilst COVID-19 is a temporary crisis, we argue that it should serve as a wake-up call for HEIs to utilize ways to ensure the provision of flexible educational delivery modes that serve diverse populations of learners. Consequently, we intend to suggest useful practices, which may assist SLP providers in HEIs to deal with inequalities from the increasing use of online learning, given that COVID-19 has no cure and, thus, the length of its effect is unknown. The suggested practices will be derived from concepts in South African newspapers published during the country's lockdown period and reported on matters regarding online teaching and learning (**Table 1**). The suggested practices will be articulated by means of a conceptual analysis using the following steps [82, 83]:



#### **Table 1.**

*Concepts for analysis from newspaper articles.*

#### **6.2 Enabling conditions to increase internet access**

We argue that Internet access is an ethical human right that entails that everyone has unmonitored and unrestricted access to this international medium, which should be overtly provided at no cost, especially to those not able to afford it. Rather than being a mere extravagance, access to the Internet should be regarded as an international right because people need to lead minimally decent lives in terms of connecting with others and information in this world [84].

When "connectivity", significant for Internet access, is highlighted as extremely important for participation in SLPs, Ropolyi [85] educates us that "connectivity" is associated with a particular type of system called a network, which consists of computers that are interconnected and operated in a way which secures the freedom of information of the individuals connected to the network. Individuals become connected when they are able to acquire information in their own space, time and context. West [86] warns that to increase Internet access through "connectivity", one should bear in mind that it is not just a matter of adhering to administrative regulations. Rather, HEIs should introduce innovative caching techniques and data compression that make broadcasting systems function more powerfully [86]. HEIs can do this through negotiations with network suppliers to provide lines that help automated signals travel reasonably fast, reformatting file servers and installing open-source hardware.

Drawing on West [86], two approaches to improve access through "connectivity" may involve:


#### *Sustainable Pathways for SLP Provisioning amid a National Health Crisis: A Newspaper Review DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111570*

If HEIs should address the issue of "connectivity" as suggested above, Internet access becomes the capacity of SLP participants to easier link to the Internet using computer depots, computers, and other devices; and to access amenities such as email and the World Wide Web from anywhere.

Whilst working towards improving "connectivity", HEIs should consider the following actions, which may be regarded favorable to ensure that SLP developers and participants have increased access [45] to SLPs:


In creating enabling conditions to increase access to the SLP, HEIs should also develop ways to support students with limited knowledge of how to use digital technology and where to find assistance, if necessary.

#### **6.3 Enabling conditions to foster digital literacy skills**

An immediate association with *"tech-savvy"* and *"capable"*, as extracted from the newspaper articles, can be found in Alexander et al. ([87], p. 4) when they argue that digital literacy comprises of "not only skilled" but "capable" digital users in that they are afforded competencies to triumph over challenges. A combination of definitions compiled by a few international universities explained digital literacy as a skill to use digital technology, communication apparatuses or systems to trace, assess, use and create information [88, 89]. Internet users should also be able to understand and use information [90, 91] in manifold arrangements from a comprehensive variety of sources when it is accessible *via* computers. The aim would be to facilitate the expansion of student competences to steer a multifaceted information landscape [92]. The concepts *"tech-savvy"* and *"capabilities"* are explained in terms of *"to use"* because it includes skills such as reflective practice, student-centred learning, student engagement and experiential learning, amongst others [93].

We draw on the works of Hobbs et al. [45] and McGuinness and Fulton [94] to suggest sustainable pathways to foster digital literacy. HEIs may consider the following:


#### **7. Concluding remarks**

This chapter's significant contribution has been offering alternative insights into access to digital technology for SLPs in HEIs, especially during a pandemic like COVID-19. The chapter answered the research question: Having applied discourse analysis to South African newspaper articles, the findings revealed that a HEbDP might allow HEIs to reflect on actions to address challenges experienced with access to digital technology solutions. Such a plan implies that HEIs (a) should rethink how digital transformation may be implemented, (b) be cognisant of the different ways students learn and ultimately provide support to them; and (c) should plan towards digital sustainability for the ongoing supply of technologies that transmit, use, create or source electronic data for SLPs.

Importantly, the study has implications for implementing recommendations in the short run because HEIs should fervently explore various options to ensure students in SLPs have access to digital technology. Another implication is that programmes in HEIs should be tailored in a short time to capacitate students on how to prepare themselves for online learning. An important avenue for future research could be an analysis of student voices regarding their experiences regarding access to digital literacy in higher education during COVID-19. It would also be interesting to explore how governmental procedures and managerial choices might affect authority within HEIs as regards digitalization in the viva.

#### **Objectives of the chapter**


#### **Key concepts**

**Access** acquiring or recovering information deposited in a computer's memory

*Sustainable Pathways for SLP Provisioning amid a National Health Crisis: A Newspaper Review DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111570*


#### **Author details**

Darrell Edwin De Klerk1 , Monica June Palmer2 and Alfred Motalenyane Modise3 \*

1 School of Education, Sol Plaatje University, South Africa

2 Department of Postgraduate Studies, Central University of Technology, Free State, South Africa

3 Department of Educational and Professional Studies, Central University of Technology, Free State, South Africa

\*Address all correspondence to: mamodise@cut.ac.za

© 2023 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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#### **Chapter 17**

## The Experiences of International Students Studying in the UK during the COVID-19 Pandemic

*Alina Schartner*

#### **Abstract**

This study investigated the experiences of international students studying in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic by examining how the pandemic impacted their academic, psychological, and sociocultural adaptation. An online survey of 343 international students measured the impact of a range of pandemic-related stressors, including loneliness, and host university support on adaptation outcomes. The results indicated that the pandemic exerted an adverse effect on all adaptation domains. Loneliness emerged as a significant negative predictor of adaptation outcomes, and students who had experienced pandemic-related stressors reported lower adaptation than peers who had not been exposed to these stressors. Group comparisons showed that students who had been offered online social activities, guidance on adapting to remote learning, guidance on housing issues, and advice on how to deal with COVID-related discrimination adapted better than peers who had not been provided with these support measures. We discuss implications for future emergency response strategies in higher education, in particular for student support.

**Keywords:** adaptation, international students, pandemic, COVID-19, student support

### **1. Introduction**

There are currently more than six million internationally mobile students1 in the world, a number that has more than doubled since 2007 [1]. These individuals were among the first to acutely feel the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic [2], as countries closed their borders, and universities moved abruptly to online learning. Being "internationally mobile" in higher education (HE) took on a new meaning for students in the academic years 2019–2020 and 2020–2021, with many British universities implementing COVID-19 concessions permitting distance learning from overseas for programmes which would have usually been delivered in-person [3].<sup>2</sup>

<sup>1</sup> "An internationally mobile student is an individual who has physically crossed an international border between two countries with the objective to participate in educational activities in a destination country, where the destination country is different from his or her country of origin." (UNESCO, 2022)

<sup>2</sup> This policy has since been revoked with international students required to transition to blended or face-toface learning from June 2022 [4].

Many international students were confined to their accommodation, at least for part of their studies, with few opportunities to benefit from in-person interactions with university staff or their peers. With mobility and social mixing curtailed, international students were also denied valuable intercultural experiences inherent to study abroad such as experiencing local life and culture through travel and extracurricular activities.

A small but burgeoning body of social science research has now begun to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the experiences of international students (e.g. [5]), a group which has largely been overlooked in the global response to the pandemic [6] with the initial focus, rightly so, on medical research and vaccine roll-outs. Emerging research studies and academic commentaries suggest that international students across the globe have been adversely affected, and in some cases marginalized, as a result of the pandemic [7]. Efforts to curb the spread of the virus appear to have hit this group disproportionally hard [8]. Restrictions on travel, social distancing measures, and repeated national lockdowns left many international students isolated and with little access to support in situ [9, 10].

Among the many difficulties faced by international students during the pandemic, financial hardship has been well documented both in the academic literature and in mainstream media. Despite measures put in place by several national governments to mitigate the financial impact of the pandemic [11], many international students have been struggling to pay rent and meet their basic needs [7, 12], with hundreds turning to food banks during lockdowns once part-time jobs were no longer available to support them [13, 14], and some even losing access to housing [2]. Additionally, students from Asian backgrounds, especially those from China, have been reporting xenophobic discrimination, scapegoating, as well as physical and verbal assaults [9, 15–17].

Research also suggests that the pandemic has had a negative impact on international students' mental health and wellbeing [18], with many reporting feelings of stress, hopelessness, anxiety, sleep problems, loneliness and depression [6, 12, 19, 20]. COVID-19 related stressors such as uncertainty about future academic plans, economic pressure, and health concerns have been found to be associated with negative mental health outcomes [21], and there is also some evidence that international students experienced greater degrees of anxiety during the pandemic than did their domestic peers [22] or the wider population [19, 23]. Emerging research also suggests that the mental health impact of the pandemic was greater for students who remained abroad during the pandemic compared to those who returned home [6]. Being physically distanced from both their host campus environment and their support system in their home countries meant that international students likely found it more difficult to maintain good mental wellbeing than those studying in familiar environments [9]. Worries about their own physical health and that of family and friends may have exacerbated this distress further [7]. There is also a plethora of evidence that a lack of social connectedness due to remote learning may negatively affect academic success [24, 25].

What is strikingly absent from the literature to date are studies on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the adaptation of internationally mobile groups and individuals, a focus increasingly called for by intercultural scholars [26]. There is a fairly well-established body of research on international student adaptation (see [27] for a recent review), but there has been little systematic empirical research on the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on adaptation with the exception of some studies on the impact of online learning on academic adaptation (e.g. [10]). The current project is one of the first studies with a specific focus on the impact of the pandemic on international students' adaptation.

#### *The Experiences of International Students Studying in the UK during the COVID-19 Pandemic DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109290*

In the international student literature, 'adaptation' is typically conceptualized in academic, psychological and sociocultural terms [28, 29]. Adaptation involves a process of stress and adjustment, typically termed "acculturative stress" which, rather than focusing on solely negative aspects (i.e. "culture shock"), can be viewed as a period of "highs and lows" [30]. Although an educational sojourn abroad is often conceptualized as a positive and transformative experience (e.g. [31]), there is ample research evidence that international students may experience a range of adaptation challenges as they transition into a new academic and sociocultural environment. This can include language and communication issues [32], difficulties in forming social ties, especially with members of the host community [33, 34], feelings of loneliness [35], as well as academic difficulties associated with language limitations, academic content and new ways of learning [36]. It is likely that these challenges were further exacerbated by the 'high stress context' [37] of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the academic, psychological and sociocultural adaptation of international students undertaking degree programmes at universities in the United Kingdom (UK). The UK provided an interesting context – it is still among the most popular destination countries for international students globally [1], with 605,130 non-UK students studying at UK universities in 2020–2021 [38], but it is also among the countries worst affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with more than 20 million confirmed positive cases and more than 160,000 deaths related to the virus as of March 2022 [39]. This study was guided by the following research questions:


This study is grounded in a conceptual model of international student adjustment and adaptation, where adaptation is viewed as three interrelated processes ([27], **Figure 1**). The model builds on Ward et al.'s [29] distinction between psychological and sociocultural adaptation, where psychological adaptation refers to affective aspects such as psychological wellbeing and satisfaction with life, and sociocultural

**Figure 1.** *Conceptualisation of international student adaptation.*

adaptation describes behaviors associated with effective performance in the host environment such as carrying out daily tasks. Additionally, international students need to adjust to the demands of academic study and a new national HE system – a phenomenon commonly referred to as academic adaptation [27]. Psychological adaptation is approached here from a stress and coping perspective which highlights "acculturative stress" [30] associated with significant life events, such as an international student sojourn, and the coping strategies required to manage these events [29]. Academic and sociocultural adaptation are viewed here through a culture-learning and social skills lens, which emphasizes the importance of acquiring culturally relevant skills and behaviors to enable the sojourner to function effectively and confidently in the new environment [40].

### **2. Method**

#### **2.1 Participants and procedure**

Data were collected through a self-report online survey of international students undertaking degree programmes at UK universities in the academic year 2020–2021. The survey was 'live' for one month (mid-April to mid-May 2021). The survey was designed using Jisc Online Surveys (formerly Bristol Online Survey), and a link was distributed through the researchers' own professional networks in the UK and publicized through various university channels (e.g. social media feeds, university webpages, internal SharePoint). In total, 348 survey responses were received. Of these, five were discarded as the respondents did not enter any data other than demographic information. The final sample was therefore 343. The majority of respondents (91%) were between 18 and 34 years of age, and more than two-thirds (68%) were female. The most common country of origin was the People's Republic of China (33%). The sample was linguistically diverse with more than 50 first languages reported by the respondents, and a large majority (86%) were second language speakers of English. Most respondents were postgraduate (PG) students, undertaking either PG taught programmes3 ; e.g. MA, MSc (41%) or PG research programmes; e.g. PhD, MPhil (27%). Thirty percent were enrolled in undergraduate degrees. At the time of data collection, the majority of survey respondents (70%) were residing in the UK.

#### **2.2 Survey measures**

The survey measured a range of factors related to the pandemic, labeled here as 'impact measures', alongside several 'outcome measures' related to academic, psychological and sociocultural adaptation (**Figure 2**).

#### *2.2.1 Impact measures*

Levels of loneliness were assessed using the 6-item shortened version of the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale [41]. The scale included items on social loneliness (e.g., 'There are enough people that I feel close to') and emotional loneliness

<sup>3</sup> In the UK, a PG taught programme typically includes a nine-month long taught component (September to May) during which students attend classes followed by a three-month long research stage (June to August) during which a dissertation is written.

*The Experiences of International Students Studying in the UK during the COVID-19 Pandemic DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109290*


	-

#### **Figure 2.**

*Overview of survey measures.*

(e.g., 'I experience a general sense of emptiness'), and an overall loneliess score was computed. Respondents were asked how often they experienced the feeling in each item and rated their answers from 1 (very rarely or never) to 5 (very often or always). Cronbach's alpha scores for this scale have previously indicated high internal consistency across samples from multiple countries [42].

Respondents were asked to select from a multiple-choice list of pandemic-related stressors (**Table 1**, below). For the purpose of analysis, responses were divided into two groups for each stressor: the 'yes' group (those who reported having experienced the stressor) and the 'no' group (those who did not report having experienced the stressor).

Respondents were asked to indicate on a multiple-choice list which university support services they had been offered during the pandemic (**Table 2**, below). Responses


#### **Table 1.**

*Pandemic-related stressors and frequencies of responses.*


#### **Table 2.**

*University support items and frequencies of responses.*

were divided into two groups for each stressor: the 'yes' group (those who reported having been offered a type of support) and the 'no' group (those who did not report having been offered a type of support).

#### *2.2.2 Outcome measures*

To measure academic adaptation, the Academic Adjustment Scale (AAS) developed by Anderson et al. [43] was used. The 9-item scale included items for academic lifestyle (e.g., 'I am enjoying the lifestyle of being a university student.'), academic achievement (e.g., 'I am satisfied with the level of my academic performance to date.') and academic motivation (e.g., 'The reason I am studying is to lead to a better lifestyle.'). Respondents rated their answers on a scale from 1 (never or very rarely applies to me) to 5 (very often or always applies to me). The AAS has previously demonstrated high internal consistency in student sojourner samples [43].

Two psychological adaptation measures were included in the survey. The first measured respondents' satisfaction with life using the 5-item Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS, [44]), a common measure of cognitive judgment of life satisfaction [45]. Example items include 'In most ways my life is close to my ideal' and 'The conditions of my life are excellent'. Respondents rated their level of agreement or disagreement on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). An overall satisfaction with life score was computed (see [46]). The second measure was the 12-item Scale of Positive and Negative Experience (SPANE), aimed at measuring subjective feelings of well-being and ill-being [47]. Respondents were provided with a list of six positive and six negative feelings, and asked to rate on a 5-point scale, ranging from 1 (very rarely or never) to 5 (very often or always), how frequently they had experienced each feeling over the past four weeks. Scores for the positive (SPANE-P) and negative (SPANE-N) subscales were computed separately, and an Affect Balance score (SPANE-AB) was calculated by subtracting the negative score from the positive one [47].

To measure sociocultural adaptation, Wilson et al. [48] 11-item Revised Sociocultural Adaptation Scale (SCAS-R) was used. It included items on social *The Experiences of International Students Studying in the UK during the COVID-19 Pandemic DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109290*

interaction (e.g., 'Building and maintaining relationships'), community engagement (e.g., 'Attending or participating in community activities'), and ecological adaptability (e.g., 'Finding my way around'). Respondents rated their level of competence for each item on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (not at all competent) to 5 (extremely competent). The scale showed strong psychometric properties in a previous international student sample [48].

#### **2.3 Data analysis**

The survey data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Alongside descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlations were computed to explore relationships between the impact and outcome measures, and independent samples t-tests with a 95% confidence interval for the mean difference were carried out to examine group differences for the pandemic stressors and university support items. Where the Levene's Test for Equality of Variances was statistically significant, the Welch t-test statistic is reported below. Before any parametric tests were carried out the data were visually inspected for normality using quantile-quantile (Q-Q ) plots, an effective way of checking for normality of the data [49]. Data analysis tested the following hypotheses:


#### **3. Results**

#### **3.1 Descriptive statistics**

**Table 3** presents means, standard deviations, and coefficient alpha reliabilities of the survey measures. The mean score for academic adaptation was slightly higher than in a previous student sojourner sample using the AAS [43]. The mean for satisfaction with life in this sample lies towards the lower end of the average score range (20–24) for the SWLS, indicating that 'the majority of people are generally satisfied, but have some areas where they very much would like some improvement' (cf. [46]: 1). The mean SPANE Affect Balance score was relatively low, albeit on the positive side of the range that can vary from −24 (unhappiest possible) to 24 (highest affect balance possible) [47]. Mean scores ranged from −22 to 24, indicating a wide range of wellbeing experiences. The mean score for both the positive and negative subscales sat roughly in the middle of the range of 6 (lowest possible score) to 30 (highest possible score). The mean for the positive feelings subscale was somewhat lower than in previous research on HE student samples, for example 22.05 in Diener et al. [47]. Conversely,


#### **Table 3.**

*Descriptive statistics for the survey measures.*

the mean score for the negative feelings subscale was somewhat higher, 17.59 compared to 15.36 in Diener et al. [47]. The average Affect Balance score was lower than in other student samples, 2.34 compared to 6.69 in Diener et al. [47]. The mean score for loneliness was roughly at the mid-point of the scale. The mean score for sociocultural adaptation was above the mid-point of the scale but was lower than in previous international student samples; e.g. 3.61 in an international student sample in New Zealand [48] and 4.05 in an international students sample in the UK [27].

The data indicated that students' overall sense of wellbeing suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic, with 41% of respondents expressing concern about their mental health, and more than half reporting that they had experienced loneliness, anxiety, and changes to their normal sleep pattern (**Table 1**). One in four students reported feeling 'very worried' about the COVID-19 pandemic overall, and a majority (71%) had experienced worries about loved ones. One in four students reported having experienced Covid-related discrimination, and nearly a quarter (22%) reported having experienced problems with housing/accommodation during the pandemic. More than half of respondents reported feeling either 'extremely' or 'very' worried about travel restrictions (60%), finding work after graduation (55%) and their academic performance (52%). A considerable percentage of students were also concerned about the economic impact of the pandemic, both on them personally (48%) and on a more global level (47%). **Table 2** lists all university support items include in the survey and the percentages of respondents who reported having been offered them. More than half of respondents had received access to online social activities, guidance on adapting to remote learning, information on Covid-related restrictions, and information on university wellbeing support.

#### **3.2 Impact of Covid-related stressors on adaptation**

Hypothesis 1a posited that greater loneliness would be related to lower academic, psychological and sociocultural adaptation. This hypothesis was supported. A Pearson's correlation revealed a significant negative association between loneliness and academic adaptation (r(337) = −.32, p < .001). Moderately strong negative

*The Experiences of International Students Studying in the UK during the COVID-19 Pandemic DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109290*

associations were also found between loneliness and the psychological adaptation measures. Firstly, loneliness was associated with lower subjective wellbeing as reflected in the Affect Balance score (r(328) = −.63, p < .001). Secondly, loneliness was negatively associated with satisfaction with life (r(334) = −.55, p < .001). Finally, a significant negative association was found between loneliness and sociocultural adaptation (r(294) = −.32, p < .001).

Hypothesis 1b posited that loneliness would be negatively associated with international students' adaptation. This hypothesis was also supported. Four separate regressions were conducted with academic adaptation, satisfaction with life, subjective wellbeing, and sociocultural adaptation as outcome variables. Firstly, degree of loneliness was a significant predictor of academic adaptation (β = −.32, p < .001), and explained 10% of the variance in the data, F(1, 335) = 37.50, p < .001, R2 = .101. Secondly, loneliness was significantly correlated with satisfaction with life (β = −.55, p < .001), and explained 30% of the variability, F(1, 332) = 140.27, p < .001, R2 = .297. Thirdly, loneliness was a significant predictor for subjective wellbeing (β = −.63, p < .001), and explained 39% of the variance, F(1, 326) = 210.16, p < .001, R2 = .392. Finally, loneliness was a significant predictor for sociocultural adaptation (β = −.32, p < .001), and explained 10% of the variance, F(1, 292) = 33.50, p < .001, R2 = .103.

Hypothesis 2 posited that students who had experienced pandemic-related stressors would adapt less well than students who did not experience these stressors. This hypothesis was partially supported. **Table 4** displays the descriptive statistics for the pandemic-related stressors with a significant group effect for the adaptation measures. Firstly, students who reported having experienced the following pandemicrelated stressors scored significantly lower on academic adaptation than their peers who did not report having experienced these stressors: loneliness (item 3), anxiety (item 4), discrimination from other people (item 8), and accommodation/housingrelated problems (item 9). Secondly, students who reported having experienced the



#### **Table 4.**

*Pandemic-related stressors with significant group effects.*

following pandemic-related stressors reported significantly lower satisfaction with life scores compared to their peers who did not report having experienced these stressors: loneliness (item 3), anxiety (item 4), changes to your normal sleep pattern (item 5), and accommodation/housing-related problems (item 9). Thirdly, students who reported having experienced the following pandemic-related stressors provided significantly lower Affect Balance scores compared to their peers who did not report having experienced these stressors: worries about friends, family or partners (item 1), fear of getting Covid-19 (item 2), loneliness (item 3), anxiety (item 4), changes to

#### *The Experiences of International Students Studying in the UK during the COVID-19 Pandemic DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109290*

your normal sleep pattern (item 5), fear of giving Covid-19 to someone else (item 7), and accommodation/housing-related problems (item 9). No statistically significant group differences were found for sociocultural adaptation.

#### **3.3 Impact of host university support**

Hypothesis 3 posited that student who had been offered host university support would adapt better than their counterparts without this support. This hypothesis was partially supported. **Table 5** displays the descriptive statistics for the host university support types with a significant group effect for the adaptation measures. Firstly, students who reported having been offered the following types of support scored significantly higher on the Academic Adjustment Scale than their peers who had not been offered this support: guidance on adapting to remote learning (item 2), guidance on Covid-related restrictions (item 3), guidance on visa/immigration issues (item 6), and guidance on accommodation/housing-related issues (item 7). Secondly, students who reported having been offered the following types of support had significantly higher satisfaction with life scores than their peers who had not been offered this support: guidance on adapting to remote learning (item 2), and guidance on accommodation/housing-related issues (item 7). Thirdly, students who reported having been offered the following types of support had a significantly higher Affect Balance score than their peers who had not been offered this support: access to online social



#### **Table 5.**

*Host university support types with significant group effects.*

activities/events (item 1), guidance on visa/immigration issues (item 6), guidance on accommodation/housing-related issues (item 7), and guidance on reporting Covidrelated discrimination (item 10). The following support types showed no significant group differences: university wellbeing support (item 4), guidance on accessing Covid-related medical care (item 5), financial assistance (item 8), and guidance on dealing with Covid-related discrimination (item 9). No statistically significant group differences were found for sociocultural adaptation.

#### **4. Discussion**

Findings from this study suggest that the pandemic adversely affected international students' sense of wellbeing and satisfaction with life, corroborating what has been found in the international student literature to date [19]. Overall, the students in this study reported lower subjective wellbeing than students in pre-pandemic studies of similar cohorts (cf. [47]), although it was evident from the data that there was a broad range of wellbeing experiences. Students were most concerned about the health of loved ones, travel restrictions, their future job prospects and their academic performance. This pattern is broadly in line with key concerns identified in other studies of the experiences of domestic and international students during the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g., [16, 50–52]). Many also worried about their own mental health, which ties in with other similar findings on the negative impact of the pandemic on the mental health of HE students globally [53–55], although variations do exist between countries [56].

Loneliness was a common experience in this international student sample, reflecting recent evidence of an increase in loneliness during the pandemic in societies generally [57]. Loneliness was negatively associated with all three adaptation domains, and was most strongly correlated with psychological adaptation. This finding is not surprising given that loneliness has previously been identified as strongly related to the emotional/affective aspects of adaptation [58]. A negative association between

#### *The Experiences of International Students Studying in the UK during the COVID-19 Pandemic DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109290*

loneliness and psychological adaptation has been reported in previous international student samples [59], and there is also evidence for a negative relationship between social isolation and psychological wellbeing among HE students more broadly [60]. It is likely that students who feel lonely or are socially isolated will have fewer meaningful interactions with others, which could in turn negatively impact feelings of wellbeing and satisfaction with life, but also reduce opportunities to acquire the skills and behaviors necessary to adapt socially and culturally [59]. Social distancing and the absence of present-in-person teaching have likely exacerbated this [60], which may also explain the negative association between loneliness and sociocultural adaptation. Students who feel lonely may also find it more challenging to successfully accomplish academic tasks. There is some evidence for a link between loneliness and decreased academic achievement (e.g. [61]) and lower academic adjustment (e.g. [62]).

The data also suggest that students who experienced certain pandemic-related stressors adapted less well than their peers who had not experienced such stressors. Apart from loneliness, anxiety and problems with accommodation/housing had the greatest impact. Students who had experienced these stressors were more likely to report lower academic adaptation as well as lower levels of subjective wellbeing and satisfaction with life. It is likely that students who felt anxious during the pandemic were less able to focus on their studies, possibly resulting in lower academic adaptation. There is some evidence for a link between social anxiety and academic adjustment in HE students [63]. Likewise, anxious students may have been less likely to report high subjective wellbeing and satisfaction with life scores. Anxiety has previously been linked to lower life satisfaction in university students [64]. It also seems plausible that students who experienced problems with accommodation/housing as a result of the pandemic will have been less focused on their academic studies. Given that housing issues are likely to lead to a great deal of stress, it is not surprising that these students experienced lower levels of both academic and psychological adaptation.

The outcome measure most strongly associated with pandemic-related stressors was subjective wellbeing. Students who reported having experienced a fear of contracting Covid-19 or of giving the virus to somebody else were less likely to feel well in themselves. This suggests that concerns related to virus transmission may be associated with subjective wellbeing. This finding aligns with evidence of a link between perceived likelihood of contracting COVID-19 and anxiety, especially among younger age groups [65]. Moreover, students who reported having experienced changes to their normal sleep patterns were more likely to report lower subjective wellbeing, suggesting a link between sleep and international student wellbeing during the pandemic. The importance of sleep quality for good mental health is widely acknowledged [50], and there is evidence of an increase in sleep problems during the pandemic, particularly among young adults [66]. Finally, students who experienced worries about loved ones reported lower subjective wellbeing, suggesting a link between the health of significant others and students' own mental health (cf. [67]).

International students who had been offered certain types of host university support showed higher levels of adaptation. This further corroborates findings on the importance of university support in alleviating students' concerns [68]. Support types that helped students with their adaptation included guidance on remote learning and advice on accommodation/housing issues. Students who had received these types of support were more likely to achieve higher academic and psychological adaptation. It seems plausible that students who are well supported in their transition to online learning will adapt to the academic environment more successfully which could in turn lead to greater satisfaction with life.

Other support types that appeared to ease academic adaptation included guidance on Covid-related restrictions and on visa/immigration issues. Both are likely to reduce uncertainty and contribute to peace of mind, thereby allowing students to dedicate their energy to their academic studies. Support with visa/immigration issues seems especially crucial given that the legal status of many international students on temporary visas made them especially vulnerable during the pandemic [69], often making them ineligible for relief programmes introduced by the governments of their host countries [70].

Host university support played an important role for subjective wellbeing. Students who reported having been offered access to online social activities, guidance on visa/immigration issues, and guidance on reporting Covid-related discrimination rated their subjective wellbeing significantly higher than peers who had not been offered these support services. The importance of online opportunities for social mixing cannot be underestimated given the central importance of social ties in the international student experience more generally [33, 34]. The pandemic and its lockdowns have likely left a lasting impact on the international student cohorts of 2019–2020 and 2020–2021, depriving these individuals of opportunities to form meaningful ties with their peers and the wider host community.

#### **5. Conclusion and implications**

This study is one of the first to provide systematic empirical evidence on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on international students' academic, psychological and sociocultural adaptation. The findings can help HE institutions in the UK and beyond in shaping evidence-based emergency response strategies for future public health crises and other societal challenges. An effective response strategy aimed at supporting international students with their adaptation during times of global upheaval should have at its core measures to alleviate loneliness and social isolation. This might include structured social support provision such as online networking opportunities, embedded into the curriculum where possible and building on links with local communities. For example, virtual volunteering opportunities could support international students in forming social ties and offer a sense of purpose during periods of social isolation. Second, any future transition to online learning should be underpinned by clear and timely guidance, including regular e-tutorials on online study skills. Thirdly, dedicated points of contact should be made available to international students experiencing visa or housing problems. Fourth, student wellbeing support should be underpinned by a nuanced approach, providing tailored support pathways for students experiencing a range of issues including loneliness, anxiety, sleep problems, and concerns about loved ones. Finally, effective and accessible reporting mechanisms for international students experiencing discrimination and abuse, whether online or in-person, seems especially vital given the prevalence of Covid-related discrimination against Asian students, or people of Asian heritage more generally, in countries hosting international students. There is ample evidence in the literature that discrimination, or perceptions thereof, can have a detrimental impact on the wellbeing of international students [71].

#### **6. Limitations and future research directions**

There are some limitations to consider. Firstly, this was a cross-sectional study and can therefore not provide answers on the longer-term impact of the Covid-19 *The Experiences of International Students Studying in the UK during the COVID-19 Pandemic DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109290*

pandemic on international students' adaptation. Longitudinal studies could usefully track the trajectory of adaptation over time. Secondly, it is possible that survey respondents may have chosen socially desirable answers and that the prevalence of loneliness, anxiety and other pandemic-related stressors may actually be higher than is reported here. Finally, this study lacked pre-pandemic comparator data, and it is thus difficult to ascertain whether the prevalence of the stressors and their impact on adaptation was a direct result of the pandemic. Finally, this study was purely quantitative and could therefore not capture more nuanced 'lived' experiences of adaptation. Future studies could use focus groups or individual interviews to obtain in-depth insights into how students themselves felt that the pandemic had impacted their adaptation.

#### **Acknowledgements**

This research was supported by funding from the Newcastle University Institute for Social Science.

#### **Conflict of interest**

The author declares no conflict of interest.

#### **Notes/thanks/other declarations**

I wish to thank the Newcastle University Institute for Social Science for funding this research, and I wish to express my gratitude to Yao Wang for her help in distributing the survey.

#### **Author details**

Alina Schartner Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

\*Address all correspondence to: alina.schartner@ncl.ac.uk

© 2023 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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## Section 4
