The Hidden Curriculum in Online Education Based on Systematized Review

Abstract

Context: The set of learning and experiences gained by learners is not limited to formal and explicit curriculum, and there are inevitably other factors besides the explicit curriculum. These factors are valuable opportunities that can enrich the learning experience and, on the other hand, are threats that challenge the education system if ignored. Objectives: The purpose of this review was to summarize evidence on the hidden curriculum in online education. Data Sources: This study is a systematized review of scientific-research articles in the field of hidden curriculum in online education. For this purpose, databases of Scopus, Ovid, web of science, PubMed, Google Scholar, ProQuest, ERIC, and Science Direct were searched. No restrictions were placed on the year of publication. Results: Out of 487 articles after excluding irrelevant articles, nine articles were included in this study for full-text review. Of the nine studies reviewed, the hidden curriculum in online education has been improved in one study. Individual characteristics of the learning environment (self-esteem, vulnerability, social acceptance, stress) in two studies, learning environment in five studies, interaction in three studies, teaching and evaluation methods in one study, rules and regulations in two studies, and teaching time in one study have been identified as the main factors behind the formation of a hidden curriculum in online education. Conclusions: The hidden curriculum is a reflection of what students receive in the learning environment; so we need to pay attention to this environment. A review of studies in the hidden e-learning curriculum showed that the hidden curriculum is important because it has a strong influence on the learners in many ways. Online education, like traditional education, has latent learning that can affect education.

Socio-Digital Disadvantage Within Management Education: A Study of MBA Students’ Experiences of Digital Technologies

“…There have been calls for more research on hidden curriculum, digital inequalities and implications for the information and digital literacies (IDL) of students particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds (Allan, 2007; Nahardani et al, 2022; Orón Semper & Blasco, 2018; Öztok, 2019). To date, we know little about the different ways in which these students adapt and attempt to address their issues of socio-digital disadvantage within management education.…”

“…In the majority of MBA courses, the unspoken, implicit expectations and demands linked with students' information and digital literacies (IDL) skills and prior exposure to digital technologies have become part of the hidden curriculum (Allan, 2007;Jackson, 1968;Nahardani et al, 2022;Öztok, 2019;Sambell & McDowell, 1998;Snyder, 1970). The relationship between sociodigital inequalities and hidden curriculum in the context of in-person, fulltime MBA programs however has not previously been reported in the literature.…”

International Partnerships and Curriculum Design

“…These implicit messages can be sent by their teachers, and also by their peers, via learning materials, the setup of a course management system, or through the mode of assessment (cf. Nahardani, Rastgou Salami, Mirmoghtadaie, & Keshavarzi, 2021;Thielsch, 2021). To better understand the complexity of the hidden curriculum, especially in distance education and virtual exchange contexts, Anderson (2001, p. 33;referring to Ahola, 2000) recommends to acknowledge that this dimension of the curriculum includes different subdimensions.…”

“…This applies to the course level as much as to the level of study programs, their bureaucracy, laws, and regulations. But even though such administrative aspects influence the hidden curriculum (e.g., by using specific learning management systems), it is the teachers' behavior and their teaching approach that ultimately affect the students' learning in class (Nahardani et al, 2021). Keeping this in mind, teachers should methodically build the educational environment of their courses and discuss its characteristics with the students.…”

Scrutinizing the Awareness of Hidden Curriculum: Connecting Lecturers to Themselves, Students, and Non-Engineering Study Programs

“…The values will determine both personality and behaviors (Öztok, 2019;Abuzandah, 2021;Raissi Ahvan, 2021). HC shapes students to become social individuals as it makes them more adapted to real life in the classroom (Bennett, 2017;Sarikhani et al, 2020;Nahardani et al, 2021). In the HC, according to previous studies lecturer is an important person to succeed in developing a student's personality and character (Abbaspour et al, 2022;Lukman et al, 2021).…”