Transforming online teaching and learning: towards learning design informed by information science and learning sciences

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the practical work of learning designers with the aim of helping members of the information science (IS) and learning sciences (LS) communities understand how evidence-informed learning design of online teaching and online learning in higher education is relevant to their research agendas and how they can contribute to this growing field. Design/methodology/approach Illustrating how current online education instructional designs largely ignore evidence from research, this paper argues that evidence from IS and LS can encourage more effective and nuanced learning designs for e-learning and online education delivery and suggest how interdisciplinary collaboration can advance shared understanding. Findings Recent reviews of the learning design show that tools and techniques from the LS can support students in self-directed and self-regulated learning. IS studies complement these approaches by highlighting the role that information systems and computer–human interaction. In this paper, the expertise from IS and LS are considered as important evidence to improve learning design, particularly vis-à-vis digital divide concerns that students face during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originality/value This paper outlines important ties between the learning design, LS and IS communities. The combined expertise is key to advancing the nuanced design of online education, which considers issues of social justice and equity, and critical digital pedagogy.

The Outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic and its Social Impact on Education: Were Engineering Teachers Ready to Teach Online?

“…These guidelines were of a general nature and each teacher had to adapt to them on the basis of their own knowledge and past experience. The implementation of the experiment was therefore very close to reality [ 22 ]. These guidelines are listed in Section 2.2 .…”

“…All the university course units in the study are usually taught F2F. Therefore, this situation offered the first online teaching experience for all participating students, which meant that the students were more demanding regarding the teacher’s work [ 22 ].…”

“…The effects on education become especially relevant, as education equips new generations with the necessary knowledge to contribute to social development and welfare [ 20 ]. The need to adapt Face-to-Face (F2F) teaching to online teaching is still a great challenge for both teachers and students [ 21 ], due to the stark contrast between both teaching methods [ 22 ]: while in F2F teaching, the pace of work is moderated whenever the student calls on the teacher to facilitate an understanding of the concepts [ 23 ], in online teaching, students must self-regulate their activity and understand a greater number of concepts alone [ 24 ]. Online teaching requires a very detailed and careful preparation by the teacher, because it is the only way to guarantee proper student learning [ 25 ].…”

“…The adaptation of F2F teaching to online teaching is easier in classes where theoretical learning prevails [ 22 ]. However, its adaptation is more complex in fields such as University Engineering Degrees, where the practical application of theoretical concepts assumes great relevance [ 47 ].…”

Teaching in Library and Information Studies: Creating videos to provide educational content

“…Gleichzeitig können die Kurs-Teilnehmer*innen mit unterschiedlichen Tools bewertet werden. Quiz-Begleitvideos helfen den Studierenden dabei, besser zu lernen, als wenn sie nur ihre eigenen Notizen benutzen würden (Fujita, 2020). In Deutschland wurde eine Studie mit einer Stichprobe von 260 Schüler*innen ab der neunten Klasse im Bereich Physik, Chemie und Biologie durchgeführt.…”