Online Synchronous Teaching during a Pandemic

As the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) spread rapidly across the globe, most educational institutions tried to address major challenges of engaging students in a productive way and disseminating knowledge through online learning. Given this consideration, the present study qualitatively explores the observations and experiences of a private university and giant strides taken by the institution in adapting and delivering value to all the stakeholders through educational transformation during the pandemic. The data was collected using observations and in depth interviews. The findings of the study revealed that the university went through certain structural changes and modified teaching pedagogy for virtual delivery like providing support and training to the faculty before shifting completely to online mode and delivering the sessions online in both synchronous and asynchronous mode. The results of the study are likely to help transform and address the major challenges of engaging students in a productive way and disseminating knowledge through online learning during a pandemic.

An online knowledge-attitude-practice survey in the community about diabetes mellitus in India

To address the reasons for it is important to understand the knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) of all pertinent stakeholders. This multicentrrising burden of Diabetes mellitus in India this survey is aimed at understanding the KAP quotients of the community regarding knowledge of laypersons regarding diabetes mellitus as this is lacking in Indian studies. A cross-sectional survey was conducted through online mode in India using a validated, field-tested questionnaire incorporating KAP domain questions regarding Diabetes mellitus (DM). Scores to questions were appropriately assigned. The mean (SD) age of the respondents was 35.2 (12.61) y and 62% had a graduate or higher level of education. The median (IQR) KAP scores were 10 (8-12), 5 (3-5) and 2 (2-3) out of a maximum of 18, 5 and 6, respectively. Higher educational and socioeconomic levels were associated with better attitude scores, but knowledge levels were comparable. Correlations between KAP scores were poor. This study reveals that laypeople have appropriate knowledge and attitude regarding diabetes mellitus to some degree but there are important lacunae and practices are often found wanting. These issues need to be addressed in sustained public sensitization and motivational campaigns to improve the future and treatment outcomes of Diabetes mellitus in India.

WhatsApp Generation in Zoom University: Online Pedagogical Challenges and Innovations

Management education has undergone significant changes owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. The classroom delivery has moved from an offline mode to a completely online mode, unravelling many pedagogical challenges and constraints. This study explores the pedagogical challenges faced by academicians and the innovative remedial measures adopted by them. This study follows an inductive approach using qualitative interviews and uses the cognitive apprenticeship model as the theoretical underpinning. Findings indicate that all domain aspects of the cognitive apprenticeship model are not equally relevant in an online teaching scenario compared to offline teaching. Findings also indicate that the interpersonal and communicational aspects of the learning environment have gained more prominence in online teaching. This article contributes to the existing literature by bringing early evidence on the challenges and innovations in online teaching. In addition, this study also contributes to the understanding of the cognitive apprenticeship model in an online scenario. Even though the scope of the study was limited to academicians from the finance and accounting area, the findings are globally relevant. They have practical implications for other disciplines as well. JEL Classification Codes: M0, I20, I29, Y7

THE BENEFITS OF DIGITALISATION ON THE GROWTH OF INDIAN SOCIAL SECTORS AND THE ECONOMY (IN THE PRESENT PANDEMIC CONTEXT)

Digitalisation is the use of modern digital tools in the nation, In Indian history there was no significant growth of digital tools during independence moment, but later on there is more scope for the usage of digital tools for the study, like study of archaeological sources, Historical tourism pictures, by the help of the ASI (Archaeological survey in India). India has good flora and fauna in the world, India can generate revenue by expanding its digital implementation in all the tourism centres in India, some of the most visited tourist places by Indians and the foreigners, were The Taj-Mahal, Agra, the gate way of India, The Red fort, Mecca Masjid, some temples like Tirupathi, shabirimala etc, these cities are well aware digitalisation, e-payments, advertisement, online booking availability and the availability of internet has made these Indian cities to invest more in digitalisation to make benefit of the customers and to make profit in their business. More over some the Indian recent schemes like “Digital India, Make in India” can try to implement in Tourism and development of tourism GDP / income. So Indian government can try to announce the benefits for the tourist guides, and create lakhs of employment in India, due to pandemic the tourist visitors has decreased and lakhs of tourists lost their lively income, it became unemployed for many months. So India has to face lot of challenges in the pandemic time and try to increase the tourism income of the nation, sources involves online transactions, social or business and economic transactions in electronic or online mode in the state or country, as it provides benefits for the consumers, producers or citizens by saving time, availability in lower cost and reduces the cost of transportation to purchase any products in the sovereign country like India, like education, hotel services, banking insurance, social services like DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer) and commerce sectors. KEY WORDS: Social sectors, use of Digital technology in tourism, Covid-19, E-governance and the Indian Economy.

Stress and Its Association With Involvement in Online Classes: A Cross-sectional Study Among Undergraduate Students of a Medical College, South India

BackgroundWith the implementation of lockdown and all students restricted to their houses, medical education has shifted towards the online mode. The objective of this study was to assess stress during the pandemic and the association between stress and involvement in online classes among students of a medical college in Mangalore, Karnataka, South India.MethodologyA cross-sectional study was conducted among 324 undergraduate students at a medical college in Mangalore, Karnataka, South India. The extent of stress was assessed using a perceived stress scale (PSS), and a questionnaire was used to identify different stressors and to understand the participant’s involvement in online classes. All methods were carried out in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations.ResultsIn this study, the mean perceived stress score was 21.66 ± 4. Moderate stress was observed in 262 (85%) students. The main stressors noted were inability to focus (173 (56.4%)) and fear of exams (153 (49.8%)). A significant association was noted between stress and involvement in online classes.ConclusionThis study thereby highlights the need for more attention to the various stressors among students and for making online classes student friendly.

University Students’ Classroom Emotional Climate and Attitudes during and after COVID-19 Lockdown

With the advent of COVID-19, universities around the world have been forced to move to a fully online mode of delivery because of lockdown policies. This led to a flurry of studies into issues such as internet access, student attitudes to online learning and mental health during lockdown. However, researchers need a validated survey for assessing the classroom emotional climate and student attitudes towards learning in universities that can be used for online, face-to-face or blended delivery. Such a survey could be used to illuminate students’ perceptions of the experiences that make up learning at university level, in terms of such factors as care from teachers, collaboration and motivation. In this article, we report the validation of a University Classroom Emotional Climate (UCEC) questionnaire and an Attitudes to Learning scale, as well as their use in comparing the classroom emotional climate and attitudes during COVID-19 lockdown (fully online delivery) with post-lockdown (mixed-mode delivery). Female students experienced the post-lockdown condition significantly more positively than during lockdown for all scales except Care, while the only significant difference for males between the during and post-lockdown was their choice to engage with learning (Control) and the degree of Challenge that they found with the learning materials.

Exploring Learning Avenues Amidst Pandemic and Future Prospects in Higher Education

Globally, teaching-learning has been in a severe transition due to COVID-19. Amid pandemic, education in universities had to shift from physical boundaries to online mode. The purpose of the study was to examine online learning mode particularly with respect to learner’s readiness, their involvement, fair assessment and satisfaction at university level. The objectives of the study were; to explore the perceived level of readiness of students for online learning, find out their involvement and participation in online mode while performing various educational tasks; to explore to what extent online assessment is fair, and finally to determine satisfaction of students of online learning experiences during COVID-19 era. The sample of the study was drawn from all social sciences departments. The questionnaire’s link was disseminated to 550 students and 293 respondents filled out the google form. Learners’ readiness was divided into three subfactors, namely, physical & environmental factors, learners’ personal skills and learners’ familiarity with necessary apps and websites. The inferences drawn from the study showed that although majority of students were equipped with devices yet they were not possessing good skills required for virtual learning. The online conditions and environment were not contributing positively in favour of learners’ readiness and also learners were not well aware of apps & websites required for online learning. Moreover, students remained passive during online classes and were found less interested in completion of the assigned tasks. The online assessment had been embedded with manifold flaws that further multiplied unfairness in education. Although, the study informs overall satisfaction of learners which found to be low for addressing the issues, it is recommended that educational institutions may continue to offer hybrid mode of learning even in post-pandemic era for continuously equipping both students and teachers with requisite skills, relevant apps and software necessary for making learning teaching process smooth in future. In addition, it is recommended that higher educational institutions and relevant authorities should design software to improve involvement of the students while keeping the assessments as fair as possible during online learning.

A Paradigm Shift in Higher Education

Game-based learning is widely followed at the school level in India, but the higher education system has been longer in adopting it. The pandemic situation has transformed teaching and learning processes from the traditional to the technical method, which requires a more versatile approach. Because of the rapid change from the offline mode to the online mode in higher education, there is little evidence available on the inefficiency of implementing the traditional system of teacher-centered education on online platforms. There comes a lot of the significance in of adapting technology-based games in order to engage and motivate students throughout their course of study. The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of the effectiveness of game-based learning strategies over traditional learning methods. Moreover, the results of a cross-sectional study conducted by the authors in South Indian universities at the higher education level is included.

Edge Computing for Secured IoT Analytics on the Cloud

This chapter provides an insight into building healthcare applications that are deployed in the cloud storage using edge computing and IoT data analytics approaches. Data is collected from environments both within or external to the hospital. The devices that are connected enable the healthcare providers to monitor patients at large distances, manage chronic disease, and manage medication dosages. The data from these devices can be added to clinical research to gain an insight into the participant's experiences. Artificial intelligence techniques like machine learning or deep learning can be employed at the edge of the networks for IoT analytics of multiple data streams in online mode. The industrial edge computing is growing rapidly from 7% in 2019 to being expected to reach approximately 16% by 2025. The total market for intelligent industrial edge computing that includes hardware, software, services has reached $11.6B in 2019 and is expected to increase to $30.8B by 2025.

From Praxis to Theory

Research has shown that social capital plays a significant role in achieving success. For children from disadvantaged communities in India—such as the urban poor—financial and cultural constraints severely limit their ability to complete their schooling, forcing them to enter the job market as unskilled workers. This chapter presents an educational intervention called Project Disha in an urban slum by Kriti Social Initiatives, a non-profit organization in India. Project Disha is a scholarship and mentoring program that aims to teach life skills and fill the social capital gap for these disadvantaged students. Due to the pandemic, the program switched to an online mode, an already challenging situation made more so due to the extremely limited technology available to the children. With limited internet connectivity, frequent power cuts, and access only to inexpensive smartphones, Project Disha now relies on a team of volunteer mentors and creative pedagogical strategies to keep students connected, engaged, and learning.