Distance learning in Polish schools during the Coronavirus lockdown: the areas of success and failure experienced by Polish teachers of English as a FL

Based on Roblyer & Edwards (2000: 192), distance learning means “the acquisition of knowledge and skills through mediated information and instruction, encompassing all technologies and other forms of learning at a distance.” The instructional delivery includes an instructor who is physically located in a different place from the learner, as well as possibly providing instruction at disparate times. More specifically, the instructor controls the instructional sequencing and pacing and all learners participate in the same learning activities. The aim of the paper is to show the advantages and disadvantages of distance schooling during the Covid-19 lockdown, the emphasis being placed upon among others, the teacher – student relationship, the equipment conditions required for running an English lesson and working online, as well as some “food for thought” in the form of necessary changes and modifications to be introduced, which have been suggested by the sample in question. The respondents constitute 9 teachers from secondary schools, who have replied to an online questionnaire investigating the situation in Polish schools, concerning distance education, specifically teaching a FL. Apart from presenting the current state of affairs, some suggestions for the future are remarked upon.

Distance, Online and Blended Learning as Main Educational Trends During Pandemic 2020 Conditions

Distance learning and self-education have been an actual trend for many years but during the pandemic, it became critically relevant and important. The closure of schools and higher education institutions around the world had a negative impact on the educational sector in many countries in general and has affected almost every student and educator. This paper examines Ukrainian educators’ level of knowledge and skills in using modern distance learning tools and trends and the way of improving the teaching-learning process during the conditions of the 2020 pandemic. The authors present their review of educational trends under the conditions of distance, online and blended learning. They also examine the Ukrainian educators’ level of knowledge and skills in using modern distance learning tools and trends. For this purpose, the authors have elaborated and implemented a local survey for a Ukrainian university teaching staff (target group) who need to use distance learning tools in their research and professional activity during the quarantine. The authors also present the ways of improving the learning process via distance learning tools.

The Methodology of Using Augmented Reality Technology in the Training of Future Computer Science Teachers

The paper describes the concept of augmented reality. Based on literature analysis, the authors claim that augmented reality technology enriches human experiences with digital data. The introduction of augmented reality applications and services provides an opportunity to increase the realism of research, while also offering an enhanced emotional and cognitive experience. Therefore, it can be an effective tool for the organization of learning in schools, colleges and universities.Augmented reality technologies can be interesting as an object of study as well. To do this, scientists need to design, develop and test appropriate methodologies.This paper explores one of the components of such techniques. The authors analysed several platforms for creating augmented reality applications. Unity, Vuforia and 3d-Studio were chosen for the purpose of analysis. Using them, the authors developed a fragment of the content of education. It contains instructionsfor creating an augmented reality application. The paper contains the author’s account of the process of training future teachers of computer science at Ternopil Volodymyr Hnatiuk National Pedagogical University (Ukraine). Based on the conducted study, the authors claim that students showed considerable interest in augmented reality technologies and the content of their training.

Teaching in the Subject “Systems Interconnection” at Extremadura University

This work describes the teaching that is used in the subject of "Systems Interconnection" that is taught in the Higher Telecommunications Engineering of the University of Extremadura. Each of the sections that make up the subject are detailed, both the competences that the students will have as soon as they pass the subject, as well as the theoretical and practical contents taught therein. In addition, a summary is made of the teaching methodology used, the learning results, and finally ends detailing the evaluation methodology and above of all the academic results of the last courses, where an improvement in these results is observed, especially in the percentage of approved by reducing the sum of the percentages of unchanged and suspended.

Measuring Student Involvement When Taking Tests in E-learning Courses

The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has significantly affected the education process of young people in primary, secondary, and tertiary education, as well as those who improve their competences through various courses and trainings. The practically incessant lockdown in education has resulted in a situation in which distance learning, which most often plays a supplementary role, now constitutes the basic form of education. This situation has forced the selection and adaptation of the available e-learning tools to the types of classes and levels of education. Despite great progress in the development of e-learning technologies, constant stimulation and maintenance of students’ interest in the content presented and monitoring their activity still pose a problem, which also concerns the education of computer science students in issues related to computer graphics. Currently, the preferred model of distance learning is based on various technologies and IT tools that enable the implementation of synchronous and asynchronous work. Prompt acquisition of data on students’ activity allows trainers to adjust the form and content of the presented material to their expectations. It also makes it possible to identify issues that pose great difficulties to students. This paper discusses modern solutions and trends in designing e-learning courses based on the new interactive e-learning platform Quizer. The aim of the research is to determine the course effectiveness using the user activity-monitoring module designed and implemented for the Quizer e-learning platform. The correctness of the answers correlates with the number of attempts to answer it (−0.65). The time devoted to a given question was usually high for questions with low correctness of answers.

Editorial

International Journal of Research in E-learning Vol. 7 (1), 2021

Visual Literacy as a Dimension of the Young Generation’s Cultural Capital – Comparative Research

The subject of the research presented in the article, related to visual literacy, is to determine the scope and quality of the phenomenon of communication in the area of symbolic communication. Individual dispositions of information users were taken into account, creating a set of behaviors and reactions, views and concepts, personal beliefs and inclinations that determine the way of life and thinking – the so-called Habitus by Pierre Bourdieu. The aim was to create the characteristics of the examined representatives of the young generation and to determine their predispositions to symbolize (search for references). The research was carried out on two comparative groups of research participants from Poland and Italy in order to examine the quality of contemporary visual communication and the predisposition of information users to visualization, and their adaptation to the visual form of expression. The research meets the educational demand for a modern form of education, taking into account the modern informational live environment and media immersion in the visual reality of the participants of the education process.

Cloud-Based Knowledge and Glocal Dilemmas in Higher Education

The potential of cloud computing systems as a support tool for novel and meaningful knowledge creation, storage, and distribution within the context of higher education is recognised and so is the impact to which the global dimension imposes inherent ethical issues and social impacts within local contexts (glocality). Hitherto, mainstream literature debates on ethical issues like equity or cultural sensitivity, disregarding existent social dilemmas related to organizational innovation. This paper aims to promote a philosophical and empirical argument within contextual determinants; therefore, it reflects upon the key ethical issues and social dilemmas that cloud-based systems pose to distributed knowledge systems in the dialectic process of higher education diversity (global versus local). In this regard, an e-University strategic implementation framework interacting with ethics and culture (developed by the first co-author) will help two research objectives: to understand current e-learning practices in higher education and to suggest potential future guidelines for the dialectical process between the global and local.

The Use of Online Education by the Czech Population in the European Context

The article deals with online educational courses in the Czech Republic. The subject of the investigation is the participation of individuals between 16–74 years of age in online education in the Czech Republic and its development. The investigation also focuses on the computer skills of individuals and their development between 2005–2014, and also in 2017, depending on data availability. All the above-mentioned indicators were analysed and compared to the situation in the neighbouring countries and in the European context. The methods of analysis, synthesis and comparison were applied. The research showed that the number of individuals participating in courses in the Czech Republic was relatively low in comparison to other neighbouring countries, even though the advancement of computer skills in the Czech Republic was constantly increasing from 2005 to 2014.