Digital teaching survey spotlight

Resources addressing the key concerns of academics around the world

Spotlight 3

This collection of resources aims to address key challenges highlighted by academics in our Digital Teaching Survey.

Notable areas of concern were the mental health of staff and students, soaring workloads, the risk of disengagement and regression on diversity and accessibility agendas.

The resources in our inaugural Spotlight collection are contributed by academics from all around the globe and offer insight and advice to help fellow educators mitigate or overcome these challenges.

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Miranda Prynne

Campus

Protecting mental health and wellbeing

Advice for stressed academics on managing workloads

This is not normal: advice for stressed academics

With the overhaul of teaching, soaring workloads, childcare demands and other challenges presented by Covid-19, many academics are at risk of burn-out. Psychology professor Jay Van Bavel outlines steps that stressed lecturers can take to manage workloads

Jay Van Bavel

New York University

How to manage your busyness to avoid burnout

How to manage your busyness to avoid burnout

Overwork and stress are growing issues among academics, particularly following the sudden transition to online teaching. Erin Wilson talks through how she manages her busyness to avoid burnout

Erin Wilson

University of Groningen

How the Open University of Hong Kong is offering socio-emotional learning to protect student well-being

Socio-emotional learning online: boosting student resilience and well-being

The Covid-19 crisis has led to worsening mental health and increased stress among students. Kathleen Chim talks about how the Open University of Hong Kong has tried to build students’ mental resilience through socio-emotional learning

Benjamin Tak Yuen Chan, Kathleen Chim

Hong Kong Metropolitan University

Selecting digital tools that support your pedagogy and teaching strategies

Steps universities should take to support staff with digital teaching

For many academics, the move to online education has been a leap into the unknown. Gunter Saunders explains what institutions can do to support and train staff in this new mode of teaching, for the present and future

Gunter Saunders

University of Westminster

Creating online teaching principles that actually help faculty

Amanda Sykes talks about how to develop online teaching resources around a set of simple guiding principles that are immediately accessible and helpful for faculty trying to get to grips with new digital pedagogies

Amanda Sykes

University of Glasgow

Keeping remote students on track

Tips to help students stay focused in online classes

Seven steps to help students stay engaged online

While the same psychological processes are at work online as in the classroom, it is much easier for students to disengage when learning remotely. Here are seven well-researched steps to help students stay focused on their online courses

Leonard Houx, André Spicer

Cass Business School, City University of London

Tips on using technology to identify and help struggling students before they fall behind in online courses

Use technology to catch students before they fall

Working remotely with no face-to-face contact is a challenge for many students. May Lim and Li Siong Lim explain how educators can use technology to identify and help struggling students before they fall behind

May Lim

Singapore Institute of Technology

Advice on designing online assessment that reduces the opportunity or temptation to cheat

Designing online assessment to prevent academic misconduct

Traditional proctored exams rarely work when teaching online so instructors must rely on careful assessment design to minimise the risk of cheating, explain Patrick Harte and Fawad Khaleel

Patrick Harte , Fawad Khaleel

Edinburgh Napier University

Equitable online learning

Bridging the digital divide: online courses with equity at their core

Otito Iwuchukwu talks about how to take an equity-first approach to delivering online courses to ensure all students can access the resources they need and have their voices heard

Otito Frances Iwuchukwu

Fairleigh Dickinson University

Online alone is not the answer – how to design remote courses with accessibility and inclusivity in mind

Digital accessibility is crucial in online teaching, says Amy Low. Here, she outlines what universities need to consider when designing inclusive online courses

Amy Low

AbilityNet