Virtual Education

RESUMEN
El presente artículo se propone reconstruir un estado de situación a partir de las experiencias y representaciones de docentes y estudiantes, durante el período de cuarentena obligatoria, en el contexto de la pandemia mundial por Covid-19. A partir de ello se intenta contribuir a profundizar el debate acerca de las transformaciones y prob-lemáticas emergentes que están teniendo lugar en el marco de la llamada educación virtual, prestando especial atención al actual escenario que se abre a la par de la implementación de políticas de confinamiento o aislamiento preventivo. Se espera que una lectura como esta, en clave de acceso, usos y problemas permita seguir de cerca las desigualdades que afectan a los países de nuestra región.

ABSTRACT
This article aims to reconstruct a state of a situation based on the experiences and representations of teachers and students, during the period of compulsory quarantine, in the context of the global pandemic by Covid-19. From this, an attempt is made to contribute to deepening the debate about the transformations and emerging problems that are taking place within the framework of the so-called virtual education, paying special attention to the current scenario that is opening up alongside the implementation of confinement policies or preventive isolation. It is expected that reading like this, in terms of access, uses, and problems will allow us to closely follow the inequalities that affect the countries of our region.

Following the spread of COVID-19, many parts of the world have fully shifted to virtual education. Issues regarding students’ readiness for this mode of education have been the main concerns in countries where students are not used to virtual classes. This article presents a case study that investigated the perceptions of Saudi university students towards learning via Blackboard, during the unusual mode of delivering education caused by Covid-19. The aim was to identify the merits and challenges of online learning in order to understand the students’ learning experiences during the pandemic period and suggest practical solutions. The participants were 25 university students majoring in the English language at the bachelor of arts level. The instructor (the author) taught them classes on morphology. Based on an analysis of the students’ learning logs, the students preferred the asynchronous environment to the synchronous one due to its flexibility. However, unlike research findings identified in relevant studies on virtual education for language learning, the present study reveals that virtual education is not always appealing for students. This study is one of the few studies that compare the synchronous and asynchronous aspects of BB in the Arabian contexts. It is hoped that this study will help university authorities to set out more practical educational plans in the case of emergencies. Also, this study will inform the practices of university instructors and designers of professional development courses in the near future.

The Pandemic generated by COVID-19 worldwide has come to change the geopolitical, economic and social panorama, but based on a
situation that was already unstable and highly fragile. Additionally, the virus has impacted society and education, its influence on higher education has been especially sensitive. This essay has three parts. An analysis of COVID19 at a global level and its consequences; its impact on higher education; and a case study on the implications of COVID-19 for higher education and postgraduate studies in Chile, especially referred to virtual education.

The access to university and the continuation of education for people in refugee situation are investigated herein as from four initial questions: how did Covid-19 find society and this is cause displacement cases?; what is a refugee’s situation in the process of the world interruption of face-to-face education?; what are the conditions for refugees to migrate to virtual education?; and what are the actions and responsibilities of international organizations (IOs) concerned with education? ...

A mixed-methods study examines the impact of the pandemic-driven move to virtual learning on K-12 (kindergarten through twelfth grade) English teacher experiences in Saudi Arabia to inform future development of the teaching of English in the country. Research is limited in K-12 English instruction in the country, and it is just emerging on the pandemic’s impact on education in the MENA region. The 35 subjects were English educators who completed the Saudi government-sponsored professional development program, Khbrat, at one U.S. university. Contextualized within the literature on technology in instruction, leadership frameworks, and Vision 2030 education reforms, the study explores the convergence of technological, institutional, and socio-cultural factors affecting innovation in English education to address the research question of how the pandemic has impacted Khbrat graduates as EFL teachers and as change agents in their country. Integrated analysis of survey and interview data reveals patterns of both acceleration and constraint. Findings suggest pathways to leverage virtual technology and acquired knowledge and skills of Khbrat English teacher graduates to deliver EFL professional development with a more pedagogical focus and to build coalitions among EFL educators to sustain the forward movement of innovation in English education in post-pandemic Saudi Arabia. The study concludes with recommendations for future applications.

El  artículo  indaga  y  propone  elementos  para  la  reflexión  sobre  la incorporación  de  las  Tecnologías  de  la  Información  y  la  Comunicación  (TIC), a través de prácticas discursivas de convergencia y flexibilidad como parte de una estrategia de saber/poder sostenida en el tiempo, en el proceso de tecnologización de las prácticas pedagógicas. Para tal efecto, se  propone  una  aproximación  arqueológica-genealógica  que  da  cuenta  sobre cómo se configura un sujeto para el rendimiento.

El presente artículo se propone reconstruir un estado de situación a partir de las experiencias y representaciones de docentes y estudiantes, durante el período de cuarentena obligatoria, en el contexto de la pandemia mundial por Covid-19. A partir de ello se intenta contribuir a profundizar el debate acerca de las transformaciones y problemáticas emergentes que están teniendo lugar en el marco de la llamada educación virtual, prestando especial atención al actual escenario que se abre a la par de la implementación de políticas de confinamiento o aislamiento preventivo. Se espera que una lectura como esta, en clave de acceso, usos y problemas permita seguir de cerca las desigualdades que afectan a los países de nuestra región.

Following the spread of COVID-19, many parts of the world have fully shifted to virtual education. Issues regarding students' readiness for this mode of education have been the main concerns in countries where students are not used to virtual classes. This article presents a case study that investigated the perceptions of Saudi university students towards learning via Blackboard, during the unusual mode of delivering education caused by Covid-19. The aim was to identify the merits and challenges of online learning in order to understand the students' learning experiences during the pandemic period and suggest practical solutions. The participants were 25 university students majoring in the English language at the bachelor of arts level. The instructor (the author) taught them classes on morphology. Based on an analysis of the students' learning logs, the students preferred the asynchronous environment to the synchronous one due to its flexibility. However, unlike research findings identified in relevant studies on virtual education for language learning, the present study reveals that virtual education is not always appealing for students. This study is one of the few studies that compare the synchronous and asynchronous aspects of BB in the Arabian contexts. It is hoped that this study will help university authorities to set out more practical educational plans in the case of emergencies. Also, this study will inform the practices of university instructors and designers of professional development courses in the near future.

El presente artículo se propone reconstruir un estado de situación a partir de las experiencias y representaciones de docentes y estudiantes, durante el período de cuarentena obligatoria, en el contexto de la pandemia mundial por Covid-19. A partir de ello se intenta contribuir a profundizar el debate acerca de las transformaciones y problemáticas emergentes que están teniendo lugar en el marco de la llamada educación virtual, prestando especial atención al actual escenario que se abre a la par de la implementación de políticas de confinamiento o aislamiento preventivo. Se espera que una lectura como esta, en clave de acceso, usos y problemas permita seguir de cerca las desigualdades que afectan a los países de nuestra región.

The aim of this study was to identify the challenges of the quality evaluation of virtual education curriculum. To this end, the descriptive survey method was used. The study population included the entire virtual education faculty members of Shahid Beheshti University, which were 48 individuals selected as the statistical sample according to Morgan table and proportional stratified random sampling. To collect the data of the study, a researcher-developed questionnaire was applied. Teachers’ and experts’ viewpoints were used to determine the validity of the questionnaire, and the reliability of the questionnaire was calculated 0.89 using Cronbach's alpha. To analyze the data, descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics (one-sample t-test and t-test for two independent groups) were employed. The research findings showed that from the faculty members’ point of view, the evaluation of e-learning curriculum at the management and executive dimensions (M: 2.36), and also at the definitional and professional dimensions (M: 2.51) was challenging. The evaluation of e-learning curriculum of Shahid Beheshti University faces some challenges; however, E-learning management of Shahid Beheshti University can solve the problems and obstacles through making decisions in accordance with the results of the study and the implementation of effective systems for monitoring and evaluating.

Articol publicat în Tribuna Învățământului.
a XVIII-a ediție a Conferinței Naționale de Învățământ Virtual, 2020, în condiții de pandemie a avut peste 16.000 de participanți.
Această ediție a arătat cu claritate că există o comunitate formată în jurul proiectului. Comunitate formată din profesioniști ai educației și ai utilizării calculatorului ca mijloc complementar pentru educație și formare.

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have greatly affected our professional and personal lives in a short time. One of the areas most affected by these technologies is education. The role of ICTs in learning is significant, and today, we can see virtual learning courses in many academic fields. On the other hand, one of the most important functions of academic libraries is supporting the educational programs. With the advances in ICTs, the structure, space, and services provided by academic libraries also changed and we have witnessed a great increase in electronic resources and services in libraries. Due to these changes, libraries managed to continue their support role even in virtual education programs. Since joining libraries, ICTs and education together can have significant effects on virtual learning, this study first investigates the marketing of library services and the role of academic libraries in virtual education programs, and later discusses various library services that can be helpful in virtual learning programs such as preparation and access to information sources, digital reference services, and teaching of information literacy. Finally, the most important skills for librarians in the virtual education environment are investigated.

The Philippines is one of many developing countries that has begun using the Internet to establish closer communication with entities abroad. Some educational institutions have begun engaging in Internet-based distance education to provide accessible, anytime, anywhere education. These ventures have focused on the tertiary level and post-graduate level of education. The quality of the Internet education that they provide has shown them to be at par with western institutions. However, in the primary and secondary levels of education, the situation is one of a large disparity between the levels of education provided by public and private schools of the nation. Many public educational facilities are located in remote areas where they do not even have electricity, telephone facilities, let alone Internet access. Due to lack of funding, the government has been forced to focus first on providing these schools with the most basic of amenities. Aside from these efforts, the government has a...

The study aims to shed some light on pedagogical and learning issues that have cropped up during the pandemic for transitioning from traditional classrooms to entirely virtual learning. The study reflects how the paradigm shift can directly or indirectly affect the soft skills of all parties involved in the success or the failure of an educational system. An in-depth focus group discussion methodology was used to collect information in this qualitative study. Thirty faculty who taught online courses at the tertiary level were selected for the discussions. They provide significant insights about how the fully online learnings continued longer than the anticipated timelines impact the pedagogical value and the futurity of an individual's educational goals. The study shows that embracing the virtual approach in teaching can promote teachers' innovativeness by using various new applications and digital tools but bring new challenges for dealing with diverse learning styles.

Objectives Considering the contradictory evidence on the effectiveness of educational technologies, this meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the impact of these technologies on medical education. Data Sources This meta-analysis was conducted based on secondary analysis methods. The analysis included experimental and semi-experimental studies on the effectiveness of educational technologies in the medical education of Iran. The census sampling method was applied in this study, and 54 studies were identified as relevant based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. For data collection, a researcher-made checklist consisting of three sections, i.e., bibliographic information, methodological information, and findings, was completed. Finally, the Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA) software was used for analysis of data. Results Among different educational technologies, multimedia education, E-learning, and computer-mediated learning using compact discs and software packages had significant effects on medical education; therefore, use of these technologies was effective in medical education. According to our findings, multimedia education (effect size, 1.793) was considered to be the most influential virtual technology in medical education. In general, all educational technologies were effective in the medical education of Iran; however, their effectiveness was insubstantial. Considering the area under the normal curve, the average effectiveness of educational technologies was 63% higher in the virtual education groups, compared to the controls without virtual education. Conclusions One of the most important issues in medical education and training is preparation of an engaging learning environment for students, which can be realized through a variety of educational technologies. However, for optimal effectiveness, complementary use of virtual technologies along with traditional methods or their integration in other educational approaches is suggested.

In the present situation virtual education has made emphasis on educational technology and communication system. It is expected that approaches of Virtual Education during COVID19 Pandemic would give a paradigm shift to higher education from its traditional form to a program relevant to the context of present education. The real intellectual challenge of teaching lies in the opportunity for individual teachers to observe the impact of their teaching on students learning. The crucial step is to incorporate ICT appropriately in the curricula of higher education programs. This would enable the prospective teachers as well as in service higher education teachers to implement ICT successfully in the teaching-learning situation for the promotion of virtual education. In the context of globalization, we are studying and using different approaches, ways of teaching and different media. The objective of the paper was to find out how teachers with the use of the latest technologies have learnt to transform their thinking and feelings which help them not only to transfer their expressions of content but they have developed the courage to act out their values with the help of virtual education. This paper has majorly tried to focus the different methods of virtual learning in promoting Higher Order Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills.

The use of virtual reality is spreading in museums and cultural heritage settings, offering new opportunities both for archaeological, art-historical and other related scholarship, but also for public education and interpretation activities, which can be impressive and entertaining. ...

Background and Objective: Due to the change in educational methods and virtualization of university classrooms following the COVID-19 epidemic, after the necessary activities in this regard, in order to examine students' feedback on what they experienced during the academic year 1399-1400, in this Study we measured the satisfaction of students of Self-Governing Campus of Babol University of Medical Sciences about virtual education.
Methods: In this cross-sectional study, the level of students' satisfaction with virtual education and end-of-semester tests was assessed using a researcher-made questionnaire. The poll was conducted through the Faradid system. Results were reported in frequency and frequency percentage.
Findings: A total of 250 students with 66.85% participation in 4 fields of general medicine, general dentistry, bachelor of physiotherapy and bachelor of nursingparticipated in the study. The general satisfaction of students with virtual education, and the possibility of establishing a two-way relationship between professors and students and providing appropriate feedback, all 4 disciplines were moderate satisfaction. Regarding the evaluation method at the end of the semester, 84.5% of students had average and lower level of satisfaction. Regarding the preferred teaching method, the choice of students in all fields was face-to-face teaching method.
Conclusion: Given the current situation and accepting the fact that education should move towards virtualization, it seems that more decision should be taken to raise the quality of e-learning so that interactive methods can take their place in the method of education.

This article aims to reflect on the strategies for implementing a digital writing center in secondary education, taking into account that this is not a space for correction, but for training better writers. A case study is developed in two educational institutions, one public and one private. Its scope is exploratory and descriptive, due to the fact that this type of experience is not known in Colombian secondary education. From theoretical and practical relationships, the mechanisms of participation and interaction for students, teachers and teachers/tutors are described, but in the process, both the didactic approach and the technological and human resources of the educational institution must be considered.

La sociedad del conocimiento está generando cambios en los procesos formativos de los estudiantes universitarios. Las nuevas tecnologías están transformando la ecología del aula, motivo por el cual, la Universidad Autónoma de Chihuahua oferta virtualmente las materias básicas universitarias mediante la plataforma Moodle, con el propósito de facilitar el aprendizaje en colaboración con otros. Además, al ser asincrónico, el estudiante tiene el control de lo que aprende, cómo lo aprende y cuándo lo aprende. Por lo que fue importante, construir un estado del arte sobre la virtualidad, mediante una investigación documental que se desarrolló aplicando la hermenéutica y heurística. Se realizó a través de indagación bibliográfica de artículos y documentos institucionales que proporcionen este acercamiento a la información relevante, a la concepción teórica del actual modelo educativo. Los hallazgos y discusión se centraron en coincidencias en los modelos educativos de las instituciones que deben tener un sentido humanista, innovador y pertinente en relación con las necesidades que el país requiere. Desde esta perspectiva, es en la universidad donde se debe de formar a los estudiantes para hacer frente a los retos que seguramente desafiarán cuando ejerzan su carrera.

_____________________________________________________________

Virtualization in basic university subjects: a conceptual study

The  knowledge  society  is  generating  changes  in  the  training  processes  of  university students.  The  new  technologies  are  transforming  the  ecology  of  the  classroom,  which  is why the Autonomous University of Chihuahua offers virtually the basic university subjects through the Moodle platform, with the purpose of facilitating learning in collaboration with others. In addition, being asynchronous, the student has control over what he learns, how he learns  it  and  when  he  learns  it.  So  it  was  important  to  build  a  state  of  the  art  about virtuality,  through  a  documentary  research  that  was  developed  applying  hermeneutics  and heuristics.  It  was  carried  out  through  bibliographic  research  of  articles  and  institutional documents  that  provide  this  approach  to  the  relevant  information,  to  the  theoretical conception  of  the  current  educational  model.  The  findings  and  discussion  focused  on coincidences  in  the  educational  models  of  the  institutions  that  should  have  a  humanistic, innovative  and  relevant  sense  in  relation  to  the  needs  that  the  country  requires.  From  this perspective, it is at the university where students must be trained to face the challenges that they will surely challenge when they pursue their career.

Virtual Education was born in 2002 from a joint project between the Center for Improvement, Experimentation and Pedagogical Research CPEIP and the Center for Education and Technology Links. CPEIP has developed a line of distance teacher training through the Internet running several courses since 2002, and Links during the last 15 years has dedicated its efforts to provide teachers and students access to educational opportunities associated with new information and communication technologies. Both institutions decided to combine their efforts and develop a joint project that integrates the CPEIP distance teacher training line, so far aimed at the curricular update, different strategies to support the appropriation of ICTs and their curricular integration.

Virtual learning nowadays allows to reach broad audiences and thus enables to contribute to the education for sustainable development. More and more educational institutions all over the world offer to enrol into distant learning courses or even attain higher education online. The newest methods for learning based on the internet, reveal new tendencies when learners are understood as active participants of the learning process. By communicating with teachers and discussing the content with other course participants they consciously build their perception. Nowadays the world museums are understood as an integral part of formal and non-formal education. The newest and quickly developing technologies and the internet, possibilities for the new virtual education emerge. The museums have already started using it. One can outline educational museum website type which functions as a virtual learning platform. This is one of the most commonly used types worldwide. Furthermore, education in the museum space is started to be elaborated when using social networking accounts. Virtual museum education on their internet websites is usually created based on museum's collection. It is usually directed to the presentation of the broader contextual information which would not be found or attainable during the typical visit to the museum. In the worldwide practice, museums are collaborating with formal education institutions and trying to integrate virtual museum education in the formal educational system, preparing the courses and classes based on the material about museum's collection. One of the virtual education types is digitalized collection catalogues, video conferences, courses and classes, as well as educational games. The above mentioned are used in the museum websites. In the websites of the biggest and renowned world fine art museums, one can find various educational activities based on the collection they preserve. However, most common are educational games designed for the diverse age groups. The attitude of visitors towards the development of virtual education usage in Lithuanian art museums is positive. However, museum education in the virtual space of museums is almost non-existent. The most common practice is the digitalization of museum collection which is found on the museum's website. There are also low interactive educational games which are not engaging and do not allow to get acquainted with the exhibits of the museum. For this reason, when compared to international museum practise, the possibilities for the development of virtual education in Lithuania art museums are not fully used.

امروزه ایجاد همسویی و تناسب میان آموزش زبان‌های خارجی و بستر فرهنگی به‌عنوان یکی از مهم‌ترین ابعاد مؤثر در بهبود توان خواندن و درک زبان‌آموزان مطرح است. پژوهش حاضر، با هدف بررسی تأثیر پیوند شکل مجازی ورزش‌های باستانی ایرانی-اسلامی در فرایند آموزش زبان انگلیسی با اهداف ویژه به 52 نفر از دانشجویان دختر و پسر رشته‌ی تربیت بدنی در دانشگاه پیام‌نور استان اصفهان انجام شد. نمونه‌ی آماری به‌شیوه‌ی نمونه‌گیری متقاعد‌کننده و بعد از هم‌گون‌سازی از طریق برگزاری آزمون بسندگی مهارت انگلیسی انتخاب و به‌شیوه‌ی غیر‌تصادفی به دو گروه 26 نفری تقسیم شدند تا تمرین‌های خواندن انگلیسی را در گرو‌ه‌های دو‌نفری به دو شیوه‌ی متفاوت در قالب ورزش‌های مجازی بومی و غیربومی تمرین کنند. این پژوهش از نظر هدف، کاربردی و از نظر شیوه‌ی پژوهش، سه‌بعدی بود. ابزار جمع آوری اطلاعات، استفاده از پیمایش رغبت، ارزیابی مستمر پیشرفت آزمودنی‌ها و مصاحبه‌ی نیمه‌ساختار یافته با روایی و پایایی قابل قبول بود. علاوه بر آمار توصیفی، داده‌ها در سطح استنباطی (میانگین، انحراف معیار و آزمون تی مستقل) نیز تحلیل شد. افزایش نمرات عمل‌کرد ثانویه آزمودنی‌ها (میانگین = 22/14) نسبت به عمل‌کرد اولیه‌ی آن‌ها (میانگین = 16/13) روندی صعودی را نشان می‌داد. همچنین یافته‌ها از اختلاف معنادار بین میزان پیشرفت دو گروه حکایت می‌کرد (01/0p < ). سطح مهارت خواندن انگلیسی آزمودنی‌ها در ارتباط دو سویه میان عناصر یاد‌دهی و فرهنگی شکل می‌گیرد به‌گونه‌ای که عمل‌کرد و روی‌کرد آن‌ها با تمرین خواندن به‌واسطه‌ی ورزش پهلوانی سازگارتر بود. با بررسی پیشینه پژوهش و نتایج حاصل، توجه به ورزش‌های پهلوانی اسلامی-ایرانی در تهیه و تولید محتوای آموزشی انگلیسی برای دانشجویان حوزه‌ی تربیت‌بدنی به‌عنوان عضوی مهم از طلایه‌داران ورزش کشور ضروری به‌نظر می‌رسد.

Library and Information Science (LIS) education through Open Distance Learning can develop sustainable education practices by effective and optimum use of ICT thereby providing a vibrant educational environment for distant students, educators and researchers. The benefits to the students includes: unparalleled access to geo-distant tutors, professionals and experts in every field; flexible meeting times; experiencing content in exclusive formats; and acquiring information literacy. This paper throws light on some of the latest ICT technologies for LIS education in particular and Second Life Virtual worlds for Libraries and sustainable learning opportunities.