This invited article provides a comprehensive overview of the history and development of distance learning in Aotearoa New Zealand's school sector over the past century. It begins with a discussion of creating a common language to describe distance learning. The article then transitions to its main focus on the history of distance…

University of Canterbury, as an institution, had developed strong educational resilience during and after the 2010-11 earthquakes. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, New Zealand shut down all university educational facilities in March 2020, with education migrated online. Within this unique context, this research aims to (1) investigate civil…

The worldwide disruption of higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic has been studied from the viewpoints of institutions and teachers, with some attention to students' health and learning challenges. Attempts to theorise the diverse and conflicting challenges faced by students learning online during the pandemic have been limited. It is…

Although Chinese has become one of the most influential second/foreign languages in the world, teaching Chinese as a foreign/second language (CSL/CFL) abroad faces great challenges. M-learning and mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) display great advantages to facilitate second language learning, including CSL/CFL. However, most research was…

Against a global pandemic, student care is in sharp focus for higher education institutions (HEIs) as students and institutions learn to navigate this context. Despite this, tensions exist between approaches to care and its value in HEIs. The neoliberalism underpinning HEIs results in the practice of care often being minimised. This is problematic…

Criticisms have been levelled at e-research that limited knowledge has been produced helpful for guiding educators in using digital tools more effectively for teaching and learning. This issue has become more acute with the emergence of mobile devices that enable learners to transition across different learning spaces and times. Traditional data…

This paper describes the organisational development of virtual learning in networked rural schools in New Zealand, specifically the obstacles that e-learning clusters of rural schools face in their journey to sustainability and maturity through the lens of the Ministry's Learning Communities Online Handbook. Analysis of a nationwide purposeful…

E-learning experiences are widely becoming common practice in many schools, tertiary institutions and other organisations. However despite this increased use of technology to enhance learning and the associated investment involved the result does not always equate to more engaged, knowledgeable and skilled learners. We have observed two key…

This article looks into the uses of digital and online tools in distance learning to improve literacy and numeracy of offenders in New Zealand prisons. Looking at the benefits and restrictions of digital education within the prison environment, this article discusses the solutions that Open Polytechnic, in partnership with the the New Zealand…

Educators, policymakers, and parents alike are focused on ensuring the academic success of the nation's students. These efforts interact with the expanding use of technology, which affects the lives of students both inside and outside of the classroom. Thus, the role that technology plays in education is an evolving area of research that continues…

In this paper, we examine interviews with 34 stakeholders including tutors, administrators and adult education policy analysts who were working in the area of adult numeracy and/or literacy education. This provided opportunities for our research team to build up a clearer picture of the current status, plans, benefits and barriers related to…

This research paper reports the findings from an international survey of fieldwork practitioners on their use of technology to enhance fieldwork teaching and learning. It was found that there was high information technology usage before and after time in the field, but some were also using portable devices such as smartphones and global…

This paper examines the challenges that "grass roots" e-learning initiatives face in trying to become sustainable. A cross-institutional study focused on local, rather than centrally driven, initiatives. A number of successful e-learning innovations were identified that had been driven by capable teachers seeking solutions to real…

Many adults need help with literacy learning. This is extremely challenging for the tertiary education sector and workplace-situated learning organisations. E-learning may be an effective and efficient way to improve the delivery of teaching of basic skills to learners. Our research study included five embedded case studies within one tertiary…

An innovative ICT project called "Compose" has been implemented in some New Zealand primary schools in an effort to counteract the lack of classroom composition opportunities. "Compose" combines the use of music software and online learning with attempts to address barriers to primary classroom composition. This article…