Traditionally, academics in higher education relied on lectures, seminars, and textbooks for face-to-face instruction. However, technology integration in education has transformed the landscape, enhancing engagement, active learning, and personalised instruction, prompting academics to rethink their teaching methods. Anchored in social…

This paper explores how academics navigate the Higher Education (HE) landscape being reshaped by the convergence of unbundling, marketisation and digitisation processes. Social Realism distinguishes three layers of social reality (in this case higher education): the empirical, the actual and the real. The empirical layer is presented by the…

The outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic was declared a public health emergency of international concern. In South Africa (SA), institutions had to adopt emergency remote education, thus resulting in significant challenges for both students and lecturers. This article investigated students' views and perceptions towards emergency remote education.…

Open distance e-learning (ODeL) is an essential form of e-learning for students in South Africa. It allows expanded access to higher education for students from rural or socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds. One of the key features of ODeL is that students can complete coursework modules virtually, without the need to step onto a physical…

Distance education celebrates its humanitarian mission of providing opportunities for disadvantaged and marginalized individuals who do not have access to traditional campus-based higher education. Large enrolments of students necessitate an industrialized approach in planning, design, and delivery informed by a normative assumption of ableism. In…

The South African Higher Education sector has undergone major transformation since the end of Apartheid more than 25 years ago. Critical digital literacies and critical (digital) citizenship, aligns with the most important aspects of the transformation agenda, 'the production of socially conscious graduates that will become the thinkers and…

The history, development, products, and impact of image-making are well-represented in literature. The literature looks extensively at the technological developments and advancements in the field and how photography has contributed to our understanding of historical, political and social tensions. However, the training and preparation of…

The COVID-19 pandemic created the need for a global change in tertiary education. Universities that traditionally relied on contact with students in physical classrooms were forced to consider modes of remote teaching to mitigate the risks of infection due to physical proximity. This study evaluates the emergency remote teaching implemented within…

Distance education reaches out to non-traditional students in geographically dispersed locations, who are unable to attend face-to-face classes. Contact institutions have been quick to realise the many advantages of distance (online) learning, such as easy access to learning materials, interactive activities, assessment and communication tools.…

Online teaching results in knowledge-building. Knowledge-building is the teaching and learning process that helps academics and students to generate specific personal values used to understand their personal identities. Academics have been forced by COVID-19 lockdowns to go online in teaching their students. The purpose of this study is to explore…

The use of social media platforms to facilitate teaching and learning requires resources (hardware and Internet access) to enable active student participation. Limited access to these resources may impair students' learning and, should the students consequently fail to graduate, tacitly contribute to their social exclusion. The results of a survey…

Siyavula is known as a pioneer developer of high-quality free digital maths and science textbooks to address resource gaps and disadvantage in South African schools. This case study identifies the success factors which could be replicated in other contexts. Siyavula has developed expertise in digital developing, editing and improving maths and…

While literature reveals the positive perception of online learning, this study examines the issues caused by the digital divide for students at South African universities during the 2020 academic year. The study reveals the perceptions and experiences of university students from historically marginalised and privileged universities. This research…

The purpose of this research is to analyse the support that lecturers need to be able to implement a blended learning approach successfully. Blended learning is now seen as an approach that can create engaging learning environments, to enhance students' self-directed learning and improve the whole learning experience. The study investigated the…

Background: Students' well preparedness for laboratory sessions is of importance for a number of reasons including them being able to engage in and learn from the session and in acquiring the necessary laboratory skills needed for the scientific community and for possible further work in industry. To enhance the preparedness of the students an…