Background: A lack of student 'buy-in' and engagement are often major obstacles in academic literacy courses. To create a dialogic learning environment which encourages student investment and challenges traditional student-lecturer hierarchies of power, the curriculum of a first-year academic literacy course at a South African university was…

This article explores the possibilities of a cheap one-dollar microscope, the Foldscope, for enhancing out-of-school science education. Developed by Manu Prakash and Jim Cybulski from Stanford University, these origami-type paper microscopes make it possible to provide all students with their own microscopes, due to the low cost. This provides…

Aim/Purpose: This study explored the use of e-portfolios in fostering student engagement with their lecturers, content, and other students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Background: Although e-portfolios are still a relatively new trend in developing countries, they are becoming an alternative teaching and learning tool in distance education and…

This paper contributes to the conceptualisation of digital literacy as a social practice. While previous studies have focused on student digital skills and digital practices in well-resourced environments, there is a research gap concerning digital literacy as a social practice in resource constrained environments, such as South African…

The current paper reports on a study that was conducted at the University of South Africa (UNISA) in 2021. The study involved three cohorts of undergraduate students (n = 20, n = 12 and n = 18), where each cohort participated in one of the virtual sessions offered on MS Teams as part of their modules' virtual classes. Employing a case study…

Educators are drawn into a battle for student attention and engagement in any learning environment. This article describes how a learning environment can be changed into a game-based activity to ensure student engagement. Modules aimed at the professional development of students present numerous challenges in the structuring of learning…

The transition to online learning at a time of intensive efforts to ensure that the academic project continued under the trying conditions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic placed intense pressure on both staff and students, increasing their workload. The increased workload placed students at a risk of burnout. While most burnout research…

Mathematics Education in South Africa continues to face complex, multifaceted challenges, but as data from this study show, there is reason for hope. The Western Cape Education Department recently implemented the Green Shoots Maths Curriculum Online (MCO) program in 500 of its primary schools. An ABC classification of affective, behavioural, and…

This study explores how academics create safe spaces in university classrooms to engage in dialogue about education protest actions in South Africa. Utilising the research methodology of narrative inquiry and the theoretical framework of Pedagogy of Compassion, this paper explores how academics reflect on their responses to change and protest…

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, technology-enhanced learning and its relation to student engagement, and the necessity of good student-staff relationships for creating a successful education environment were evident. The COVID-19 pandemic forced higher education to adapt to a challenging technology-led learning environment that demanded, inter alia,…

The South African Higher Education Institution (HEI) sector had to move to 'emergency' online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, and they embraced a humanistic approach underpinned by the need to complete the academic year in 2020 and support all students. Because this emergency online learning accelerated the digital shift, evidence of…

The study aims to understand the foremost challenges in the transition to online teaching and learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study adopts the PRISMA approach to screening the selection of journal articles and review papers according to the research aims and the inclusion criteria. The journal articles and review papers were extracted…

Language is an important element in the struggle for social change and decolonization within South African tertiary education. We explored the relationship between indigenous languages and cocurricular involvement to sense of belonging. Data were collected via a survey of 4210 students that included demographics, cocurricular involvement, and…

The use of learner modelling approaches is critical for providing adaptive support in educational computer games, with predictive learner modelling being among the key approaches. While adaptive supports have been shown to improve the effectiveness of educational games, improperly customized support can have negative effects on learning outcomes.…

Educational psychology professionals working in highly unequal societies require training that prepares them to resile professionally irrespective of on-going hardship and a lack of policy-level support. Educational psychology professionals who had participated in a school-based intervention study in a remote high school during their training at…