Read the latest edition of the Journal of Open, Flexible and Distance Learning – FLANZ’s Journal!
Available now at http://www.jofdl.nz/index.php/JOFDL or via the FLANZ website under Publications.
The current issue of the Journal of Open, Flexible and Distance Learning (JOFDL) begins with a thought-provoking editorial considering the issue of how open, flexible, and distance learning are delivered and received in the post-truth world. Increased skills in information literacy and digital literacy are becoming fundamental in this new landscape, enabling able learners to navigate their way in this new world with an open mind and a critical eye. There will be changes for educators as well, as we try to manage teaching and learning in this new setting.
This issue follows with five articles which all originate from the Flexible Learning Association of New Zealand (FLANZ) 2016 conference. Each started as a conference submission and has since been developed into a full journal article.
- Alahmadi and Drew describe research undertaken to evaluate the accessibility of several top-ranked university websites for students with disabilities in the Oceanian and Arab regions.
- Osborne and Dibben’s article reports on a University of Tasmania initiative, in which “breadth units” in the degree structure have the dual purpose of developing transdisciplinary approaches to interpreting the complex challenges of the real world and, in the process, evidencing student experience. Adam returns to a theme featured in recent issues, that of culture.
- Adam argues that teachers’ pedagogical and technological practices cannot be fully understood without considering social and cultural norms, and explores this in teacher educators’ practices in a Maldivian university context.
- Moore and Greenland present the findings from a large qualitative study from Australia’s largest online tertiary provider, Open Universities Australia (OUA), exploring assessment policy practices as they relate to student attrition.
- Tull, Dabner, and Ayebi-Arthur report on findings from several studies that identified resilient practices at the University of Canterbury as a result of Christchurch earthquakes in 2010 and 2011. Results demonstrated that combining the use of social media and e-learning for teaching, learning, and communication encouraged resilience not only among students but also among staff and throughout the organisation.
Something for everyone!
By Alison Fields, JOFDL Editor in Chief