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Henry

I currently work at an international school where my job is preparing students in the skills needed for successful university entrance and study. The majority of my work over the last decade has been teaching English for Academic Purposes (EAP) to university undergraduates but also postgraduate students. COVID-19 has shifted the delivery of that work online and I am sure it will cause us to start seeing open education much more as part of the future. Since the advent of the pandemic, the use of educational applications, platforms and resources aimed at helping students and faculty facilitate flexible learning has undergone a surge. The aim now is to ensure it has a wider reach, and a stronger user-base and impact. The intention behind this site is to be part of that process.

Clare

I have taught maths, computing and sports science at undergraduate level for approx 12 years now, and recently gave up my career as a software developer to study for a PhD and (hopefully) move into research.

The coronavirus pandemic has made everyone reflect on how they teach, and I am hopeful that people start to realise that online doesn’t have to be “less” than it’s face to face counterpart going forward. I hope that part of this project is justifying the move to a more open approach to education, and the use of eLearning within that.

Yvonne

I work at a University in Switzerland. I work for IT and for the Teaching Innovation Lab directly supporting and advising teaching staff on course design and online learning.

The Covid-19 situation resulted in a complete lockdown here. The university's strategy is face-to-face teaching. We quickly had to adapt to online teaching, so teaching could continue.

This project is important, as I have experienced this transition myself in the last few months and know the difficulties and challenges this causes. I hope this project will help to reflect how teaching will look in the long-term and to explore new angles in this context, as Covid-19 might stay with us for a while.

Jennifer

I teach Psychology and Mental Health Sciences at undergraduate and postgraduate levels in the UK, with a specialisation in online and blended learning.

Covid-19 has led to an unprecedented mass migration from face-to-face teaching to online courses. As a consequence, both students and educators had to rapidly adapt and acquire new skills. This change came with new oppoortunities but also new challenges. On the one hand, conventional advice for online teaching may not always work for courses that are only moved online temporarily - especially if they are required to be planned 'just in case', in addition to the campus-based version of the course. On the other hand, learning how to design effective online teaching materials is a valuable experience, that has the potential to lead to more equality and inclusion in Higher Education long-term.

Lida

I’ve been working in English language teaching (ELT) for four years. Until March, I taught at a small language school in Edinburgh, mostly catering to teenagers on short-term study trips. I also work with kids, teenagers, and adults online. I planned on moving completely online later this year. Covid-19 has made this transition a lot faster and not as smooth as I hoped for.

Since the start of the pandemic, and the closure of most educational institutions, schools around the world have tried to adapt existing curriculums to online learning. For some, the inability to do this quickly and effectively has led to negativity and pushback from students and parents alike. Despite this, I hope the pandemic can show the potential of elearning when done right, rather than sour the taste of it for the next few generations of students.

Colleen

I work as an Assistive Technology Tutor for a few independent training companies in the UK. My job involves providing training on a one-to-one basis in devices, software or specialised equipment for disabled university students, which removes barriers to learning by integrating assistive technologies into their learning environment. In addition, I have fourteen years of experience in teaching basic introductory courses in Information, Communication and Technology to older learners in Adult and Community Learning at a Further Education College in Hampshire, England. Furthermore, I am a qualified National Vocational Qualifications (NVQ) assessor, training and assessing people working towards NVQs in the UK and have gained a Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages through Trinity College of London in 2008.

The Covid-19 pandemic has enforced remote learning on all learners and consequently has added to the many challenges disadvantaged learners suffer daily. These learner support needs remain, and it is essential to ensure that the support is maintained through appropriate design of eLearning resources. It is truly inspirational to see learners overcoming challenges in the face of adversity and this is one of the reasons I chose this project, because I have spent my entire working career helping learners find technological solutions to the many challenges they face. As I have now reached retirement age and would probably be classed as an 'older learner', suffer from a number of disabilities, and have a child with a learning disability as well as a teenager living at home, I feel I am in a good position to understand and empathise with many students and educators during the COVID-19 crisis.

There has been a lot of negativity emphasized in relation to COVID-19, some, of course, is justified in regard to the devastating consequences of the virus, however this can often overlook the good that has also come out of the crisis in terms of people coming together and helping to support each other, particularly the most vulnerable in society. This has been greatly assisted by technology, through support networks, and the use of web conferencing tools keeping us all socially connected. COVID-19 has given us the opportunity to investigate new and potentially better ways of working and studying and I am really pleased and proud to be part of a group that is looking for solutions to the current challenges we are all facing.

Levi

My current role as a university professor in Nigeria involves teaching undergraduate and postgraduate students, research in earth and environmental physics, and administration.

Today, educational institutions, educators and learners are embracing online teaching and learning that have now been widely encouraged as a result of the present global Covid-19 pandemic. Education may not fully return to ‘normal’ after the pandemic, but a new definition of ‘normal’ would definitely evolved, which may pivot around online education.

This project, therefore, is vital for my swift transition to online education.

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