ABSTRACT
Higher education institutions worldwide were compelled to deliver their courses online due to mobility restrictions and lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic. This sudden shift has disrupted the educational system leaving millions unprepared for the new mode of instruction. One critical area that received little attention during this transition is student assessment. Many assessment methods designed for face-to-face classes have been adapted for online learning without much consideration. The conversion to emergency remote education has likewise exacerbated existing and uncovered new socioeconomic issues that demand immediate action. A scoping review has been carried out to map the concepts and develop a socioeconomic inclusive assessment framework for online learning in higher education. This framework will serve as a guide in designing assessment tasks that are more socioeconomically inclusive, making online learning more equitable. This chapter offers practical implications for developing a more inclusive assessment design that is beneficial to a broader group of students. © 2022, IGI Global. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Background: Influenza or acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is seasonal with usual upsurge in winter months. Influenza might be a trigger of AMI. The outbreak of COVID-19 in China led to population wide masking, practice of hand hygiene and social distancing in Hong Kong starting from late January 2020. Methods: Our study aimed to look at the relationship between influenza activity and ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) incidence as well as the epidemiological impact of universal infection control measures. Patients with a diagnosis of acute STEMI from January 2014 to March 2020 were retrieved from the Hospital Authority Clinical Data Analysis and Reporting System. We also downloaded data of influenza activity and air pollution from Centre for Health Protection and Environmental Protection Department respectively. Results: With few exceptions, the STEMI incidence per standardized month basically mirrored the influenza activity from 2014 to 2020. During the winter of 2014-15, 2015-16, 2017-18 and 2018-19, the number of STEMI cases went up with the influenza activity. The rise in the number of STEMI cases in December 2016 and January 2017 was not obvious mirroring the inconspicuous rise in influenza activity of the same period. The surge of influenza during the summer of 2015 and 2017 was not accompanied by an increase in the number of STEMI cases. Influenza activity is a predictor of STEMI incidence after adjusting for air pollution and time factors. We observed an abbreviated peak and narrow base of the influenza activity curve for the winter of 2019-20. The number of STEMI cases rose to 220 in December 2019 but then dropped significantly from January to March 2020 mimicking the influenza activity curve. Conclusion: Our observation agrees with the hypothesis of AMI triggered by influenza infection and cold weather. Furthermore, population wide infection control measures during the COVID-19 pandemic might have contained influenza activity and possibly reduced the population risk of STEMI.