Writing-to-learn: Strategies to promote engagement, peer-to-peer learning, and active listening in economics courses

Incorporating writing into an economics course is a beneficial goal of economic educators. The potential benefits of using writing to enhance learning among economics students have been emphasized in the literature. Writing to Learn (WTL) is an act of using writing activities to help students think through key concepts presented in a course. The authors' objective in this article is to describe WTL activities that promote engagement, peer-to-peer learning, and active listening. This WTL strategy was born out of a desire to help students focus and learn in an online format during a particularly stressful time of the COVID-19 global pandemic. However, this strategy can be applied in all teaching formats: face-to-face, online or hybrid, and to both graduate and undergraduate students.

Predicting user acceptance of peer-to-peer e-learning: An extension of the technology acceptance model

With COVID-19 compelling some countries to close their schools, e-learning has now become the primary mode of learning. Researchers have renewed their interest in users' acceptance of e-learning via different platforms, given the possibility of different results relative to what was known pre-pandemic. However, e-learning still poses issues such as isolation, demotivation and learning attrition, which may be counterbalanced by peer-to-peer (P2P) learning. On this basis, this study surveyed 417 Indian students on their acceptance of P2P e-learning with the extended Technology Acceptance Model. The data analysis confirmed that perceived ease of use was positively associated with the perceived usefulness of and students' attitude towards P2P e-learning. Credibility was also found to be positively associated with perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and attitude towards P2P e-learning. However, the study could not confirm the association between perceived usefulness and attitude towards P2P e-learning. Additionally, self-efficacy displayed a weak, but significant association with perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness of P2P e-learning. Internet self-efficacy was found to have a positive association on the intention to use P2P e-learning, but not its perceived ease of use. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Writing-to-learn: Strategies to promote engagement, peer-to-peer learning, and active listening in economics courses

Incorporating writing into an economics course is a beneficial goal of economic educators. The potential benefits of using writing to enhance learning among economics students have been emphasized in the literature. Writing to Learn (WTL) is an act of using writing activities to help students think through key concepts presented in a course. The authors' objective in this article is to describe WTL activities that promote engagement, peer-to-peer learning, and active listening. This WTL strategy was born out of a desire to help students focus and learn in an online format during a particularly stressful time of the COVID-19 global pandemic. However, this strategy can be applied in all teaching formats: face-to-face, online or hybrid, and to both graduate and undergraduate students.

Using social mobile learning to stimulate idea generation for collective intelligence among higher education students

The importance of social networks has increased in recent decades, yet the use of social learning in higher education is nascent. Little is known how to foster high levels of social learning discourse among students in higher education classrooms. To address this gap, the present study analyses the use of a mobile application (Soqqle) for sharing student-generated content and peer to-peer communication. Students from Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Indonesia uploaded videos linked to assessments and received feedback from their instructors and peers through social engagement features (e.g., comments, likes). The majority of students reported that the social learning experience promoted idea generation, increased creativity, and improved attention. These results indicate that integrating online platforms and mobile applications can promote social learning. The findings have important implications for educational practice because many educational institutions have adopted online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022 Hong Kong Bao Long Accounting And Secretarial Limited. All rights reserved.

Predicting user acceptance of peer‐to‐peer e‐learning: An extension of the technology acceptance model

With COVID‐19 compelling some countries to close their schools, e‐learning has now become the primary mode of learning. Researchers have renewed their interest in users' acceptance of e‐learning via different platforms, given the possibility of different results relative to what was known pre‐pandemic. However, e‐learning still poses issues such as isolation, demotivation and learning attrition, which may be counterbalanced by peer‐to‐peer (P2P) learning. On this basis, this study surveyed 417 Indian students on their acceptance of P2P e‐learning with the extended Technology Acceptance Model. The data analysis confirmed that perceived ease of use was positively associated with the perceived usefulness of and students' attitude towards P2P e‐learning. Credibility was also found to be positively associated with perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and attitude towards P2P e‐learning. However, the study could not confirm the association between perceived usefulness and attitude towards P2P e‐learning. Additionally, self‐efficacy displayed a weak, but significant association with perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness of P2P e‐learning. Internet self‐efficacy was found to have a positive association on the intention to use P2P e‐learning, but not its perceived ease of use. Practitioner notes What is already known about this topic E‐learning which poses issues such as isolation, demotivation and learning attrition became the primary means of education due to the COVID‐19 pandemic. Issues with e‐learning can be counterbalanced by peer‐to‐peer (P2P) learning. There is a renewed interest in user acceptance of e‐learning via different platforms, as the sudden and prolonged shift to e‐learning is revealing different results relative to what was known pre‐pandemic. What this article adds Usage of the extended TAM model to predict users' acceptance of P2P e‐learning platforms during a pandemic. Extending the TAM model with a renewed focus on the importance of self‐efficacy and Internet self‐efficacy in accepting P2P e‐learning during a period of complete remote learning. Extending the TAM model with credibility as a factor: because P2P platforms allow any user to provide answers, students may struggle with choosing which answer to accept. Credibility was discovered to have a positive association with perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness and attitude towards P2P platforms. A positive association between perceived usefulness and attitude could not be confirmed—a discovery we consider related to the supplementary way the P2P platform was utilised. Perceived ease of use had a larger association with the intention to use P2P e‐learning than perceived usefulness, thus suggesting that students are more concerned with the ease of finding an answer than the usefulness obtained from it. Implications for practice and/or policy P2P e‐learning platforms should consider means through which an answer's credibility can be increased in order to bolster the ATT towards them. At a macro level, schools should consider the self‐efficacy and Internet self‐efficacy of students to ensure they are able to partake in e‐learning and provide training and resources to those who are lacking. P2P e‐learning platforms need to improve their user interface design and user experience to increase the Perceived ease of use for their users. What is already known about this topic E‐learning which poses issues such as isolation, demotivation and learning attrition became the primary means of education due to the COVID‐19 pandemic. Issues with e‐learning can be counterbalanced by peer‐to‐peer (P2P) learning. There is a renewed interest in user acceptance of e‐learning via different platforms, as the sudden and prolonged shift to e‐learning is revealing different results relative to what was known pre‐pandemic. What this article adds Usage of the extended TAM model to predict users' acceptance of P2P e‐learning platforms during a pandemic. Extending the TAM model with a renewed focus on the importance of self‐efficacy and Internet self‐efficacy in accepting P2P e‐learning during a period of complete remote learning. Extending the TAM model with credibility as a factor: because P2P platforms allow any user to provide answers, students may struggle with choosing which answer to accept. Credibility was discovered to have a positive association with perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness and attitude towards P2P platforms. A positive association between perceived usefulness and attitude could not be confirmed—a discovery we consider related to the supplementary way the P2P platform was utilised. Perceived ease of use had a larger association with the intention to use P2P e‐learning than perceived usefulness, thus suggesting that students are more concerned with the ease of finding an answer than the usefulness obtained from it. Implications for practice and/or policy P2P e‐learning platforms should consider means through which an answer's credibility can be increased in order to bolster the ATT towards them. At a macro level, schools should consider the self‐efficacy and Internet self‐efficacy of students to ensure they are able to partake in e‐learning and provide training and resources to those who are lacking. P2P e‐learning platforms need to improve their user interface design and user experience to increase the Perceived ease of use for their users. 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Building global capacity for COVID-19 vaccination through interactive virtual learning.

BACKGROUND: To support the introduction of the COVID-19 vaccine, the World Health Organization and its partners developed an interactive virtual learning initiative through which vaccination stakeholders could receive the latest guidance, ask questions, and share their experiences. This initiative, implemented between 9 February 2021 and 15 June 2021, included virtual engagement between technical experts and participants during a 15-session interactive webinar series as well as web and text-messaging discussions in English and French. METHODS: This article uses a mixed-methods approach to analyze survey data collected following each webinar and a post-series survey conducted after the series had concluded. Participant data were tracked for each session, and feedback surveys were conducted after each session to gauge experience quality and content usability. Chi-square tests were used to compare results across professions (health workers, public health practitioners, and others). RESULTS: The COVID-19 Vaccination: Building Global Capacity webinar series reached participants in 179 countries or 93% of the WHO Member States; 75% of participants were from low- and middle-income countries. More than 60% of participants reported using the resources provided during the sessions, and 47% reported sharing these resources with colleagues. More than 79% of participants stated that this initiative significantly improved their confidence in preparing for and rolling out COVID-19 vaccinations; an additional 20% stated that the initiative "somewhat" improved their confidence. In the post-series survey, 70% of participants reported that they will "definitely use" the knowledge derived from this learning series in their work; an additional 20% will "probably use" and 9% would "possibly use" this knowledge in their work. CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 Vaccination: Building Global Capacity learning initiative used a digital model of dynamic, interactive learning at scale. The initiative enhanced WHO's ability to disseminate knowledge, provide normative guidance, and share best practices to COVID-19 vaccination stakeholders in real time. This approach allowed WHO to hear the information needs of stakeholders and respond by developing guidance, tools, and training to support COVID-19 vaccine introduction. WHO and its partners can learn from this capacity-building experience and apply best practices for digital interactive learning to other health programs moving forward.

Creating Diversity in Tomorrow's Doctors: A Student Led, Widening Participation Outreach Programme.

Since its founding in 2017, InsideMed, an entirely voluntary medical student led innovation, has offered local London state school students a unique perspective exploring the application process and realities of a career in medicine. Our aim of promoting diversity and widening participation (WP) amongst future medical school applicants is reflected in the fact 80.2% of the students enrolled are from Black Asian and Minority Ethnic groups (BAME). Over an 18 month period, our students are invited to monthly seminars hosted at King's College London (KCL), where all things "medical school" are explored. Students are paired with current KCL medical student ambassadors and are grouped into 'Families'. Between sessions, students and ambassadors are facilitated to communicate freely, but safely through the online platform Brightside. Early establishment of our key stakeholders allowed us to anticipate how InsideMed would impact each in turn and, therefore, design our scheme to ensure maximal mutual benefit. Continual feedback and review ensures that we are constantly improving to meet the needs of our students. Feedback also allows us to identify how closely we have served our aims for each cohort; common themes which consistently arise include the creation of community, learning more about specifics of the medical application process, and building self-confidence and student independence. InsideMed has the unique quality of being designed by WP students and constantly updated to ensure the support provided best meets WP needs. This has fed into our tangible and impressive impact, whereby 7 out of 18 respondents from our 2017 cohort of students have been accepted into medical school. Going forward, we hope to expand our scope to include a wider catchment area and will continue online in the COVID era. We aim to create an expansive alumni community to inspire other students from comparable socioeconomic backgrounds that they too can have a career in medicine.