Belonging, Wellbeing and Stress with Online Learning during Covid-19

Sense of belonging, perceived stress and wellbeing are reported factors that influence students' university experience and learning. The COVID-19 pandemic and shift to online emergency remote teaching were likely to exacerbate these affective dimensions of student experience. This article employed a quantitative survey research design to determine how students' sense of belonging, perceived stress and wellbeing were influenced during the pandemic. An online questionnaire was administered to 537 South African students at one residential university. Data analysis was performed using multiple regression analysis. The results indicated that platform pedagogy was a significant predictor of belonging, perceived stress, and wellbeing, while lecturers' pedagogical competence was not. Lived learning experience of online learning was a significant predictor of perceived stress, and communication was a significant predictor of belonging. The importance of the learning environment in student belonging and wellbeing is key to student success and this study provides insights for developing targeted interventions.

Education in a ‘neoliberalised’ online teaching and learning space: Towards an affirmative ethics

The sudden mass migration of teaching, learning and assessment to the digital terrain because of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the global proliferation of scholarship. This scholarship ranges from romantic notions of the opportunity to revivify curriculum and pedagogy in what was deemed an underutilised educational technology (online) resource space to scholarship contemptuous of this newfound romance. This has exposed the potential affordances of online teaching and its adjunctive exclusionary effects. Whilst the authors recognise the short-term benefits of adapting advanced technology for educational purposes, they provoke the question as to the obliterative potential of technology for the human (university academics in this instance) and the non-human/more-than-human. It is, however, without contention that the neoliberal university, driven by the economic viability and sustainability imperative, gives precedence to curriculum delivery and student support to secure degree completion targets even within academic timeframe (year) constraints. As such, it is likely to neglect the cogent matter of the affective as it relates to both academics, students and the non-human. In this conceptual article, Rosi Braidotti’s critical posthumanist perspective is drawn upon, offering both critical and affirmative propositions for moving forward in engagement with technologies in emerging educational online spaces. Firstly, critical perspectives are offered on some challenges of the neoliberal contouring and new regimes of accountability and surveillance that appear to have become more efficacious in the digital space. Secondly, it is acknowledged that humans live in a technologically mediated world and need to navigate this world in productive ways. Braidotti’s philosophy of affirmative ethics helps us to invigorate affordances of educational technology that are hopeful. This article’s contribution lies in alternative imaginings of educational technology, so that technology can be used in ways that advance pedagogical lives and social relations. © 2022. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS. This work.

Maintaining Thoracic Services During COVID-19 - A Single Centre Experience

Introduction: In March 2020 the COVID19 pandemic erupted resulting in significant burden on critical care capacity and profound disruption on lung cancer surgery.Despite the reduction in capacity, staff, and resources, we agreed locally to try and maintain full surgical services for lung cancer by adapting the surgical pathway to one less resource intense without compromising patient safety. Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of thoracic surgery patients from 16th March 2020 to 1st May 2020 which coincided with the first COVID19 peak (Group A). We compared activity, outcomes, peri-operative course, and histology with a group of patients operated on during the same period in 2019 (Group B). Results: 53 patients in Group A were compared to the 69 patients in Group B.There was no significant different in pulmonary function, mortality, mechanical ventilation, length of inter-costal drain or hospital stay between each group. There was less use of high dependency care in Group A (57% Vs 75%) and more patients in Group A (72%) were part of the Lung Cancer Pathway compared to Group B (59%) (TABLE 1). Malignant histology was confirmed in 64% of Group A compared to 34% of Group B. Two-week post-operative outpatient follow up in Group A, did not identify any patients with symptoms consistent of, or with a confirmation test for COVID19. There were differences in confirmation of malignant histology, tumour size and usage of high dependency care between the groups for patients on the Lung Cancer Pathway (TABLE 2).After 2-year follow up, 85% of Group A and 88% of Group B remain alive. Conclusions: Despite previously unfaced challenges, with careful peri-operative planning we were able to maintain thoracic cancer services and minimise the use of Critical Care resources without increasing complications. During this time tumours were larger in nature and histology was universally malignant. [Formula presented] Keywords: Lung Cancer, Uniportal VATs, COVID19

Assessment and social justice: Invigorating lines of articulation and lines of flight

This article is a collective project. It is a rhizome-article that is an assemblage of five heterogeneous essays that trouble dominant practices of assessment, generally, but also within the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. The authors problematise standardisation, measurement, quantification, and other technologies of performativity that dominate contemporary assessment practices in schools and universities. In the essays, the authors invigorate lines of flight from dominant assessment practices and do so in the interest of assessment that is more humane and socially just. They point out that, as with anything else, a rhizome-article also has lines of articulation/connection and invite readers to invigorate these as they read the essays. The authors of this article draw on the works of several scholars but do so to think with them rather than having their work framed by them.