From guides to jugglers, from audience to outsiders: a metaphor analysis of synchronous hybrid learning.

Synchronous hybrid learning (SHL) is a new instructional approach that allows on-site and remote students to participate in learning activities simultaneously. Investigating metaphorical perceptions about new learning environments may offer insights into the ways in which they are perceived by various stakeholders. Yet, research is missing a thorough investigation into metaphorical perceptions about hybrid learning environments. Hence, our goal was to determine and compare the metaphorical perceptions of higher education instructors and students regarding their roles in face-to-face versus SHL environments. When asked about SHL, participants were asked to refer separately to the on-site and remote student roles. Following the mixed-methods research design, data were obtained from 210 higher education instructors and students who responded to an online questionnaire during the 2021 academic year. Findings showed that both groups perceived their roles differently in face-to-face versus SHL. For instructors, the "guide" metaphor was replaced with the "juggler" and the "counselor" metaphors. For students, the "audience" metaphor was replaced with different metaphors for each cohort of learners. The on-site students were described as an active audience, while the remote students were described as outsiders or observers. The meaning of these metaphors will be discussed in light of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on teaching and learning in contemporary higher education.

Technology integration in emergency remote teaching: teachers' self-efficacy and sense of success.

Sense of success and self-efficacy regarding technology integration in teaching are among the most important factors that influence teachers' well-being and professional development, and may have a substantial impact on student learning. In this quantitative study (N = 735 K-12 teachers in Israel), we explored the factors contributing to sense of success in emergency remote teaching and self-efficacy for integrating technology in teaching following the experience of teaching during COVID-19 days. We use decision-tree models to look at nuanced relations. Overall, our findings highlight the crucial-albeit not surprising-role of experience in teaching with technology as an important factor that promotes sense of success and self-efficacy. Going beyond this factor, we emphasize that emotional difficulties in times of emergency may serve as an important risk factor, and that taking a leading role in school may serve as an important protective factor. We also found an advantage to STEM and Language teachers, compared with Social Sciences and Humanities teachers. Following our findings, we conclude with a set of recommendations that could enhance school-based teaching and learning at large.

Data-driven decision-making in emergency remote teaching.

Decision-making is key for teaching, with informed decisions promoting students and teachers most effectively. In this study, we explored data-driven decision-making processes of K-12 teachers (N = 302) at times of emergency remote teaching, as experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in Israel. Using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, and a within-subject design, we studied how teachers' data use had changed during COVID-19 days, and which data they would like to receive for improving their decision-making. We based our analysis of the data on the Universal Design of Learning (UDL) model that characterizes the diverse ways of adapting teaching and learning to different learners as a means of understanding teachers' use of data. Overall, we found a decline in data use, regardless of age or teaching experience. Interestingly, we found an increase in data use for optimizing students' access to technology and for enabling them to manage their own learning, two aspects that are strongly connected to remote learning in times of emergency. Notably, teachers wished to receive a host of data about their students' academic progress, social-emotional state, and familial situations.

Interest in Educational Data and Barriers to Data Use Among Massive Open Online Course Instructors.

Higher education instructors constantly rely on educational data to assess and evaluate the behavior of their students and to make informed decisions such as which content to focus on and how to best engage the students with it. Massive open online course (MOOC) platforms may assist in the data-driven instructional process, as they enable access to a wide range of educational data that is gathered automatically and continuously. Successful implementation of a data-driven instruction initiative depends highly on the support and acceptance of the instructors. Yet, our understanding of instructors' perspectives regarding the process of data-driven instruction, especially with reference to MOOC teaching, is still limited. Hence, this study was set to characterize MOOC instructors' interest in educational data and their perceived barriers to data use for decision-making. Taking a qualitative approach, data were collected via semi-structured interviews with higher education MOOC instructors from four public universities in Israel. Findings indicated that the instructors showed great interest mostly in data about social interactions between learners and about problems with the MOOC educational resources. The main reported barriers for using educational data for decision-making were lack of customized data, real-time access, data literacy, and institutional support. The results highlight the need to provide MOOC instructors with professional development opportunities for the proper use of educational data for skilled decision-making.

Assessing YouTube science news' credibility: The impact of web-search on the role of video, source, and user attributes.

This randomized controlled experiment (N = 707) is the first to examine the role of video, source and user attributes in credibility assessment of online science news videos, and the impact of web-search on this role. We created a science news YouTube video in 12 versions (3 × 2 × 2 for source, quality and popularity). Each participant was randomly assigned to one version and was asked to rate the credibility of the source and the scientific information presented in the video. We found that perceived credibility is positively associated with perceived quality, as well as users' YouTube experience. For those participants who did not conduct an online search during the assessment task, there was a positive association between the presenter's perceived credibility and the video's perceived credibility as well as its popularity; however, such associations were not present for participants who did conduct an online search.

The independent reinforcement effect: The role diverse social ties play in the credibility assessment process.

In this study, we explore the effect of diversity among people who share a story about a scientific discovery, on the recipient's credibility assessment regarding that story. The data used in this study were gathered in two phases. Initial data were collected through the Twitter application program interface. The data were then used in an experimental setting: We manipulated the level of diversity of real-life Twitter followings, supposedly retweeting a story to our participants ( n = 274). Each of our participants was then asked to complete a paper-based survey. Our findings show that social diversity can enhance the perceived credibility of a shared item. This effect is amplified among individuals with high digital literacy, as well as individuals with high need for cognition. The study offers a deeper understanding of credibility assessment mechanisms within Twitter and other social networking sites.