Facilitating discussions is an integral part of virtual, synchronous and asynchronous adult and higher education settings. This article offers effective strategies for supporting learners and guiding discussion, particularly about social and critical content.

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 greatly impacted all forms of social activities globally, including traditional classroom activities across all levels of instruction (kindergarten to universities). While online and blended learning (including MOOCs) have been an active subject of research and discourse during the pre-pandemic days,…

This essay is an overview of three lessons that the author learned while teaching during the pandemic. In making adjustments to her courses, she realized the importance of purposeful care, creativity, and community-building. As the title implies, all three can be achieved by committing just thirty minutes.

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way that schools provide instruction to learners and these changes may last for an extended period of time. One current trend is the use of hyflex instruction, which involves teachers providing instruction to students simultaneously in the classroom and online. This form of instruction provides unique challenges…

There is a mass movement toward conducting classes online due to the coronavirus situation. The call for new ways to engage students in a synchronous online course is especially urgent. Given that most face-to-face classes in physical settings have been cancelled, it is imperative that instructors know how to engage students in online lessons so…

In March 2020, many academic librarians were abruptly forced into an online service environment due to the global COVID-19 pandemic crisis. Although some librarians had been providing synchronous video reference consultations prior to the pandemic, evidence of the practice in Library Science literature is scant. This paper presents scenarios…

Remote teaching can be both challenging and motivating. Professors and lecturers have developed innovative strategies to improve students' education and engage students in synchronous and asynchronous classes. In this Illuminations paper, we describe BodyWorks, online tools to support courses in physiology, motor control, and biomechanics. The…

Classroom instruction focused on discussion-based learning opportunities can provide productive and inclusive learning experiences for all students, including students with learning disabilities in mathematics and those without learning disabilities. Mathematical discourse allows students to share their ideas, justify their thinking, critique the…

How much has been lost in pursuit of convenience with the "learning anytime, anywhere" model? This aphorism stresses delivery and access as central goals of its broad application. Distance or technology-enhanced learning is an important step forward for education in general, but the learning effectiveness is low. Much of the challenge…

This case describes the move to emergency remote delivery of classroom instruction at Northwest Lineman College (NLC), a private trade school focusing on educating the utility industry workforce. In particular, this case will describe the artifacts developed and critical design decisions the ad-hoc project team made to continue educating students…

Rural schools face unique and complex challenges and opportunities specific to rural contexts. Recognizing this, the Region 15 Comprehensive Center (R15CC) created and facilitates a community of practice (COP), the Rural COP, focused specifically on rural education in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Utah. The goals of this COP are to share…

The COVID-19 pandemic provoked a need for rapid adaptation of teaching strategies and learning environments. Thus novel approaches, predominantly based on online/virtual platforms are needed to minimize the negative effects of the pandemic on teaching (and learning). Herein we describe our recent web-based symposium series on environmental…

The spring 2020 COVID-19 pandemic triggered a crisis in education as all instructors were suddenly required to modify face-to-face courses for remote delivery (i.e., synchronous and/or asynchronous) within a matter of days. In response to the need to move suddenly online, reliable video-conferencing software that had been unavailable in the past…

Monday 23 March 2020 was suddenly the last day for term one, four days early. I had hoped we would be back in the classroom early in Term 2. However, I had to learn how to teach online and navigate software programs. This paper is an account of my experiences.

Challenged by COVID-19, we sought ways to increase engagement in the virtual classroom, capitalizing on a popular multiplayer game to teach persuasion to undergraduate students. In the game "Among Us[R]," players ("Crewmates") work together to repair their spaceship before it explodes while being attacked by other players…