In a new article for University Business, Dr. Marie Cini, Provost and Chief Academic Officer at University of the People, and Strategic Advisor at ED2WORK, shares her thoughts around COVID-19’s transformative effect on community building in higher education.
In a new article, Dr. Marie Cini discusses the increased importance of a tech-centered approach to building community amidst COVID-19.
With more than two decades of experience in online education, Dr. Cini recognizes the myriad challenges — and unique opportunities — presented by “non-traditional” learning. In many ways, she points out, there is an increased opportunity to build stronger communities when teaching through a technology-first lens.
Dr. Cini offers the findings from Packback’s Instructor Sentiment Report in support of her conclusion; higher education is stronger when we employ the best of technology to give students accessible, inclusive pathways to success.
“That’s why I wasn’t surprised to see community and engagement top the list of technological priorities for instructors in a recent survey of faculty members conducted by Packback, where I serve as an advisor. More than one-third of respondents said that throughout the pandemic, technology tools that support student community have been the most important they used. And nearly four in 10 said that investing in technology to support student motivation and retention should be a top institutional priority for 2022 and beyond.
Findings like these suggest that instructors and higher education leaders are beginning to recognize the role of technology in facilitating stronger classroom communities, even as we look ahead to the possibility of a post-pandemic world.”
Excerpt from “What COVID-19 taught us about creating community”
