1. Emergency remote leadership in higher education: human, fiscal, infrastructural, and abstract capitals
With the new normal emerges the need to understand how human, fiscal, infrastructural, and abstract capitals have been altered. The skills and competencies required of individuals have changed. The funding needs have changed as well as the focus of what is needed. The infrastructure has also been transformed to encompass technological software and bandwidth. Policies are being re-tooled to cater to the online environment. What new policies are being created? How are we altering our previous policies? This sub-theme speaks to such transformations. Abstracts are invited that speak to such constructs.
2. Innovation in leadership and teaching including inclusive education
The pandemic has altered the face of education forever. Educators are creating new paradigms in teaching and learning. They are finding new ways to reach the inaccessible students. They are also creating new ways of practising inclusivity within the realm of the online environment. This theme speaks to this aspect of emergency remote education especially vis a vis Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Abstracts are invited that relate to this sub-theme.
3. Digital divide: Opportunities and challenges
Vulnerable populations have always been affected by the digital divide. The pandemic has widened the gap between the haves and have-nots and made vulnerable and marginalized populations even more at risk. This theme encompasses the challenges facing vulnerable populations and ways in which the educators and key stakeholders are using these challenges as opportunities to create new paradigms of pandemic pedagogy. Abstracts are invited that speak to the issue of Digital Divide.
4. The issue of care and well-being
With the pandemic, everyone is expected to chart uncharted territories and understand the new normal. This sub-theme speaks to the issue of care and well-being. How are we faring during the pandemic? What coping mechanisms have we successfully implemented? Abstracts are invited that speak to this theme of care and well-being during the pandemic.
5. Gender and emergency remote teaching, leading, and learning
Gender is socially constructed, yet, within societies there are marked gender disparities. The pandemic has given rise to even more gender disparities. How are such disparities reflected in our current everyday lives? Are female students attending classes more than males or vice versa? Abstracts are invited that speak to the theme of gender and emergency remote teaching, leading, and learning.
6. Parental involvement during emergency remote leading, teaching and learning
Parental involvement at the nursery, primary, and secondary levels has resulted in serious paradigm shifts where parents are now carrying on the role as teachers, supervisors, monitors, and parents. How are parents responding to this new home schooling? How are children embracing the new roles their parents play? Abstracts are invited that speak to this theme.
7. Quality assurance during emergency remote leading, teaching, and learning
Quality assurance affects every aspect of leading, teaching, and learning. During emergency remote education, what aspects of quality are being adhered to? How are we ensuring that quality continues within the pandemic? New set of standards and guidelines are being set to ensure that quality during the pandemic is robust. Abstracts are invited that speak to the theme of quality assurance during emergency remote leading, teaching and learning.
8. Knowledge management and student support services
Emerging literature indicates that there is an obvious gap between the student support services offered online as opposed to face-to-face. How have knowledge management and student support services fared during the pandemic? What new measures have they implemented to ensure that they are meeting the needs to their key stakeholders- the students? What mechanisms were no longer needed and what replaced these mechanisms? Abstracts are invited that speak to the theme of knowledge management and student support services.
9. Assessment and evaluation techniques
As the pandemic continues unabated, assessment and evaluation techniques are being re-evaluated. Educators are now faced with issues of academic integrity and how these issues are being compromised. What techniques have institutions successfully implemented to ensure that academic integrity is maintained during online testing? What software has been successfully implemented to ensure academic integrity during online assessment and evaluation? Abstracts are invited based on the theme of assessment and evaluation techniques during the pandemic.
10. Leading, teaching, and learning post-COVID-19
Key stakeholders involved in leadership, teaching and learning have turned their attention to what these activities would look like post-COVID-19. In fact, UNESCO (2020) has suggested nine ideas for public action post-COVID-19. UNESCO highlighted the need for changes post-pandemic. Abstracts are invited based on the theme of leading, teaching, and learning post-COVID-19.