Higher Education Challenges in the Era of Covid-19, from the Perspective of Educators and Students (Ghana, Georgia and Pakistan Cases) – A literature Review

For the last three years, the entire world has faced a colossal phenomenon - the covid-19 pandemic. All sectors and areas of life have been affected, forcing rapid and radical changes towards adaptation in its wake. Inevitably, the unexpected pandemic’s mark and impact on education is more severe and longer lasting than imagined. It disrupted education provision at an unprecedented scale. This article is intended as a review of literature on the experience of different countries and education systems during the Covid-19 pandemic. Based on the analysis of the existing literature and research on this issue, from the perspective of educators and students, including the experience of different countries around the world, the pandemic has had a great impact on higher education and pushed it to digital transformation, implicitly overcoming important challenges. The review uses particular examples of higher education in the era of Covid-19 in Georgia, Ghana and Pakistan, exposing measures taken to continue educating in spite of the pandemic. However challenging this phenomenon proved to be, it equally gave way to enormous opportunities for creativity within progress. Discussed are barriers that students and academics faced during online teaching-learning, the pros and cons of online teaching-learning, as well as the quality of teaching-learning and the state of preparedness for future education

Higher Education Challenges in the Era of Covid-19, from the Perspective of Educators and Students (Ghana, Georgia and Pakistan Cases) – A literature Review

For the last three years, the entire world has faced a colossal phenomenon - the covid-19 pandemic. All sectors and areas of life have been affected, forcing rapid and radical changes towards adaptation in its wake. Inevitably, the unexpected pandemic’s mark and impact on education is more severe and longer lasting than imagined. It disrupted education provision at an unprecedented scale. This article is intended as a review of literature on the experience of different countries and education systems during the Covid-19 pandemic. Based on the analysis of the existing literature and research on this issue, from the perspective of educators and students, including the experience of different countries around the world, the pandemic has had a great impact on higher education and pushed it to digital transformation, implicitly overcoming important challenges. The review uses particular examples of higher education in the era of Covid-19 in Georgia, Ghana and Pakistan, exposing measures taken to continue educating in spite of the pandemic. However challenging this phenomenon proved to be, it equally gave way to enormous opportunities for creativity within progress. Discussed are barriers that students and academics faced during online teaching-learning, the pros and cons of online teaching-learning, as well as the quality of teaching-learning and the state of preparedness for future education

E-learning Challenges in the Era of Covid-19: The Georgian Case

Digital literacy is an essential skill for learning, living and working, with the Internet remaining a main part of modern life. The Covid-19 pandemic has made the issue of effective use of information and communication tools and acquired digital skills of outmost importance and urgency. During the pandemic, higher education around the world has largely shifted to a distance/online learning format and Georgia's higher education system was no exception. The swift conversion challenged students and educators alike. Method: This descriptive study inquired N=2160 students from 5 top universities in Georgia about the challenges of online education, their learning experience during the pandemic and their recommendations for future opportunities. Results: The 21 items online survey used for data collection produced quantitative and qualitative results from a majority female body of participants. Even though they had no previous online learning experience, the vast majority of students prefer some online format of teaching and learning, as imperfect as it proved to be and quickly implemented during the pandemic. As the university mandates the creation of a student-friendly environment and relevant services to inform and support students with low social status and students with disabilities, it became a great challenge for Georgian universities to provide socially disadvantaged students with the resources needed for E-learning. Numerous suggestions for improvement of the online teaching experience and performance were offered

Higher Education Challenges in the Era of COVID-19 from the Perspective of Educators and Students (Ghana, Georgia and Pakistan Cases): A Literature Review

For the last three years, the entire world has faced a colossal phenomenon due to the COVID-19 pandemic. All sectors and areas of life have been affected, which has forced rapid and radical changes towards adaptation in its wake. The unexpected pandemic’s mark and impact on education is more severe and longer lasting than imagined. It has evidently disrupted education provision at an unprecedented scale. This paper is a literature review that focuses on the experience of different countries and education systems during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on the analysis of the existing literature and research on this issue, from the perspective of educators and students, including the experience of different countries around the world, the pandemic has had a great impact on higher education. This has resulted to digital transformation, which implies overcoming many challenges. The review uses particular examples of higher education in the era of COVID-19 in Georgia, Ghana, and Pakistan. The measures taken to continue education in spite of the pandemic are also highlighted. Although this phenomenon proved to be challenging, it has initiated enormous opportunities for creativity within progress. This paper further discussed barriers that students and academics faced during online teaching-learning, the pros and cons of online teaching-learning, the quality of teaching-learning, and the state of preparedness for future education

GEORGIAN HIGHER EDUCATION POLICY AND E-LEARNING CHALLENGES

Rapid development of science and technology, the acceleration of the process of internationalization and globalization in higher education in the 21st century, increased the demand, perspective and popularity of the wide use of distance and electronic learning model/method. Nowadays it is clear that in many developed countries, distance and electronic learning, taking into account a number of advantages, has radically changed the teaching process and effectively met the educational activities. Based on Georgian example and comparative legal analysis, this article presents the modern challenges and main problems of e-learning in the higher education system, offers relevant conclusions and recommendations

Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Knowledge, Attitudes, Practices, Risk Factors, and Seroprevalence in Rural Georgian Villages with Known Transmission in 2014.

In 2014 the highest annual case count of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) was detected in Georgia since surveillance began in 2009. CCHF is a high-fatality hemorrhagic syndrome transmitted by infected ticks and animal blood. In response to this immediate public health threat, we assessed CCHF risk factors, seroprevalence, and CCHF-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices in the 12 rural villages reporting a 2014 CCHF case, to inform CCHF prevention and control measures. Households were randomly selected for interviewing and serum sample collection. Data were weighted by non-response and gender; percentages reflect weighting. Among 618 respondents, median age was 54.8 years (IQR: 26.5, range: 18.6-101.4); 215 (48.8%) were male. Most (91.5%) participants reported ≥1 CCHF high-risk activity. Of 389 participants with tick exposure, 286 (46.7%) participants handled ticks bare-handed; 65/216 (29.7%) knew the risk. Of 605 respondents, 355 (57.9%) reported animal blood exposure; 32/281 (12.7%) knew the risk. Of 612 responding, 184 (28.8%) knew protective measures against CCHF and tick exposures, but only 54.3% employed the measures. Of 435 serum samples collected, 12 were anti-CCHF IgG positive, indicating a weighted 3.0% seroprevalence. Most (66.7%) seropositive subjects reported tick exposure. In these villages, CCHF risk factors are prevalent, while CCHF-related knowledge and preventive practices are limited; these findings are critical to informing public health interventions to effectively control and prevent ongoing CCHF transmission. Additionally, CCHF seroprevalence is higher than previously detected (0.03%), highlighting the importance of this disease in the South Caucuses and in supporting ongoing regional investigations

Demographics of survey participants during an investigation of the 12 rural villages with reporting at least one 2014 Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever case from January to September 2014 in Georgia.

<p>Demographics of survey participants during an investigation of the 12 rural villages with reporting at least one 2014 Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever case from January to September 2014 in Georgia.</p

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) seropositive subjects’ demographics among survey participants during an investigation of the 12 rural villages reporting at least one 2014 CCHF case from January to September 2014 in Georgia (N = 12).

<p>Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) seropositive subjects’ demographics among survey participants during an investigation of the 12 rural villages reporting at least one 2014 CCHF case from January to September 2014 in Georgia (N = 12).</p

Geographic distribution of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) seropositive participants among survey participants during an investigation of the 12 rural villages reporting at least one 2014 CCHF case from January to September 2014 in Georgia.

<p>Georgia is demarcated in white with surrounding countries in gray. The capital, Tbilisi, is indicated by a star. Circle size indicates the number of seropositive subjects in that area; the bigger the circle, the higher the number of seropositive subjects. Map adapted from MapsOpenSource.com.</p

Knowledge of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) among survey participants during an investigation of the 12 rural villages reporting at least one 2014 CCHF case from January to September 2014 in Georgia.

<p>Knowledge of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) among survey participants during an investigation of the 12 rural villages reporting at least one 2014 CCHF case from January to September 2014 in Georgia.</p