Critical Approaches to Online Learning

Online learning has become an increasing presence in higher education course design, with most courses combining physical real time engagement with asynchronous learning activity. Now, however, there is a greater need for this one-stop guide to critical practice in this area, as we rethink the role of digital in the social practices of university learning and teaching. This book provides a critical and contemporary ?deep dive? into the socio-material, technological and pedagogical practices at work in virtual and digital higher education. Examples are drawn from across and between disciplinary pedagogies with a focus on blended and hybrid approaches and the pivot to fully online made urgent by Covid-19 but drawing on existing best practice.

The Critical Practice in Higher Education series provides a scholarly and practical entry point for academics into key areas of higher education practice. Each book in the series explores an individual topic in depth, providing an overview in relation to current thinking and practice, informed by recent research. The series will be of interest to those engaged in the study of higher education, those involved in leading learning and teaching or working in academic development, and individuals seeking to explore particular topics of professional interest. Through critical engagement, this series aims to promote an expanded notion of being an academic ? connecting research, teaching, scholarship, community engagement and leadership ? while developing confidence and authority.

This timely and accessible contribution from Julian McDougall takes a critical perspective on digital learning practices for the post-pandemic university. Particularly praiseworthy is the treatment of innovative assessment and feedback designs within blended and hybrid approaches. The analysis interweaves theories and critical practices, anchored by relational and social justice perspectives.

Julian McDougall succinctly presents a nuanced argument for the potentials of digital pedagogies. He avoids both the oft-heard, simplistic ?deficit model? of online as never as good as on-campus teaching and the notion of online provision as ?complementary? to the physical classroom ? both irritating propositions for anyone with even a basic understanding of digital pedagogies. Instead, McDougall calls for us to acknowledge a productive ?third space? where learning can happen, is creative, and personal yet co-produced. Whilst resisting any utopian or techno-determinist reading of ?the digital as the answer? to all our problems, McDougall sees a radical potential in this ?third space?. This book should be essential reading for anyone responsible for teaching in HE.

Julian McDougall?s book ?Critical Approaches to Online Learning? offers a timely exploration of theory and practice for the post-pandemic university. In a succinct 92 pages, McDougall grounds many rich insights about teaching, learning, and assessment, in key theoretical perspectives, and derives important questions for critical practice in an era where academic work is increasingly mediated through digital technologies. This book would be an excellent addition to the bookshelves of educators new to online pedagogy, as well as more experienced practitioners looking to develop theory-driven and critical approaches to teaching with technology in higher education.