Directions in Gulf Higher Education: Conclusion
Authors: McAlaney, J. and Segumpan, R.G.
Pages: 101-104
ISBN: 9781032588223
DOI: 10.4324/9781003457299-9
Abstract:The chapter in this section has explored reforms in HE in the Gulf region, a process unavoidably shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic. In Potential Reforms in the GCC Higher Education Post COVID-19, the authors acknowledge that the pandemic created a space in which to consider and re-design HE in the Gulf. As they note, many institutions were forced to adopt remote education during this time, an impact that remains to be evident through hybrid learning strategies. This raises questions on how we ensure such strategies are appropriate and sustainable. The authors propose that national policies can aide in this, including through the incorporation of resilience plans for remote education in times of crisis. The Design Thinking Model and Delphi Protocol are used to identify the challenges of remote education that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic, such as lack of technological literacy, cultural opposition to change, and online education awareness and training amongst both students and educators. The authors call for policy approaches that incorporate resilience to external threats and which are sustainable. This theme of learning from the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic is one which is raised by the authors throughout this section.
Source: Scopus