The state of Australasian online higher education post-pandemic and beyond

Online learning is not a new phenomenon that had just been discovered in March 2020, it has been developing very strongly for 20+ years. What is new is that we are now realising that what was conceived as being good online learning pedagogy is being challenged by many of the newer student-centred approaches that have evolved in learning and teaching. Not the least because the technologies now allow us to do way more in a more synchronous way, allowing students to work more collaboratively with others. Or maybe it’s more that we have rediscovered some activities that were harder to achieve in the past. Either way, what has also changed in higher education is the emphasis on the student and how providing them with a greater level of agency in their learning presents more traditional educators with new challenges. This paper presents some options for those looking to understand and meet those challenges head on. Practitioner Notes 1. Consider changing one or two of your assessments to be more active, collaborative or authentic by using some of the suggested approaches 2. See if you can place your practice in the continuum or evolution of online learning in Australasia 3. some of the student-centred learning approaches suggested may even make your assessment more robust, with students less likely to cheat 4. Post-pandemic higher education is an opportunity for us to consider newer interactive a collaborative forms of teaching 5. Engaging with more contemporary technology enhanced learning tools can allow students to experience a range of solutions and options they might use in the future.