Welcome to our second issue of the year.

In our first paper, Sanwal examines study strategies of distance students in India during the pandemic lockdowns, which were influenced by technology access and readiness for online learning. The findings increase our understanding of the role of technology and should inform future teaching-learning approaches.

Given that virtual teaching—learning environments have gained exceptional importance, Rodríguez-Sabiote, Valerio-Peña, Batista-Almonte, and Úbeda-Sánchez investigate its perceived utility and learning by higher education students in the Dominican Republic using the extended technology acceptance model (TAM) as the theoretical framework.

In this next study of elementary school teachers in Korea by Jung, Choi, and Fanguy, several digital literacy issues were identified during remote instruction due to COVID-19 isolation. From their analysis, the authors propose a plan for cultivating teachers’ digital literacy in anticipation of skills needed in a time of digital transformation.

We continue with the theme of school teachers and technology where Maro, Kondoro, Mtebe, Proctor, Komba, and Haßler explore the feasibility of deploying Raspberry Pi computers and tablets as micro-servers to facilitate professional development activities of teachers via a learning management system (LMS) without Internet connectivity in Tanzania. They argue that this approach is both academically sound and cost effective.

Bae and Chong use the technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (TPACK) framework as a lens of analysis for online cultural exchange in an international learning collaboration between two higher education institutions. They propose a modified version of TPACK incorporating cultural knowledge to potentially afford a more culturally sustainable framework.

In this study, Akçapınar, Er, and Bayazıt focus on actual usage data (rather than self-reporting) to provide evidence-based insights into students’ engagement with the lecture capture videos. In particular, measuring active video watching versus more superficial interactions.

The isolation and remoteness of non-traditional doctoral candidates from a community is explored by Melián and Meneses through an examination of lived experiences. The result is a series of recommendations to both mitigate challenges commonly encountered and to recognize that the doctoral journey is more than just academic.

In our Literature Review sectionKarabey and Karaman provide a systematic examination of the activities and applications used to conduct synchronous virtual classrooms effectively. They were sorted and classified by themes to eventually serve as a guide or rubric for future instructors.

Finally, in Book Notes we have two contributions: The first reviewer, Loglo, examines Research, Writing, and Creative Process in Open and Distance Education: Tales From the Field edited by Conrad. It provides a wealth of sage advice from experts in scholarly writing. The second book, Critical Digital Pedagogy in Higher Education edited by Köseoğlu, Veletsianos, and Rowell was reviewed by Keshavarz. The book is a valuable open-access collection for both the public and those interested in the fields of online learning and critical pedagogy.

Editorial - Volume 25, Issue 2 by Dietmar Kennepohl is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.