The main purpose of the paper is to evaluate the online teaching process at universities, and detect shortages and gaps in online learning in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. The research results are the initial steps leading to the development of a guide and online open access tools supporting academic teachers in the efficient use of an online didactic process, which will be used broadly. The specific objectives are to identify differences in the assessment of online learning among students from different EU countries, to identify differences between face-to-face and online learning among students from the countries surveyed, to assess the attractiveness of online teaching to students in selected EU countries, and to determine the assessment of the preparation of university teachers for online teaching in the countries surveyed. Using a purposive selection method, five EU countries, i.e., Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Poland, and Sweden, were selected for the study. The study is based on questionnaires. The survey was conducted among 809 student respondents representing the five countries. The study was carried out in 2021 and the research period was 2020–2021 (before and after pandemic restrictions). It was found that students evaluate online courses much better in countries/universities with a long tradition in online teaching and usage of interactive platforms, than in those without them. Students generally evaluated in-person learning better than online learning, and their evaluation depended on their previous experience of online learning. The degree of preparation for the online courses is strongly correlated with the overall evaluation of these courses. The attractiveness of the online courses is strongly conditioned by the content of engaging, involving and stimulating elements. There is the need for the development of interactive tools and training for teachers, which will increase the attractiveness of online classes for students.

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Were the Higher Education Institutions Prepared for the Challenge of Online Learning? Students’ Satisfaction Survey in the Aftermath of the COVID-19 Pandemic Outbreak

Introduction: To compare the values obtained of the most used practical methods in clinical practice, by bioelectrical impedance and by anthropometry of the body composition of university athletes. Methods: Observational analytical study whose sample included 26 athletes of a Portuguese university football team. The assessment of individuals’ body composition was executed through bioelectrical impedance and anthropometry by an ISAK level one anthropometrist accredited completing the inherent protocol. For the data analysis was considered a critical significance level of 5% for a confidence level of 95% to test the hypotheses between the variables under study and their correlations, Pearson's parametric test of linear correlation coefficient was applied. Results: The variability of body composition assessed in the sample is highlighted. Significant correlations were found for fat mass and skinfolds sum (r=0,782; p=<0,001) as well as for individual skinfolds. Respectively through the elaboration of the scatter diagram, the following linear r2= 0.612 was obtained, representing the correlation between the variables. Similar correlations were found in the context of fat free mass and circumferences. However, in the case of the waist-to-hip ratio assessed by electrical bioimpedance and the waist-to-hip ratio assessed by anthropometry, there were lower correlations compared to the other parameters evaluated (r=0,441; p=0,036). Conclusion: It is intended to make it easier for interested sports professionals to select practical methods for assessing the body composition of their athletes, while eliminating the risk of selecting inappropriate methods. It is noted the possibility of replacing or complementing the bioelectrical impedance analysis with an accessible and viable anthropometric method such as the skinfolds sum, especially in teams with lower budgets like the university teams.

Body Composition Assessment of University Athletes: Comparison Between the Data Obtained by Bioelectrical Impedance and by Anthropometry

https://bmcgeriatr.biomedcentral.com/counter/pdf/10.1186/s12877-022-03122-3

Correction: Two-megahertz impedance index prediction equation for appendicular lean mass in Korean older people

Online teaching can be intimidating to faculty, and most educators new to online teaching do not have the knowledge necessary to create and flourish a community of learners who are active, engaged, and collaborative. Students need adequate support to be motivated and take responsibility for their learning in online learning environments and authentic learning experiences and assessment tools are integral to this process. Yet, most novice online course instructors don't understand how to translate these kinds of active learning experiences to online course environments. This chapter will go in depth with effective online instructional techniques to help train faculty to motivate online learners through best practices in online pedagogy. Topics include creating a welcoming course environment, creating and moderating engaging course discussions, creating assignments and giving meaningful feedback, motivating students to achieve, and motivating students to work with integrity and academic honesty. 

Training Faculty to Motivate Adult Learners Through Best Practices in Online Pedagogy

Objectives: During the COVID-19 pandemic, university faculty experienced an emergency pivot to online instruction in the Spring 2020 semester. Many had no prior online teaching experience and were given little time to adapt. This study examines pre-pandemic online teaching experience and training strategies used to learn how to teach online during the emergency remote teaching semester, perceptions of change in online teaching ability and the pandemic’s impact on teaching effectiveness, and interest in future online teaching opportunities. Method: Full-time faculty (n = 455) from four public regional universities in the southern United States completed a survey at the start of the Fall 2020 semester. Results: Over 35% had no prior online teaching experience, while 43% had taught several online courses. During the pandemic, in an effort to learn or improve online teaching skills, 13.4% sought peer mentoring, 31.9% completed a training program, and 34.9% both sought mentoring and completed training. Perceived online teaching skills, impact of the pandemic on teaching effectiveness, and interest in future online teaching were significantly related to prior online teaching experience and training sought. Conclusions: Faculty with less online experience perceived a greater negative effect of the pandemic on teaching performance and had less interest in future online teaching. Both mentoring and training enhanced perceived teaching skills, lowered the negative impact of the pandemic on teaching effectiveness, and promoted a positive attitude about future online teaching. Implications for Theory or Practice: The results provide support for the importance of faculty development programs in shaping attitudes and perceived effectiveness in online teaching and add to existent research on university faculty during the pandemic. Evidence from studies such as this provides universities with data that may be used to re-evaluate induction and training to improve instructional delivery in future instances when emergency remote teaching is required.

Faculty Making the Emergency Online Transition During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Effects of Prior Online Teaching Experience and Strategies Used to Learn to Teach Online (Special Edition 2022)

Whole-body bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) has been accepted as an indirect method to estimate appendicular lean mass (ALM) comparable to dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). However, single or limited frequencies currently used for these estimates may over or under-estimate ALM. Accordingly, there is a need to measure the impedance parameter with appendicular lean-specific across multiple frequencies to more accurately estimate ALM. We aimed to validate muscle-specific frequency BIA equation for ALM using multifrequency BIA (MF-BIA) with DXA as the reference.195 community-dwelling Korean older people (94 men and 101 women) aged 70 ~ 92y participated in this study. ALM was measured by DXA and bioimpedance measures at frequencies of 5 kHz ~ 3 MHz were assessed for independent predictive variables. Regression analyses were used to find limb-specific frequencies of bioimpedance, to develop the ALM equations and to conduct the internal cross-validation. The six published equations and the final equation of MF-BIA were externally cross-validated.195 participants completed the measurements of MF-BIA and DXA. Using bivariate regression analysis, the 2 MHz impedance index explained R2 = 91.5% of variability (P < 0.001) in ALM and predictive accuracy of standard error of estimate (SEE) was 1.0822 kg ALM (P < 0.001). Multiple stepwise regression analysis obtained in the development group had an adjusted R2 of 9.28% (P < 0.001) and a SEE of 0.97 kg ALM. The cross-validation group had no significant difference between the measured ALM and the predicted ALM (17.8 ± 3.9 kg vs. 17.7 ± 3.8 kg, P = .486) with 93.1% of R2 (P < 0.001) and 1.00 kg ALM of total error. The final regression equation was as follows: ALM = 0.247ZI@2 MHz + 1.254SEXM1F0 + 0.067Xc@5 kHz + 1.739 with 93% of R2 (P < 0.001), 0.97 kg ALM of SEE (Subjective Rating as "excellent" for men and "very good" for women). In the analysis of the diagnostic level for sarcopenia of the final regression, the overall agreement was 94.9% (k = 0.779, P < 0.001) with 71.4% of sensitivity, 98.8% of specificity, 91.3 of positive prediction value and 95.3% of negative prediction value.The newly developed appendicular lean-specific high-frequency BIA prediction equation has a high predictive accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and agreement for both individual and group measurements. Thus, the high-frequency BIA prediction equation is suitable not only for epidemiological studies, but also for the diagnosis of sarcopenia in clinical settings. 

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Kwonchan Jeon

Papers

Faculty Making the Emergency Online Transition During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Effects of Prior Online Teaching Experience and Strategies Used to Learn to Teach Online (Special Edition 2022)

Two-megahertz impedance index prediction equation for appendicular lean mass in Korean older people

Correction: Two-megahertz impedance index prediction equation for appendicular lean mass in Korean older people